The Road To Ghana - Day 6!

Greetings again from Ghana!  Now that we have been in Hohoe for six days, we have acclimated to our home-base and have connected with all of our new friends in the CCS group.  I must admit the fans throughout the houses are quite effective (when we have electricity) even with the 90 plus degree weather and 90% humidity.  All laundry is done by hand and hung to dry; definitely an experience.  Clothing dries quickly (as you can imagine!) - you just have to be cautious of the torrential rain storms that can come on at a moments notice.

Although we have been to our placements four times, it feels as though I have been part of St Teresa's Primary School for much longer.  The Headmaster, teachers, and students continue to welcome me with open arms and are treating me as though I am a fully trained member of  their staff.  Very satisfying!  I have taught creative art to half of the 4th, 5th, and 6th graders at the school and this morning was asked to teach any subject I would like...I discussed the solar system, planets, and asked the girls to write a letter to a friend about their favorite planet and why.  They were extremely curious about the universe.  Because the school curriculums are so structured, this is a very cool opportunity for creative/imaginative thinking!  Next week, I have been asked been asked to bring in a computer and teach their computer technology class.  This is one of the approved subjects, but challenging to cover the material because they do not have computers/electricity  and many of the teachers have never used a computer.  They are quite excited to learn about the functions of the desktop, folders, files, and even creating and saving a word document.

For a fun cultural experience, we traveled to the Wli Waterfall yesterday afternoon.  The bush as they call it (rainforest) is only a 45 minute drive from Hohoe.  Much of the land is undeveloped although there are small villages nearby that use the land for farming.  Wli is a beautiful area, and the waterfall is the perfect place to cool off and check out the throngs of bats that roost all around the cliffs.  The water is deemed safe for swimming, but instead of joining the group in the water, I opted to take photographs of the spectacular views instead!

We continue to take Ewe lessons.  I am certainly not a pro at the language, but the people of Ghana appreciate the effort in trying to speak their native tongue.  My Headmaster and teachers seem to be more trusting and receptive to me because I am trying to seamlessly fit into the community.  I must stress that this is a work in progress, but very fun and rewarding!

Our guest speaker last night was a physician working with Ghana Health Services.  Ghana has national health insurance, and the goal is to deliver health services to all communities.  The main issue at GHS is having is training the adequate number of specialists to staff all hospitals in all communities.  This is an ongoing issue, but one the government is trying to address.  GHS is also focusing on education to prevent such diseases as malaria, HIV, diabetes, and hypertension.  Infact, this week is a national immunization week in Ghana.

Before I left the States, I did register my travels with the US embassy.  The process takes about 20 minutes if you have not already set up a profile.  Although we feel very safe in Ghana, it was an easy extra step to take that is recommended by the state department for any overseas travel.

So I leave you with this story.  Today, as I was collecting art from a 5th grade class, one of my sweet students politely asked me to be her friend.  She waited for me after class, took my hand, and offered me the only piece of paper she had to complete her assignments (she is one of many students that has very little resources.)  I was so touched; the children want only your time and attention; they ask for nothing else...this is Ghana.