Well, since you asked....

Hey!

So ive been in Ghana for almost four weeks now. A lot of people have asked me about what I think about south Africa versus Ghana. While my story has stayed about the same, people have reacted really differently. In South Africa, people wondered why the heck we/I would leave the united states to study somewhere else, and when I mentioned studying history, they wondered what I was going to do with that. They also wondered why the heck Ghana, like isn’t south Africa adventure enough? Aight, so I got a lot of that (at least the history part, and I see why) in the united states as well but they honestly thought I was crazy for leaving-most South Africans don’t leave or travel much. Here in Ghana, ive also gotten questions as to if going abroad is compulsory – unlike in south Africa, students (Americans in the majority) are some of the only white people you’ll find. Since we stand out so much, I guess people wonder… I (and I think the others on the trip) try really hard to let everyone know that we REALLY WANT to be here, it was our choice, and we are happy to be so welcomed here. When I mention that I was in south Africa, and it totally gets brushed off, or I get asked which one liked better. Heh, that’s interesting to answer

So to the Ghana versus South Africa question: to be honest, the differences scared/culture shocked me more than anything else, especially as other eap students asked my about SA within a few hours of arriving here! I knew things would be different, but no idea quite so different. To begin with, my time in south Africa was amazing, but we were def tourist/travelers, depending on the situation. Yes, we went to class for 3 hrs (minus a coffee break) 4X/week, we had a UCT id, and we called campus “home”, but class was with other Americans, with an American professor, and since it was winter break, not many students were around campus. It was VERY fun, and I loved my whole time there, but it was not as much cultural emersion. Don’t get me wrong, I had a GREAT time exploring the country, but I feel like a bit of a fake wearing a UCT t-shirt.

In SA, I was often bothered by race relationships. I don’t know how other people in our group reacted to it, but I noticed it almost constantly. Apartheid has been over for almost 15 years, but in someone’s mind, in the education of non-whites, in the attitudes of both sides, in economic disparity, in housing, that’s not very much time! I saw it on both sides tho- and (as expected) more in the rural than urban areas. One memorable afternoon, a friend of mine was asked for change for some amount of money by a black man. As she did so, the white shopkeeper sharply told her to make sure to count it again, and to not EVER trust a black man. Granted, this was not a regular occurrence, but judging by his (lack of) reaction, it was more common than we had witnessed. I also saw a lot of healing happening, although not directly, but through things like the district six museum (my favorite!) that celebrated diversity and healing, and the accepted diversity of Cape Town itself. However, race was something notable about myself and/or those around me everywhere we went.

From the moment we arrived in Ghana, we have been encouraged to speak Twi, to say Akwaaba (welcome), to learn our names (based on the day of the week you’re born), in a phrase, totally embraced by Ghanaian culture. We have had a completely different experience. we (or at least I) love the food- yes I crave cheese, but I crave jollof rice, wache, and fo-fou, and whatever that sauce is that they put on meat, just as much! My treat for the day is usually fried plantains, or a bottle of soda or frozen yogurt (literally, yogurt that has been frozen) for $.40. I LOVE buying and drinking the sachets of water (you cant drink the tap water – even Ghanaians don’t) by biting off a corner and drinking it! I LOVE the phrases “you are welcome” (to a location) and “you are invited” (to share food, regardless of if you’ve ever met the person before). I’m not as big of a fan of the word obruni (white person or foreigner) or getting my skin petted every once in a while, but I really shouldn’t take offense to those things. A friend mentioned that the reason some of us have trouble with the word is that while its not really derogatory, it IS an identification based on the color of your skin- aka something you would NEVER EVER do in the US, so its still SUPER strange.

Like I said, we do stand out a lot, especially if you walk in packs. I know we’re charged more in the tro-tros, markets, we’re laughed at when we ask what’s in a certain dish, or don’t know how to eat it, but its (almost) always a happy laugh, with a correction and a smile as to how to do better in the future. I’m also a lot more memorable to people than they are to me- it would be a bit better if I could pronounce some of the name in the first place, but someone who

Churches are another great story- they’re a HUGE deal. We think the “Bible belt” in the US is, er, interesting, but I cant believe not only how intense some people are here, but also how MANY of them there are! There are chapels in each of the dorms/hostels – I found the one in my hall (volta) one night when we heard a LOT of singing from our rooms. A friend and I decided to see what was going on and/or meet people or whatever, but when we looked in, it wasn’t a full house of people, but only about 10-15, singing VERY loudly, and when we couldn’t say no to an invitation to come in, we found out that they had been FASTING for 5 days, and were doing an ALL-NIGHT prayer event. We skipped out when the testimonials started, but wow... a church meets in our chapel on Sunday mornings WAY too early, but so do all the other churches – the “student” catholic mass starts at 7, and they have daily mass at 6:30!!!! Yikes!

Anyway, more to come later, but just in case you were wondering....
hope you're all well! much much much <3!