Discover the Unexpected (a very long post)

Dearest friends,

I have yet to post on the incredible time that was my trip to the Volta region of Ghana. The Volta region is the most Eastern region, bordering Togo. For those of you who have me on facebook, you know that my status upon returning was "This last week has been full of true adventure, vibrance, compassion, friendship, generosity, beauty, and wisdom. I have learned and experienced so much. Ghana has won over this obruni's heart."Robin, Sara, and I headed to the city of Ho to do Project ID, which is how QPID finds new organizations to partner with, with an organization called Sight for Life. We volunteered for Sight for Life for 3 days, assisting them in their community outreach programs where they do eye health promotion, eye screening, and subsidize glasses, medicines, and procedures to promote good eye health. The team welcomed us with appreciation and open arms and was incredibly organized. Each day we went to a different rural community outside Ho. When we got there the locals performed welcoming ceremonies for us, that included drums, dance, beautiful dresses, and giving us beads that made us "honoroury citizens." We cooked and ate and drank (gin and wine) and danced and prayed and laughed. The old ladies invited us to dance, showing us their moves, then we would dance with their husbands and children. I automatically connected with couple of women. There was woman who was so vibrant and had incredible dance skills, and Sara and I adored her. Later we found out she was105 years old. In a rural community with no electricity, no running water, little sanitation, and only traditional healthcare. In so many ways we assume these communities are "poor." There are definite issues, and it's why they've been targeted by Sight for Life as a marginalized group in need of eye care. But two days in two communities, I experienced so much food and culture and love and happiness and generosity. 

(I failed to take photos on these trips, so these photos go to the credit of Robin. Thanks bud!)

The dancing girls

We were lucky enough to meet the chiefs and elders of the communities

Dance circle around the drummers 

In the action

A local making gare, ground cassava

They taught us too!

Aside from the welcoming ceremonies, I assisted one of the team members, Millicent, with handing out glasses. Despite their subsidies, many people still cannot afford the glasses and medicines they need. Many suffered from eye disease as well. Although within one marginalized community, there was still a division between the people who could afford the glasses and the people who couldn't. 

With the Sight for Life team

Following our exciting and heart-warming visit to Sight for Life, Robin, Sara and I met up with Heather at Roots Yard, a campground near Peki, to explore the Volta region a bit more. Roots Yard was by far the most excellent place I've stayed in Ghana so far. Only opening in June, it's an accommodation focused on environmentalism, local food, and veganism. The food and drinks were amazing, and it was so refreshing to have good vegetarian food and real coffee, not nescafe! Real coffee is impossible to find in Ghana, so people drink instant. The British-Ghanaian family was lovely. We took two day trips during our stay, one to Wli falls (pronounced Vlee) and one to the Tafi Atome Monkey Sanctuary. We travelled with another group of foreigners staying at Roots. The trip to Wli falls was lengthy, but once we arrived, it was beautiful. After a 45 minute walk down the 9-bridge path, we arrived at the falls. From the bottom you can only see the lower falls. The upper falls can be seen by hiking to the top of the lower falls, a dangerous trek during the rainy season. It was hard to believe we were only seeing half the falls, because they were unimaginably tall. Clad in our bathing suits, we ventured into the cold water. The closer we got to the falls, the more impossible it was to see and move, because the pressure and spray from the falls was so strong. The mist however was very refreshing. 

We are so tiny!

On our second day trip, we took a much shorter trotro ride to the Monkey Sanctuary. The sanctuary is not large, just a small piece of forest where many Mona monkeys live, who are accustomed to people coming in to feed them. We were given bananas to feed the monkeys, who, if you held on to the banana tight enough, hopped right onto your arm! The tour guide told us a bit about the monkeys, but I hardly payed attention. Rather, I watched as two monkeys picked and cleaned each other, how a mother monkey gracefully maneuvered around the branches with her baby wrapped around her belly, and how the others were able to do so much with their long and strong tails. After a long trotro ride back home, we arrived for another week of work. 

My wide eyed friend

Mama and baby!

The Bradt guide on Ghana lists Nzulezo, the stilt village, as one of the things to see in the country, saying its readers called it the highlight of their trip. Not far from Takoradi, the pre-colonial village was built over 600 years ago, but no one really knows why. It is built on top of Amunsuri lake, with stilts supporting the structure. One legend says that the original inhabitants were refugees from what is now Nigeria, who went there to escape from an enemy tribe. When I was in Morocco, I visited the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, which, like Nzulezo, is built on the water. The mosque was built according to the Quran, which says “the throne of Allah was built on water.” According to the Wikipedia page on Ghana, Islam spread to Northern Ghana and Nigeria during the 13^th century. It seems likely that the south was still void of Islam 600 years ago, and Nzulezo has no mosque (I asked!), just three Christian churches. This said, it’s a cool kind of coincidence, and I like to think there is a spiritual aspect to building above water.

The only way to get to Nzulezo is by canoe from the town of Beyin, through the Amunsuri wetlands, which is the largest conserved wetland in Ghana. The canoe ride is striking. The wetlands are lush and green, lily pads, palm trees, and apparently crocodiles, all in abundance. The water is black and reflective, making for some stunning photos. Once we arrived at Nzulezo the uniqueness and intriguing architecture of the village was striking. A tour guide showed us through the homes, pointing out the schools and churches.

It quickly became clear that the romanticized and beautiful image we had of Nzulezo from my guidebook was very one-dimensional. Because of their location on the water, so much has to be imported, which is expensive and unsustainable for the growing population of 500. Their main income is from distilling akpeteshie, a gin made from palm, and from tourists, who pay upwards of 15 cedi to see the town and are encouraged to donate to the school. A diet of mainly seafood creates malnutrition, and they lack a medical clinic. The same water is used for drinking and disposing of waste, so disease is common. Although I have a couple of picturesque photos, there are also a few cluttered with litter and waste. They have a primary school, but no junior high, so students must take the 1-hour boat ride to attend school. The community is poor and restricted by their location. Would life be easier on land? As an outsider that spent only an hour at the village, I can’t really say, but it seems like a balance between tradition and practicality is the trick.  

The more I travel and the more I ponder, the more I realize nothing is one-dimensional. No one is just poor. Nothing is just beautiful. Nowhere is just dangerous. So much of our impressions before we see a place, or even after we do see a place, is based off common belief. For me, it is the discovering of the unexpected that makes these travels so incredible and worthwhile.

Lastly, if you haven't noticed, I have barely mentioned my internship at FoN. I am facing some struggles in the workplace. General disorganization, bad communication, disrespect, and difficult gender tensions has made for a more challenging internship than I had expected. However, I am continuing to embrace the challenges as learning experiences, and overall will become a more patient and experienced employee in the future. If nothing else, I have read a lot, and learned a lot about fisheries, NGO organization, and development as a whole. 

Until next time,

Caro