Afiehyiapa! (Happy New Year!)

I woke up this morning feeling fully rejuvenated! Although I still have some lingering effects, the majority of the traveler’s sickness has exited my system. I ate a hearty breakfast at the hotel which included some fried Ghanaian eggs before the bus picked our class up. 

Our first stop of the day was Accra’s City Center (aka Business/Financial District) / Post Office Area. Students exited the bus in groups and were given approximately an hour to explore. We were instructed to use our tape measures to measure step heights, rampways, and door entrances to compare them to the ADA standards. We were also instructed to take photographs of each other doing so. The last part of our assignment was to photograph something interesting that you see.

Janelle, Darcy and I went to the Post Office. We bought some postcards and stamps while we were there. We spoke to a teller about people with disabilities. The teller responded to our inquiries by saying that if a person in a wheelchair wanted to use the post office, they would need to have their family members carry them inside or else they would not be able to enter. Outside of the Post Office, we took some measurements of buildings and ramps, but found that step height indicated ramp length was not as long as needed. Steps ranged from 4” apiece to 14” (or more) as reported by our class during discussion. While measuring with the tape measure, a woman peered outside and asked what I was doing. I explained that we were a group of students and were interested in learning about how people in wheelchairs accessed the bank. I received a chilly stare after giving this information. It is understandable, given that we are four Obruni (foreigners) who are making measurements about a place unknown. A security risk is always present in Ghana because there is such a wide gap between the rich and the poor.

I asked Anita about some of the measures taken for security yesterday evening as we rode from our restaurant to the hotel. Many buildings, particularly in affluent areas, are affixed with barbed wire coils, spiked gates, and rather high walls. Anita said that Ghana is still a developing country, and she has not known personally any home invasion that has occurred. The precautions, however, are still desired as a deterrent for anyone with bad intentions. Afia Hotel on the beach has barbed wire coils. Many businesses have security guards posted out front. And NYU Accra’s campus in Labone has barbed wire and an electrified fence.

We walked onwards. I asked several people if I could take their photograph. It never ceases to amaze me seeing people walking around carrying hundreds of bananas on top of their heads (or boxes, or suitcases, for that matter). However, I was denied at every turn, which was a bit disappointing. Anita says Ghanaians are reluctant to be photographed because they have been exploited in the past from those images. I did meet one man, John, who let me take a photo of his shop. He was very forthcoming and friendly, and after introducing myself as a student, we chatted about our trip. We parted ways after he wrote down his phone number, saying that if we wanted to take a rest from shopping or spend some time with him we could come over to his stall. 

While wandering around in the Business District, we also met Dorothy, from Columbia (Ohio). She said she had children who worked and lived in the USA. Dorothy was also very outgoing. She told us that we could take a break at her shop as needed, and even went as far as to say that she had a vacation home that we could come to(!). The hospitality in Ghanaian culture is quite remarkable compared to the USA. 

Dorothy took us back to her electronics shop and we sat down under fans while we talked. Dorothy seemed open to discussing disabilities. She seemed to mistake mental illnesses as mental retardation. Is this a flaw of the language, or do Ghanaians interpret mental illnesses such as Depression/Schizophrenia/Bipolar Disorder a form of developmental delay? It is interesting to note that the phrase "don't be silly/crazy/mad" is considered offensive in Ghana because it is taken literally. I.e., "Are you Schizophrenic?" In any case, she considered whether there were any mental hospitals nearby, and said that there weren't many. One of them was about an hour away, she estimated. 

The next stop of the day was to Kwame Nkrumah National Park. This park is dedicated to the first President of Ghana, and he is memorialized within a monument on the site. Nkrumah was part of a group of the “big six” politicians who pushed for democracy in Ghana. Nkrumah was successfully able to push forward toward capitalism for his people during his reign. Six years before his presidency, he was imprisoned for his political views (to unify the four territories of the Gold Coast and win his nation’s independence from the United Kingdom). We took a tour of the museum which is located on the site. The tour included photographs of Nkrumah. He met with many people of importance at various points in his life, including Fidel Castro (despite his non-Marxist views), Queen Elizabeth, John. F. Kennedy, and Mohammed Ali. His thesis was present, and so were the 14 books that he had written over the years. There was also his first coffin. He had been buried three times – once, out of Ghana, then moved to his family’s home in Nkroful, and finally brought to Accra.

The mantra of his political party was “Always forward, never back.” His mausoleum is intended to look like a machete with the blade facing down, which is a symbol of peace. Beautiful sculptures and foliage/trees were planted all along the stone walkways by various notable people. One of these was a mango tree planted by the late Nelson Mandela. There was also a peacock and a peahen wandering through the gardens.

In class, we had presentations of the photographs that were taken in the Business District and we discussed our interactions with people on the street. Lunch today was a Coca-Cola, a Ghanaian hamburger, and fries/onion rings at the Tribes Bar & Restaurant (at Afia Hotel). I was feeling a little homesick, I guess. It was funny to see that what all of us stocked up on at the grocery store yesterday: soda and chocolate/candy! A Coca-Cola in Ghana is made with cane sugar and is given to you in a glass bottle with a regular glass (no ice). I try not to drink too much of the stuff when I’m home, but here it tastes revitalizing.

Finally, I made it to the Makola market today! It is the second largest outdoor market in Ghana and the largest in all of West Africa. At first, I went with a small group of people, but I wanted to browse so I left them to wander around on my own. The market is very congested and has narrow walkways. It is hard to imagine anyone with a disability making their way through the dimly lit, fragrant-smelling, uneven pathways, stairs, and corners. Merchants sell all kinds of goods such as fabrics, pots/pans, spices, fried fish, shoes, plastic dishes, jewelry, electronic adaptors, etc. I ended up purchasing quite a bit of fabric today. I didn’t haggle because fabric prices are pretty fixed. I also bought a small clutch so that my cedi are easier to organize (they’re larger than dollars and wouldn’t fit into my wallet – talk about a first world problem). The clutch is a patchwork of several different vibrant fabrics. They are so saturated with color that they remind me of the plumage of tropical birds or precious stones. It was hard to select from the huge variety that was available!

I ran into a few classmates about an hour later, and we all caught a taxi for 5 cedi (no A/C) back to the hotel. Tonight, we all met the seamstress tonight at Tante Marie restaurant. She took my sketch and my measurements. It will cost 45 cedi to make the dress with ruffles (about $22) and the fabric cost about 60 cedi (10 yards/cedi for the highest quality brand), which is about $28. $50 is an excellent price for a custom-tailored, custom-designed, authentic Ghanaian dress! I am trying to collect dresses from different countries. I have a kimono from Japan, a sari from India and this will be the third. I’m extremely excited to see how it turns out. I want to wear it at the farewell dinner on our last day here.