Second to Last Port… Ghana

The first day in Ghana, I had nothing planned except for going to Accra with my friends. The group consisted of Rebecca, Natalie, Abby, Alysa, and Austin. After the group was formed we headed outside to wait for our shuttle to take us Accra. The weather outside was not the greatest, it was warm and muggy. Oh joy. We had buses come and pick us up every hour to take us to Accra, as well as a shuttle that would take us to the front of the gate so we can get a taxi to take us where ever. So we got there for the second round of buses to come and pick us up. The only problem was that it did not come every hour. So we waited and waited and waited some more until we finally said screw it and jump into a shuttle. We waited for the bus for a good hour and a half in the sun. After we got into the shuttle we found some taxis to take us to Accra. We split up respectably and made our way to Accra. The drive was nice to say in the least. Our taxi driver was bumpin’ music with the windows done. Things started looking up. After about a 45-60 min drive we finally made it to Accra. Found an ice cream shop and had some delicious snacks. After we got cooled off we made our way out into the town. We made our way to the right and just took in the sights. Our goal for right now was to find food (some authentic Ghanaian food) and as well are walking, I see something out of the corner of my eye and it was Tyler, Adam, and two others staring at us until we made eye contact. It was pretty funny to say in the least. After that we continued on our way to find food. So we finally found us some food. Asanka Local Chop Bar. The food was amazing. I got this food called fro-fro. It was bomb.com. Ate with my hands, it contained this doughy, bread stuff as the base, then in the other bowl there was this stew like substance which had meat, gooey stuff and then I crab. I went to town on that sucker. Tasted sooo good and I ate everything in and around that bowl. From there we made our way to an open market. Now this place was crazy! We got bombarded with guys trying to sell us stuff. They all became my friends (rastafars). We were there for like 45 min. got asked for some weed twice and I got two shirts, coconut earrings and some funky pants. Also I traded a wallet for a wallet. I got the better end of the deal on that one. I then got a drum ceremony which was freaking awesome. From there we hit a bank and then went back to the ice cream shop for some food. Met up with Kari and Richard, said hi and went on our way. Had dinner, and then made our way back to the ship
The next day I went on a SAS day trip to the Slave dungeons and Castles. We made our way down to the buses and low and behold there was only one bus for enough to fill two buses. So thus we had to wait for like 30 or so for the other bus to come. Oh joy. The bus came and we got on it. We then made our way to the Elmina St. Georges Slave Castle. Now is takes about 90 min to get to Accra and then another 2-3 hours to get to the castle. So we were looking at a 3-4 bus ride. And not a smooth bus ride, a jarring, bumpy, and other verb you want to put in there. Needless to say it was not the greatest of bus rides I have taken thus far… but I did fall asleep here and there. We finally got to the castle and got bombarded with hawkers trying to get us to buy stuff from them. This castle was big with a lot of history behind it. It was actually quite daunting to walk though this castle not really knowing what went on during those times. Our guide gave us background to the history of this castle and gave a walk through the castle. Showed us where the slaves were put in for holding. The conditions were horrendous. There was very small percentage of survivors in the 3 months they were there before being sent to the Americas or somewhere else and then even then there was a small percentage of people who made the voyage. The living conditions for the women we really bad because there was very little air circulation and with them having their monthly cycles made the area very bad. There is still residue till this day because there was so much of it. Each room was more desolate the last, which was quite disturbing to say in the least. Though the white man was living quite nicely… We then made our way to the door of no return. Now when we made our way to the door, we were spread out and were able to take our time to get through the small passages to get to the final door. But back then they were chained together (ankles and hands) being forced, pushed and shoved to where they were sent through the door. And now the door was no wider than 2 feet. And now the slave could not go through it sideways, so they were too big, they could not go (but most of them did because they were all malnourished and lost a lot of weight. So pretty much the conditioned they lived in were horrible. After that we made our way to lunch at a golf course club and had some bomb food with beach front views. (Little hypocritical from where we just came). I devoured that food and had seconds as well as a beer. It was quite refreshing to say the least. From there we made our way to another castle/dungeon, though we were under some time constraints so this one was going to be cut a little short. This dungeon was much the same as the last. Though it was different as well. We were shown around the castle. The guide gave us a tour of the place, showed us where the slave were held and showed us where the church was set up (right above the male holding cell, corrupt much?) he showed us the horrible conditions the slaves were given and how they survived and died. He also showed us a shrine that was in remembrance for those who died as well for those who tried to escape. This shrine was placed in front of a door that was blocked off so that the slaves could not escape. It was very interesting to say in the least. From there he showed us the walk way to the door of no return was as well as the holding cell for the women. As we looked out from the door of no return we saw men making fishing nets. So as we walked through the door of no return we came back through the door of return. That door was to signify the stoppage of the slave trade. From there we made our way back to the ship. Another 4 hours of bumpy roads and jarring bodies. Oh joy… After we got back to the ship we unpacked our stuff and made our way for the night.
The next day we made our way to the Wili Falls and Mona Monkeys on another SAS trip. After another 4-5 bus ride we finally made it to the Wili Waterfalls. But once we got there we were told it was going to be a 45 minute walk to the falls. So I toughed it out and walked in the front of the pack with Brooke and had a grand ol’ time up there. I sweated a little bit but it was totally worth it once we got to the fall. The waterfall was awesome! the water felt amazing (after the initial shock. Lol.) stayed in the fall for a good 30 min. and then got a message from the water falling on me. The view was breath taking and I was having a blast. Stepped out for awhile to have some lunch and shared me food with breezy-mic-breeze-breeze. And then got back into the water one last time and skipped some rocks (I got some pretty good skips in there, so I was happy). From there we made our way back to the bus, but this time I was in the back taking my time because I was a little tired from all the excitement. Got back to the bus and made our way to the monkeys. Now these guys were adorable. We were able to feed them bananas and watch them go crazy. We were there for about 15 minutes and then the sky opened up and it started raining on us. It felt good, needed to cool off a little bit. After the rain stopped we made our way through the town and met the people there. The only problem was that the rain stopped and now the sun was baking us (well me literally) heat was coming from the ground as well as my own body. So pretty much I was a convection oven… we walked through the town saw some kids and people make these beautiful pieces of cloth. From there we walked some more and ended back on our bus and headed home. Got back to the ship and had some dinner and went out for the night.
The last day I stay on the ship because I had done all I wanted to in Ghana. So I things done around the room and got caught up with school work. Overall I had a great time in Ghana, though the buses were not the smoothest, the end result from them was great. It is just like last time start from the last picture and goes up from there because that is the order of my adventures. More updates to come :D
Now I am on my way to the last and final port of call outside the USA. Craziness for sure, Brazil is on its way.