Nine months, two homes
Shiny
I received a call at 11:15 saying our car would be ready at Noon. This, despite hearing late Thursday that we could expect it next Tuesday. How did we get from Tuesday to today?
Initially, the garage promised Friday (yesterday), which fit our schedule well: Tracy begins transporting some students to far-away internships on Sunday. But Tuesday was not workable, so Tracy bargained for the garage to reimburse our transport costs Saturday through Tuesday, including inter-city trips for some of the students. Seems the prospect of lost revenue provided motivation to complete the repairs sooner rather than later. Indeed, Emmanuel told me today that his mechanics worked into the evenings to finish.
The photo below shows their gorgeous work; the Lancer is shiny and new. But, more importantly, formerly rusting portions of the body are now protected. Several small, taxi-caused scrapes and dents have been repaired, too, with the benefit of silencing a rattling bumper. (My suspicion of suspension problems was, thankfully, wrong.) The exhaust system is quieter now, too. Assuming the new finish stays nice, I expect the Lancer’s life was extended by several years today.
Good for Calvin! Good for future directors! Good for us!
One very interesting piece of news: I learned today from Wahab and his friend Nana that last weekend’s (very loud!) Hall Week artist was M.I (Mister Incredible), a Nigerian rapper and former Calvin College student! Small world.
Unbeknownst to us, M.I is incredibly popular and critically-acclaimed. He has won several “best rap album” and “musician of the year” awards. People from all over Ghana descended on Commonwealth to see his show. (If Ghana has any reasonable fire codes, stuffing several thousand people into the central courtyard surely violated them!) Despite the fact that we could not appreciate it, the concert provided a strong finish to a successful Hall Week for the Vandals.
Truth stands.
—Matt
Rattletrap … Taxi
We went to Burger & Relish in Osu for gourmet hamburgers tonight. Power was out for the first 15 minutes until a generator kicked in. We all enjoyed our main course, and the kids enjoyed milkshakes for dessert. While there, we ran into Patrick, last seen at the paragliding festival.
Because our car is not yet fully repaired (and will be only on Tuesday due to the May Day holiday), we took a taxi home. Let me count its sketchy ways:
- ABS light: On
- Fuel low light: On
- Check engine light: On
- Fuel gage: Not functional
- Tachometer: Not functional
- Speedometer: Not functional
- Brake system warning light: On
- Brights indicator: On (despite low beams engaged)
- Rear wheel: Incorrectly attached, back end shook left-to-right
- Transmission: unreliable (or maybe driver recently learned to drive a stick?)
- Stick shifter: loose, wobbled with car
The trip reminded me of Rattletrap Car. Tracy was thankful to be in the back seat; aside from the instability, she had no idea! Being in the front, it was a horrible ride for me and a minor miracle to arrive home alive.
But none of this seems out of the ordinary for Accra. The horrors and the miracles are inseparable.
—Matt
Life in the Tropics
Several times in the last few days, Ghanians have told me that “the rain wants to fall.” Apparently, it wanted to but couldn’t. Until today. At about 1 PM, strong winds and a bit of rain swept through Legon, darkening the skies and turning on streetlights. At Catherine’s school, recess ended early.
One of the benefits of rain in Accra is cooler temperatures. When I stepped out of the flat this evening, it didn’t feel like a sauna for the first time in several weeks. At 26 °C (79 °F) is was the lowest temperature (day or night) that we have seen in a long while.
That’s life in the tropics.
—Matt
Orange
One interesting everyday life item:
In the last few weeks, orange flowers have emerged on several campus trees.
Quick updates on each member of the family:
Catherine swam at school today, a nice way to beat the heat. This evening, she created a still life drawing.
Mark is working on an ICT paper for school in which he must reflect upon the effects of ICT on everyday life. He has been enjoying the OverDrive app through which he can check out e-books from the Grand Rapids Public Library (for free!).
Tracy is in the midst of organizing the thank-you party and student internships. Today, she secured a band for the party called The Ghana Dance Ensemble (from the Institute of African Studies).
When I have the opportunity, I have been working on four papers with scintillating titles:
- Capital-labour-energy CES aggregate production functions: aspects of their econometric estimation
My colleague Paul will submit this paper tomorrow to Energy Economics. I am the second author. - From theory to econometrics to policy: Cautionary tales for policymaking with the CES aggregate production function
This paper will be submitted to Energy Policy, hopefully soon. I finished the first complete draft this morning. - A new approach to estimating total economy-wide energy rebound: An exergy efficiency based study of the UK, US and China
I’m providing some analysis for this paper, and I’ll be its third author. - Useful work time series for Ghana and South Africa
This paper is one of the outputs for my sabbatical project. I have been meeting people, looking for data, and slowly beginning some analysis. We are targeting Applied Energy, and I’ll be the primary author.
—Matt
Last Class
Tracy taught her last class tonight. Students made presentations that caused others to ponder. Many had things to say. The topic for all presentations was the NGOs at which students will intern and how their work relates to semester class themes.
The end of each semester is always a relief, and Tracy feels some of that. But, scheduling internships and exams for the Calvin students means that she maintains a high workload for the next couple weeks. Nothing is ever easy!
—Matt
Last Group Dinner
The Calvin car needs serious work: new paint, suspension improvements, and an exhaust system upgrade. So, this morning after taking Catherine to school, I brough the car to Danestrol Auto Centre where it will reside for the week. We are carless again!
We hosted the final group dinner of the semester this evening. Tracy said some nice words about each student. They are off to internship placements starting next week Monday and for two weeks thereafter.
Upon their return, Calvin will sponsor the farewell and thank-you party for which I took group photos a few weeks ago. There will be dancing as the students demonstrate learning from their culture and dance class. Catherine has been invited to join the fun in a matching costume. So, teaching, learning, and practice followed dinner.
—Matt
Loud!
Last night’s Commonwealth hall week concert was loud, VERY LOUD! Tracy said she and Mark twice heard the music during Raisin in the Sun, on the other end of campus! I guessed it would be uncomfortably noisy when I saw the size of the speakers carted into the hall. Each was as tall as me, and there were several. A generator was needed; not for backup power, but to run the sound system! We don’t know exactly when the show ended, but it was past midnight, probably well past. Thankfully, Catherine fell asleep at 21:45. The rest of us weren’t so lucky; we heard it all. If it had been my type of music, I could have tolerated the rattling windows, thumping bass, and yell-scream-rapping. But it wasn’t. So, I couldn’t! It was not a pleasant evening. On the bright side, we’ll all sleep well tonight!
On Thursday, I forgot to acknowledge the contribution of Commonwealth Hall carpenter Norbert to the livability of our flat. He replaced the lock on our front door and fixed the pantry doors whose screws had stripped out of the frame. Thanks, Norbert!
Finally, Tracy and I met with parents of a Ghanian student who will likely attend Calvin in the fall to study engineering. They’re members at Legon Interdenominational Church, and they had many questions. Both Tracy and I meet many prospective students and their parents as a matter of course when we’re in Michigan. But, we haven’t done so in many months. So, it was interestingly comfortable to tell Calvin’s story this afternoon, even if we were 5733 miles from our home campus.
—Matt
Star Salon
Following up on yesterday’s note about Commonwealth’s Hall Week: Tracy reported that (a) photographs were not allowed and (b) she would not have taken one anyway. The charging students wore fewer clothes than is legal. There is a concert tonight by a Nigerian singer. We hope to be able to sleep through the music.
Catherine’s friend Khadijah spent much of this errand day with us. First stop was Wild Gecko Handicrafts where Tracy picked up thank-you gifts for several people. A Spot Nose Monkey and a Sulcata Tortoise have homes “in the back.” Catherine and Khadijah enjoyed watching the animals from the swingset.
We also visited the Marina Mall but the toy store that Tracy wanted to patronize is no longer in business.
Finally, we all had haircuts at Star Salon. Khadijah watched while Catherine’s hair was cut.
This evening, Mark and Tracy will attend the play Raisin in the Sun on campus. Mark’s friend Kuno has a role.
—Matt
KAIPTC
Tracy and the students had two site visits today: the US Embassy and the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC).
Catherine, Mark, and I went for dinner at Pinocchio this evening. I’ll let Tracy explain why she wasn’t with us. Catherine took a few photos of our food that she wants to share below. There was ice cream for dessert.
It is “Hall Week” for Commonwealth, meaning that there is more than the usual amount and volume of both music and charging. Tracy, Mark, and some of the Calvin students will be attending a charging competition tonight in the main courtyard of the hall. Stay tuned for some photos to be shared tomorrow.
—Matt
Good News
Sarah, one of the Calvin semester students, contracted acute typhoid fever a couple weeks ago. At a follow-up apointment today, she learned that she is free from any sign of the Salmonella typhi bacteria. This is good news, indeed. We’re thankful to HealthLink for their accurate diagnosis and prompt treatment of Sarah’s condition.
We’ve experienced power outages on four of five days this week. Thankfully, none has been as long as the 32-hour marathon last month. They generally last 1–2 hours, although tonight’s outage was only 30 seconds in duration.
—Matt
Goats On A Motorcycle
Hello! It’s Catherine speaking!
I had a great day at school and I hope everyone who’s reading this also had a wonderful and great and awesome day, too.
So my brother Mark came home from school, and he showed us this picture of a man on a motorcycle with two goats on the back. Mark said that one of them looked like he/she was having a good time because his/her tongue was stiking out like something! Aye!
Sorry, I accidentally let my Ghanaian language slip.
Soooo as I was saying, isn’t that so funny?!?
Like I always say, “Every day is different. Isn’t it?”
—Catherine
Days of Wonder
In his 1986 review of Paul Simon’s Graceland, the self-proclaimed dean of American rock music critics Robert Christgau wrote:
by leading with “The Boy in the Bubble,” his most acute and visionary song in many years, Simon sets up every resonance. Here the African images—lasers in the jungle, a deathly desert wind, a baby with a baboon heart—are no way merely South African, because this is a song about “the way we look to us all.” Here the terrorist hides his bomb in a baby carriage and wires it to a radio in a world run by “a loose affiliation of millionaires/And billionaires”; here a boy wants to live so much he seals himself off from that world in a plastic bubble. You can hardly tell the horrors from the miracles, they're everywhere. … Simon has done the near impossible—brought off a song about the human condition.
I’ve been thinking a lot about the confluence of critic and composer over this song. Christgau is led by Simon to be incisive: there are times when and places where horrors and miracles abound. The human condition includes both, whether we would wish away the horrors or not.
The confluence of place and person can lead to insights, too. Indeed, there are plenty of horrors to be seen in Ghana: evil, corruption, disease, abject poverty, terrible accidents, and minor hardships galore. But, there are miracles, too: small kindnesses, beauty, sport, flight, joy among friends, charging Vandals, and music, so much music.
Inseparable, for now, they produce “days of ... wonder.”
—Matt
Group Meal
We hosted the second-to-last group meal at our flat tonight. Richard and Abraham were our guests. The menu consisted of chicken mac and cheese, pineapple, Fanta jello, and ice cream.
Tracy asked each of us to share the high and low points of our time in Ghana. Hilarity and a few poignant moments followed. Although they last only two hours, the weekly get-togethers have enhanced group dynamics and cohesiveness, which is fun to see. We will miss the students, and they will miss each other when they go back to the U.S. and we head to South Africa in a few short weeks.
—Matt
Christian Council of Ghana
Tracy and the semester students visited the Christian Council of Ghana (CCG) on Friday. The CCG plays a prominent political role in the country, and Tracy (along with three students) is doing some research concerning the organization. Comparisons will be made to the South African Council of Churches in a paper to be presented at the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion conference in Fall 2016.
—Matt
Mensvic Hotel
A feature of nicer hotels in Accra is the opportunity to pay a modest fee for pool access for a day. So, this afternoon, we went to the Mensvic Hotel in East Legon across from Catherine’s school to enjoy some R&R and escape the heat.
The Mensvic pool is relatively shallow (5.5 feet at its deepest), but the water was warm and refreshing. Catherine’s friend Jesse and his sister Jordan joined us after their swimming instruction. (Lifeguards give lessons.) The kids had fun splashing around, and I enjoyed chatting with their father, George. There is a nice “map” of Africa adorning one of the walls of the pool deck. Can you find the countries in which we’ll reside in 2016? (Hint: They’re both rendered in the lightest coloured stone.)
As I type, we have the second bout of evening dumsor in as many days. Yuck!
Readers should know that I posted additional photos of Mark’s paragliding experience. Two are courtesy of his pilot’s GoPro camera.
—Matt
Names
The University of Ghana has caught the same fever that caused President Mahama to decree all streets must be named! Previously nameless Ghanaian roads now have uniform blue signs whose purchase and installation were funded by international aid agencies.
On campus, a traffic circle and three-way intersection are, as of today, officially the George Benneh Circle and the Ivan Addae-Mensah Intersection. Previously, they were “The traffic circle near the stadium” and “The junction near All Needs.” The link between the two newly-named landmarks is now the Akilagpa Sawyerr Road. (Unfortunately, the Ivan Addae-Mensah Intersection signs, and there are three of them, make the junction more dangerous than before; they block the view of oncoming traffic.) Theoretically, the benefit of this national naming exercise is improved service delivery and speedier emergency response.
But even the best schemes can go awry. Indeed, a significant challenge is that naming remains inconsistent, despite the new signs. For example, the major thoroughfare to the east of campus is signed Jerry Rawlings Avenue, but Google calls it Legon East Road, Apple calls it Dodowa Road, and people call it Liberation Road, the moniker given by both Google and Apple closer to central Accra. It’s great to have names, but benefits accrue from individual behaviours in the collective context. If you can’t agree on the names, what good are they?
—Matt
Tayiba
To take a break from cooking, we visited Tayiba, a restaurant on Atomic road at the edge of the University of Ghana Botanical Gardens. It is an open-air establishment protected by a tilted thatched roof. Mark and Tracy enjoyed chicken dishes. The pizza that Catherine and I shared wasn’t so tasty. But, it was a nice evening, and a good chance to be outside. We happened to meet Catherine’s friend Jesse’s father, and we chatted with a Ghanian who has worked in the U.S. for twenty years.
I learned something new today: Ghanaian is an adjective (meaning pertaining to Ghana) and Ghanian is a noun (meaning a person with Ghanaian citizenship). I have attempted to retroactively correct the spellings on this blog, but I’m sure I missed a few. If you see any spelling problems, let me know.
—Matt
What Pertains
When you live (as opposed to vacation) in a country for a period of time, you develop cultural survival skills to navigate its society. This happened for Tracy and me in 1992–93 while Tracy was doing field work for her PhD and for our family in 2009 while I was on sabbatical, both times in South Africa. We're now living in Ghana for an extended period of time, and comparisons are inevitable.
There is a South African joke that goes something like this: if you vacation for a week, you write a book; if you visit for a month, you write an article; when you reside for a year, you keep quiet! The truth behind the joke is that experience both expands your knowledge of a culture’s nuances and complexities and tempers any claim to deep understanding.
As we were preparing to depart the U.S., I guarded against assuming any of my South African survival skills would pertain to Ghana. But, as we are now about two-thirds through our residence in Accra (and at the risk of ignoring the lesson of the South African joke), I’ve been allowing myself to consider what from South Africa applies to Ghana (and what doesn’t).
I find that a surprising number of our South African survival skills are pertinent. For example, both countries have a slow, laid-back pace of life. You can’t pack so much into a day; if you try, you suffer. Both countries have enough differences from the U.S. that frustrations are inevitable; resisting only makes it worse. And, both societies run on relationships. Without a connection, you get nowhere.
Of course, there are many differences, too. Our South African driving skills (left side of the road, most drivers obey the rules) aren’t helpful in Ghana (right-hand drive, hardly anyone follows the official rules). We find that connection to tradition is much stronger in Ghana than in South Africa; chieftaincy is much closer to the surface, and patronage is significant as well. Although South Africa struggles with government corruption, it is almost nonexistent in daily life. In contrast, corruption is persistent throughout Ghanaian society.
Other differences include the fact that race issues are less prominent in Ghana than in South Africa, which suffers from the legacy of Apartheid. And individual Ghanians are, by and large, more friendly and hospitable than individual South Africans. (Although I forged deeper relationships with South Africans in 2009 than with Ghanians in 2016, probably due to differences in my particular work and life experiences in the two countries.)
To be sure, South Africa and Ghana are very different places, even if they share a continent and are less different from each other than from the U.S. We’re blessed with the opportunity to experience both. May we enjoy their similarities and celebrate their differences!
—Matt
Group Photos
Tracy is developing the invitation for an end-of-semester party hosted by the Calvin program. This is a big party, with over 100 invitees. Traditionally, invitations include a photo of the students.
So ... Tracy asked me to take group photos before her 6 PM class. It was a cloudy evening and sunset is at 18:08, which, taken together, produced low, diffuse, dusk lighting. I tried to work fast (nobody likes group photos, do they?) while battling shutter speed and aperture settings to achieve good exposure with little camera shake. I think they turned out pretty nice. What a fine-looking bunch of students!
Which would you choose for the invitation?
—Matt
French Toast
A few quick updates today.
Catherine returned to school and attended chess club afterward. She won one match and drew a second (stalemate).
The Calvin students continued their run of exceedingly creative cooking for weekly meals. We had breakfast for dinner tonight, with both French toast and scrambled eggs on the menu.
Sarah attended the meal tonight. She is recovering well from typhoid fever.
Busy-ness seems to be overtaking everyone; most students departed between 7:00 and 7:30 to participate in other activities. (Studying?)
—Matt
Birthday Party
Today was a slow day, which is fine after our recent travels and activities.
After attending the worship service at Legon Interdenominational Church, I went grocery shopping with Tyler and Rebecca who will be cooking for tomorrow’s student dinner. From late afternoon into the evening, Tracy attended the birthday party of friend of Calvin Daniel's godmother. She took the photo below of Harmonious Chorale performing at the event. I stayed at the flat with Mark and Catherine.
Tomorrow, Catherine resumes school after a two-week break. Mark has next week off before heading back to Roman Ridge.
—Matt
Cupcakes
This is International Week at the University of Ghana. One event is this afternoon's International House Cultural Performances, at which the Calvin students offered a three-song set: Take Me Out To the Ballgame, The Star Spangled Banner, and Alma Mater. Other acts included Nigerian hip-hop and a professional singing and drumming group.
After the Cultural Performances (or rather slightly before they ended, because the event started rather late), several of the students went for cupcakes in Osu. They invited Catherine to join the excursion.
—Matt
Bojo Beach
Yesterday, Catherine made Jello for Sarah who contracted Typhoid a couple days ago. (Impossible to know where she got it. HIghest probability: Night Market.) Catherine delivered the Jello this morning. We know Sarah will be fine, because she is on antibiotics, and because the Jello will speed her recovery!
This morning, Catherine, Mark, and I joined the students who organized an extra-curricular excursion to Bojo Beach, 45 minutes west of Accra. We piled into a tro-tro at about 8:45 and arrived by 9:30. Catherine noted that “we took a tro-tro to Bojo.”
Bojo Beach is on a barrier island, separated from the mainland by an estuary, and a boat is required to reach it. At 10:00, after paying entrance fees and taking the short boat ride, we reached our destination. The beach itself is the worksite of fishers who were gathering a net and dividing its catch when we arrived. In addition to hand-placed nets near shore, others go deeper in boats like Rebecca.
But our purpose wasn’t fishing, rather sunbathing and swimming. The bathing area is stunningly beautiful. And, the waves were really pumping at low tide! Mark, Tyler, and I did quite a bit of body surfing, as our bloody knees and raspberries attest. Catherine stayed closer to shore, playing with several students, including Brooke and Krista.
We took lunch at the beach-side cafeteria, watching a rat scamper through the rafters. A boat was sent for ice cream after Krista’s mom and grandmother ordered smoothies! (Oh, Ghana!)
All told, it was a wonderful outing to the shore. Many thanks to the students who shared their day with us!
—Matt
A Friend
Tracy found a travel Monopoly set (UK edition), and Catherine and I played a two-day game that concluded today. The money is small (doll-sized), all the print is tiny, and the dice are minuscule. But, the rules are the same, and a 4th-grader serving as banker can practice mental addition and subtraction with three-digit numbers. Catherine forced me into bankruptcy using the time-honoured strategy of denying any monopolies to me while building hotels and houses on the light blue and dark blue properties herself. At the time this photo was taken, I had little more than $100 remaining and Catherine had well over $2000. But, there was a time when she was down to her last $2! An epic comeback victory at my expense.
Catherine invited friend Jesse to the flat this afternoon. Among other things, they played chess on Catherine’s iPad and scrambled eggs for a snack.
—Matt
Overhead
I waited nearly my entire life for today.
There is a single point on a planet where the sun is directly overhead, where the sun is at its zenith. But, the sub-solar point is always at the latitude of solar declination. Consequently, the sub-solar point is always between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. I have never lived in the tropics. So, I have never experienced an overhead sun. Until now.
All of Ghana is between the tropics, and Accra is at about 6° north latitude. (It is nearly on the Prime Meridian, too, but that is beside the point.) So, on the day when the solar declination is about 6° (early Spring in the Northern Hemisphere), the sun should be directly overhead Accra at high Noon. As it happens, today is that day, and the sub-solar point passed through Accra for an instant. (One can use the Sun Position Calculator to create a polar plot of the solar trajectory for any location. I verified today’s situation in Accra.)
To celebrate, Catherine and I took a photo on our patio. Unfortunately, clouds occluded the sun at Noon. At 12:32, we snapped the photo below. While not quite perfect, the sun is nearly directly overhead Catherine. There is almost no horizontal displacement to her shadow! Anyway, this is much closer to solar zenith than we ever get in Michigan!
Another item checked off my astronomical bucket list.
—Matt
An Incomplete List
One aspect of Ghanaian life not shared by the US is the sheer number of roadside vendors and the incredible variety of their wares. During our afternoon trip to the Ghana-Mozambique football match and during part of our trip to Nkawkaw for the paragliding festival, Catherine and I developed the following incomplete list of items we saw for sale.
—Matt
Mobile phone top-up cards
Towels
Sweat rags
Bananas
Ground nuts
Pastries
Paw paw (papaya)
Neckties
Puppies
Dogs
Newspapers
Hats
Water sachets
Juice
Socks
Sugar cane
Gum
Chocolate
Mentos
Beds
Belts
Necklaces
Fake soccer balls (air-filled)
Coconuts
Wristwatches
Toilet paper
Pringles
Kleenex
Sprite/Fanta/Coke
Energy drinks
Bungee cords
Ghana maps
Cleaning supplies
Cleaning brushes
Dresses
Handbags
Shoes
Sunglasses
Smoothies
Frozen yogurt
Fan Ice/Fandango/Fan Choco
Rock muffins
Meat pies
Apples
Grapes
Windshield wipers
Steering wheel covers
Bike tire tubes
Phone chargers
Computer cables
Kleenex
Books
iPad knockoffs
Fire extinguishers
Car floor mats
Car tires (used)
Motor oil
Candy
Gas cylinders
Chicken wire
Pots and pans
Garbage cans
Fabric
Backpacks
Carpets
Fans
CDs
Picture frames
Jumper cables
Snails
Grasscutter
Antelope
Ropes
Lawnmower engines
Stereos
Refrigerators
Luggage
Copper tubing
NFL jerseys
NBA jerseys
Linoleum flooring
Boxers
Briefs
Bras
Mortar
Pestle
Shovels
Machetes
Caskets
Casket pillows
Hubcaps
Porcupine
Bush cat
Crocodile
More Paragliding
There has been a lot of traffic about the recent paragliding festival in the last week. The Daily Graphic had a feature story. Cynthia, Tracy, and Catherine were featured in the centerfold photo spread, also in the Daily Graphic. (See them in the bottom right of the collage.) One of the pilots (Tim) and I have been trading stories and photos. One interesting fact: it is believed that the first solo flight ever by a Ghanaian paraglider was accomplished at this year’s festival. Finally, I added some GoPro photos of my flight to my gallery.
The menu for our student-led dinner tonight included excellent soft-shell tacos made by Sarah and Maria, shown purchasing ingredients at the Night Market.
Also, what’s happening back home.
—Matt
Mt. Gemi
While Mark, Catherine, and I relaxed in Accra, Tracy and the students had their final day in the Volta region. They stayed at the Mountain Paradise Lodge and did a very hot hike on Mt. Gemi that ended at a waterfall, and several students took advantage.
—Matt
Tafi Atome Monkey Sanctuary
After departing Sky Plus Hotel, I drove North with Mark and Catherine to the the Tafi Atome Monkey Sanctuary, home to over 500 Mona monkeys in five groups of about 100 each. The sanctuary surrounds the village itself.
Steven was our guide on a short walk through the forest. After about ten minutes, he called to the monkeys who scrambled, with much chatter, down from the tree canopy. If you hold out an arm with banana in hand, they jump to dine. Steven helped Catherine at first, and the monkey got a mouthful of banana. Later, Catherine went independent.
At about 11 AM, we headed for Accra. I’m pretty sure we took a long and indirect way home: dirt roads through remote villages in the Volta region and construction near Tema meant that we arrived back at the flat at 5 PM.
Tracy and the students return tomorrow.
—Matt
Cedi Beads and Akosombo Dam
We’re on travel again. This time to the Volta region. Our first stop was Cedi Beads, a central point for the bead culture in Ghana. Cedi, himself, was our guide. He is an international expert on African beads, travelling the globe to demonstrate and teach.
We learned that the raw material for Cedi’s beads is recycled glass. Cedi discussed the five types of beads as students watched intently. It took less than five minutes to make a design in a shot glass so we could see.
When the preparation is complete, beads are sent to the kiln in which firewood is consumed. After the firing, beads are polished.
After the tour, students had the opportunity to make their own beads (which they will pick up on Sunday) using glass chips and powders. Both Mark and Catherine made some beads, too.
Our next stop was the Akosombo Dam. This ~1 GW hydro power station was constructed shortly after Ghana’s independence was achieved, so it is now over 50 years old. Water from the Volta River reservoir flows through the headrace to the intake. Thereafter, it rushes downward through the orange penstocks (one for each turbine) and the turbines into the downstream river. When first commissioned, Ghana needed only 10 % of the electricity it provides. The rest was sold internationally. Because of Ghana’s economic growth, there is no excess capacity today. Which is part of the reason for persistent rolling blackouts (dumsor).
Tracy and the students went to Gyamini for a tour, but Mark, Catherine, and I went to the Sky Plus Hotel near Ho. Catherine and I enjoyed the pool before rains and darkness ended the swimming.
—Matt
