Day 39 (tuesday)

The showers (falling out of the wall) at the facility.

I can't always post "good" pictures...this is one of the toilets that the females use (it's safer for them to squat because of various infections they are more prone to).  Pretty sad.

Me and Modesto, the warden, in the room that they've designated as the cooking room...their stove is on the ground (they're able to maintain the flame without firewood but rather surrounding the pot with saw dust).

The stove...it's a pretty cool system.

They get to use current equipment.

Me with some of the girls making beaded jewelry.

 

Woke up feeling refreshed, which was a nice change of pace as of late. The sleep aid works for me I guess. I woke up once in the middle of the night, as I usually do, and then back to sleep and up before 7. I made some coffee and watched the news and some old soccer matches and Maureen made some pancakes (they were more like crepes) but they were actually really nice (sort of bland but a wonderful change of tastes in the morning). Yesterday Ernest said he would be picking me up and would be at the house between 830 and 900 which, according to previous encounters, means probably just after 9. I was still watching tv at 8 and thought about getting ready and out of nowhere I hear Ernest. He came ready to go just after 8 telling me we needed to leave so I hurried to the bathroom and took a quick shower and had to hurry and get ready. When I asked him about the timeframe he specified the previous day, he just said “oh, I did?” and then said that he called the phone (still not sure I buy it entirely) and that he got some message. We left and Maureen joined us as she was going to the campus for some work and eventually worked our way there, taking a different route than yesterday but one that took a little bit longer. We arrived right at 10 (which is the time that we all agreed on so it turns out, Ernest being early was a good thing) and the Warden was sitting out under a tree awaiting our arrival. We spoke for quite some time doing the typical Q and A, he was very informative and elaborated on the questions quite a bit. After just over an hour of speaking with him he took us on a tour of the facility and I absolutely fell in love with the facility (it had more than its fair share of bad conditions though). I was surprised to find a man so passionate about persons with disabilities and, as I learned, one of a very rare breed that cares at all about them (this population is definitely where my heart is). I got a great chance to meet a lot of the residents and observe them in their trades (shoe making, bead making, dress making etc) and I also got to see the conditions with which they live. I also met some of the staff and they were all very gracious and welcoming. I bought a little something and was prepared to get a little more but then it started pouring rain so I helped them clean up their things and pack up to go back inside. We grabbed a tro tro without having to wait too long but I got stuck in the middle of a seat (let's just say they aren't made for tall people) and a woman got on and kept moving over and giving me stern glares when I couldn't move. The adventure continued and my knees felt every bump in the road. As a random tidbit of information, I stated previously that there is no legitimate waste management service nor is there any recycling per se. Most of the garbage, as i've noticed in my travels, ends up in the streams or are pooled into big piles and burned (the smell is pretty overwhelming) and really good for the environment (as are the vehicles with no types of emission checks...black, billowing smoke all over the place). Before we got to our intended destination, traffic was at a standstill and so we got off and decided to walk. Every couple of minutes we would take refuge under a canopy from a storefront. We made it home finally and Maureen was asleep (all the while forgetting to do the things she intended to do and still hasn't fixed her phone [which has now been out of commission for over 2 weeks] and many people have apparently been trying to reach her) so I would wait to eat. I decided to take a ride to a part of campus so I could withdraw money and then stop to get a few things from the store including a box of water. As I was approaching my destination I still hadn't gotten my change, although it wasn't much the cashier on the tro tro was trying to cheat me and when I asked about the fare, the guy just pretended not to understand me but when I was more stern with him and simplified it to “you owe me 5 pesoas!” he smirked and gave me my change (I won't be cheated again or try my best not to be). I walked back to the house and watched some kids playing soccer in a dirt field behind a school and by the time I made it home, Maureen was in and out of the kitchen. She had been preparing a few dishes to last throughout the week (again, she is leaving for Accra tomorrow and won't be back until sunday evening). It will be sort of lonely around the house but I will make the most of my time for sure. Tomorrow I will be revisiting Bekwai and spending the entire day with Lisa. Dinner (fried rice) was good and my bed looked comfy...sort of. Hope I can get some sleep because tomorrow is going to be a long day.