Wli Falls

     I just returned from the Wli (pronounced "Vlee") Falls, which are near the Volta Region, a region in Eastern Ghana. They are beautiful! I plan to return to the Volta Region sometime soon to explore it further. Here is a picture of the waterfall. The water falls from a height of approximately 1,600 feet. 

Classes

     I started classes today. Weird. My psychology class lasted for about 1 hour, one half the time for which classes normally last. There are only 4 white people in my psychology class, including myself. We are all American, and all stand out. My sociology class was canceled for today, so I have nothing to report about that one. Before school started, some student assistants at the University took us on a campus tour. Here are some pictures of the campus from the tour and from my own explorations around the campus. The campus reminds me a bit of my university at home, since both are covered in greenery.

Exploring the campus with some friends. I just can't get enough of the sociology department....

 

Markets in Accra

Hey Ya'll:
     Here are the pictures of 2 of the markets in Accra. Both were super packed!!

Madina Market in Accra

Makola Market in Accra

More pictures from the Botanical Gardens:

     Here are some more pictures from the Garden at the University of Ghana. Enjoy. 

I was not expecting to see a horse. 

This tree looks like it came out of a story book. 

Exploring the University of Ghana campus

I start classes tomorrow (Monday). AHH! I can’t believe it. I’m a bit nervous, because everyone’s English here is heavily accented, and I’m afraid I’ll have difficulty understanding the professors’ lectures. Sometimes, I can’t tell whether they’re speaking English or Twi, the language spoken in much of Ghana, including Accra. 

            I registered for 4 psychology classes, one sociology class, and African dance, which I’m super stoked for. The University of Ghana dance department calls the dance class for which I signed up “Obruni dance class,” as many exchange student opt to take it.

          I went around the campus hunting for my classrooms yesterday, and with some friends, stumbled upon the Botanical Gardens on campus. I believe that many of the plants in the Garden are used for research, but I can’t get over how gorgeous the Garden is! I even came across a horse while exploring the garden. Check out this one picture! I have to add the rest in a separate post.  

      -Rachel =]

Kakum National Park

1)               While in the central region, my group and I visited Kakum National Park, which consists of tropical rainforest. I could not get over the beauty of the park. I wish my pictures could portray the beauty that I was fortunate enough to see in person.

     We walked across hanging bridges in the park known as the “Canopy Walk.” The bridges are 130 feet above the ground, which provided me with an aerial view of the rainforest. I was hoping to see some wildlife too, but only saw a millipede (or maybe it was a centipede….I’m not quite sure) and some lizards, which are actually super cool looking!! 

       Here are some pictures: 

Here is a picture of a lizard. So cool!!

I'll write more soon! Sending you all much peace and love!!

Love, 

Rachel

    

Central Region of Ghana

1)              My group and I traveled to the Central Region in Ghana. The drive was beautiful, as we had a view of the beach for much of the drive! In the Central Region, we visited a castle in Elmina which first established as a trade settlement, but then was used by the Portuguese and later the Dutch to transport slaves during the Atlantic slave trade.

     The trip to the castle moved everyone in my group. Some started crying. I felt that visiting the castle helped bring a more vivid image of slavery to my mind. Additionally, it is so easy to forget that slavery occurred in Africa when I am living in a part of the continent that has been developed over the years and has a growing economy. 

     Here are some pictures: 

Sending you all much love!!

Love, 

Rachel

And.....More Traveling.

Hi All!

     I’m sorry I haven’t blogged in a while. Let me catch you up on my stay in Ghana. 

1)   On Thursday, My group and I visited Makola Market in Accra. That place is packed! I don’t think I understood the meaning of the word “crowded” until I visited there. It seemed like the market was pretty big too. There were so many people there buying and selling products, from food to shoes to fabric for clothing to nail polish to electronics. As a white person, I attracted a lot of attention, and people grabbed my arms right and left to get me to purchase their products. They also kept shouting “OBRUNI” at me to attract my attention.

     When we decided to return to campus, we hopped in a tro tro, or a passenger mini-bus that seems like an over-sized van. The tro-tro wasn’t starting, so 4 men began pushing it from the back to jump start the engine. They pushed down a long street with about 30 or so people in the tro tro. Even with the pushing, the tro tro failed to start, so we all hopped on another one and made it back to campus safely.

Kumasi!

Hey Ya'll:
     I just returned from Kumasi, a city located in Ghana's Ashanti region, which is one of the ten regions of Ghana. It is a bit north from where I am in Accra, but is still considered to be in the south-central region.
When we explored Kumasi, we were surrounded by Ghanaians like crazy! They all want Americans to buy items from their shops. It got kind of overwhelming. Haha. But it is fun to bargain in shops, which is very common here. We went to a weaving factory, where we saw people weaving complex designs so quickly I could not even see their fingers moving! It was pretty cool. They sometimes stamp designs on their weaves with an ink that they make out of wood that is burned and then watered down. We had a chance to see them make the ink. I saw some pieces of cloth that had stamps of Barak Obama on them. Haha.
     Additionally, we took a boat ride at Lake Bosomtwe, a lake a bit southeast of Ghana. There are many villages near the lake, and most people in those villages are farmers or fisherman. The water was gorgeous, but not necessarily safe for Americans to swim in.
     I'll write some more soon.
    

-Rachel =]

Check out this Monkey! He always seems to be around. =]