Britt in Ghana

How I know I live in Ghana

1. Water tastes better out of a bag…actually everything tastes better out of a bag.
2. I’ve gotten used to the 5am sermon from the preacher, equipped with a megaphone, outside my window.
3. Candle-lit bucket showers are pretty fun.
4. I sweat through one handkerchief a day.
5. When I rub my skin, I’m are guaranteed to come off with dirt on my fingers…even after I’ve showered.
6. A pineapple a day, keeps the malaria away.
7. My perfume is called “eau d’ DEET.”
8. The only way to wait in a line is to elbow my way through.
9. I spend 10 minutes trying to bargain a seller down 5,000 cedis…that’s 50 cents.
10. Lizard is the new squirrel.
11. The only road traffic on my morning runs are chickens and goats.
12. Now I only answer to “Oburni,” ok…sometimes I answer to “White lady.”
13. One of my favorite snacks is the white goo surrounding the coco beans in the coco pod.
14. Legroom in a tro-tro = euphoria.
15. I never use my left hand.
16. I start most my sentences with “please”, and end most of them with “God bless you.”

This was a poor attempt at being funny. Hopefully it will, at least get a smile.

Ahh...yes and more adventure pics!

Sadie burned her ass from sitting on top of the engine...

...On the way to a mud mosque.

Then the priest asked Sadie and I to be his wifes.

But I chose dancing over marriage.

And we went on a Safari,

and we saw Pumba.

But seeing the elephant was best!

Louisa celebrated her 22nd Birthday!

The party started small...

but then our room got packed with dancers...

Halloween came around. My friends and I were the 60s, 70s, 80s.
The Ghanaians thought we were crazy!

It's been a while.

Every week, updating my blog is on my to do list, but with the traveling I’ve been doing, I always but it off till the following week. So what’s up?

The past couple weekends I’ve been traveling around Ghana with Sadie. This past weekend, we went to the Northern part of Ghana to go to Mole National Park for a Safari experience. We saw antelope, warthogs, baboons (one who almost stole our mango), and elephants! The amazing part was being able to see these animals in their environment. I mean, I’ve never seen a elephant roaming the savanna before?! Close to the park was one of West Africa’s famous mud mosques (the Northern region is predominantly Muslim) so we visited this village too. Oh and the best part, how we got North…we started in the Accra bus station and took a 12 hour bus to Tamale, got to Tamale at 3 in the morning, just in time for the 5am bus to Larabanga. The bus was packed. No, I mean packed, so packed the entrance stairs to the bus had 5 people squished together. Sadie sat next to the driver, on top of the engine (yes, her butt got baked), I was lucky enough to share one seat with a young girl. There really is no concept of personal space in this country. I’ve gotten so used to it; packed tro-tros just make me smile. Once we got to Larabanga we had about 10 miles more to the entrance, so we were able to take a short ride on a motor bike.

Two weekends ago we went to the Easter region of the country, which is much more jungle-like, compared to the savanna of the North. We went to a monkey sanctuary. Why sanctuary? Well at one point Ghana had a lot more monkeys, but hunting has caused a majority of the population to disappear. The monkey sanctuary we visited, Tafi Atome, was inhabited (and still is) by people who worshiped monkeys—monkeys are seen as the intermediaries from humans to the ancestors. So with protection from the village, the monkeys thrived. Now there are over 300 Mona monkeys in the small village, and the monkey population seems to be giving back to people in creating booming tourism! We spent our second day in the East in Hohoe and did yet another waterfall hike, except…this was pretty much the most challenging hike I’ve ever done. We decided to go to the upper falls, rather than the more popular lower falls, little did we know we had to scale (and then descend) a few mountains before we did so. Once we reached the waterfall, we threw off our shoes and ran into the water, right under the falls, so cool!

School wise…all is well. Actually I’m in the last couple weeks of classes. We have a dead week and finals take 3 weeks. I have a basketball game this Friday, it has been a couple weeks since we last played. The Police wanted a rematch because they didn’t understand how we beat them. Honestly, neither do I. They were some of the largest, strongest and fittest females I’ve seen in Ghana—not to mention they were police. We won the game in overtime, thanks to a few steals and free throws, and well, I’ll toot my own horn, I made the winning shots. It was one of the most exciting games I’ve played because the crowd was so intense.

Last week I cooked dinner for my roommate and her friends. At first, I had a hard time thinking of what “typical” American dish to make…without hamburger meat. I ended up making French toast, home fries, and tropical fruit salad—since the only fruits available were pineapple, papaya, mangos and bananas. They really enjoyed everything, I think. My room, for the most part, has been a fun place to hang out. Louisa’s friends always have questions for me, as I do for them, and there is always music playing.

So, Happy Halloween! Believe it or not I actually got to celebrate. Louisa was curious about the holiday so Sadie and I explained and made a Jack-O-Lantern out of a watermelon. The EAP boys held a party in their rooms and I have no idea how they got their hands on kegs. As I’m not the biggest party animal, I didn’t stay for long, but I had so much fun getting in costume. First it was hilarious to brainstorm with friends what we could all be: something that Ghanaians would understand, yet we had absolutely not materials for costumes. Myself and 3 friends were the decades—the 40s, 50s, 60s, and 70s. I was the 60s mostly because it meant I didn’t have to wear a bra. At times during the day, with how hot it gets, clothing becomes really overrated!

More updates to come, hopefully on a more frequent basis. But you know what, I don’t have too much time left here. About 6 weeks!

Pics to go with my adventures

We made dinner!

And then we danced...

Then Louisa's Mom made us dinner...

it was peanut-butter soup and rice balls.

And somewhere in between, I got really tan...

And then I hiked up to the top of this mountain...

And it was long and hard and looked like pride rock from the Lion King...

But then we made it!

And monkeys ate out of my hand.

But no adventure is complete without a satisfying bag of water!

My life in Ghana

Sunset over my balcony

Staff Village School

Me and my roomie! Louisa!

Good Morning Gloria! She serves me
porage every morning.

Me and my prizes (condensed milk!)
for 27th place in the school xc race.

Wheelchair basketball in Accra

Aburi Botanical Gardens

Sadie in tree roots

BIG tree, with huge HUGE ivy growing on it.

Entrance

Cocao pod! Yum!

Aburi skyline

Half way done!

It is hard to think of things to write about. I think mostly, because I have gotten used to everything here: I’m used to the black-outs (although I’m still learning the techniques of going to the bathroom in complete darkness), bargaining, bucket showers, people yelling “Obruni”, and Africa sun. I feel like a student at the University of Ghana—playing sports, going to class, meeting for group projects, going to the night market for Fufu and ground-nut soup for dinner. In a way nothing out of the ordinary has been going on. But let’s see…

I twisted my ankle in a basketball game last week. It got pretty swollen. So I missed a couple 5am cross country runs (which I wasn’t too sad about) and I’m pretty much good-to-go now. Last night I had my first school basketball team practice. I think it will take some time before some of the girls warm up to me, some of them are a little more hardcore than my Volta hall teammates. I had fun though, I realized I haven’t actually had a basketball practice since high school. All the drills I knew, although it took a minute at first, so I did everything very well. This Friday we play the Police Service?!? I’ll let you know how that goes.

This past weekend was low key, because my ankle was still swollen. I went to the market to buy more fabric so I can make more dresses for myself. And on Sunday I went to the area’s botanical garden, which was so pretty, and then went to a wood carving village.

Oh, I also went to the Accra wheelchair basketball team’s practice this weekend. I mostly watched, because I got there a little late, and they were playing games. They were interested where I came from and why I was there. It was a little hard, because being white here, screams “I have resources!” And you know what, I do. It is such a hard position to be in. I spent a whole afternoon talking about this with Sadie. At some point, I need to be looking out for myself. I have a lot more money than most of the country, and for me donating a wheelchair just isn’t as hard as it is for most Ghanaians. But is everything relative? I’ve got tuition next semester, and blah, blah. But is that just a statement so I can excuse myself for not giving. I can say this, you better believe, I will give a lot of my time to efforts here, but also stay careful that I’m getting the most, for me, out of my time here.

My roommate, Louisa, is amazing. We are getting along really well. She’s an Economics student too, in her last year. She is very interested in me, my family, home, county, as I am about her. We have had a lot of interesting conversations about the US, global economics, Ghana’s development, California’s Governator, but also about boys, clothes, and movie stars. So far it has been a great experience, that I know will really add to my time here. In fact, Louisa may be coming to the US for winter break! I’m excited that I may get to show her around my home.

To my surprise I only have about 5 weeks of instruction left. We have 1 dead week (for studying), and then finals take place over the course of 3 weeks! I’ve got 2 weeks between one final and the next, which equals some traveling opportunities.

Speaking of traveling, a good number of EAPers are doing a lot of traveling, all around West Africa. I’ve been debating about this one. It is true that I probably “won’t have the chance to be in West Africa again!” And it would be so exciting to see Mali, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Burkina Faso…but, part of me says this: that I’m here to be in Ghana. To learn about culture, Ghana, the US, and to learn about myself. And I think that I have learned that I may be a lot happier sticking around for the weekend for a basketball game, and then having dinner at a friends house. This is just another reminder of how everyone is different, and that everyone here is different reasons. Mine being to gain a lesson on myself.

I’m hoping that I don’t arrive home and regret not traveling all around Africa, but at the moment, I still feel like there is so much more for me to see in Ghana. In addition, part of me is thinking, this won’t be my last time in Africa. And even if it is, I know there will be more adventures in my life time, and at the moment, I have no desire to make sure I see every country in the world, I’m happy soaking-in this experience.

Please if you feel like you need to shake some sense into me, do!

Wink, wink ;-)

Wanna send me stuff? Wanna get stuff?

Mail only takes 2-3 weeks to get to the US! Which is better because I thought it would take 3 months. Email me, or comment on my blog, you address, because I didn’t bring anyone’s contact info, opps!

Mail only takes 1-2 weeks to get here!

Here is my address:

Brittany Murlas
PO Box LG 356
Legon, Accra
Ghana, West Africa

Make sure the LG is in capitals.

Well, I have a lot of catching up to do, huh?

I can say that in the past couple weeks, I have definitely come to feel less like a tourist in Ghana. I've been going to classes, had a mandatory health check up at the hospital, I've been trying to volunteer in a nearby school but things keep getting pushed back...a Ghana token.

Some exciting things:

Monday I was walking past a building on campus, and noticed a sign for a conference on Literacy in Ghana's schools. I went in (my research topic is on literacy) and learned so so much, my research topic definitely gained some depth once I heard some Ministry of Ed people talk about Ghana's literacy issues. This upcoming Tuesday I'm going to talk to the Director-General of Ed Gender Development, to talk about my project...kinda exciting!

I found wheelchair basketball in Ghana!!! I made a friend in my schools social work class who has very little sight. We got to talking about disabilities, and he invited me to the next Legon Students with Disabilities Association. I went this past Friday and made some friends! One of the members is the Sports Chairman for the Ghana Disabilities Association. We are getting together this Wednesday to talk about somehow creating as sports event on campus for students with disabilities...get excited!

This isn't exciting, but at good lesson. I had my second basketball game Friday afternoon. We won, but I felt horrible after the game. Why? Well, a couple other foreigners came to play on my team, and well...you know that American have a bad reputation for not being culturally sensitive. Yep, that was my game! My teammates were swearing, not recognizing or respecting the other players, the crowd starting rooting against us. Everyone left the game pissed, and I was upset, because their behavior was a direct reflection on me. I talked so my Ghanaian teammates after the game, and apologized and it was nice to know that they understood it wasn't me.

Again, not exciting, but...I've been getting a little homesick, and not in the way I expected. I thought I would miss cheese, milk, running water, electricity, but not at all. I miss people. My family, my friends, my boo. Culture is a big deal, and I interact with Ghanaians a little bit differently than I do at home. I feel a little on edge about my personality a lot, does that make sense? For example, Ghanaian humor is different. And since my personality was founded in the US, my humor is too. That is the best way I can explain it. Such a good lesson on my identity.

My roommate came! WHOOO HOOO! I've been in my double room, alone for about 2 months too long. Her name is Louisa, she is from Accra. And she is excited to be my roommate. We'll cook together, she'll teach me some twi. I tell her about the US, because she is very curious. I've already shown her pictures of everyone and everything!

This weekend, was a trip for food! It was amazing. Sadie, myself and another duo Allison and How went to Kokobite, a beach town about an hour away from campus. Now, I like the beach, but Sadie and I had read about an amazing restaurant in the town, so, I'll be honest we didn't go to Kokobite for the beach! This morning: a cheese (they don't have cheese here) omelet and pancakes, which were like fried dough with melted chocolate and fresh fruit. Oh man, we went for a short walk on the beach and went back for lunch, haha: pizza, bruchetta, and fried bananas for dessert. My tummy has never been so satisfied. And don't get me wrong, I love me some friend plantains, beans and rice, but it was nice to have a luxurious change of pace.