Last Day

Sunday August 3^rd. 

We slept in again today and had a relaxing morning. We were supposed to stay an extra day this year to have a debriefing meeting but that got cancelled for an unknown reason. We really should have flown home last night but here we are for another day with not much to do. Accra is not a very touristy area and there isn't much to see. Barb, Angela, Owen and I decided to head back to the cultural market with Eric when he drove Cameron to the airport. Cameron is heading out first and flying to Liberia to meet a friend for three weeks. There is an ebola scare there which has him worried and Canada has issued a warning about flying there, but his return flight to Canada is from there, so that's where he is going.

We wandered around the market buying a few last things. It was only about 11:00 and a lot of the shops were closed so it was a little less intense today. Plus I think we were more experienced with it and knew how to deal with the pressure. The best way to find something is to tell someone what you want and even if they don't have it they know who does and they will go off and get it for you. There must be some kind of communal pot when this happens so that one gets a cut for selling something for someone else. That is how I bought a kenti cloth shirt and some more earrings. The shirt is similar to one I saw on Oxford Street that didn't fit me. We wandered out through the back of the market building into the rambling shacks behind where there are more African things to buy. Past that we found a village attached where some of the shop keepers live. Owen found a church and we went in to have a peak. The people were very friendly and asked questions about us. The pastor gave us a long blessing.

We returned to the hotel in time for a last meal before we all headed off. Angela was the first to go and bid us farewell as she went to meet her husband and to continue their African adventure. Owen, Lyle, Cindy, Barb, Leah, and I were taken to the airport by Eric. We took an overnight flight to Frankfurt. Here Lyle left for Tel Aviv for some R and R (rifles and rockets), Leah caught a connecting flight to Norway, Barb caught a flight to Vancouver, Owen to Montreal and Cindy and I to Toronto.

Oxford Street Shopping

Saturday August 2^nd.

For the first time this trip we had a morning to sleep in with nothing planned. Lyle and I got up about an hour later than usual and had breakfast. We lounged around the pool bar area for the morning with the others and waited for Eric to pick us up at 1:00. He took us to Oxford Street which is a busy shopping street. We took three young Brazilian engineers with us who are staying at our hotel and have a free day with nothing to do. There are tourist stalls, and shops for locals. We purchased some souvenirs to take home. We bought some earrings and bracelets from a couple of very friendly local women who actually made them and we tried to avoid the hustlers that just follow you and harass you. One guy in particular was very annoying when Angela showed an interest in something and then changed her mind. He followed us and even though we asked nicely at first, he wouldn't go away. Angela ran into her husband David who is here to team up with her for a three week trip north after our project.

We headed back to the hotel in time for a swim and then dinner. After dinner we spent sometime at the bar again before bed time.

Final Closing and Ghana Night

Friday August 1^st 

Today is the last day of school. When we got to the high school in our new GNAT clothing we were mobbed by the participants in a photo frenzy. As the participants were filling out the surveys, I showed Eric and Julius the Kilimanjaro photos they wanted to see and some of the African animals. They were amazed.

When I had the opportunity to present my time capsule idea I gave out prizes of my Canada headband, sunglasses and bracelet to the people who answered questions correctly. Our final activity was designed by Lyle to demonstrate how you can use a simple square box (in our case a podium) to allow the students to perform a drama. He played the host of the TV show and then invited Barb, Cindy, me and Angela to give our final thoughts to the participants via the TV. He was the announcer who made up commercials between our little speeches.

The last session before lunch was the little plays by the participants that were to demonstrate gender equity. This is a big issue here, but the union is addressing it and making it a major focus, although we noticed that there were no women in the upper echelon of the union.

Before lunch Cameron, Owen and I went for a walk off the campus to pick up a shirt Cameron was having tailored. Right after lunch we were to amass in the big hall for the closing ceremonies. They were delayed for about an hour as we were waiting for the union president. The actual ceremonies were really long and lasted for over three hours! They paid tribute to CTF, us and the partnership between us. They presented bolts of kenti cloth to us. There were also union people talking about the possibility of a strike and what to do if there is. They also lectured the participants about absenteeism (apparently there is a fair number of teachers not showing up to work, especially in rural areas).

After the ceremonies we had a final reception on the stage with all the union people and co-tutors where we had a beer and some snacks. Shortly afterwards Ghana Night commenced. I wore my new black Africa shirt and my multi-coloured pants. At one point I asked Peter if I looked African or like a stupid tourist, he just diplomatically laughed and said he liked the outfit. Ernest was the MC and worked the crowd for a while until a drum troop showed up. They were excellent with drummers, dancers and a trumpet player. It sounded like we were off to the races in Africa. Ernest said that the Canadian teachers all wanted to learn to dance. So we all got up and entered the conga line between the dancers. They showed us the steps and we all moved slowly bent over in a line, shuffling and waving our butts in the air and our arms to imitate a bird, like an ostrich. Again all the cell phones came out to take pictures and videos. After it was over Ernest said he had an app to delete all the files so that the Canadians wouldn't be embarrassed! It was another excellent evening of cultural exchange. We left about 10:00 and Angela, Owen, Barb and I went to the bar for another nightcap.

Co-Tutors Dinner

Me with Peter, Ernest and our faithful and reliable driver, Eric

Thursday July 31^st 

I felt better this morning although I didn't have much energy. I laid low and rested while I watched Barb work. I delivered my talk about how to use a book for a math lesson and then Lyle, Barb and I acted out a story that Cindy read about a prairie dog colony that has a tennis ball dropped in it and then we acted out Abu Is A Lazy Boy in reader's theatre.

As we were leaving Ernest gave us each a GNAT pin and bottle opener as well as a union shirt for the men and a dress for the women (the ones they measured us for the first week). They are blue and white and adorned with the GNAT logo “We live to teach”.

Tonight was our co-tutors dinner. We invited Naa, Julius and Comfort as well as Peter Mabande, Ernest and Eric. It was a great evening with our new friends. Julius asked us what we thought of Ghana and Angela said this is her first time to Africa but Joe here has been to lots of countries in Africa and has climbed Kilimanjaro. “Jesus Christ you are great!” Eric said. It was a very funny moment but also an illustration of how privileged people of the west are and how limited are the opportunities for the people here. Most of them have traveled very little in their own country let alone outside Ghana. Ernest has been to Canada for six weeks a few years ago and Peter has traveled extensively through Africa and worldwide, but they are the exceptions.

Peter and Ernest both addressed us and praised CTF and the Project Overseas partnership and us individually. When we gave out our gifts for them Eric made an impassioned speech about how happy he has been to drive us around Ghana and to get to know us. He praised his boss (Ernest) for allowing him to be a member of the team and be allowed to eat with us and join us on excursions (in St Vincent this was not the practice and the driver was nothing more than a servant). Peter said many nice things about CTF and its involvement with education initiatives worldwide. He praised us for our “commitment, interest, involvement, dedication, spirit, humour and knowledge”. We had a great photo session before our guests departed.

At the end of the night the four of us gathered at the bar again for another drink before bed.

Laid Out

Wednesday July 30^th. 

I was up during the night with intestinal problems. I got up in the morning and went to school with the group. I managed to get through my math lesson, but I was wacked and had nothing else to do for the rest of the day, so I went home and slept for the afternoon. I skipped dinner and decided that I couldn't make the Canada Night celebration. So when they left I went back to sleep. When they got back I went down and got some air with them while they had a drink. Off to bed again by 10:30. The pictures are all of the Canada Night without the funny looking MC.

Challenges, Successes and Best Practices

Tuesday July 29^th

We arrived at school by 8:30 as usual and listened as Ernest delivered his talk about the curriculum and how it is developed. After snack break Barb and I led the discussion about Challenges, Successes and Best Practices. It was interesting that all three weeks the discussion went different directions. The first week the teachers talked about the big challenges: no school, no toilets, no resources, etc, the second week they talked about successes, what they have done to overcome some of the infrastructure challenges and this time they talked about best practices in the classroom.

After lunch Angela and I had a great talk with two high school teachers who are here for the workshops but not with us. They were asking why we were here and what we were teaching. They also wanted to know about our union and Canadian teacher’s involvement in it. They told us about the challenges of their classes. They told us about classes of up to 70 or more students in regular sized rooms, no air circulation, and few resources.

After lunch Lyle had me lead the bum spelling energizer where the students have to spell their name using only their bottom. They loved this activity and we had two female winners in the spell off and gave them a prize of stickers.

Cindy and Barb did their lessons after that before we packed up and left. On the way back in the van I lead a discussion about Canada Night and how we could include everyone. In hindsight we should have had all six of us do all three nights, because they were for three different audiences. Barb and I had a short swim in the pool to cool down and then we had dinner. We continued the Canada Night discussion and settled the issues. Unfortunately the HIV/AIDS workshop was canceled again. After dinner the usual four went to the bar for a nightcap.

Beginning the Third Week

Monday July 28^th. 

We are now located in Labone Senior Secondary School in Accra to start our last series of workshops. We started off with the usual routine and opening ceremonies. The rest of the morning and most of the afternoon was taken up with the school action plans. This gives them a chance to present their successes and challenges with the other five schools attending.

We heard about a school that has too many children for the school, so they run two shifts 6:30 to 12:30 and then 12:30 to 5:30. This means that k-1 or k-2 students have to come early and maybe stay for the afternoon to wait for a sibling; or children leave home to walk to school or from school in the dark. Teachers and students change shifts every two weeks. Another remote school has one room for teacher accommodation that they have partitioned into four and the head teacher has given up his office to accommodate another teacher. The rest commute a long way.

The afternoon passed as the schools presented their reports. When we got back to the hotel I immediately went to bed and had an hour nap. I really needed it. I got up in time for dinner which we ate inside. I had a delicious grouper fillet. The usual group hung out outside by the bar for a nightcap before heading off to bed.

Back to Accra and the Cultural Market

Sunday July 27^th 

Angela's husband met us for breakfast and a short visit before we loaded up and headed off by convoy to Accra. The ride was the usual visually stimulating trip. We arrived at the same hotel that we were at the first week, the Coconut Grove. We settled into our rooms and then had lunch in the restaurant. For the afternoon, six of us decided to go to the cultural market to buy souvenirs. I went with Angela and Barb in one taxi and Owen went with Cindy and Leah so that we had a man in each group. Our taxi driver told us he knew where he was going but clearly didn't and had to beep at other taxi drivers on the road and ask for directions, and then he went to the wrong market place before he finally figured it out. Then he had to go back and get the other group. As soon as we arrived we were accosted by a guy who asked where we were from. When I said Ontario he asked if I knew Orillia, Timmins, Coburg, and a few other towns. He said he knew the capital of every province, so Barb asked about the Yukon and he replied ‘that's not a province it is a territory!’ It's all to get your attention and to build a relationship with you so they can lead you through the maze to their shop. This market sells all things African: clothing, shoes, jewelry, wood work and material. We found a good stall with lots of the beaded earrings I was looking for. The three of us bought about twenty pair and were able to bargain a good price. Once we started to buy we were surrounded and talked to by a rotating series of hawkers. Some were fun to talk to, others were more insistent, but most stopped when you told them you were not interested in buying whatever, but another would just take his place. They kept addressing me as Papa, which they use as a term of respect apparently (as I was told afterwards), but I thought they used it for an old man, and I got tired of it, so I said “don't call me Papa”, so they used uncle, brother or friend. One Rasta asked how I was and I told him I was tired of being accosted, he smiled and placed his finger to his lips to signal he wouldn't talk to me, but he didn't go away, he just waited his turn. I hadn't experienced this level of intensity since Morocco or maybe India. I bought earrings, a Ghana soccer shirt for Danny, a kenti cloth bag, bracelets, and money purses.

We met up with Owen, Cindy and Leah right at the end and we walked across the street to hail cabs. We got in a cab and gave him our hotel card, but he still didn't know where it was, but he drove off anyway and flagged down a couple more cabs until he figured out where we were going.

Back at the hotel we went for a swim before dinner. We ate outside at the bar and had a couple of drinks. When it was just Owen, Angela and Barb, I showed them some pictures of India before bed.

Kakum Canopy Walk, Crocodile Farm and Cape Coast Slave Castle

Saturday July 26^th 

Eric and Thomas picked us up at 7:30 for the drive to the Kakum Canopy Walk. This is a 350 metre walk on suspended walkways about 40 metres above the forest floor. It was built by a couple of Canadians in the nineties. It was fun and the views were fantastic. There were a couple of gift shops there and I bought a pair of kenti cloth pants. After that they took us to a crocodile farm where we saw some small to medium sized Nile crocs and a lot of weaver birds who were nest building. We had lunch there before continuing on to the Cape Coast castle. Originally built as a fort by the Swedes for their timber and mineral exportation, and then taken over by the Dutch before the English wrestled it away from them, the history of Cape Coast Castle remains the focal point of this coastal city. Cape Coast, a city of about a million people, was once the capital of what was then known as the Gold Coast. The British moved the capital to Accra in 1877.

However, the first European settlement on these shores was at Elmina -- named so by the Portuguese who landed there in 1471. At Elmina, located about six miles from Cape Coast, the Portuguese built a similar castle, which also was the grounds of the slave market. We had a tour there which was similar to the Elmina Slave Castle. After the tour we climbed up to the top of the castle walls. The view from the walls was amazing! From the top we looked out over the fishing village which was right below. Walking out the 'door of no return' (through which the slaves were taken to the beach to board ships for the new world) we met fishermen who were mending nets and servicing their boats. 

On the way back I asked Thomas and Eric if we could stop along the road (that we have driven back and forth on all week on the way to the school) so we could take some photos. A group of us got out and went in different directions. I took some pictures of the village and boats and fishermen on the beach. A man from the village started yelling at a couple of us because we were taking photos. Eric and Thomas managed to settle them down but it was an awkward situation and we apologized to them. We get caught up in taking photos but sometimes forget that we are taking pictures of their lives and we wouldn’t want people walking up and taking photos of us at our homes without permission. I am guilty of that as I am always trying to get the perfect people shot. Lesson learned.

When we got back to the hotel we went for a swim before Owen and I went for a walk along the road back to the Elmina Slave Castle. As we walked I waded in the water on the beach for a photo op, but the water is filthy with lots of black plastic washing in with the waves. The route is an amazingly fascinating street with so much to see. We walked right to the castle and watched the sun setting over the fishing village. We walked along the shore and watched the fishermen leaving the harbour for the night. Owen and I enjoyed the unsupervised nature of our walk, as we could go as slowly as we liked and talk to whom we chose. The union here is very protective of us and does not want us to get into any trouble. As a result whenever they are with us they supervise us closely, usually with one member in front and one in the rear, much like a school trip back home. It was nice to have a bit of time to explore on our own.

We had dinner when we got back and waited for Angela's husband, who has been in Ghana for a week, to show up at our hotel but he never did, unfortunately he went to the wrong place. David and Angela are going to travel to northern Ghana for three weeks after the project.

Closing and Ghana Night with Deaf Dancers

Friday July 25^th 

Today was the last day for Cape Coast. We got to school by 8:30 and had a couple of hours to finish up things from the week. I took advantage of the opportunity to talk about the time capsule again. 

During the lunch break Cameron suggested that I go into the kitchen to have a look at the food preparation. So I went in and talked to a couple of the ladies. They were really friendly so I asked if I could take some photos. They were delighted with that and happily posed and explained the whole process to me. It was amazing and very efficient as they made lunch for about three hundred people. Not up to Canadian standards maybe, but very interesting as they prepared fish, rice, pepper sauce and cooked vegetables.

After lunch were the closing ceremonies which lasted two and a half hours. During the ceremony GNAT announced that Angela had raised $500 for a school, but that we couldn't go to a school because there was a one day work stoppage (a union protest). So they picked a school that they felt was the neediest and gave them all the materials that Angela had bought a couple of weeks ago from the school supply store in Accra. I took pictures of her and the happy winning teachers who were part of our Nkabom group, five energetic young male teachers. Then one participant wanted us to do the chicken dance again, so we did that. What a thing to be remembered for!

After a short visit to the hotel for dinner we headed back to the school for Ghana Night. This was a much better event than last week. They had a performing group from a deaf school, comprised of deaf dancers and about ten percussionists. The drumming was loud! The dancers performed tribal dances and were very good. Angela was pulled up on stage twice to dance and she had lots of fun. They also showed a couple of slide shows of different regions of the country.

Back at the hotel we had time for another drink before bed.