Ghana day 1

Our ship is now docked in the portside town of Tema which is about 30-45 minutes away from Ghana’s capital city of Accra. We docked at 8:45 and managed to clear customs by about 9:50. Almost all of the day trips were leaving at 10, including mine, so it was a mad dash to get off the ship. Today’s agenda was a tour of Accra.

The first monument we saw on the tour was the University of Ghana which is the oldest and largest University within the country. Next we stopped and ate lunch at a local hotel. They served a dish called “jollof” (a type of spicy rice served with chicken) and potatoes. Ghanaian food is very spicy and very delicious.

After lunch we received a guided toured of the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park. For those that don’t know, Kwame Nkrumah was the first president of Ghana in 1960 (I believe, please correct me if I have the date wrong). He was overthrown with help from the American CIA in 1966. I’ve heard very mixed reactions to his time in office and I am very interested in finding out more.

Located right next to the park is the “Arts Centre” which is an open market somewhat like the Souks in Morocco. Although everyone in Ghana is much (much!) more friendly than in Morocco, I’m still not a big fan of the markets. I’m not a skilled bargainer and I like to shop around in quiet before I purchase anything. In these markets you constantly have people yelling and often pulling you (literally!) into their shop. The last place on our tour was the W.E.B Dubois Center for Pan African Culture. This museum was formerly the house that Dubois lived in during his last two years in Ghana.

Interesting Facts about Ghana:

One of the most popular forms of transportation is the Tro-Tro. These are minivans that have had their seats torn out to fit as many people as possible. I get Closter phobic just looking at a Tro-Tro.

Ghana was the first sub-Saharan African nation to gain independence in 1957.

Ghana is the size of the UK and slightly smaller than Oregon.

Ghana supplies most of the worlds cocoa.

There are over 50 languages and tribes within Ghana.

Ghana is divided into 10 regions. We are docked in the Greater Accra region. The village that I will be living in tomorrow is in the eastern Volta Region. This region contains the contains the Volta river and dam. On the final day, I will visit tour Elmina Castle located within the Cape Coast region. This region is in the southern most border of Ghana and is where President Obama gave his speech last July.