Thoughts about Ghana, nearly 3 months later

It’s been a while since I posted here, but I wanted to post today because I have a few things to say about Ghana and Takoradi.

First, a new video that our team started in Ghana and finally finished a few weeks ago:


Another IBM team just left Takoradi this weekend. There were 11 or 12 of them (there had only been 8 of us) and they lived in the same place (Valley Beach Hotel), working at different companies. I followed their blogs every weekend and one of the guys from Italy wrote about “African time.” Here was the comment I left for him because he specifically wrote “We're so lucky, our life is so much better, we all think. But are we so sure of that? How can we tell?” and I felt compelled to respond:

While many Americans and Europeans grow frustrated with
the concept of African time, I quite enjoyed not being a slave
to time. I live and work in southern California, and having
been home from Ghana for a few months, I am still trying
to figure out how to make my life less of a "rat race."
Each time I go to Africa, I have similar feelings of "We're
so lucky, our life is so much better, we all think. But are
we so sure of that? How can we tell?" I have "concluded"
(too strong a word, but the best I have) that East and West
Africans have it right: they value people over possessions
and relationships over results, and in the end that's more
important than what most of us consistently strive to
attain. I'd sacrifice some of the creature comforts (not
all!) for more real life. And I think that next time I go
to Africa, I may never leave.

Finally, I had to laugh when I read some of the blogs. They were talking about their overall experiences in Takoradi, Ghana, living exactly where I lived (one of them probably lived in my room!). You know how when you fall in love with someone, you wear rose-colored glasses and you don’t notice his/her faults, or you notice them but they don’t annoy you? After you guys have read how much I loved Takoradi, I just had to paste some blog entries from the IBMers who live/work in North America:

* Driving in Takoradi is reminiscent of watching a very complicated ballet – one that Barishnekov himself would be proud of. There are traffic lights on virtually all of the corners of downtown Takoradi, but none of them work. Not one. And nobody with whom I spoke could ever remember when or if they ever did. Rather than approaching this as we do in the West (treat as a 4-way stop, allow those on the right to proceed first), the residents all plow straight into the intersection as if it were a round-about (traffic circle). Right of way is established by a series of nods, waves, and gentle & friendly toots on the horn. At any given time in downtown you will hear several car horns tooting. This seemingly chaotic approach seems to work very well – I saw no accidents while I was there, and there was traffic all the time.
* Goats are everywhere. They wander casually through the streets and the back alleys. Together with chickens, they are domesticated and roam freely throughout the city. Unlike dogs, however, these cute little goats that you see frolicking in the streets will soon be dinner for some family.
* To me, it is like I have stepped back in time to between the 1950s and the 1970s (depending on the situation).
* The local television stations cannot get the sound mixing right – the sound is either deafeningly loud, or so soft that you have to turn the volume up to maximum just to hear what they are saying. This becomes a problem when you switch the station to one with the sound mixed in the opposite way – you effectively blow the TV speakers and your ear drums out.
* The telephones (land lines) are push button, but when you press a number (like 7, for example), it will make the sound as if you had dialled it on a rotary dial phone. It is exactly as I remember it when we switched from rotary to push-button phones in the late 1970s. A more modern example is that of mobile phones. Blackberries and iPhones are not really prevalent here but everyone seems to have snazzy cell phones. Most people, however, appear to have 2 and sometimes even 3 mobile phones. The primary reason for this, as it was explained to me, was that no one provider is consistent or reliable enough, so you need to rely on more than one provider. Each provider requires you to carry different hardware.
* The service industry is as it was in North America in the 1970s. People are very friendly, but they do not anticipate or predict what a customer may want. Srini likes hot milk with his morning coffee. We stayed at the hotel for over 3 weeks, and after the second or third request, one would expect that hot milk would be provided automatically for him. Every morning for three weeks, without fail, Srini had to request his hot milk for his coffee. Every three or four days, corn flakes were put out for those who wished to have them for breakfast. No milk, though. Every single time the Corn Flakes were serviced we had to request that a jug of milk also be put out - it was not done automatically. This is not a knock against the hotel – this is pervasive throughout the country, and the hotel is just one example.
* Things are generally inexpensive in Takoradi, but trying to get change from a purchase can be a painful experience. The bank machines give out money in 20, 10, and 5 Ghana Cedi notes, but it doesn’t help much. If you try to pay for anything with a 20 or 10 Cedi note, you will struggle to find merchants who can easily give you change. Taxi drivers, restaurant wait staff, downtown merchants, at museum gates, or with tour guides – you name it, they all struggle to find correct change. They do not open for business with a mindset that they will need to provide change.

I supposed those comments offer you a more realistic view of Takoradi than my own love letters did :) I enjoyed it so much there that these minor inconveniences didn’t at all detract from the joy I experienced there. I am still wistful, and optimistic that I’ll be able to get back there some day soon. The best word I have is that I felt CHERISHED when I lived in Ghana.

Good Friday

Yesterday was Good Friday, which I think is appropriate because it’s bittersweet. Obviously, no one was THINKING that it was Good when, two thousand years ago, Jesus was crucified. But as I reflect on Good Friday, I remember that God truly does work all things for the good for His children. I also recognize that life is often bittersweet, in that usually my life is full of blessings while it has some sad moments and challenges. I have found that my life is never all sad or all good, there are usually aspects of both that encourage me to focus on the good.

I was feeling the “bitter” and the “sweet” of my life all week. I had a reunion phone call with the IBM team with whom I lived in Ghana. It was wonderful to hear everyone’s voices and to catch up, but it was also sad to realize that we may never all be in the same place at the same time again. The beginning of our call was lively and exciting, and after we caught up then we all kind of turned to nostalgia for Takoradi, missing Ghana, and sadness that our trip was over.

I took my final anti-malaria pill yesterday, a tangible reminder that my African adventure (this one, at least) is truly over. I also took my braids out, a bittersweet occasion all to itself (sadness that they’re gone and excitement to get my scalp washed). I feel so grateful for having had the experience, but I am also sad that it ended. To tame the “bitter” I am focusing on the many sweet memories I created, which I will treasure forever. I am constantly reminded that I am a blessed woman.

Over the last 10 days since being back in southern California, I waver between feeling disconnected and feeling loved. I am so glad that my friends have rallied around me to remind me that I am treasured, because the transition has been more challenging than I expected. I’ve been through this cultural readjustment before (returning from missions trips) but this time has been more difficult than I imagined. My closest friends are calling and texting me regularly to check on me and make sure I am doing okay. I was in a funk for the first week and I knew that I had a 50/50 chance to either come out of it or to dip into a depression, and I’ve done everything I can to stack the deck in my favor.

I have intentionally been out with friends every night, even at the expense of getting my condo and life back in order. I am grateful for all the warm and loving “welcome homes” I have received. And I’ve enjoyed seeing how God is using people and circumstances to send me love on a daily and hourly basis, when I need it most. Thanks to all of you for letting God use you to remind me that He loves me! I’ve also been thrilled that so many friends from out of town have ended up being here over the last week, giving me plenty of opportunities to hang out with people who I love and miss.

As with anything in life, I return a different person. And I have a feeling that this experience is going to be a defining moment in my life. I don’t yet exactly know how, but I do know that I am already changed, that I want to change, and that I am still changing. I am eager to see how God uses this in my life, and I trust that He will work it all for the good.

The two videos

For those of you who are having a tough time finding the videos amidst all the other text, here are the links to the videos. Each video has music, pictures, and some words to help narrate. Enjoy!

Ghana video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFXE41LagS0

South Africa Safari video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9z3yC3M_cGs

Video from my South African Safari

Okay, since I’ve been up for so long, I might as well finish these posts, right? First, let me say Happy Birthday, Sis! I’ll call you later today.

We’ve already established (elsewhere in this blog) that I am pretty lousy at goodbyes. But something in me tells me that this Africa blog isn’t done yet :)

The last six weeks in Africa (Ghana and South Africa) were an incredible blessing and I am so grateful to have had the experience. Truthfully, I am a little depressed to be gone from Africa, but making these two videos (scroll down to the bottom of the April page for my Ghana video) has been a nice reminder of the people who made the trip so special. I hope you enjoy the blog, the pictures, and the videos! Thanks for supporting me and joining me for this wild ride.

For now, here is my South African Safari video:


Blessings to you all!

Final day in South Africa

Warthogs woke me this morning.


And Morris delivered my cheetah on our last drive! On our very first day, he asked what I would like to see and I requested a male lion and a cheetah. On our first drive, he showed me a male lion, and on our last drive he showed me not just one cheetah, but four!!! A mama with two boys, and a lone female. They were beautiful, and I was very excited. Morris is awesome!




We also saw rhino, zebra, giraffes, wildebeest (and a carcass from last week), elephants, African hawk eagle, baboons, impala, and more.

I packed up and checked out of Shiduli, and Dylan came to fetch me. We had a nice time on the 6-hour drive through the Drakensburg mountains back down to Johannesburg, and he had me crying with laughter as he told me about his tough day yesterday that culminated in a honey badger stealing his dinner. The Drakensburg range juts up several thousand feet from a grassy plain below, so the drive offered wonderful views. At one point, we were stopped (lots of roadwork underway in preparation for the 2010 World Cup) so we bought some homemade marula beer from a woman on the side of the road. Someone suggested I try it before leaving, and Dylan obliged even though he cautioned me against it. As soon as I opened the bottle, his face soured at the smell. I took a sip, and he agreed to take a small taste, too. We both thought it was disgusting, so we screwed the lid back on and put it back on the side of the road so the lady could re-sell it.

We stopped for lunch in Dullstrom (home of South Africa’s highest railway station at 6811 feet above sea level) at a great place called Harrie’s pancakes, where we each had a savory pancake before splitting a sweet one for dessert. My savory pancake was delicious, and the easiest description would be to say it was a thai burrito wrapped in a pancake instead of a tortilla. Don’t knock it until you try it :) I’m still impressed with the quality (clean, nice) of the public toilets in South Africa. We stopped at one this afternoon and there were flowers on the counter. Wonderful! While I was in the ladies room, Dylan went in and bought me jelly babies so I could try them before leaving. The name and package make me laugh, but the oddest thing is that the candies are actually shaped like babies (belly buttons, diapers, and all). I tried each of the 6 flavors, and pineapple was my favorite. I told him “these candies are wrong in so many ways” and he just laughed.

This blog really should end with Dylan dropping me off at the airport so I could catch my two long flights back to southern California, but I must share one new experience I had on the first leg of my flight (Johannesburg to Amsterdam). After some technical difficulties (not sure what, they never told us), we backed away from the gate and within a few minutes the pilot announced overhead that a passenger had been “cruel” to the flight attendants so we’d be turning around and returning him to the gate. Evidently, the guy was drunk and berated a flight attendant, so they kicked him off the plane before we even left. In the end, our flight was delayed over an hour, but I had a long enough layover in Amsterdam that it didn’t affect my connection at all. Also, sleep deprivation over the last week definitely has its upside! I slept for 8 hours on the flight and felt great heading into the second half. On the last 10 hours of the flight, I read and made these videos.

I made it to LAX this afternoon and now it’s 5am and I still can’t get to sleep. I have to work today, so it will be a long day… No matter, it was well worth it!

Last Full Day in Shiduli

I woke up this morning to the sound of an animal that I can’t identify. Maybe a rhino? Our morning drive was wonderful. I am amazed at how different each game drive is. Shiduli is a private game lodge situated in the Karongwe Game Reserve (which is a 20,000 acre private reserve that serves five private lodges). We rarely run into any other vehicles on our game drives, so it really does feel private. Morris knows the rangers at the other lodges, so they communicate via radio when one of them spots certain animals.

This offers a very different experience than Kruger, and I like them both. At Kruger, we slowly meandered around and would happen upon animals. (I have heard that Kruger can get very busy, but Dylan and I rarely felt crowded.) Here, Morris drives around and spots animals, but we rely less on the element of serendipity. Sometimes, we’re in hot pursuit of an animal (i.e., last night we needed to get to the rhinos before dark, and today we heard from the other ranger that the lions were in a specific area so we drove quickly over to that area).

This morning, we saw bushbabies (we saw their eyes the other night in the dark), impala, giraffes, kudu, duiker, wildebeest, hippos, terrapin, and probably more animals that I forgot. (I am embarrassed to admit that with all the animals I have seen, some of the drives and days are blurring together. What a blessing, right?)

The highlights of the morning drive for me were the rhinos, elephants, and lions. We found the rhino family again this morning, which is exactly what I wished for last night. We saw them this morning at dusk, so we watched them while the sun came up. The baby girl is so cute, and she didn’t have a name. We have seen this family for the last three days, so I asked Morris if we could name her. He agreed, and at that time she was eager to get her mom to move along (she kept rubbing against her mom, then walking away and hoping she would follow). I asked what the Tsonga word is for “eager” and he said “Longi-la” (not sure of the spelling) so I named her Longi-La.


When Paul radioed Morris to tell us he found a lion family, we started driving quickly over to the area. Along the way, we passed through a herd of elephants and they were not very relaxed (Morris said they can smell the lions, so were agitated). One of the elephants trumpeted and charged towards us, so we had to get out of there quickly. That was definitely the most excitement I’ve had so far on a drive. He chased us for a while but finally stopped (maybe he knew that chasing us would bring us closer to the lions). Seeing what the elephants do to trees here makes me want to not have them use their trunks or tusks on our vehicle! Morris and I laughed at the end.


We did finally find the lions. There were two cubs (10-months in age) and they were frolicking while their parents were out hunting. Morris tells me that even though the lions are getting large, they still don’t know how to hunt very well and might get killed by a zebra (they stick their heads in a bush and kick backwards hard with both feet) or giraffe because they wouldn’t attack the prey in the right place. So instead, they stay behind to play while mom and dad look for food. They climbed in (and nearly fell out of) a tree; they wrestled; and they played with each other. It was enjoyable to watch them have so much fun!



At one point on our drive, we were on a very narrow trail and had been driving for a while. As we rounded a corner, a tree was blocking the road (probably an elephant knocked it over). We couldn’t turn around easily, and backing all the way out was not an option. Luckily, our Land Rover was full today (Morris, his mate, Marcus, and 5 of us including 2 men). First, Morris and his mate tried. Next, Marcus joined. Finally, the two guys jumped out and they all moved the tree. It was great.

This afternoon, I sat around the pool under an umbrella and read. I also listened to a sermon (an old one on iTunes). Earlier this week, a lioness killed a warthog right here, and she broke the electric fence in the process so there were warthogs at the lodge today. They crouch on their “elbows” when they eat grass, which looks silly and vulnerable.

On the afternoon drive, we saw many birds (including bee eaters), butterflies, and animals (bushbuck, jackals, wildebeest, impala). We saw the largest herd of giraffes I have seen (a dozen giraffes), and we saw an iguana-like creature called a water monitor. Morris got out of the truck today to follow some cheetah tracks (I asked him the first day if we could find a cheetah), but he wasn’t able to find the cheetah for me yet. This evening, we saw night jars (birds that prefer to be out at night), too.

The highlight of the evening drive was finding the big daddy lion. He has a lush black mane, two wives, and three children. He got his grub on yesterday with the warthog, so he’s still digesting all that food. He weighs 280 kg (!) and was lazy today trying to digest his huge meal. At one point, it was dark and we were parked 10 feet from him and he called for his wife. It was great, and the only other thing he could have done for me was to roar. But being that close, I might have been really scared if he had roared. Dylan’s book says a lion’s roar can be heard for 5km!

I learned that Shiduli means termite mound, and that there are macro and micro termites. Macro termites are photosensitive and live in the huge hills we see everywhere, and inside is a fungus that helps process the food that termites can’t digest. The mounds also produce mushrooms after rains, which I am told are delicious. For dinner, we had mushroom pesto as a starter and someone asked if it was termite mushrooms :)

First day in Shiduli

After four hours of sleep, I woke up and couldn’t get back to sleep. I was ready by the time Morris called to wake me up, so I headed down to the dining area for tea (rooibos, of course) and rusks. The morning drive was bookended by hippos with lions in the middle. We saw a baby hippo running before the sun came up, and we ended our drive at a dam where we watched five hippos playing in the water. In the middle, we watched a family of lions (mom, dad, and three cubs). Dad laid around the whole time, only one time sitting up to yawn and then fall back over for the rest of the time. It was great to watch.

The tourist group from France left right after breakfast, so I had the entire resort to myself until this afternoon when a half dozen new people arrived. Even though I was tired, I decided not to sleep and instead I sat under a huge umbrella at the pool, listening to the waterfall while I read a book that I’ve been trying read for months.

Our afternoon game drive was fantastic! Morris looks at animal droppings and tracks to help us find the animals. We saw wildebeest, warthog, and a herd of zebra right away, than saw impala and kudu before seeing jackals scare some baby giraffes. The adult giraffes weren’t concerned with the jackals, but their little ones ran scared.

We also saw a lot of different birds (including red-billed and yellow-bird hornbills, martial eagle, and a magpie shrike). I learned from Morris that hornbill dads put the mom and babies in a hole, seal it with dung, and then go out to get them food. It sounds good, except that if anything happens to dad while he’s out looking for food for the family, the whole family dies because mom can’t get out of the hole.

For me, the best part today was the elephants, because we saw the same herd as yesterday and today they flirted and played with us. Morris would back up, they would follow. He was very careful to ensure we never ended up in the middle of the herd with no way out (especially since one of the males is known to attack Land Rovers), but the elephants came within feet of us. It was really a pleasure to be there with them, even though we had to leave when one of the teenage elephants trumpeted at us because he was getting annoyed. After another beautiful sunset, we saw a family of rhinos (mom, dad, and a 4-month old baby girl). I hope to see them again tomorrow in the light, because that baby was adorable!

I was looking at the stars (they are just amazing here, and I’m still awestruck by the Milky Way) again tonight and Marcus showed me Leo and the Southern Cross, among others. The heavens truly do declare the glory of God! For now, I am off to bed early because I didn’t get to nap today. I have some daddy long legs and lizards living in the room with me, but I don’t mind because that means I probably won’t see any spiders. Life is good, I am blessed. Oh, and even though they’re manky (that’s the South African term for raggedy) now, I still adore my braids and the way I can just tie them up for the game drives.