The "Reflective" Post

The other day, someone asked me, "So what did you learn in Ghana?" and as weird as this sounds, I couldn't really answer that question. Not because I didn't learn anything, but I really didn't know how to start to answer that question. I learned a lot in Ghana. More than I even can comprehend at this moment. And I as look out the window and rain is falling, I know what a different world I was in a little more than a month ago. I was in a place where I stood out like a sore thumb. I was in a place where I had to bargain for a fair price. I was in a place where I met some of the most amazing people. And that is where I learned. 

Being in Ghana really opened my eyes to a lot of things. I realized that disability in Ghana is not as drastically different as I thought it be in the United States. It is still a slow process. There is still discrimination. There are still people who don't talk about it. I realized that things are not black and white and there are a lot of gray areas. Disability as a culture is very complicated thing, especially when religion is involved. I also developed this complex feeling about helping people. I wanted to help so many people when I was there but that just wouldn't be possible. Where do you draw the line and walk away when so many people need help? The purpose of this class was to think about disability and my own perceptions and it definitely raised more questions than answers. 

I learned that traveling alone can be an experience in itself. I got stuck in Paris on the way there and was severely sick on the way back (I literally went through seven barf bags. And cried because I thought I had Malaria). But I was okay. I actually had time to think about what this experience means. I learned that if you ask questions with a smile and are patient, people will help you. And people will be nice.    

The main thing I will take away from my experience is the friendships. I learned so much from the people in my group and I really admire all of them.  I have always known teachers know how to have a good time, and that was true, even in Ghana. I vowed to be more fearless like Mehir and Liz, and to be as nice as Yulia. I wanted to be reserved like Husan yet the life of the party like Alex. I compared classes with Ethan and Laurie and was envious of Christina’s travel adventures. I will take something from everyone and sincerely hope these friendships I made last. 

I am still processing everything, and I'm sure years from now, this trip will different things. I am so thankful I was able to go and that someone saw something in me on my application. I still cannot believe I was able to have this opportunity and feel very very fortunate. I will cherish this trip and time in my life and will take it me forever. 

My Last Days in Ghana *tear*

Clearly, I did not keep with with blogging. So I will give a run down of the rest of the trip. Here are some highlights (hopefully in the right order!)

1. Bojo Beach

These lovely people and I went to Bojo Beach after Cape Coast. I'm from San Diego, so the beach is a pretty normal place for me to be. But it was really, really, really, really nice to be at the beach! The water was perfect and it was awesome to drink on the beach. Especially after the draining day before, it felt nice to relax!

Also you have to take a boat to get to the beach. Here's me with Mehir and Liz (aka Mehizzy and Lezzy) taking the boat to Bojo!

2. La Enobal School

La Enobal is one of the public schools in Accra. It was kind of awkward at first because the people we were there with gave us a tour, then said, "here's some kids, talk to them!" I talked with a group of middle school students. They were really interested in my "specs" and told me about going on the internet (where they heard Beyonce and Miley Cyrus are the Anti Christ's. Beyonce is a lot of things, but I'm pretty sure Anti Christ is not one of them. Miley on the other hand...). I had to give them a warning that internet is dangerous because anyone can say anything even if it's not true. But they also said that Thursday was "inspection day" in which they must have clean clothes, their hair combed, finger nails clipped and freshly bathed. They also said that they are given 2 pair of uniforms, so they wash them almost every day and have to sew them when they are starting to rip. 

Here's Hsuan giving a lesson on how to speak Mandarin. 

 When we left, the kids came out to our van to see us off!

And this is my favorite picture of me, captured by Izi. This was right before we left and we got to meet the little kids (aka my people)

3. Visit to New Horizons and Awaawaa 2

New Horizons was an amazing school. It was founded by a mother who's child had a developmental disorder. The daughter's name was Helen and there was literally nowhere for her to go. So she created her own school! The really unique thing about this school is they will accept people, no matter what age. We went into the adult class, and there was Helen, ready to tell us her life story. They also have an area below the school that is mainly to teach vocational skills. They teach people to weave, make fabric, sew, and make jewelry. We could buy things from the store and all the money went back to the students who made them. I bought cloth balls (3 different sizes) that I thought would be amazing in the classroom. I gave one as a gift to the child I tutor and he loved it! I also bought some napkins for my mom and fabric for my aunt. It was a truly inspirational place!

 Giving our donation to the school:

The other school we went to that day was Awaawaa2. It hurts my heart to say, but it was not as great as New Horizons. The school was for children with Autism so I was excited to see it. It unfortunately did not meet my expectations. It was disorganized, and one child kept running around with no direction or things to do. I could tell they were so disorganized because of lack of funding and people with experience (she kept asking us if we knew about computers because she needed someone to run her website). She also kept mentioning that they received nice desks, but the kids broke them. And a comment she made at the end of the end of tour said something that really stuck with me. As we presented our donation to the school, she said, "oh next time bring bubbles." It struck me as odd that she would say something like that. I'm sure she didn't mean to come off as ungrateful, but it really stuck a cord with me, and got some wheels turning in my head (at least for my paper I have to write). 

3. Tema School for the Deaf, Shai Hills Wildlife and Cedi Bead Factory

For some reason, I don't have ANY pictures of Tema School for the Deaf. It was a surreal experience to be there. We were able to see an assembly, which was done entirely in sign language. Some of the kids also tried to sign with us, which was kind of hilarious. And a little frustrating because I'm not sure if they really understood I was trying to sign my name (yay for taking ASL at community college in the summer!) and if they signed their name, I certainly only got a few letters. It was a lot of smiling and nodding. 

After that, we went to Sahi Hills Wildlife Reserve. Let me just say this: There were baboons in the middle of the road. Oh, didn't hear me? THERE WERE BABOONS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD. They came out of the bushes and literally sat in front of our bus. I'm pretty sure they were totally used to this because they were waiting to get treats from our guide. Here's that time when Baboons were mere feet from me:

We literally climbed rocks to get to a 'bat cave'. And I'm talking a cave where bats live, not one with Christian Bale, which would be pretty sweet. But I get claustrophobic and there was A LOT of bat poop on the rocks so I opted out of going inside with the bats. I've seen Contagion so I'm ok with that life choice. But here's me going into the main part of the cave:

After that, we went to Cedi Bead Factory. Mr. Cedi is a very passionate man when it comes to beads. He has made his living making beads and gave us a demonstration about the labor and love that goes into his beads. He made it sound so simple, but it is such a lengthy and delicate process, I would consider it art. I mean, I know nothing about art, but the way he worked was really inspiring so I'm calling him an artist. 

Here's the awesome sign for the factory:

This is glass they use to make beads. It was really impressive. 

Here's the kiln the beads go into to "cook"

Mr. Cedi polishing the beads. With water and stone like a boss. 

I may have spent most of my money on beads from that factory. But I'm ok with that.

                                                

4. Jamestown and the Mosque

We woke up suuuuuper early to catch the fishermen working in Jamestown. Jamestown is one of the poorest areas in Accra so we were warned not to take pictures. So the few I have are from other people. I'm not that skilled. But it felt really awkward to go on a tour there. First off, we stuck out like a sore thumb. Second, they were working. We were literally invading their work space, taking pictures of them working, asking questions about them working and watching them work. If someone came to my work and did that unannounced, I'd be livid. And it's not like Jamestown is this amazing tourist attraction, so they definitely weren't used to it. But nonetheless, our tour guide was very welcoming and we even got to meet the fishing chief. It was pretty cool to see them all work together and to see how that community works, despite being extremely impoverished. 

The second part of the day was not my favorite. We went to a mosque and took a walk through the muslim neighborhood. Islam is the second widest accepted religion in Africa (behind Christianity), but I don't really understand why we went. Our tour guide was a little too preachy for me and I felt like he was giving a sermon rather than an informational talk. He also said very contradictory things like Muslims are accepting to everyone, but if you are a homosexual, you will be killed. We also walked through very very narrow streets on a very hot day and it felt like the walk would never end. But it was interesting to see the community and everyone literally knew everyone. We met our guide's entire family and we would walk by someone and he would be like, "oh that's my uncle" and would talk to him. Here's an example of the narrow roads:

5. The last day! 

The last morning, there was a drumming demonstration at our hotel. I hadn't gotten much sleep so I decided to listen to my body for once and sleep in. I had a drumming lesson from the Art Center so I didn't feel like I missed out on much. Plus they drummed for 3 hours and I just wasn't down for that. Here's that time I had a drumming session at the Arts Center:

After that, we had lunch and class. We basically talked about what we had learned and gave presentations about our experiences. I think mine went over pretty well!

The last dinner was at Headlines Hospitality. We had gotten our dresses (in my case, a skirt) back from the seamstress so we all wore them out! Ethan and Mehir even wore the shirts they bought! It was pretty awesome!

My Gfam:

 Me with Ethan and Laurie. They are both in the early childhood/special ed program, but a year behind me. 

 Cheers!

We got a special cake! I don't actually remember eating it, but it looks delish!

Me and Darci:

Me and Alyssa

 This picture of Alyssa, Darci, Emily and me is actually really funny because this is one out of thirty that were taken when Darci asked Ethan to take our picture. He just kept clicking. Hilarious. 

After dinner, we went out. Here's me, Darci and Emily before the shenanigans began. I may or may not have stayed out until 4 am.

6. Here are some of my favorites:

No joke, Papaye was my FAVORITE place to eat. I ate there twice and would have ate there more if I could have. It was basically fried chicken and french fries. But I think since everything is cooked in coconut oil, it just makes it taste SO. GOOD.

Emily, Darci and me at Independence Square. Darci did not get the matching the barrel memo 

Ethan and me enjoying 2 Cedi beers (it's about $1.50) and Banh Mi sandwiches. My favorite. 

Alyssa and me enjoying some palm wine in Cape Coast!

Me, Alyssa and Darci doing the canopy walk

This was my other favorite meal. We went to a place that was literally a barbecue on the side of the street. They only offered chicken or fish and served it with a couscous type of side. Oh, any they didn't have silverware so we ate with our hands. They had buckets with soap and water so we washed up before and then dug in with our hands! 

Here's the chicken. It was delicious! 

Our group after class. I love my Gfam. 

Accra, Day 5: Rehab center and skype!

Today was the day where not only did I start to feel extremely comfortable in Ghana but I also felt a strong connection to our lecturers and the topics they were speaking about. In the morning we went to Accra Rehab and it was amazing. Our guide (I wish I could remember his name!) told is the intake process (a lot like the process in the US actually, with doctors referring patients to social welfare and social welfare finding placements for the patients) and what the center does for people. They have 30 students to 20 teachers and learn skills like tailoring/sewing, woodworking, shoemaking, and other craft skills that could lead them to get jobs. 

Inside the tailor shop. There was a man there making clothes and sold some to my classmates!

Mehir modeling the shirt he bought!

A painting done a man without hands or forearms. He brings his elbows together and paints that way. 

Making shoes. 

A welcome mat that a student made 

This is recycled paper (actually written in Braile) that the students were using to practice their skills on so they wouldn't have to use materials. I thought it was very resourceful!)

The really sad about being there was hearing how little money they get from the government. The government is supposed to pay 300 Cedis a year (around 126 USD) and they didn't get their 2013 aid until December. They provide housing and 3 meals a day for their students as well as the materials to teach the students their skills. It was amazing what they do but sad that they receive so little help from thegovernment. 

After our tour (and ordering shoes to be made by them!) we were able to talk to two representatives of the Ghana Federation of the Disabled. It was really refreshing to hear from people who are disabled and living in Ghana rather than an objective view from a lecture. In fact, it was the first time I heard the word 'discrimination' being spoken when talking about a disability. There is a lot of aspects to the culture (people thinking disability is a curse) that leads to such discrimination and stigma. Only last year Ghana passed a law to protect the rights of people with disabilities. And they had said that the laws were not totally affective and that there was a lot of gray area to them. It surprised them to hear that in America it is similar and people with disabilities might not be aware of their rights just like in Ghana. They had this perception that America was this wonderful, accepting place, but in fact, a lot of the same things have been happening! It was a very good discussion and it was refreshing to hear about advocacy. 

After the rehab center, we went to a stationary store to buy school supplies for the schools we wil visit! We were split into 4 groups and given 100 Cedis for each group. My group was all the early childhood/special ed people, plus speech pathology and OT. We choose a school that focused on disabilities and I was surprised by how fast the 100 Cedis went. We wanted to get more sensory things like play doh, stickers, tactile objects, etc. We were able to get some molding clay, some play doh (well not real play doh) with cut outs, markers, crayons, oil pastels, pencils and sponge pads. It didn't seem like a lot but I'm sure the kids will love it! 

Then we had lunch at Papaye's which is fast food, but so delicious! I had fried chicked and French Fries and it was so good! We then went back to class and got to Skype with Emmanuel Yebroah who's documentary, 'Emmanuel's Gift' was something we had to watch before the course started. Emmanuel was born with one leg deformed. He was told that the only profession he would ever have was to be a beggar. Well he ended up working, buying his own things and eventually rode a bike accross Ghana. With one leg. So he was a boss and proved all the haters wrong. But he was actually in San Diego when we were Skyping which was kind of ironic since I was just in San Diego. He was able to talk about what he has been doing and take our questions. Again, he talked a lot about advocacy and it was really nice to hear. I asked him what the main difference between living with a disability in Ghana was versus in the Unites States (he lives between the two). He said the United States was more accepting and in Ghana you are looked down upon. He said that people will kill the babies born with disabilities and nobody would care but in the US that person would be procucited and go to jail. I thought it was interesting to draw such a dramatic comparison but that is how it is in Ghana. I'm really glad that we were able to talk to him and hear such great advocacy for the people who have disabilities in Ghana. 

We then had dinner at Tante Marie and headed back to the hotel! We had to be up early the next morning for our trip to Cape Coast!

Day 6: Cape Coast!

This weekend has definitely been my favorite part of the trip. On Saturday we woke up early for the 3 hour drive to Cape Coast. I was surprised by how much I slept on the bus! Brother Kwame (our driver) was not messing around on those roads and was even weaving around cars! But we stopped at our hotel for brunch and the hotel was beautiful. It was a resort (complete with a golf course!) and it was really really nice. 

Our hotel: Coconut Grove! 

Where I ate my breakfast. It was gorgeous! 

After we dropped off our bags, we headed to Elmina Slave Castle. Elmina Slave Castle was originally a place that was supposed to serve as a fort, then a missionary and then housed slaves before they were put on boats and taken west. It was a really powerful and surreal place that reminded me of how awful humans have been to each other in the past. When it was used to house slaves, they would sometimes stay for months. The governors held them there to see who could survive to be taken to the new world (like a survival of the fittest test). They were kept in small, dark quarters with no ventilation, often sleeping and living in feces, dirt, vomit and blood from menstral cycles. The women were only taken out to be 'chosen' by the governor as his mistress. He would look from a balcony, choose a girl, have her washed by his men in the open and bring her up to his chambers. The woman was often sexually assaulted by his men after the governor was done with her. And the women wanted to be chosen and taken from the filth because the living conditions were that bad. 

Where the governor would look down to choose his woman. There is a cannon ball on the ground that they would use to chain women who rebelled or fought against the men. 

The stairs the women went up when they were chosen by the governor. 

The men's dungeons were outside of the women's and just as bad. There was even a cell with a a skull and cross bones. We found out that men who were fighting back and being rebellious were put in that cell and didn't come out until they were dead. Sometimes the guards would leave a body in there and put a new person in there with the body. It was really sad and must have been horrible to know that you would never leave the cell.

The death cell

The most powerful part of the Slave Castle was the "point of no return". They were led is through a tiny doorway into a dark room. They were chained together and once they passed through the door and out of the castle and onto the ship, they would never come back to Africa. And as bad conditions were inside the castle, they were worse on the ships. It was really really moving. 

The Point of No Return. The doorway is really skinny too, and our guide said that even people who came into the castle overweight left being able to go through the door without a problem because they were starved. The water used to be up to where the grass was so the ships would be right outside the door. 

When we got to the top of the castle, it had such a beautiful view of Elmina. It was weird to be in such a beautiful place where such ugly things happened. 

Again, so beautiful! But it was hard to appreciate the beauty in such a horrible place. 

After the castle, we went to Kakum National Park which was a completely opposite experience! There was a canopy walk there that was 40 meters (100 feet) up in the air! There were 7 bridges in all and it was really, really fun!

The start of the canopy walk!

Going on the canopy walk!

The planks. It was literally a pice of board on a latter in some ropes. Not sketchy at all! 

The view of the rain forest! It was like we on top of the trees! 

Me and Alyssa!

Halfway done! 

Darci and I switched phones so we could each have pictures of ourselves so now I have a lot of Darci selfies on my phone! 

I survived 

After the canopy walk we went back to the hotel and were able to swim in the pool and check out the beach before dinner. 

This was the sunset as I was swimming in the pool. It was so beautiful!

There were some ladies walking on the beach during the sunset so I took this picture!

Another view of the sunset. It was so gorgeous! 

After dinner (which was delicious!) we were treated to a bonfire. They put the wood right on the sand! They also gave us palm wine which is a local drink. Our guide Abigail showed us some traditional African dances songs! It was great! 

Abigail teaching us to dance! 

Most of our class at the bonfire! 

The moon in the palm trees! So pretty! 

After the bonfire and some wine we went to bed. It was such a full, important, amazing day!