Day 82 (wednesday) The longest day

The last picture of my journey...this one is especially for Brett Moretti.

Well today started with me on a flight to London. It seemed like everything went pretty well but it just seemed like a longer flight than it actually was. Either way, I was ready to get off and grab some coffee at the place I went to when I was traveling to Ghana. There was no such luck and I actually didn't have that much time. You would think that a 2 or 3 hour layover would be enough but I had to clear customs on the transfer so by the time I got to the gate, they were boarding for the long flight from London to Dallas, Texas. Fortunately I had enough money that I could buy a cup of coffee and a nice salad/hummus mix because, as my luck would have it, the airline did not have a record of my meal request (I had checked it the night before but still had no luck) so I only had some pieces of lettuce, a cracker, and some grapes while there was pasta, sandwiches, and pizza served at 3 separate times throughout the flight. When I got to Dallas, I was a zombie but happy to be so close to home. I had to clear customs and recheck my bag and it was pretty smooth sailing through the airport but there were so many international travelers today that it was a big game of hurry up and wait (plenty of people were getting very hostile). I grabbed some trail mix and scarfed it all before I got on the plane. I was getting ready to board my final flight home and ran into some wonderful people that I've known for quite some time (I run into them in the most random places), the Huddleston's, and it warmed my heart to be so close to home. I chatted with them for a bit and was able to do a little catching up. Now it's on to the final 3 hour leg. For this one, I threw on some tunes and just closed my eyes. There was so much on my mind and I couldn't ever get comfortable enough to sleep. I wrote in the blog and got it all finished up. It was so refreshing to see the mountains in all their glory. I guess you never realize how great they are until you don't have them for awhile. The funniest part for this leg was when the dozen missionaries sitting in front of me and how excited they got when we flew over the “Y” in Provo, they were all glued to the window. We landed right on time and it was at this point that my trip had officially come to an end.

Thanks to all who followed me on this experience. Some of you got a little taste of what life can be like in Africa (Ghana) and hopefully you learned something along the way. I love my life and I hope you can love yours too. Thanks again.

Day 81 (tuesday) Final day in Africa!

The Accra mall.  It was really a change of pace but nice nonetheless.

Just a cool building across the street from the mall.

Me and the fam...unfortunately the picture that included Aunty Grace did not turn out well so this will have to do.

Me and Maame Esi...total sweetheart.

Me and the one who made this all possible...Maureen.

I didn't really sleep much but I figure that I've got a long day of traveling tonight so it will be ok. I spoke with Maureen for a short time and we discussed what the day was going to look like. I can't believe that the experience is coming to a close and that today is my last day in Africa. We had a little bit of lunch and then set off for town. I was planning on looking at a jersey that I saw a couple days ago and I know that someone would have liked it. We met the lady who makes beaded jewelry at her place so we could see more of her items and I found some really cool things. I bought a few of her pieces and she was so nice that she included a fancy looking bracelet (I bought another one similar to it because I was going to give it to Maureen and the lady included another for no cost so I ended up giving them both to her). As we were looking through more of the necklaces and bracelets, a woman came frantically into the shop to let us know that the president of Ghana had just died. Maureen thought it was clever to say that it was quite a coincidence that he passes away on the day I was leaving. We got a pretty good laugh out of it. After the shop we traveled into another part of Accra to a bookstore because Aunty Grace wanted something. Maureen couldn't find exactly what she was looking for but ended up with a couple books (mind you it was purely a christian based book store). As we were walking towards the main road I saw a few things and decided to check it out just in case I couldn't find what I was originally after. I settled on a cool scarf (also for somebody else) and made our way into one of the busier parts of town. We walked by the shop and it didn't look familiar so we walked up and over the crosswalk to make sure and we went back down and I couldn't find the jersey I saw the day/s before. It wasn't too big of a deal but it was starting to get a little late and I wanted to spend some time with the fam before I had to go. We got home and I finished writing my letter to Maureen. It was really hard because, as I said in the letter, there are no adequate words to express how grateful that I am for her. I had planned all along to leave her some money so I included a nice bill with the letter and bracelets. I told her that she couldn't open it until I was gone though, just to make sure that she would accept it. I took a quick shower and came in for my last meal which included stew, rice, and my favorite fried red plantanes. After the food, the family wanted to get together for a little fellowship and prayer. Aunty Grace is wonderful with words and said a lot of valuable and sweet things and Uncle Joe, well, he's just Uncle Joe (a sweetheart). Afterwards, Maureen had given me a bunch of little things for a few people that she got the chance to meet. She also wanted to give me the books that she bought at the bookstore earlier in the day (I felt so bad but I respectfully declined them. It also turns out that I didn't have the room in my bags for them so I told her that I would contact her at a later time via email and possibly have her send them with Kwadwo as he will be spending the fall semester in Salt Lake City). We took a few pictures with the family and started saying our goodbyes (they were going to church and Maureen and a cousin were going to take me to the airport). It was kind of interesting to note that one of the cousins, Maame Esi, sort of took a liking to me but didn't talk to me until the night before (just a few words) and the day of my departure. It was sweet and she is certainly a cute girl. I was packed and ready to go so we headed to the airport to try and get there early. We hit a little bit of traffic but nothing too crazy, as expected. I got in and Kwadwo had come from Kumasi to see me off. The terminal was super hectic so I thought I might be in line for a long time but British Airways was the only airline at the time with almost no line at all so I was checked in really quickly. We spent the next couple hours just sitting around and having some drinks and finally it was time for me to go to my gate. It was tough to say goodbye but I hugged Maureen one last time and turned around and didn't look back. I went through the customs process and apparently I was supposed to extend my visa as it was only good for 60 days so the (*$&#) immigration officers hassled me and I had to pay to get them to stamp my passport (not only were they incredibly rude to me but they tried to overcharge me...I called them out on the price inconsistency and got the guy to say it too). I got to the gate and they were already boarding for my 10:45 flight.   

Day 80 (monday)

Saw this lady in town today...They carry everything on their heads, it's amazing.

Woke up in the middle of the night and had a bit of a hard time falling asleep again. I woke up again and checked some emails regarding schooling information and got going on some of those matters. Maureen prepared salad and toast and warmed some water so I could have coffee. After breakfast she showed me around her garden. The property is pretty big so most things were pretty spread out. No one really took care of the garden while she was away so most of the plants are dying off and the vegetable garden is completely gone. I can imagine how great it used to look. I came back in the room for a bit to relax and write in the blog. I am noticing that my legs are getting torn up again, just as they were completely clear, oh well, something to remember Ghana by I suppose. We went into town for awhile and visited the art center. It was pretty cool with most of the things similar to what I had already seen. I visited a few shops (everyone wanted me to see what they had) and I eventually settled on a few things and finally began to round out buying things for people. Bargaining and being able to say no is pretty valuable if you can actually do it. I was going to possibly buy some paintings and the guy told me an absurd amount and I said no. He came down a bit more and I said no and that I wasn't going to be prepared to spend a fourth of the amount that he was asking and so I moved along. As I was visiting another shop, the guy showed me some of his things and then showed me some of the same paintings that the previous guy did, claiming that he was the artist. Needless to say, I purchased two paintings for less than the price of one that the other guy was trying to get. We made our way into town a bit more so Maureen could go to the bank and then began the journey through town and through the central market and eventually to the house. We heard from Edwina's (she's my classmate) sister and learned that there were a few items that she would like to be sent back to Utah for her. There was a bit of a breakdown in communication and she was supposed to come to our end by the end of the night but that ultimately didn't happen. We were also expecting a lady who makes beads to call as Maureen had previously had the lady make some beaded jewelery for me to take home for some people. She eventually called and it was getting pretty late but she came by and showed us the other things that she made. I wasn't in the best frame of mind because I was trying, to no avail, to get my traveling situation taken care of. It had been pretty stressful not knowing when I would be leaving but over the past week or so I had received notice that there would be a change to the itinerary and I was given the option to accept or deny the suggestion. After denying it, I hadn't heard back from them until the night before with an absurd proposal. I couldn't call them (the only numbers to reach them are from within the US) and they were not responding to my emails. I was speaking with Aunty Grace and Uncle Joe about everything and Uncle Joe grabbed me and said come on. I wasn't very presentable but he insisted that I just come anyway. I figured we were just going on a walk but we eventually went to a couple of bars. He told me to get whatever I wanted, I didn't really want anything but he insisted, and through the language barrier, I obliged. I ended up with a coke at one place and another soft drink at the other while he had a couple glasses of wine. He was trying to buy some drinks for me and I absolutely appreciated the gesture but couldn't adequately explain to him that I don't consume alcohol (although there were times I thought about it). We finally headed back to the house so I could try and figure things out. I finally got in touch with mom (who automatically became stressed over my stress...and little bit of greed) and gave her the information and she got things settled for me. Now I know that i'll be leaving tomorrow night and will be home in the SLC on Wednesday in the early evening. I was up pretty late figuring a few other things out but eventually made it to bed.  

Day 79 (sunday)

Where they were making palm oil.

Maureen sitting in one of the classrooms.

Me sitting in front of one of the oldest standing structures in the village.

Shaking hands with the chief...bummed that it turned out blurry.

Me and the eldest woman in the village (110 years).

The mother of one of Maureen's uncles and I.

I woke up a few times throughout the night but felt pretty good. I had some fruit and coffee for breakfast again and then spent some time relaxing and was under the impression that I would be going to church with Maureen. I got ready and made sure my bed was straightened and my bag was packed and we had some lunch and took off to tour the village. What a blessing and wonderful way to round out my experience here in Ghana. I saw some amazing people and structures and learned some of the history. I saw buildings they used for the schools, amongst other structures, and got to see how they harvest palm fruit and make palm oil. I was introduced to several people and was fortunate enough to have met the oldest lady in the village (110 yrs old). She was absolutely wonderful and full of life and still very strong. She was excited to come out of her room to meet me and happy when I asked to have my picture taken with her. We walked around some more and I was able to meet the chief. It was nice to sit in front of him and to have him so willing to share with me. I wasn't sure whether or not it was appropriate to have a picture so I didn't ask but surprisingly he asked if I wanted one. I was pleasantly surprised. He was originally just wearing regular clothes and then went into his room to change into appropriate attire. He has been ill recently so it was a bit of a struggle to get to his room. We took some photos and had pleasant conversation. He wanted to make me king of the youth in the village and I was delighted by the gesture. We walked back through the village and set off for home to grab our things. We had some more food and I realized that it was past the time that church was letting out. We were set to meet back with the family at Maureen's home as one of the uncles was going to take us back with him to Accra (that was the plan). When we got to the house, the uncles had already left so we had to take public transportation again, it was kind of a bummer. It was a bit of a long journey but we finally arrived in Accra. Maureen wanted to buy some vegetables for dinner but when she was buying them she wouldn't let me pay for anything. It was a very sweet and sincere gesture and sort of frustrating at the same time. We headed home and it was nice to be back. It was great to see Aunty Grace and my favorite Uncle Joe and I was glad that everyone made it back safely. I took a much needed shower and laid down for a bit. I didn't think that Maureen was going to make dinner tonight (I had suggested that she should relax) but she did. She must have been reading my mind and made curry pasta with vegetables (I had been thinking about it for the past couple of days and thought it would be a nice alternative to rice). It was so good and totally hit the spot. I came back to my room and had a pleasant conversation with one of Maureen's cousins about spirituality and Christianity. I started reading and writing and became very tired. Maureen came in a short time later and asked if she could sleep in my room, of course I obliged and I fell asleep a short time later.

Day 78 (saturday)

The big tree.

Me and "the big tree".

A sturdy bridge to the tree.

Maureen and her twin sister.

Today I slept in and it felt nice. I had breakfast (coffee and fruit) that Maureen had prepared for me and then relaxed for a few hours. I got up and ready and had some more food (rice and stew), Maureen insisted that I keep eating. We all got ready and set off for Oda which is a couple hours away for a funeral. It ended up being a pretty long ride and took a while longer because of the traffic. On our way, just about a half hour away from our final destination, we stopped at the big tree. This tree is said to be the biggest tree in West Africa. We paid our entrance fee and walked down a poorly maintained path to the tree. There were people leaving as we were approaching and two gentlemen available to answer questions and tell us about the history. They told us that if we wanted to take pictures of it that we should donate “from our heart” but we (Maureen) said that we've already paid the fee and there was no disclaimer about an extra fee so we should be allowed to snap photos. We learned about the tree and took some pictures. It was pretty cool. We went back to the entrance and waited for some time to get picked back up to go to the house. We had a good conversation and the driver finally got to us. He was with another aunt of Maureen's and they decided to go look at the tree so we sat in the truck. We headed out eventually and got to town and visited the house where Maureen is from. I very well received and felt completely comfortable. We set our bags down in the house and visited with several people and I met a lot of her family, including her twin sister as well as her biological mother and father. We went back into the house and ate some more food. It started getting late and I was thoroughly exhausted, her biological dad took us to their home in a village called Ayerebi. Not surprisingly the roads were horrible and it took us nearly twice as long as it should have. The house was nice and the beds were comfortable. I turned the fan on and fell asleep quickly.

Day 77 (friday)

We woke up and got ready and set off for the castle. We were to have breakfast at the same restaurant as before (I just wanted coffee and toast or something similar). I saw some pigs on the beach and I figured it was sort of uncommon so I went to take some pictures of them against the ocean and a boy started yelling at me (all I caught is that it wasn't safe) so I walked back towards the restaurant and the boy kept yelling, I said I understood and that I was leaving. He kept talking and was talking to Maureen, I suggested that we could just sit down and get our food. The boy looked at me as Maureen turned away and asked if I wanted to fight him. I said “why would I want to fight you?” and was thoroughly surprised by his remark. He made a finger gun and pulled its trigger, it was sort of amuzing. We eventually just walked into the restaurant and sat down and the same thing happened and the waiter said they were out of coffee or that the machine was down. I just asked for the packets and made that work. We stopped at the shops that I remembered and grabbed a few things. I spent a good amount of time looking over the items and it was really hot and I was exhausted. We walked to the bus station and grabbed tro tro to Accra. This trip took a couple of hours and the driver was a little less than stellar. As we were heading through town, I saw a cow in the back of a pickup truck. I didn't realize until we got closer that it was still alive and there were several men prodding the cow and ripping at its nose to make it stand up and get out of the truck. The poor thing was suffering so much and probably didn't have the energy to do much. Needless to say, it was suffering beyond imagination. We eventually made it through town and to Accra. We had a little trouble finding a taxi but finally grabbed one and set off for home. The traffic was so heavy again and it took us quite awhile to make it to our end. It was pretty scary but we made it safely. We dropped our bags and I took a much needed shower. Maureen made a huge plate of stew and rice for me (ate it all) and then I came to rest for a while. I didn't really rest, rather I laid down but couldn't really get comfortable. A short time later, Maureen came in and told me that she was setting off for church and that they wouldn't be back until after midnight (It was about 4:30 when she came in). I watched part of another movie and spent some time uploading my pictures. I went into the house and warmed some water and had some coffee and worked on the blog for a bit and the rest of the night will consist of a bit of reading and straightening out my travel itinerary for Tuesday. Today was a good day!

Day 76 (thursday)

The start of the journey to Nzulezo.

About 15 minutes in.

Just a villager passing us to go into town.

I just really liked this picture in the forest.

Approaching the village.

...and another one.

Me and the headmaster with some of the school children.

Just a view out towards the river.

One of the residents.

A photo of me just before we left.

This cute little thing followed me around for awhile.

Me and our guide.

Woke up today feeling pretty good. We were getting ready to take off and got a ride from one of the drivers (I learned that this house is essentially government housing and the family is here because the aunt is a statistician) to Maureen's cousin's house. She had wanted me to meet her for some time. We sat and chatted and had a little food (more rice and veggies). Her cousin wanted us to stay at her place for the evening but we had already made plans to travel to Takoradi and meet another uncle and he was going to house us for the evening. We snagged a taxi to a bus station and then drove to Takoradi. The trip was supposed to take, at most, 3 hours but we didn't get to our destination until just after 5 hours on the road. It's exhausting because of the sun and there is really no chance of sleeping with how bad the roads are. We met the uncle and we were both ready to crash. He was a nice fellow and ended up taking us to a hotel, he didn't want me to be uncomfortable so he paid for us to sleep in the hotel for the night (it was a bit expensive but under no circumstances would he, nor Maureen, allow me to help). After we dropped our things in the room, we walked back downstairs and spoke with the uncle again and followed him into the hotel restaurant where he paid for dinner. I slept ok and was ready for the next part of our journey. We got everything together and went in for our continental breakfast and learned that they didn't have any juice (Maureen was super bummed about this) and wouldn't substitute anything for it. I had some coffee and dry toast and waited for quite awhile for my oatmeal but finished it and was later glad I did. I found out that we would have to take a few different cars to get to the town near Nzulezo where we would have to paddle a canoe to reach the village. We got to the town eventually and I paid quite a bit, relatively, about 3 times as much as Maureen. She got her life jacket and we met up with our guide and set off for our canoe. We paddled through some incredibly thick forest and some large ponds before we eventually opened up into the river. The village was finally in our view so I knew it wouldn't be long before we got to the village. I took some photos and asked plenty of questions and it started raining a bit as we pulled up to the village. We walked into a room and the guide was beginning to tell us that we would need to provide more money or some sort of offering to the chief in order to hear the history. Maureen wouldn't allow it because we had already paid money for the ride (we were supposed to pay a little extra in order to take pictures but Maureen nixed that too) and got the guide to tell us on the way back (apparently he isn't allowed to tell of the history while he is on village grounds or he risks being fired). We walked around the village and spoke to some of the people and the headmaster of the school. The kids were all really sweet and enjoyed seeing new faces and they were all very receptive to having their pictures taken. We spent a good little chunk of time there and headed back to the town. We had to get back to Takoradi and had a bit of trouble finding a car that would get there. We found one that took us sort of out of the way first but it was really our only option and eventually made it. It was a blessing that we made it safely, the driver was speeding and cutting in and out of the lanes passing people while cars passing in the other direction were approaching. Several of the 20 something passengers were yelling at the man and Maureen was legitimately terrified (I know I've said it before but to reiterate her fear...3 years ago she was in a terrible tro tro accident where her leg was shattered (she had it operated on but it got infected and it almost had to be amputated but they were able to save it) and she watched several people die) and incredibly relieved when we were approaching Cape Coast. She even told the driver to stop before we got all the way into town and we stopped at UCC. It was getting late which meant that we didn't get there in time to visit the shops. We met a good friend of Maureen named Ben and he met us in the food shop as we were finishing our food. He paid for our food and found a place for us to stay (for the same reason as the uncle). We got to a nice little guest room in a small place off campus with Ben's mother. I settled in and was getting ready for bed but had to use the restroom and later figured out that it was actually the shower (I peed in the shower, totally pulled a Costanza). I went to bed and actually fell asleep as Maureen was talking to me, and slept ok (the mattress was just a soft foam pad).