Busua, Ghana

I am sadly and excitedly counting my final days on the African continent. For the past two days, I have planted myself in a chair at my hotel next to the beach - reading and watching the local kids run around the ocean. I can't seem to motivate myself to do anything else, and it is actually the best way to wrap up my time here.

It has been over 5 months since I said goodbye to family and friends and boarded a plane for Ghana. Shortly before my arrival in Ghana, I recently learned that it was located in West Africa and little else. It seems fitting that my last days in Africa should end where it began - Ghana. Since I haven't been very good about blogging, I will try give a quick little run down of where and what I have been up to.

For the first two months in Ghana, I lived and worked in Kumasi, Ghana, which is located approximately 250 kilometers north of the capital city Accra. Kumasi wasn't an easy town for me as I had a terrible time with the local food and left Ghana ten pounds lighter than when I first arrived. Kumasi was also a bit lonely and boring, but it also gave me a wonderful opportunity to interact with my neighbors and other locals. I also had a chance to travel around to rural areas surrounding Kumasi, which was fantastic. You can't really say you have been to Africa until you head out to the rural areas where you see people living very modestly, but still very cheerful.

After my most unfortunate problems with the Ghanaian immigration officials (still don't know why they are so difficult!), I headed to Nairobi for a little rest and relaxation before my next placement in Dar es salaam, Tanzania. Although I did not do extensive traveling in Tanzania, I did head out to Zanzibar on two separate trips, which was nice. After hanging out and working in Dar es salaam for 2 months at two different partner microfinance institutions, I crossed over to Kigali, Rwanda. My previous blog was about my time in Kigali, so I won't repeat it.

From Kigali, Rwanda, I traveled by bus to Bujumbura, Burundi, where I spent a few days. I went to Lake Tanganyika and just sort of saw the countryside from the bus.

After a few more days in Kigali, Rwanda, I headed to Nairobi, Kenya to collect Rob. While in Kenya, Rob and I traveled to Masai Mara for a safari. Masai Mara is probably the most beautiful place I have ever seen in my life. A huge Savannah where lions, zebras, warthogs, impalas, giraffes, etc. hang out naturally and wildly about. From Masai Mara, we headed to Lake Naivasha and biked through the national park, Hell's Gate, where we met our new friends John (a local Kenyan) and Marin (a Dutch traveler). After Lake Naivasha we headed back to Nairobi and to a town called Murang'a where we met with a local microfinance institution who specialized in giving out loans to borrowers to buy dairy cows. We even met with a few borrowers, which was my favorite part of my fellowship.

From Nairobi, we next headed to the coast and the island of Lamu, which is a predominately Muslim area located in northern Kenya. Lamu is beautiful and historic. We spent a few days in Lamu town and a few days on Shella which is the neighboring village. In Lamu, we took two dhow rides (dhow is a traditional sail boat), and I even road a donkey. After Lamu, we headed by bus to Mombasa, which is another coastal town, but located in the southern part of Kenya. Mombasa wasn't quite as charming as Lamu, but I did get to ride a camel there. Therefore, Rob caught a flight back to the States and I continued my journey back to Ghana.

Since I have been in Ghana, I have spent most of my time in coastal towns - Accra, Cape Coast, Takoradi and now Busua. In Cape Coast, I went to the Kakum National Park which boasts the highest canopy bridge in the world. Also, I went to the famous Cape Coast Castle which housed several hundred African slaves prior to the departure to the Americas. It was a very surreal and sad visit, but also important for people to remember this history, so that it never happens again.

From Cape Coast, I traveled by tro-tro (a small mini-van) to Takoradi, where I had the most deliciously pain au chocolat at Bocadillos, which is run by a French/Nigerian couple. Realizing that I wanted to be right on the beach in a sleepier town, I decided to head to Busua.

I hitched a ride with two Ghanaians, who were friends of the receptionist at my hotel in Takoradi), who drove me the 45 minutes to Busua and dropped me off in front of my new residence for the next few days - Busua Inn. The Busua Inn is this little place located right on the beach owned by a French couple who have been living out here for the past 5 years.

And here I plan to be until at least Saturday before I head my way back to Accra, see my friend Richelle and collect my bag for my Monday morning flight back to the States. It has been an amazing year, and although I am not exactly sure what I will do when I get back, I am excited for what awaits me. I remember very early in my time here a manI met told me that people come to Africa to learn about themselves or escape themselves. I would like to think that I learned a lot about myself and what I am capable of. This will likely be my last post from Africa unless something really exciting happens. However, since I am sloth-like in Busua, I doubt much will happen. I will miss all of the wonderful people that I have come across during my life and travels in Africa, but I am excited to see my family and friends - especially my two sweet little nieces!

See you soon America!

Kigali, Rwanda

I started this blog about one month ago, but I have just been too busy to complete it and post it, so here i go. Kigali, Rwanda was my first stop on my African vacation. Kigali is a beautiful hilly town which is by far cleaner than most cities in America. Here is the view of the city from the house where I crashed one night. The city sort of reminds me of San Francisco.

My first night I had a homemade pasta meal from Iyanna (a Kiva fellow from my class) and went to the Goete Institute where I saw traditional Rwandan dancing and saw Nasar Abadey & Supernova, a US based jazz band -- thanks to the United States Embassy.

The next day, President Paul Kagame was inaugurated for his 2nd term in Kigali. We (Sara, Jonas, Iyanna and I) woke up at 6:00 a.m. and took motos to the stadium. We hoped we would be able get an actual seat in the stadium, but we were too late. We had to sit on the lawn outside the stadium with the other locals and wait for the President. Although there were plenty of mzungus (whites) inside the stadium, we were the only mzungus in the area outside of the stadium. We made a lot of friends and got a lot of assistance from the Rwandan National Police. I chatted one up, well I attempted to communicate with him but he did not speak English. However, the policeman later pulled us out of a crowded area and let us sit in the front row of our section. It was interesting because Iyanna is African American and she stated that she never really gets to experience "white privilege," especially in Africa where they assume she is a local. I never really thought about it before, but I definitely noticed that we were getting special attention and consideration from the National Police. Below is a photo of Kagama during his inaugural address and a photo of two young boys who sort of hung around us. The little one with the camera was especially sweet offering me a drink of his water, which I couldn't drink because it came from their local tap.

Kigali, Rwanda is an interesting place. Another fellow and I went to the Genocide Museum where we learned about the events leading up to the genocide and the genocide itself. It was weird to walk around Kigali afterward knowing that such atrocities occurred probably right where we were walking. Rwandans are also pretty reserved but friendly, and it seem unreal that such an event could have taken place 16 years ago.

Kigali is also a very orderly place in an almost unnatural way. The local population definitely respect the police. Street hawking and begging have been outlawed. A few times I was sitting at a cafe and watched people running down the street with a police officer walking calmly behind them.

Another interesting thing about Rwanda - being identified as Hutu or Tutsi has been outlawed as well. Kagame is trying to create a society where people do not identify by their "tribes", but identify through a national identity of Rwandan. I am interested to see how it works out for them. In Tanzania, the first President Julius Nyere (I believe that is his name), has been credited for helping Tanzanians identified with a national identity and not a tribal identity.

Finally, there has been recent accusations of a double genocide where Tutsis have entered the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) and killed off Hutus. Kagame addressed it briefly in his inaugural speech and obviously very critical of such allegations from the UN.

I also crossed the border into Burundi, which is the total opposite of Rwanda. In Rwanda, you feel relatively safe, and in Burundi you have to look over your shoulder to make sure someone isn't going to follow and mug you. However, I also found some fantastic people in Burundi, especially a fellow named Cedric.

I went with another fellow to Burundi and silly us did not change money at the border. We were armed with a Lonely Planet map of the capital city, but soon discovered that it was totally incorrect. Using my horrible French skills from high school, I approached Cedric for directions to change money. Cedric kindly offered to pay for our bus ride to the money exchange location and he never even asked from payment in return. We obviously paid him for our bus fare and a little extra because he really did not have to help us.

That's the thing about being here in sub-sahara Africa. You can have several really horrible experiences with some people, but there are also so many kind people who help you along the way. I always wonder if I was in America and I was stranded somewhere without any money - would someone stop to help me. Especially someone who doesn't have much?

Thieves

It is most unfortunate, but in the last week I have either witnessed or heard about the robbery of mzungus. Since I have been in Africa, I make it a point to never carry a bag at night. If it can't fit into my pockets, it doesn't come with me. I figured especially after having a computer on the bus, I would like to leave with everything else that I came with. Also, it is just a good rule to follow whenever you are a stranger in a strange land and clearly stand out.

Last night I went to a phone center about a 5-7 minute walk from my flat. I needed to make some calls to America. It was evening and dark, and I usually walk down these streets but always at a rapid pace. People will say hello and I reply back, but I never usually stop because this is when things are go wrong for you here.


On my way home from the phone center, I saw a couple walking in front of me. They were foreigners like me, and I had seen them for the past two weeks near my flat. I never spoke to them, but I watched them walk carelessly down the street. They both had bags and weren't really paying attention to the people around them. I have heard of cars driving slowly behind foreigners with bags and then snatching the bag and speeding off and I thought they were perfect candidates from such an event. Since I was walking quickly, I passed them. I stopped at the chicken barbecue place at the corner of my street where I often get dinner. Ali, the owner, is really nice and often watches out for me when I am on the street and some stranger approaches me.


I placed my order with Ali and took a seat to wait for my food. About 5 minutes later, I saw the couple pass me and the man was also carrying a 5 litre bottle of water. Again, I saw his bag just dangling off of his shoulder. About 20 seconds later, we heard this painful scream coming from down the road. I thought someone was hurt and everyone at the stand ran to the middle of the street where we all saw the man (without his bag) screaming and running down the street. Apparently, a car came next to him and a person snatched his bag and the car sped off. I felt really bad for the guy, and apparently he has been coming to Dar twice a year for several years which could explain his over confidence walking in the evening with a bag.

Also, this past weekend, I heard about an American heading to Zanzibar from Dar being held up near the ferry station from a man he struck up a friendly conversation with earlier in the day. He decided to walk alone through some alleys around the ferry. It was midday and so you would think it should be okay. Well the American guy's new friend pulled up in a car next to him with his friends and forced the American guy into the car at gunpoint. The thieves made off with all of his stuff, except for his passport, ferry ticket, his camera memory card and some money.


Thankfully I haven't had any weird and/or dangerous encounters recently unless you want to count my daily dala-dalah rides to and from work.:)

However, Dar es salaam is not more dangerous than San Francisco really. Most people here are really friendly, nice and helpful. But you can never get too comfortable here because someone may be watching you and waiting for to get careless.

My newest find...

Last night, I went out to dinner with my flat mate, Roberto, 2 Kiva fellows, Ann and Katie, and Roberto's friend, George, an Israel diamond dealer. We went to this great Ethiopian spot located in the Masaki area. And George actually had diamonds with him, which he happily let us look at. They were rough cut, unpolished small diamonds. I have never seen one before, and I probably still wouldn't know it was a diamond unless someone told me. Unfortunately, I did not get any diamonds last night, but I did buy an automatic bottle opener from the bartender at the restaurant. Here is it: (isn't it a beauty?)


I was so excited when the bartender opened our beer bottles with it that I told him that I really like it. He said he had an extra one and sold it to me for 5000 TSH, or roughly $3.30. Although I bought this lovely beauty here in Dar es salaam, it is actually made in China. They also had these neat toothpick holders, which I was also tempted to buy - I don't know why.

Things are going well here in Dar. I am finally settling in, and starting to make friends, which is really great. I am also starting to just settle in like the locals. For example, the dala dalah (bus) rides can be quite intense. The other day on my way home from work, I attempted to get off the bus at the last stop, but before I could get off, people were jumping through the windows and pushing through the door. I was tossed around quite a bit until I finally said "move!" and pushed my way out. Yesterday, I had to tell a few people to please not lay their bodies across my head and face. When I got home my roommate, Roberto, asked me if I got sunburned until I realized that my face was probably chafted from the backsides, purses and other bags that scraped across my cheeks on the bus. At one point, I just put my arm up as a barrier, it sort of worked :)

It is funny because the mzungu, or white people, here sort of complain about the bus, including myself. But I was thinking that the bus experience actually reminds me of trying to board the 38 Geary to and from the downtown area during commuter hours. I think people, like me, are eager to get home after a long day working, so they get super aggressive on the bus. My first two weeks, I was so polite, but as you can see from above, I am starting to just muscle my way on and off the buses now, just like the locals :) They don't seem to mind...

Some Photos

I don't really have many stories, so I thought I would just post a few pictures.

Here is a photo of a leaf that can be used to create hair extensions for ladies on Zanzibar island.












Here is a photo of me at Bjewuu beach located on the island of Zanzibar.








Here is a photo of a narrow street in Stownstown, Zanzibar. What I liked about this photo is that there is a Chinese restaurant across from an English flag, which is near an Italian scooter with three Canadians walking.









And finally - here is a picture of a Tanzanian sunset which I took from the backyard of the first house I stayed at in Dar es salaam.






A new fellow, Ann, just arrived 2 days ago. I am very excited to have another American around and I hope to explore more of Dar es salaam now that I have a companion. And hopefully, as a result, I will have more blog postings.

Asante sana (thank you very much).

To serve and protect

This phrase it was we often see on police vehicles in America and what you would think that a police officer should do for its citizens. However, I have found that in Africa, many people have the same feelings of fear and disgust that many Americans have of police officers.

When I was in Ghana, I remember hearing stories about corrupt cops pulling vehicles over for any small infraction or no infraction just to illicit a bribe. Well last night, I believe I witnessed such an occurrence, even though I did not see it actually happen.

My day began pretty uneventfully. I did my routine morning walk to the internet cafe to catch up on emails and then I headed to the office of the MFI that I am currently helping out in Dar es salaam. Their system was down, just as it had the day before, so I walked home. Before I left the office, I made plans with another foreign girl working in the office to have dinner in the Masaki area. After work, we took a local bus, or dalla dalla, to Masaki. That is when things started to get a little too adventurous.

The bus was packed and there was a traffic jam. Our bus driver decided that he did not want to wait for his turn, so he drove onto the curb into the sidewalk full of pedestrians pass the gridlock. First, I watched in horror as pedestrians were quickly getting out the way of the bus, and then I finally closed my eyes and prayed that we did not hit anyone. Then the bus drove off the curb onto the street narrowly missing a car. Shortly thereafter, we got off the bus to my relief.

Then we had to cross a highway to get to a tuk tuk (3 wheeled vehicle). While my work friend was negotiating the price with one tuk tuk driver, another tuk tuk driver came over and told my friend in Swahili that he was there first and so we should take his tuk tuk. Our tuk tuk driver denied this , and we got in. As our tuk tuk driver attempted to start his vehicle and drive off the other tuk tuk driver was fiddling with something at the back of the vehicle which prevented the motor from starting. Finally, after the fourth attempt our tuk tuk driver drove off while the other tuk tuk driver yelled and ran behind our vehicle.

We finally got to our dinner destination, which is this little outdoor local restaurant known for great kebabs. I got to meet a few other people, and it was nice to finally just relax and shoot the breeze with some ladies.

When it was time to leave, we decided that I would take my own tuk tuk home because I live in a completely different area than my dinner companions. My gut was telling me to take a taxi because it was dark and tuk tuk driver usually don't know how to get to where I live. This is because tuk tuk drivers are prohibited from picking up fares from the city center, where I leave, but they can drop you off. But of course, I ignored my gut and got in. He was a nice guy and I actually shared the tuk tuk with another local guy for part of the trip.

Unfortunately once we got into the city center, I told him to make a left turn on a one way street, not realizing it was one way. You see I walk everywhere, so the concept of one way doesn't even phase me. Anyways, he did not even make the left turn yet, but was starting to do so, when I heard a yell from across the street. It was a cop with a rifle. He called us over and then he got into the tuk tuk with me. He rested his rifle between his legs as he explained that it was a one way street we were trying to turn down. I explained to the cop that it was my fault because I told the tuk tuk driver to turn left. Then in Swahili he started to direct my driver. I had no idea where they were going, and finally the cop asked me where I was heading. I told him Clock Tower, then he responded Mlimani city? (which is nowhere near Clock Tower and actually is clear across town). Finally I provided the cop with a major street near my house and we were off. I would be lying if I did not say that I was actually pretty nervous and scared because you have no idea what is going on, and I really wanted to ask the cop to please leave my tuk tuk, but he has a gun, so I figured it is better to not piss him off. I also quickly realized that this cop wanted a pay off but I wasn't sure if it was from me or my tuk tuk driver.

I would have gladly paid any fine but I did not really know how to approach the situation. Once we arrived at my house, the cop asked me if I paid the driver, which I quickly did, and they were off. I am pretty sure that my fare and maybe some other fares from that evening were paid to the cop.

After last night, I decided to carry a map of the city center with me so that I can show the driver where I need to go, and hopefully, not have a repeat of last night with the cop, the gun and my sad tuk tuk driver who probably had to pay off the cop.

I've moved!!

Well actually I finally found the place that I will call home for the next 1 1/2 months that I plan to stay in Dar es salaam. I live in the City Center near the "clock tower." Just in case anyone every spends any time in Dar es salaam in the near future:) My roommates are two pilots for Air Tanzanian, Sharad, a married father of one from Mauritius and a Spanish guy name Roberto, who I have yet to meet. We live in a 3 bedroom flat for $600 a month, or $200 each. The last place I was staying at was $400, plus cable, electricity and the maid. It was in Msasani, which is a pretty nice area, and I had the most gorgeous views of sunset over the bay, but I had to live a crazy Tanzanian woman.

I almost decided to live there until one night after she smoked herself out while reading the bible, she decided to tell me about Jesus Christ and how he saved her life. I polite told her that I do not like to discuss religion, and also I just really did not want to hear her personal problems. I mean seriously, I had only been there for 4 days, and I thought this is a little personal. However, what really got me was that she had been reflecting on why someone would steal a laptop from me (one of 2 foreigners on a 16 hour bus ride), and she decided that it was because I did not have God in my life and that if I embraced Jesus Christ bad things wouldn't happen to me. Let's just say that the next day I moved out of there and was glad to be out!

My new place is better in the sense that I have more space, privacy, and cheap eats around. Sharad, being the father of a young daughter, has definitely shown me around and made sure that I had what I needed in the flat. We haven't had running water for over 2 days now, and have had to take bucket showers, which isn't so bad except that you have to go to the corner store and buy 6 and 12 liter bottles of water and walk up to the 4th floor. However, I really enjoy living in a more local area where I have more interaction with locals than other foreigners. It really gives you a better sense of what life is like here.

As I said above, the rent is $600 a month (or $7200) for a flat, which got me thinking how could local people afford this rent. Just to give you a little background the average college educated person makes between $4500 - $6000 a year. An unskilled worker, such as our maid, makes 90,000 T Shillings or $60 per month, or about $720 per year, or $2 a day. You couldn't even buy a latte in America for $2. Even though I find this is true is most developing countries, including Vietnam and Ghana, it always surprises me. I am not sure why, but it does.

I spoke to my flatmate about this this morning. He said that all of the people in our building are not of African descent, but are Asian (Indian and Pakistan descent) and most own the local shops around our area because even an educated Tanzanian person with a family living on one income couldn't even afford the rent in our building.

Anyways, I hope to motivate myself to write more blogs, but I have not done much but read. I am waiting to see if I get another assignment from Kiva, and then hopefully my visitor (who hopefully will be securing his flight today) will come in September and I can freely travel around Africa.

Hope everyone is well!!

Bombing in Uganda

I just heard about the terrible bombing in Uganda that left over 40 people dead. The sad part about it was that the bombing targeted World Cup watchers. I immediately checked the United States Travel Warnings to see if there were any known dangers in Tanzania because it is in the same region as Uganda. Thankfully no warnings have been issues and I haven't seen anything that has caused me any concern. But I will definitely be paying close attention to my surroundings.

There are 2 Kiva fellows in Uganda currently, but they just sent us an email letting the other Kiva fellows know that they are safe and waiting for word on what to do next. Africa is sort of funny that way as you can feel totally safe and then you hear about some uprising and violence in a neighboring country. All you can really do is keep yourself safe, and be sure to check in with your Embassy. I haven't felt any negative sentiments towards American at all, and in fact, the locals usually ask me to pass along their greetings to Obama. I guess I am lucky that we have a half African president in power while I am exploring the region.

Nothing else to report except that I stayed the night at a house where a former fellow lived. I wanted to watch the world cup, but the landlady had a friend over who sort of just took over the living space and blasted the t.v. all night. It was weird and I hope to find a more permanent less freaky living situation in a near future.

Do you like Barack Obama?

I left Ghana this past Friday, and headed to Nairobi before heading to Dar es salaam, Tanzania. When you entered Nairobi, you have to pay $25 in US Currency or the British Pounds equivalent. Unfortunately for me, I only had two $20 and no one told me you needed exact change. As I was waiting for my visa to be processed, I noticed that the immigration officer did not offer me any change. So I asked him for my change, and he gave me back $10 and told me to give him $5. I wasn't sure if he was joking or serious, but I jokingly asked him if he liked Barack Obama. He said yes, and I told him that I was going to call Barack Obama and tell him that the immigration officer kept my $5. He then laughed, gave me back my $5 and said it would have cost me $10 to call Barack Obama. When I told my field support person the story, she was mortified because the immigration officer was serious about not giving me my change.

Anyways, Nairobi was good, but expensive. I packed in a lot in 2 days. I went to one of the largest slums to visit a school, saw some handmade bags made from recycled clothing, specifically, sweaters, and I even saw some baby elephants being fed. I also went to an event call Wine and Blankets where we saw live African jazzy type of music. I also attended a nice bbq where I finally got a decent hamburger and learned to play beer pong. It was nice, but I was eager to get to Tanzania and get settled. However, things did not go as planned, as this is the story of my life in Africa. At some point, bad things just sort of happen to everyone here, and so you just stopped caring so much.

Back to my story.... I woke up late and had to rush to catch my supposed 12 hour bus ride from Nairobi to Dar es salaam - in reality it is about 16 hours. I was given a laptop moments before I caught the bus and placed it under the seat in front of me. I got off the bus twice for about 5 minutes to use the restroom, and I only took my backpack with my money and passport. Unfortunately, someone on the bus nicked the computer and I felt sad because it wasn't even mine. I told the police conductor who than drove the bus to the police station, where the police conducted a search of everyone on the bus. People were getting on and off the bus during this 16 hour journey, so they were probably gone :( The police felt bad and all of the Tanzanian people felt bad, and I felt bad. Luckily a very nice German woman stayed with me and took me to the hotel where she was staying as it was about 10:40 p.m. She said that I was surprisingly calm about the whole experience. I told her that so many other things have happened to me since I have been in Africa that there is no point in getting upset anymore. I am safe and I still have money and my passport, so I am good.

I have to say that Africa has been the most difficult place (Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania) I have traveled, but really it is just weird circumstances. Many people here are poor and it is hard to blame them when you are not being careful and you are creating easy opportunities for them to steal from you. And most of the local people that I have come across have been very lovely and helpful, so I don't want to let a few unfortunate experiences taint my overall experience here. I keep hoping that it will get better, and in some ways it has because I am handling the difficulties much better than before.

Hope you are all well, and I look forward to exploring Tanzania and having a great time here, even if there are a few more bumps in the road!

Goodbye Ghana ... At Least For Now

Oh Ghana. What can I say about you - sometimes I love you and sometimes I just want to leave you, and so I am spending my last few hours in Ghana sort of sad that I will be leaving. Due to my unfortunately immigration issues, I will be leaving my placement in Ghana. However, the good news is that I am heading to East Africa! First, I will be heading to Nairobi, Kenya and then off to Tanzania to finish my placement.

But before I leave, I wanted to share some funny interactions/expressions that I have heard or picked up in Ghana.

• Your phone is misbehaving.
• You're a nice girl. I take you as my wife. Would you like that?
  
• I take you as my friend. Buy me water.
• I'm coming (however, I may not get there for another hour or so).
• We score you (my Ghanaian friends constantly telling me over the telephone in the US v. Ghana football match).

I will be coming back to Ghana in October for about a week before I head back to the US, and so I hope that this separation period will renew some Ghana love for me, and some of my love for Ghana. I will miss the friends that I have made here, but I hope to see them again before I leave.

In a few hours, the Black Stars will be taking the field against Uruguay, and I will be sporting my Ghanaian sweat wrist band in support of the best African team. Go Black Stars!!! And I will see you again Ghana in a few months :)

And Ghana wins!!

I headed to the capital of Accra to watch the US take on Ghana in the World Cup. I went with my friend Richelle to a place called Epos which easily had over a few hundred people packed inside and outside to watch Ghana make history. I have supported Ghana through their quest for the World Cup, but I had to throw my support to the Americans. There were a few other Americans watching the match, but when America scored it goal against Ghana, I was the only person who stood up and cheered. Thankfully, the Ghanaians did not lynch me, but they had no doubt that their team was going to beat the US. Every time the Ghanaians scored, my Ghanaian friends in Kumasi would call me to let me know that they were winning. And of course, when the US scored against Ghana, I had to call them to let them know that the US still had a chance. Unfortunately, our quest for the World Cup ended on Saturday night, but I was excited to be in Ghana to share in the experience of Ghana making history at the World Cup and to see the pride in the Ghanaian people that their team is carrying the pride of Africa during these games. A Spanish embassy worker came to comfort me when the US lost, but he reminded me that it was good that Ghana won because we will have more opportunities to get swept into the excitement of the World Cup in Ghana. A Ghanaian friend also comforted me, and told me that it was okay because I was Ghanaian as well, so I should be happy that Ghana won. Regardless of who won, aside from being in South Africa, the best place to watch Satuday night's match was in Ghana. And I was very happy to see the Black Stars continue their quest for the World Cup!!

It is hard to stay down in Ghana

I was hoping to get my passport back on Friday and be on my way to Cape Coast, but of course it did not happen. I called the immigration officer on Friday morning to see if my passport was ready. Since my MFI did not call the immigration officer as planned, the immigration officer started to yell at me, and decided that I was not going to get my passport back until he had contact with the MFI. Apparently, the folks at my MFI wanted to deal with a different immigration officer, but they failed to tell me. I asked the immigration if I would withdraw my request for an extension, so that I could leave the country, but that seemed to only upset him more, and he again told me that I couldn't have my passport back. As most of you can imagine, this was a very upsetting situation for me and I felt a loss for what to do next. At that point, I just really wanted to leave Ghana altogether and never come back. However, as I shared my immigration problems with Ghanaian friends I realized that I had a support system in Ghana. The outpour of sympathy and offers of help to get my passport back lifted my spirits and made me realize again that things really aren't as bad as they may seem. I am not sure if I have to leave Ghana, and I have no idea when I will be getting my passport back, but I do know that there are several people who are ready and willing to help me :)

Oh Ghana!

Well folks it has been quite some time since I have published any blogs. Things in Ghana have continued to be a little stressful, and I have been traveling quite a bit on my fellowship. The travel has been great, however, I haven't taken any time to check out any of the tourist sites in Ghana, and I may not get a chance now. My passport is currently being held hostage at the immigration office. I have asked for a visa extension, but I came in on a tourist visa, which sorts of complicates things. I am hoping that after the immigration officer meets with the reps from my MFI, they will grant me my 2 month extension and then I will definitely have to leave Ghana after that.

If all works out with immigration, I will be moving to Cape Coast, which is located on the coast of the Gulf of Guinea. I am excited to check out a new area and explore all of the beaches in the area.

As you all probably suspect, the World Cup has been a very big deal in Ghana. Especially since Ghana has advanced to the next stage. I had several Ghanaians, including the immigration officer who interrogated/questioned me for over 1 hour, that Ghana was going to beat the US. However, they did tell me that Ghana will try to win by only one point because Ghanaians love the US.

Here is the caption from a local Ghanaian paper.


I hope the next time I blog it is from Ghana, but if Mr. Immigration denies my visa extension application I am not sure where I will go from here. Although I could really use a good burger, I am not ready to return to the US. I will have to keep you all posted where I land next.

If it didn’t happen to me, I wouldn’t believe it . . .

So I have had yet another funny experience in Ghana. Yesterday morning I got up early to meet a colleague at the bus station to head out into the field. He called me to let me know he was running late. I figure okay, I will have a nice cup of coffee and then head out. I went to turn the key in the lock to open the door and it wouldn’t open. The locks here allow for the key to be inserted both inside and outside, and you must use it inside to lock the door. At this point it was 6:48 a.m. and there wasn’t a lot of traffic in my neighborhood. I tried to pull the key out, no luck. I tried to jiggle the key lock, no luck. Then I started to wonder how I would get out of my apartment. You cannot climb out of the windows, because there are bars around them. Then I started to yell out to passing people in the street, but no one stopped. Finally after 20 minutes of calling out for help, someone from the house on the property I rent my apartment came around and heard my pleas for help. It only took another 20 minutes for someone to get the door open. The funny thing was it wasn’t even the right key. All I could think was if there was a fire I would be toast. Thankfully, there was no such emergency.

I am posting one photo from Ghana.



This was posted in a rural town that I visited. Unfortunately, Ghana lost to Holland. I am not sure what that means for Ghana - but I hope they can recover and make it to South Africa. Go Team Ghana!!

Ghana is Hard

I have lived in Ghana now for over a month. And boy sometimes I wasn't sure if I was going to make it.

I thought about if I should only highlight the good parts of my experience, or if I should also share how difficult it can be in Ghana. I remember during my training the field support specialist for my region told me that "Africa is Hard" and your assignment will be difficult. As much as you mentally prepare for the difficulties you will face, it is really unknown, so how can you really prepare. My MFI is full of nice people who don't exactly evaluate time the way we do in America and who often will not provide you with the most straightforward answer. I hear it is because Ghanaian people don't want to deliver bad news or disappoint you, so as you can imagine it has been very difficult to work in such an environment. I chose to come here and I accepted this difficult assignment, so I try to keep the complaints to a minimum. I mean how many people really have the opportunity to move to Africa and do development type of work? So although there are many days, I long for my nice computer office on California Avenue and my old apartment, I am still thankful and realize that these difficulties are part of the experience.

Here is a quick summary of some low points:

-- A rather large cockroach crawling over my hand when I was falling asleep last night. As most of you known, I am easily frightened by insects. After staying up until 2:00 a.m. going through all of my stuff to make sure no other little guys were waiting for me to go to sleep before they came out, I finally made it to bed. This morning I had one of the workers at the main house come check out my apartment with me, and of course no bugs.

-- The death of my cute little netbook (laptop)

-- Meeting some pretty intense Obrunis in Kumasi, who need a vacation to a Westernize country because it does start to wear on your spirits here

-- Having the same conversation with colleagues about the importance of transparency and full disclosure 10 times

-- Missing my family and friends

-- Trying fufu and having stomach problems for the next 4 days (Fufu is a staple dish in Ghanaian diet which is made pounded of cassava and plantains - see this link for a better description -- http://en.wikipedia.org.wiki/Fufu


Some of the highlights are:

-- Getting a chance to live in a developing country

-- Joking around with the same colleagues I mentioned above

-- Meeting with actual Kiva borrowers and conversing with them

-- Going to Accra and meeting a handful of cool foreigners, including my new friend Richelle whom I have a date to go check out a gold mine in the town of Obuasi

-- Laughing at jokes from Richelle until I was literally crying

-- Attending a concert of Nigerian and Ghanaian hip hop and r&b artists, including PSquare with my new friends in Accra

-- Shopping at a legitimate grocery store in Accra (but very sad because it is a 5 hour bus ride from Kumasi)

-- Having a lovely Italian dinner at Michelangelo in Accra

I meant to write a few blogs about the experiences above, but I have been without a computer for the past 3 days. Although this weekend, I will be staying in Kumasi, I do hope to start going to other towns on the weekend to fully maximize my time here.

Hope everyone is well!!!! I am still here and enjoying most of the minutes of this experience - well definitely not the cockroach part or the part where my computer died -- but most of it.

Hey Obroni! (“Obroni” means white person in the Twi language)

“Hey Obroni!” is often what I hear on the streets of Kumasi, Ghana. It has been nearly 2weeks, and without fail someone will call out “Hey Obroni!” In the United States, some people may find this offensive, but in Ghana, it appears to be a way for people to get your attention. And let’s face it; I am usually the only “obroni” on the street, so I always turn around. Some of my colleagues have told me that it is a term of endearment because Ghanaian people believe that visitors are special. I am not sure if it is true, but I prefer to think so.

My first “hey obroni” came from a group of small children who seemed so excited when I turned around to say hello. Their sweet little faces had huge smiles and they were madly waving their hands just to get my attention. However, not everyone calls me “obroni.” Many of the older men and women I come across just bid me “good afternoon” or tell me that “you’re welcome” which I take to mean “welcome” or “hello.” I usually respond with a hello and how are you. The older men and women usually respond “me ho ye” which means “I am well” in Twi, the language predominately spoken in Ghana, especially in Kumasi. Then I usually respond back in Twi “Wo ho te sen?”, which means how are you and then we both laugh. I guess I realize that they would prefer if I greeted them in Twi, so I try to do so after the fact. They don’t seem to mind and I think they appreciate my efforts. The only word I have mastered in Twi is thank you or “meda ase.” However, I will attempt to learn a few words each week and hopefully I will have the vocabulary of an infant by the time I leave Ghana.

I will try to be better about writing my experiences, but since I am usually working or trying to get myself situated, I don’t have a lot of great stories yet. But stay tuned! Also, as a Kiva fellow, we have been asked to refrain from posting pictures on our non-Kiva blog, so I will likely not post pictures on this travel blog until I have completed my fellowship. However, I will provide links to the Kiva website to my photos once I post them. I believe there is a way to become a follower, and then you will get updates when I post on my blog. Hope you are all well!!!

Last day in Bangkok

Like all good things, this trip must now come to an end. This trip has been absolutely amazing. I have traveled over three countries by car, bus, train. boat and plane. I have met some of the nicest people I could hope for traveling. There is Lucinda, who is the maddest person I have ever met. There was Sonia, a medical student, who was very boisterous and downright nice; Melanie, who practice homeopathy and is probably the zenest person I met; and Lisa, who has been working overseas for the past few years teaching English and lots of other people whom I may have only been acquainted with for a train ride or boat ride. Of course there were the locals that I came across - such as my tuk tuk driver, Mr. Two in Phnom Penh and Mr. Eang, my tuk tuk driver in Siem Reap.

I also had a fantastic time in Vietnam with my family. I feel very blessed to have had this opportunity to travel and visit family. It allows you to take a moment and be completely selfish, and let me tell you it was sorely needed.

The highlights of this trip include all of the fantastic people and places that I encountered along the way. I did not really have a solid plan when I came on this trip - just an idea of where I wanted to go. It worked out pretty smoothly. I loved Cambodia and recommend everyone to take a trip out there. Cambodian people were by far the nicest people that I came across.

Thailand was pretty cool as well, but Bangkok was probably my least favorite place. It is hot and loud and there are so many scams that it really keeps you on your toes. It is a hard place to relax.

Here are some tips for anyone coming to Bangkok:

1. Always get a metered taxi. If they quote you a flat fare - you are paying too much. And make sure they put the meter on!

2. If you take any flights into Don Muang airport - do not get the metered taxis at the airport that are quoted at 700 baht or more depending on where you are going. If you are going to the backpacker area it should only cost less than 200 baht plus 25 baht for the toll. I knew this when I returned from Phuket, and got into a little argument with the information guy at the airport. Just ask where the local buses are and hail a taxi from the main road.

3. Local buses in Bangkok will not let you get on the bus with all of your luggage, so don't even try. I did and was denied.

4. Avoid the tuk tuks as they are always trying to take you somewhere you don't want to go unless you want the novelty of riding in one. However, they are pretty small -- I had to crouch down in one.

5. Get a Thai massage. It only costs about $5-6 USD and they are amazing!!!

I am attaching just a few more pictures. I hope to post them online when I get back. I have loads of pictures and it takes too long to try and do it here. I guess I will see everyone when I get back home. Hope you enjoyed reading about my adventures and sorry for any spelling or grammatical mistakes.

Here is a photo of my second to last night in Bangkok with Lucinda, her friend Chris, an English guy living in Thailand, and his girlfriend Cherry. We went to an area called Intamara or something. It is located in Central Bangkok is not very touristy at all. Had the best little snacks there. I let Cherry order and basically tried everything - pretty surprising for me. I think this trip has definitely made me want to try other foods. My favorite was sundried beef with sticky rice. Can't wait to find some at home.

The standing Buddha at Wat InthraWihan in Bangkok. It was massive.

My final sunset in Bangkok.

Khao San Road, which is where all of the backpackers go. It was a little too much - but there are plenty of places to eat and drink and shop on this road. I stayed on another road, but very close as it is the easiest place to find internet and travel agencies.

Thanks for reading and keeping up with my travels!

Koh Phi Phi Views and Snorkling

My last day in Koh Phi Phi was brilliant. Since it was my last day, I wanted to go to the viewpoint. I can't even tell you how many steps you have to walk up, but my legs are still sore. The hike is definitely worth the views.

Can you image if this was the view you woke up to everyday? It is quite breathtaking. The tsunami hit this island five years ago and so a lot of the development around this stretch is new.

Near the viewpoint, someone has tacked this picture to a tree. It serves as a reminder of the devastation that hit this region not too long ago. I also saw a few locals wearing t-shirts in remembrance of the tsunami.

After my hike, I headed to beach to meet Lucinda and Moira for a day of snorkeling and a mini tour of the little islands around Koh Phi Phi on a long boat.

Here is a picture of me and monkey on Monkey island. The unfortunate part is that the locals and tourists give these monkeys really unhealthy things, such as candy and soda.

Here is a picture of Lucinda and I are the "beach" - I think it is called Mora Bay. These is where the movie The Beach with Leo C. was filmed. It was really beautiful and nice to swim in, but of course every tourist goes there so it got a bit crowded.

Here is a photo of the sunset from the boat on our way back to Koh Phi Phi. Sadly it was the first and probably last sunset I will see on this trip. There was quit a bit of rain and fog during the early part of my trip, so no views of sunsets. However, this was a really beautiful one.

Koh Phi Phi - No Roads and Lots of Fire Shows

My first full day in Koh Phi Phi was a lot of fun. I finally hooked up with Lucinda and just relaxed on the beach during the day and walked around the town at night. The great thing about Koh Phi Phi is that there are no roads, so all the locals pretty much get around my either by walking or by bicycle. There a few motorbikes, but not many and they are usually used by the police only. Koh Phi Phi is a bit touristy and has too many Americans for my liking, but the views and the locals are really cool, so it was definitely worth the trip. I also got great Mexican food at the Banana Bar - chicken enchiladas. Yum... wish I had one now!

There have a lot of fire shows in the evening. You have two options I know of. You can go to Carlito's or Carlita's to watch the more advance folks performing fire shows, such as twirling a baton that is on fire, but don't get too close because sometimes they throw it up in the air and don't catch it and it could land on you. The other option is to go to the Apache Bar where the younger guys are trying to learn how to perform in a fire show. This one you definitely do not want to sit too close because these kids are drinking quite a bit and it seems a bit dangerous to allow them to be playing with fire. However, they are quite entertaining and very nice. The Apache Bar also has viewer participation, such as fire limbo, jumping through a fire ring and fire jump roping. I have a video of me fire jump roping, but can't seem to load video.

Lucinda and I are suppose to be limboing under this fire stick, but we crawled instead.

Me jumping through a fire ring. It was really hot and luckily I still have my hair.

Lucinda and I with the Thai Jimi Hendrix.

Here is a picture of Lucinda (my English travel buddy) and Moira, a woman from Italy. We sort of lost her the second evening and never saw her again before we left.

There are bats on Koh Phi Phi

I just wanted to share a funny story. My new friend Chris and I are staying at the same Guesthouse. His room is on the 4th floor and mine is on the 3rd floor. Well we made plans to have dinner last night because I did not know where Lucinda was. Anyways, I leave my room at about 6:30 p.m. to go up to knock of his door and see when he wanted to head out. I was wearing shorts and a tank top as it is really hot here. As I approach his floor, I see all of these things flying around. It took me a minute before I realized it was about 10 bats flying around his floor. To make things worse, his room was at the end of the hallway. I had to think for a minute - and I decided to go back to my room and put my hoodie on. Then I again tried to approach his room, but I was still scared. Then I go back down to my room and grab a flashlight. I again tried to approach his room - but I was still scared. So I crouched down and started to call his name, but he did not answer. Then I thought about trying to get across the floor either on my stomach or my knees - as if I was in boot camp. Well I was still scared, so I went to the front desk and asked the woman about the bats. First, she said that is was probably butterflies, but these things were no butterflies. Then she assured me that bats don't like people, so I should be fine. But her words did not comfort me. I asked her to walk with me to the room, which she happily did, but she started to laugh. Of course, when she accompanies me to Chris's room, the bats were no longer flying around. Later that night, we saw another bat flying around Koh Phi Phi. I wish there was a video showing how ridiculous I looked trying to get to Chris's room.



Anyways, internet is much more expensive (well everything is more expensive on Koh Phi Phi, so I will try and write again from Bangkok on Sunday.

Phuket and then finally Koh Phi Phi

I wish I had an impression of Phuket, but since I only used it as a jumping point to get to Koh Phi Phi, I did not really venture too far from my hotel. I did however have to listen to Thai karoke blasting until after midnight, which was unpleasant. Not because it was Thai karoke, but because of my long journey the night before on the train from Chiang Mai and the flight from Bangkok. I got on the first ferry in the morning and met an American named Chris also traveling to Koh Phi Phi on his own. It was nice to have the company, as I did not find my friend Lucinda until about 8 p.m. yesterday evening.

Here is a view of Koh Phi Phi by ferry. I basically just laid on the beach for about an hour. The water is so warm and there is all sorts of fish swimming around. Unfortunately, I did not go into the water yesterday because I had all of my stuff with me. Today, Lucinda and I are heading to the beach, so I am going to take a dip in the water.

There are 2 international airports in Bangkok!!

Now I am writing from Phuket. And let me tell you the journey from Chiang Mai to Bangkok (by train) and then a flight from Bangkok to Phuket and then finally to my cheapy hotel was long! Especially since I initially went to the wrong airport. But I will get to that. I left my cheapy hotel in Chiang Mai. It was only 100 baht a night which is a little over $3 USD. It wasn't very nice and it was loud, so I was glad to leave, but it served its purpose.

Here is a picture of my room. It is funny because the longer I travel, the lower my standards become. And I cannot forget to mention the cold showers!

Just a little comparison, I lucked out and got this room in Siem Reap for only $12 - not in any Lonely Planet guide. It had hot water and a proper shower. For those who don't know Asia traveling - the toilet and shower tend to be in the same area. Sort of shower over the toilet, but not quite. It was cheaper and much nicer than the place I stayed in Phnom Penh. I also had cable, a mini fridge and free breakfast. I sort of got spoiled there :)

Well after my fantastic time at the Elephant Nature Park, I headed over to take an overnight train - which was a seat because no more sleepers were available. At the train station, I met a Danish girl of Vietnamese ancestry named Dang, a Laotian girl and her mother (they currently live in Oregon) and another Danish girl (who made me look like a little person as she was about 6 feet tall). It is always nice to cross paths with other travelers and hear their stories about where they went and where they were going. I exchanged emails with the Laotian girl, so I hope we can keep in touch. I took a photo of the Danish girl (Jeanette- English translation of her Danish name which I couldn't remember or pronounce).

Here is a photo of Jeanette at the train station in Bangkok.

Well after I left Jeanette at the train station, I grabbed a metered taxi and asked him to take me to the airport. Well silly me did not realize there were 2 international airports in Bangkok and they are not near each other. He did not ask me which one and I did not tell him which airport. I get to the airport, I pay him and go to wait in line. Once I get to the front of the line, the airline employee informs me that I am at the wrong airport. So I rush out and hope into another cab. Since I was in a rush, I could not haggle over the price of the cab fare. The other international airport is on the other side of the city. If you have ever been to Bangkok, you know that traffic can be quite bad. I get to the right airport, laughing at myself the whole way to discover that my flight was delayed over one hour. The important thing is that I made my flight! The funny thing is that guy spoke English, but when I asked him if I was Thai what would be the price of my cab fare, he acted like he did not understand English!

Elephant Park in Chiang Mai

Well I arrived in Chiang Mai yesterday by bus. Arrived at 6 a.m. and had to sit outside the guesthouse until I figured out what door to knock on to see if a room was available. I waited for one hour when a fellow traveller showed me the way.

Last night there was a terrible thunderstorm and I thought I hope that I can still make it to the Elephant Nature Park located 1 1/2 hour drive from Chiang Mai. Thankfully the rain stopped! Thanks to an article by my friend, Rob Selna, I was able to learn about this amazing place where a woman called Lek (meaning "small" in Thai) has adopted/rescued over 32 elephants from the tourism and logging industry. There is one wild elephant named Hope. He was adopted after his mother died from disease. The elephant park also has two baby elephants and one pregnant elephants. The gestation period for an elephant is 22 months - but I wasn't sure how far along the pregnant elephant was.

If anyone is interested in learning more about elephants, I strongly suggest making the journey to the Elephant Nature Park. For more information check out their website -- http://www.elephantnaturefoundation.org/. There is no riding and no shows, but you do get to feed the elephants, assist in bathing them, and get pretty darn close to these gigantic creatures. They are very amazing. There is also a short video at the end which shows the brutality involved in breaking their spirits - so it definitely makes you think twice about (1) ever riding an elephant and (2) checking out a show where the elephants play instruments and/or paint. There is also a problem with elephant begging in Bangkok and Chiang Mai. I never saw it, but I haven't spent much time exploring around. I have to get ready to hope on an overnight train (no sleeper available), so upright seating only to Bangkok to catch a flight early afternoon to Phuket, and then off to Koh Phi Phi to meet a fellow traveler I met in Siam Reap, Cambodia. I have met some of the most interesting people traveling. So many people who are on either 6 month or 1 year trips around the world. I wish that was me! But these past few weeks have been amazing.

I also enjoyed my short stay in Chiang Mai, it is a more laid back place than Bangkok for sure. Internet down in 5 minutes, so have to make it short. See photos below. More to come later.

Bye Bye Cambodia

Well I have finally taken a moment to think about my travels. I knew that attempting to travel through 3 countries in a little over three weeks was ambitious, but I forgot how exhausting it is. It has been a great time and I have loved every minute of it.

Cambodia is one of the most amazing places to visit. If you ever get a chance, I recommend it. I spent only about 6 or 7 days in Cambodia and I can't wait to come back. I only traveled to Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, but there are beach areas and hills tribes that I would love to visit on my next trip to Southeast Asia.

After I Phnom Penh, I took a 6-7 bus ride to Siem Reap. It was raining quite a bit and at times I was a little nervous that our double decker bus may tip over, but thankfully it did not. Siem Reap is full of most tourist than Phnom Penh. I suspect it has to do with the many temples, especially Ankor Wat, which was pretty amazing. Lisa (my travel campanion in Cambodia) and I arrived a tuk tuk for two days to drive us around the temples. However, several people rented bikes and biked around. Our tuk tuk driver was Mr. Eang. He was a young guy about 24 years old and sweetest person you could ask for.

Mr. Eang our tuk tuk driver in Siem Reap.

Once we got to Ankor Wat we arrived an unlicensed guy to walk us around the temple for $10 US. He was very nice and knowledgable about the temple. Apparently it costs about $2000 US to get a license, so I am not sure who could afford it there. I was happy with our guide. We walked around this amazing temple for about 1 1/2 hours and we also talked a lot about his life in Cambodia. He rides his bike for one hour each morning to the temple hoping to serve as a guide to the tourists. I did not realize that the civil war in Cambodia ended just a little over 10 years ago. His life was greatly affected by the civil war. His father was killed (Ibelieve) when he was two months old. He had 2 older brothers and a sister. His older brother died in the civil war, and his other brother and sister were victims of landmines. I am not sure if one of the brothers is still leaving, but he did say that his brother couldn't get good health care and started to have psychological problems. His sister died and left behind 3 children. Now our guide supports his mother and 3 nieces and nephews. It was pretty heartbreaking, and just about everyone I met in Siem Reap has a similar tragic story. I was so impressed and amazed that these people with such a tragic history could be so warm and friendly with us - especially Americans.

Our guide at Ank Wat.

Me at the entrance of Ankor Wat.