Yesterday I played soccer with the boys from the orphanage and the village. They play hard and a high grade of soccer. I ripped my shorts. I love those shorts! It's sad. It was yellow with stuff on it which everyone will agree are the best kinda shorts. They used to hang on the hips and were so comfortable and loose. Sigh! Michitaro - the Japanese volunteer was a gun! He teaches sport I guess so it's not too surprising. I'm looking forward to playing again next Tuesday... maybe in my green shorts - i don't like them that much. It was great to finally do some physical exercise.
When teaching Citizenship Education, we were discussing the tourist attractions of Ghana and spoke about Boti falls and mentioned how we visited them recently. The kids from the village have never been to Boti Falls. It makes sense though. Even though the falls are only 2 hrs away, the tro-tro + entrance fee comes to almost 8 cedis (8 AUD) which is 1/5 of the monthly income for a family in the village. So we decided to take the kids to Boti. They were jumping around all excited when we told them the news. Munnie - I still have the money from you and instead of buying clothes and toys which all the volunteers do, I felt this is the best way to spend the money. I'm hoping to hire a bus and take them to a beach in a couple of weeks as well since they've never seen the ocean!
So tomorrow we go back to Boti. I'll make sure to take heaps of pics. Should be great fun.
I promise pics next post - for real this time. I keep ending up at internet cafes when I least expect. Maybe I should just carry the cable around.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Saturday, May 24, 2008
The hair
I went to this hair dressers in Osu just then and they said I need to come back in 2 months to get dreads done. Two more months! It looks ridiculous right now. Anyway, after 2 months they will do something to my hair and then i can't wash it for 3 months after. Then I come back and they do something again and I'm set. Sweeet!!
I found this place which sells fried chicken! The closest you can get to KFC here. It's a bit pricey but I figured maybe just this once.
I found this place which sells fried chicken! The closest you can get to KFC here. It's a bit pricey but I figured maybe just this once.
Orphanaid Africa
Back to back posts!
Today I was at the staff meeting for OA. I learnt a lot about OA today which I think I'll talk about here. After the staff meeting I got a lift to the city with Lisa (founder and president) and I'm killing time till she's ready to head back. Being a nerd (and Osu part of Accra is really touristyand boring) I blog when I need to kill time.
Ok so about OA... Firstly, the website is: http://www.oafrica.org/
It used to be called Orphanage Africa. But a few years ago, they realised that a kid who grows up in institutionalised care (orphanages) have trouble fitting back in to society when he "graduates". So the best way for a child to grow up is in a family. So they changed their name from Orphanage Africa to Orphanaid Africa and changed their organisation from institutionalised care to focusing on family-based care. Go to website for more.
Now about Lisa. She was the youngest editor for Vogue and has written many books. She speaks French, English, Spanish, Italian and German. The first 4 with equal fluency. She reads like it's going out of fashion and has written 13 books. She's lived for significant amount of time in Spain, France, US, Morocco, England and now Ghana.
She runs this organisation like a business - very efficiently. One of the biggest critcisms an NGO faces is that more money is spent in administration than community service. Watching her driving people hard and saving money wherever possible is very reassuring. Her vision is clear and the way she goes about it is admirable. I quite like this organisation and plan to continue my association with it even after I return.
Today I was at the staff meeting for OA. I learnt a lot about OA today which I think I'll talk about here. After the staff meeting I got a lift to the city with Lisa (founder and president) and I'm killing time till she's ready to head back. Being a nerd (and Osu part of Accra is really touristyand boring) I blog when I need to kill time.
Ok so about OA... Firstly, the website is: http://www.oafrica.org/
It used to be called Orphanage Africa. But a few years ago, they realised that a kid who grows up in institutionalised care (orphanages) have trouble fitting back in to society when he "graduates". So the best way for a child to grow up is in a family. So they changed their name from Orphanage Africa to Orphanaid Africa and changed their organisation from institutionalised care to focusing on family-based care. Go to website for more.
Now about Lisa. She was the youngest editor for Vogue and has written many books. She speaks French, English, Spanish, Italian and German. The first 4 with equal fluency. She reads like it's going out of fashion and has written 13 books. She's lived for significant amount of time in Spain, France, US, Morocco, England and now Ghana.
She runs this organisation like a business - very efficiently. One of the biggest critcisms an NGO faces is that more money is spent in administration than community service. Watching her driving people hard and saving money wherever possible is very reassuring. Her vision is clear and the way she goes about it is admirable. I quite like this organisation and plan to continue my association with it even after I return.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Quick update
Hello all. Thanks for tuning in.
School's been great last few days! Knowledge which we take for granted comes as wide-eyed amazement to them. The kids learnt that the earth is not flat!! They learnt about other planets and space and how far things were. They were amazed when we told them about snow - "You know how cold a fridge is... well... the whole country turns into a fridge!".The wonder in their eyes is very satisfying.
An american gentleman by the name of Ryan arrived last Thursday. He is setting up a geography lab. He got National Geographic to sponsor it. He brought heaps of books, maps, globes, a new computer and funding to build a new room. He's very excited about the project and I think the kids will really appreciate it.
Rest is all good. Oh! I need to post about the survey in the village to encourage kids to come to school. But I have to return this laptop so... more on that next week.
School's been great last few days! Knowledge which we take for granted comes as wide-eyed amazement to them. The kids learnt that the earth is not flat!! They learnt about other planets and space and how far things were. They were amazed when we told them about snow - "You know how cold a fridge is... well... the whole country turns into a fridge!".The wonder in their eyes is very satisfying.
An american gentleman by the name of Ryan arrived last Thursday. He is setting up a geography lab. He got National Geographic to sponsor it. He brought heaps of books, maps, globes, a new computer and funding to build a new room. He's very excited about the project and I think the kids will really appreciate it.
Rest is all good. Oh! I need to post about the survey in the village to encourage kids to come to school. But I have to return this laptop so... more on that next week.
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Boti falls and my ghanaian life
I didn't plan to be at an Internet cafe today so no cable to upload pics again. It's shame too because I am in Koforidua after a hike and a refreshing dip in the Boti falls. The pictures are magnificent. It's meant to take about 3 hrs to get there from Agomeda (where we are staying). We somehow managed to get connecting trotros really easily and were at the falls by 8AM and finished the trek by 11AM. An hour swim at the falls and it still only 12PM. So we decided to visit Koforidua. Unfortunately there isn't much to see here but it's big town do we bought biscuits and decided to check our emails (p.s my mobile phone probably has better specs than this computer).
There are about 5-6 kids in the 3-5 yrs range at the orphanage. They are happy, mischievous, playful like all kids should be. It is truly a testament to how well this orphanage is being run. They have setup a family like environment with "mammas" in charge of different age groups. It is very heart wrenching to think that 90% of these kids have HIV. The fact that they are so blissfully ignorant makes it that much worse. They are wonderful kids.
Teaching is hard. These village kids don't have a very good foundation since some of the older ones just started school. The kids don't see value in it. Their parents don't care and think school is useless and that the kids should be working in the farm. The few fulltime teachers are there because it is a government requirement to serve the community for one year and so the heart is not there. It's very hard work and after teaching for 6 hours in the hot Ghanaian weather in a building with no walls you get very tired. Word got around that I knew a little bit about computers and so I'm helping the orphanage out with that as well. IT is probably where I can add most value here so I am happy to do that stuff.
Until next time.
There are about 5-6 kids in the 3-5 yrs range at the orphanage. They are happy, mischievous, playful like all kids should be. It is truly a testament to how well this orphanage is being run. They have setup a family like environment with "mammas" in charge of different age groups. It is very heart wrenching to think that 90% of these kids have HIV. The fact that they are so blissfully ignorant makes it that much worse. They are wonderful kids.
Teaching is hard. These village kids don't have a very good foundation since some of the older ones just started school. The kids don't see value in it. Their parents don't care and think school is useless and that the kids should be working in the farm. The few fulltime teachers are there because it is a government requirement to serve the community for one year and so the heart is not there. It's very hard work and after teaching for 6 hours in the hot Ghanaian weather in a building with no walls you get very tired. Word got around that I knew a little bit about computers and so I'm helping the orphanage out with that as well. IT is probably where I can add most value here so I am happy to do that stuff.
Until next time.
Monday, May 5, 2008
Ghana - Post #1
It is so hot.
The Village
Ayeniah is the the name of the village where OA runs the orphanage and the community school. It is absolutely surreal. I am staying in a little mud hut and have no electricity. Electricity hasn't been to this village in a few months. Just to show you how optimistic the Ghanaian people are - they expect it to be back on "any day now". Behind the hut is the forest - the source of many strange noises in the middle of the night and an army of mosquitoes.
The People
The Ghanaian men are built like Greek Gods and the Ghanaian women are built like Greek Islands. Not sure how that genetic trait developed. The guys are all ripped and have six packs - yes all! Ghanaians are extremely friendly people except for that guy who tried to mug me at the timber market. I'm picking up a bit of Twe (the local language) from the locals. I'm very keen on learning Pigeon which one of the guys is teaching me.
Other Stuff
I visited this town called Wineba yesterday which hosts this annual festival where two tribes (one dressed in white and the other in red) try to catch an antelope. The red tribe won. People go crazy - old grandmas were on the street boogieing down. Remind me to show you the video when I'm back.
Kids
The kids crave attention. They want to hold your hand the whole time and want you to hold them. This kid followed me around everywhere the first day I got there. They are the cutest things ever. I forgot my camera cable in Ayeniah so I'll have to upload the pics next time. The conditions are tough for the kids in the orphanage and even tougher for those in the village.
There is plenty to tell - like voodoo ceremonies, red red and banku, Nanayau and John-Paul, trotros, but then this post would go forever.
I have a Ghanaian ph number now: +233272732855
I'll post again in a few weeks. Munnie - I haven't bought the stuff with the money yet but I will be soon. Stay tuned.
The Village
Ayeniah is the the name of the village where OA runs the orphanage and the community school. It is absolutely surreal. I am staying in a little mud hut and have no electricity. Electricity hasn't been to this village in a few months. Just to show you how optimistic the Ghanaian people are - they expect it to be back on "any day now". Behind the hut is the forest - the source of many strange noises in the middle of the night and an army of mosquitoes.
The People
The Ghanaian men are built like Greek Gods and the Ghanaian women are built like Greek Islands. Not sure how that genetic trait developed. The guys are all ripped and have six packs - yes all! Ghanaians are extremely friendly people except for that guy who tried to mug me at the timber market. I'm picking up a bit of Twe (the local language) from the locals. I'm very keen on learning Pigeon which one of the guys is teaching me.
Other Stuff
I visited this town called Wineba yesterday which hosts this annual festival where two tribes (one dressed in white and the other in red) try to catch an antelope. The red tribe won. People go crazy - old grandmas were on the street boogieing down. Remind me to show you the video when I'm back.
Kids
The kids crave attention. They want to hold your hand the whole time and want you to hold them. This kid followed me around everywhere the first day I got there. They are the cutest things ever. I forgot my camera cable in Ayeniah so I'll have to upload the pics next time. The conditions are tough for the kids in the orphanage and even tougher for those in the village.
There is plenty to tell - like voodoo ceremonies, red red and banku, Nanayau and John-Paul, trotros, but then this post would go forever.
I have a Ghanaian ph number now: +233272732855
I'll post again in a few weeks. Munnie - I haven't bought the stuff with the money yet but I will be soon. Stay tuned.
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