african sickness

Hello again to all,

I hope this email finds you well. Thanks for the continued emails and birthday wishes - it was an interesting day, to say the least, haha. I don't think I've told you, but I've been rooming with one of the other volunteers, so she was so sweet - snuck around to get me a birthday cake and plan an evening out, so that was nice (although we all know how much of a non-partyier I am...thus why it was 'interesting'). We also went out for a 'western' birthday lunch - boy, it was really nice to have some good 'ol western food, haha!! My host mother (what a wonder she is!!) made quite the feast in the evening and I was instructed to bring my friends over. It was great! I was to have a traditional Ghanian birthday feast on Sunday, but for the past few days I have pretty much been in bed with some sort of sickness - the sickest I've been in probably 6/7 years! Oh dear... I've been well taken care of, though, and am feeling much better today (enough to walk an hour to the internet cafe and spend some time at the orphanage!). Hopefully tomorrow I'll be completely back to normal. We're not sure if it was some sort of food poisioning (which I don't think it was - it just doesn't make sense) or just a general sickness (my best guess, especially considering that a number of kids from the nursery at the orpahange have been sick), but I'm definitely glad to be feeling better. It for sure wan't malaria though - so don't worry Mom!!

On a better note, I was able to attend a traditional African wedding on Saturday!! Although I didn't know the bride or groom and the ceremony lasted over 2 1/2 hours, it was definitely one of the best weddings I've ever been to!! haha It's nearly impossible to describe the beauty of it - but it was a Catholic wedding, with the bride being from a northern Ghanian community. There was a choir, a tribal band, and a WHOLE LOT of dancing! And the church looked absolutely stunning. At one point, one of the priests was dancing with the bride - it was pretty hilarious. One of the other volunteers got a short video, so I'll have to post it on my blog once I get home. The most hilarious part of the wedding was when it was time to 'kiss the bride' but the groom didn't know what to do with her veil. At one point we thought he was just going to dive under the veil and kiss her - haha, it was great fun. Finally after some explanation on her part, he was able to lift the veil over her head and tuck it back... I'll admit, it beat Matt saying Megan at the wedding - so it looks like you're off the hook now Matt!!! hehe We also stayed for part of the reception, spoke with some of the drummers, etc - it was really interesting to learn about some of the traditional dances that were done, the bride's family dance giving her away to the groom's family, etc. Really quite amazing.

My roommate leaves to go back to the UK this Friday, so I will be very sad to see her go. It's been so nice to have someone else to share meals at the table with (the family generally doesn't eat at the 'dining' table), someone my own age around to chat with, and just generally relate to more easily... I've requested another volunteer to come stay with me, so we'll see if that happens... Only time will tell!

Well, as always, there's lots more to say, but I've better cut it off here. But thanks again for all your prayers and encouraging words (especially towards me not being married yet!! haha) - I'll admit, especially while sick, I was missing the comforts of 'home' - but my time here is nearly half done and I really am enjoying it.

With love and hugs to all,

Teresa

marriage proposals

...yes, that's right - MARRIAGE proposals!! Although this comes as no surprise, it is quite amusing EVERY time it happens (which is nearly a daily - if not more - occurance)... The conversations often go something like this: "Akwaabo (welcome)" "Thank you - how are you?" "I'm fine thank you. What is your name?" "My name is Teresa. It's nice to meet you." "Oh Teresa - like the first lady (the president's wife or something like that...)! Teresa, would you marry me?" hahaha To which I try and come up with some sort of witty response, which they do not accept... Good times, good times. Today I had a 36 year old man trying to persuade me into marrying him - he said he could cook, drive, had a good job, knew that love and human beings came before money, etc - but when I asked him if he played the guitar, he said no, so I told him "sorry! Don't quite fit my standards..." HAHA Good fun.

This weekend I (along with the rest of the volunteers who are here now - 18 of us in total, all but me are British) took a trip to Ghana's Cape Coast. There, after a long and crammed 'mini-bus' ride (like the tro-tro here, which is their bus) we went to Kakum National Park where we did the canopy walk (so fun!!), but unfortunately it was raining so the monkey's weren't out. From there we went to a hotel where spotting crocodiles is an attraction, but unfortunately the crocodiles were sleeping and fully fed for the day, so they weren't out. After checking into our hostel and having dinner (chicken and rice...again!), we spent the evening at the local petro station (haha) where there was a bar and music. The power was out, but they wanted us to stay and dance so they got the generator going and then the party started! It was some good fun - those Ghanian boys sure like to DANCE! After not enough sleep, we got up and had our breakfast and then set off for Cape Coast Castle, which is one of the castles where the slave trade was done. This particular castle was built and run by the British. WOW, what a humbling experience. The harsh way these people were forced to live is just unbelievable - truly unbelievable. I encourage anyone who hasn't seen it yet, to see Blood Diamond. It will give you a small picture into the way African's lived during that time. We also got to see some fisherman hard at work pulling in the nets, going out on their canoe's, etc which was amazing. After that we travelled to another town to see Elmina Castle, which was a larger, older slave trade castle - one that the Portuguese built. Much of the same story, SLIGHTLY better conditions, and again, very humbling. We also walked around the harbour of this fishing town for a little which. So many ask for money, and so many need it - it's so hard to turn them down and keep on walking. Some of the conditions of these homes, their clothing, etc was just so awful. I'm seeing these things with my own eyes, talking to these people with my own mouth, shaking their hands with my own hands and it is unbelievable. It's hard to even fathom how someone can live like that - but ultimately, it's because I've seen and lived with SO much more. Ignorance REALLY is bliss. I don't think I've said much about Accra, either, so maybe I'll talk briefly about that...

Accra, the capital city of Ghana, is where I'm living. Ghana itself is said to be one of the, if not the most well off African country - and this is quite evident in Accra. Much of the city is quite developed and there are many, MANY nice houses, roads, places to eat, etc. There are some (jampacked, dirty) areas that are quite poor - but much of this city is not that way. The house I'm living in (which pretty much is as good as it gets - how lucky I am!!!) has both running water (a HUGE luxury here) and electricity, with a generator so that there is power for the bi-daily power outages. My host mother is a retired Civil Servant and her husband was a wealthy man, so they have done very well for themselves. I'd like to talk more about her - but that will have to be another time. ...but anyway, we are very lucky. So for me to leave Accra for the first time this weekend and see what the rest of the contry looks like was very good. It's so humbling to drive by, in a nice bus with food and water, and see these mud huts, shacks built with sticks, where many of the homes only have partial, broken roofs. There are people selling things at the side of the road and they try to sell everything to you. And then when you get off the bus, it's amazing to see the children coming running towards you and try and be brave enough to be the first one to touch or talk to the 'obronni' (white person). What an experience... What do these poor, starving Africans have that we, wealthy North Americans (and British) don't? I really don't know - but it's evident. In a few weeks time I take a tour around Ghana and will visit some of the northern villiages and sites - it'll be neat to share some of those stories.

Well, this email is plenty long and my time is up, so I must go to bed. But thanks again for your notes - I really, really appreciate hearing from you. Although it is wonderful being here, it's so nice to hear from those back home.

Blessings to you all,

your non-married (hehe),

Teresa

a quick update

Hello to all,

It is getting dark so I don't have long to write before I need to head off, but I wanted to send out a quick update. Wow - it's been a week since I left! It's weird, in so many ways it feels like longer, and in so many other ways I can't believe I've been in Africa for a week... It has been quite an eventful few days and I have so many stories, thoughts, and feelings to share - but there really is no time. But let's see what I can say... This week, not only did I reject my first African marriage proposal (hahaha - you'd be proud mom!!), do laundry for the first time (oh boy am I going to appreciate a washing machine when I get back...and so will my fingers!!! But muscles I will have built...lol), but I started working at "Osu Children's Home" - the orphanage. WOW. I don't remember what I said about it, but it's a very large orphanage, with over 150 children. This week I've been spending about 11 hours a day (give or take) working in the nursery (up to just before 3 years). We have about 35 children there - with a couple added yesterday. It has both been wonderful and completely heartbreaking. We had a little baby girl (Lov) brought in yesterday, a week old - the most beautiful BEAUTIFUL child...abandoned shortly after birth. Another girl was also brought in - 1 1/2, who looks so malnurished and maltreated it just breaks my heart. There are 4 disabled children among our group (CP/delayed...etc) whom are pretty much ignored. Today, except for the 1/2 hour I had to spare with 1 of them, all 4 layed in their cots the ENTIRE day. They wore the same cloths as yesterday...sat in their own sweat, urine, and spit. I was able to change the one girl's outfit later in the day, but her other clothes were not dry due to the rainy weather. It absolutely breaks my heart.

It's not all sad though - I witnessed an adoption yesterday, which was very exciting. And there are many other happy stories from which I have been encouraged. But no time...

Anyway, I need to run - but thank you for your thoughts and prayers. I have found a very cheap internet cafe near the orphanage so hopefully I will get here often. I would love to hear how you are doing. Please continue to pray for me, and for the other workers here. It is such needy work.

With love from afar,

Teresa

some African thoughts

Well, as you know - I made it! Hurrah! It's been a pretty jam packed full 4 days, but is going generally well. I had my camera and memory cards stolen on Thursday from my room in the home I'm staying in, so that was pretty upsetting to me and since I haven't been sure how to handle it or approach it with my host mother. There was someone in fixing the lock on my door that day while I was out - and I was in a hurry when I left so I didn't put the camera away in a safe spot, but the memory cards were still in my bag. Anyway, it's been on my mind so I thought I'd share. Please pray for clarity.
Other than that, things have been good. I'm living in quite a wealthy neighbourhood so it hasn't been what I was expecting at all. Definitely not up to 'western standards' but much nicer than any of us were expecting. Accra seems to be quite a wealthy city in general, though. However, I did have my first real glimpse at true poverty today as we drove through a stricken neighbourhood in our taxi. Broken tin siding used as walls and roofs, wooden shacks, dirt and dust everywhere, children peeing at the side of the road - not even into the gutters, other children running here and there, people sitting together in their 'open homes', laundry hanging, women at the water pump filling buckets, the whole shabang. It was good for me to see. But it made me think about the wealth of so many people here and the nice life they live. I thought "how could they live like that while so many others are living like this? How could they drive by this every day, with children begging at the cars, etc, and do nothing about it?" I thought on that for awhile, and then I had this sudden realization that we, I, are doing no different. How many times in Kingston do I walk past the homeless people sitting on the side of the street and at best, just acknowledge them and reject their request for money. How many times do we, have I, walked by with bags of fresh groceries and not offered them something to eat? How much of a hypocrite am I for having judged these African people for not taking care of their own, when we who live with so much more, do nothing to help our own people. How do we do it? I've been thinking about it at a lot - and I've come up with nothing. But I thought I'd share these thoughts with you.
Well, I'd best go - but thanks for all your words of encouragement. I hope you are well. Thanks for your prayers - I start at the orphanage tomorrow and am very excited. Pray that my heart would be open to love these children in a way the need.
Thanks all.
With love.
T

July 12, 2007 - I'm here!

Hello to all from Ghana!!!

Well - I made it! I've just spent the day doing some touring of Accra, registering at the Embassy, going to the bank, etc. It's been great! And as I was told many times - Accra is a busy city! WOW. It's amazing though - and I don't think I've ever had this much attention in my life, hahaha. The flight went pretty smoothly - although both in Toronto and London we were late leaving due to people not making the flight, therefore have to remove the bags, etc - but it was good. Silly me, though, transfered directly to my terminal in London, not even thinking (until after) that once I went through security, I was in. Thus, I did no touring of London (boo hoo) but instead tried to find ways to ignore my tiredness and keep busy. It worked for about 2 hours... I was able to take a very short nap on the bench for awhile later in the day - but 8 hours sure is a long time to kill at an airport, especially when it's 'in the middle of the night' where you're used to, and you've had no sleep. But I survived and was able to sleep for a little while on the way to Ghana which was good. I'm all confused about time though - I was wrong about the time zone stuff...I think I'm only 3 hours ahead of Ontario here - although the sun goes down VERY early.

The family I'm living with seems wonderful - "Auntie Christie", who's in her 70's, her niece, grandson (3), and adopted girl (6ish, I think). My room is HUGE but basic and is about what I was expecting. So far the transition has been okay - the airport was wonderful - I was met by one of the airport staff and taken directly (past the whole line) to register into the country. My bags made it (yay!) and I was off to meet some of the representatives from the organization. There were 5 of them! haha We all piled into a little truck where to sat in the back and I was brought to my new home. Not wearing seatbelts is definitely something I'm not used to though. I've also ridden in a taxi a number of times (which is SO cheap compared to Canada!!), the 'tro tro' (aka bus - which is UNBELIEVABLY cheap) and some people's vehicles. The roads are in pretty good shape (better than some of the Kingson roads!!! hahaha) but traffic is everywhere. You pretty much don't stop hearing honking. People are selling things everywhere - it's pretty neat to see (there's lots to tell there - but don't have the time!). And Carmen, you'd love the wraps, haha. But I haven't seen any for sale anywhere yet... There is definitely a lot to get used to but hopefully that'll come quickly. The local dialect (Ga) is spoken fairly frequently so often it's hard to keep up with what's going on. Thank goodness I went to a country where English is spoken! I can't even imagine understanding nothing... Power outages are frequent due to the dry rainy season, so it's quite a sight where stoplights are, but people seem to not be fazed by it at all.

This weekend I'll be having my orientation and will meet some of the other volunteers (16 of us in total - all but me are from the UK). I'll be learning some of the local language so that'll be nice.

Okay, well, my time is running out so I'd better run. But thanks again for all your thoughts and prayers - I'll write again when I can.

Cheers to all,

Teresa

Orphanage video

Hi again,

I found this YouTube video awhile back and thought I'd share it with you. It'll give you an idea of what my life will be like at the orphanage. Perhaps I'll create something similar when I come back - who knows! Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0T4E6V6ENo

Enjoy!

Off to Ghana!

Well after the delays, Canada Post finally managed to return my passport to me - a good 24 hours after I needed it. But I have it now, I have a new flight, and because I'll miss the orientation that's happening this weekend, I'll be getting a personalized orientation from the organization. I'll miss a week of my project, and will miss out on meeting the other volunteers (at least initially), but I'm going to get there.

Once again, I've attached the photos of Africa, Ghana and where I'll be.