Day 2

Yesterday when my dad and I went back to our hotel, we found out that we had overestimated our good luck. . . the hotel we were in didn't actually have running water. However, tonight we get to stay in Coconut Grove, a resort on Ghana's Cape Coast. I just saw a two-inch lizard run across the bathroom floor. Exciting!

Anyway, today has been spent making our way from Accra to the Cape Coast area, and we've had some pretty amazing stops. The day started out with a breakfast of more bread sold by the street vendors. It's really odd, the second the Tata Sumo (Ben's vehicle) stops, a dozen street vendors come out of thin air and come up to the windows and want you to buy some of whatever it happens to be that they're balancing in enormous qualities on their heads. The bread, butter, and jam are definitely some of the best food items you can buy. We also had plantains cooked in palm oil. It definitely qualified as tasty vittles :)
Our first stop along the way was at a school where there is an EPI playground. Ben wanted to check out the situation and see how the merry-go-round was working. Even though this school actually had a larger structure than the one yesterday, I couldn't believe how rough the conditions were. As soon as we walked into the school, the little kids rushed us. I was holding my video camera in my left hand, but my right hand was free, and instantaneously I had five little kids, each one holding one of my fingers. I also had one holding on to each of the pockets in my shorts. They're all so cute and so excited to have their pictures taken. I can't wait to be able to post some of my pictures! Today was their P.E. day (which is a normal Friday in Ghana) so the kids were out playing, and I got to look around in the classrooms for a few minutes--and trust me, they were a very short few minutes. For one thing, there's not much light in the classrooms. Secondly, the heat inside that cinderblock building with minimal ventilation is STIFLING. And probably worse, the latrines (bathrooms) just outside the school vent right next to the few windows on the second level of the school.

Not extremely pleasant. It's amazing to me to think that those kids spend most of their days there. . . and they're happy to be there. I would love to see U.S. students go to one day at that school--I think it would be provide a major attitude adjustment toward their air-conditioned school completely stocked with textbooks, computers, lights, and--my personal favorite--indoor plumbing. My attitude toward the schools that I'm gone to hasn't been the best; I've definitely done more than my share of complaining. Now I realize just how insanely lucky I was. I was going to a comfortable school that provided any tools it could to me, and sometimes I went with a very begrudging attitude. These kids go to school in awful conditions, and they're happy to be there.

The next stop was at a slave castle. We went through it, and it felt like a total out-of-body experience. I mean, how weird is it that today I walked through one of the places that I had looked at pictures of in my textbooks? To actually be in the dungeons and see the cannons and everything. . . wow.

On the way to our third stop, Ben stopped and had one of the vendors chop four of the Cape Coast pineapple she was selling into quarters. That was definitely the best watermelon I've ever tasted. Seriously, better than Maui. How good is it? Well, we each ate an entire pineapple. Absolutely outstanding! Anyway, our third stop was at Kakum National Park. We went on their "Canopy Walkway", which is a series of seven really high rope bridges.

The view of the jungle from there was spectacular, but it was SO hot. My clothes were completely drenched with sweat by the time that we had hiked back down the mountain.

Finally, we came to the hotel, where we actually have a shower (YES!) and I never thought I would be so glad to have soap in my eyes. We had dinner, and I had the fisherman's stew and an avocado salad, which was literally an entire avocado sliced and served on the plate with some vinaigrette. Well, it's getting to be bedtime here, which is really strange, and it's time for me to wrap it up. Good night!