title being the current song rocking through my earbuds. thanks to mr.mraz for this wonderful song.
well. i suppose a more appropriate title would have been SHOPPING! because that's what i did this weekend, much to my delight. mavis and i braved the Accra market- the largest market in Accra and Osu, which is another district in Accra for some quality african finds.
and oh we found them.
the accra market is crazy. there are so many people.. you have to be aggressive to make it through. if the person coming at you the opposite way senses the slightest hesitation.. you're done for. shops selling everything imaginable lined the streets where taxis and trotros fly by. and if you turn off the main drag there are these little alleys that barely fit 2 people with more shops. walking along to cries of "hey obroni!" (obroni = white person).. it was quite the experience.
first i bought fabric for my dresses- i decided on this two-toned olive-ish one that has a gold dot design in it and a deep purple one that has a diamond design in white, black, gold, and light purple dots. i should have the finished products by the end of the week- in tie to wear to church on sunday :)
i also bought these sweet beads that everyone wears here... the woman selling them gave me a free one because i bought so many.. haha. along with the beads i got beautiful kente scarves. kente is the traditional fabric that clothing was made out of. it's handwoven and takes a long time, so it's a little more expensive than most fabric. but it's beautiful- lots of traditional african patterns and colors.
THEN. then. then.
i was headed towards another fabric stand and what was in the tent next to it caught my eye. masks. hand carved traditional african masks. they're so incredibly beautiful.. they have beautiful carvings and raised copper designs on them- definitely got 4. can't wait to hang a couple in my dorm :)
saturday night i learned how to make ghanaian food- banku, fufu, grounnut soup, and waache- and i wrote it all down this time. i showed sandra how to make pancakes, and then we cooked ghanaian food for franklin's friends who came over for dinner. after that we watched spiderman 3 and letters from iwo jima.. and then it was muy muy late and i definitely went to bed.
having been here for a while now i can see the ways that God has used this summer to shape and mold me. i can see His hand in getting me here, and even more in sustaining me in a completely new place. as my departure gets closer i can see more and more how God is preparing me for the year ahead- what a blessing.. to find quiet in my heart, even in the middle of butterflies at the thought of senior year. and it's funny because the ways i've changed and grown are not the ways i was expecting to- surprise. the adoption agency means more to me than i ever thought it would. all i can think about is what an incredible witness it will be. what a way to show the love of Christ to women in Accra.
of course there have been hard lessons learned, but i wouldn't trade this summer for anything. i'm so excited to see what God has in store for the rest of my time here.. and how He uses what i've learned when i go back home.
i'll leave you for tonight with Daniel 3:13-18.
Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, 14 and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, "Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15 Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?"
16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."
Monday, July 28, 2008
Thursday, July 24, 2008
less than 3 weeks
crazy stuff. less than three weeks until i'm flying home. flying home to 4 days of insanity.. and then moving back to school. haha. excellent.
not a whole lot is new i guess.. yesterday was sandra and manvis' birthday :) i made chocolate cake with dark chocolate icing. an instant hit. haha. the westernization of the food in our house continues. sandra loved the pancakes and eggs i made for her monday morning, the brownies on tuesday were a hit, and now the cake. haha oh- and pretzels and peanut butter.. haha. sandra says i'm trying to kill her.
this weekend we're going shopping :) and yesterday sandra and francis and i went to clinic to see a forum/session they were having on prenatal care- we want to incorporate something like that into the agency. it's still crazy to me to think that i'm starting a business. today we're meeting with a lawyer to talk about forms and paperwork and stuff surrounding setting something like this up... then next week we meet with doctors.. and then we start advertising and seeing women who need us. it's such an incredible thing to really be using what i've learned to help people.. people that i'll see and be able to talk to and touch.. it's amazing. but while we were at the clinic francis and i went for a walk and i got some more good pictures :)
i've had my first homesick moments.. i'm not usually a homesick type of person.. so it's a strange thing i guess.. it's weird. life here has become normal- the way things look and smell and what it takes to move around.. it's normal life. but as normal as it is.. it's like there's this deeper level of normal that only being "home" can accomplish.. i don't know if that makes sense. i just reread it.. it doesn't make sense. so.. yea.
um- let's see.. i'm excited to pick out the fabric for my dress. despite cries for lime green from one party .. i will do nothing of the sort. haha. and i think i'll make chocolate chip cookies next week. sad news.. we're almost out of peanut butter.
not a whole lot is new i guess.. yesterday was sandra and manvis' birthday :) i made chocolate cake with dark chocolate icing. an instant hit. haha. the westernization of the food in our house continues. sandra loved the pancakes and eggs i made for her monday morning, the brownies on tuesday were a hit, and now the cake. haha oh- and pretzels and peanut butter.. haha. sandra says i'm trying to kill her.
this weekend we're going shopping :) and yesterday sandra and francis and i went to clinic to see a forum/session they were having on prenatal care- we want to incorporate something like that into the agency. it's still crazy to me to think that i'm starting a business. today we're meeting with a lawyer to talk about forms and paperwork and stuff surrounding setting something like this up... then next week we meet with doctors.. and then we start advertising and seeing women who need us. it's such an incredible thing to really be using what i've learned to help people.. people that i'll see and be able to talk to and touch.. it's amazing. but while we were at the clinic francis and i went for a walk and i got some more good pictures :)
i've had my first homesick moments.. i'm not usually a homesick type of person.. so it's a strange thing i guess.. it's weird. life here has become normal- the way things look and smell and what it takes to move around.. it's normal life. but as normal as it is.. it's like there's this deeper level of normal that only being "home" can accomplish.. i don't know if that makes sense. i just reread it.. it doesn't make sense. so.. yea.
um- let's see.. i'm excited to pick out the fabric for my dress. despite cries for lime green from one party .. i will do nothing of the sort. haha. and i think i'll make chocolate chip cookies next week. sad news.. we're almost out of peanut butter.
Monday, July 21, 2008
coconuts. sweet.
another monday. BUT this weekend was pretty sweet. went back to the beach :) it was less crowded than on Republic Day, which was soooo nice. however, the high point came sunday- yesterday.. same thing.
anyways.
rose mary had an extra dress here with her- so i got to wear it to church!! it was beautiful.. a kind of peachy color.. it had pearls and little shiny discs sewn into it in places- i'm so excited to get my dress made! sandra says the expensive ones are about $15. which means i'll get about 4... haha. but seriously.. they're so beautiful and all custom made. the seamstress comes to your house to take your measurements an then you pick the fabric and the style and she comes back a week later with a dress! woah. so excited.
THEN.
we got back from church and there was a guy walking down the street with a huge.. bowl.. bucket.. thing on his head (i'm working on my head-balancing skills... i drop a lot of stuff), and i can't tell what's inside, and franklin and sandra call him over and he pulls out one of the things and starts hacking away at the top with a machete type looking thing. he pulls the top off and hands it to franklin who hands it to me. i ask sandra what it is.. a COCONUT she says.
WHHAATTTT??!?! says i.
so i drank the milk right out of a coconut!!! amazing stuff. seriously. the inside of the coconut is kind of gross- dare i say frothy? but i like the milk a lot.
well- back to world i suppose.. just 3 work weeks left.. crazy.
anyways.
rose mary had an extra dress here with her- so i got to wear it to church!! it was beautiful.. a kind of peachy color.. it had pearls and little shiny discs sewn into it in places- i'm so excited to get my dress made! sandra says the expensive ones are about $15. which means i'll get about 4... haha. but seriously.. they're so beautiful and all custom made. the seamstress comes to your house to take your measurements an then you pick the fabric and the style and she comes back a week later with a dress! woah. so excited.
THEN.
we got back from church and there was a guy walking down the street with a huge.. bowl.. bucket.. thing on his head (i'm working on my head-balancing skills... i drop a lot of stuff), and i can't tell what's inside, and franklin and sandra call him over and he pulls out one of the things and starts hacking away at the top with a machete type looking thing. he pulls the top off and hands it to franklin who hands it to me. i ask sandra what it is.. a COCONUT she says.
WHHAATTTT??!?! says i.
so i drank the milk right out of a coconut!!! amazing stuff. seriously. the inside of the coconut is kind of gross- dare i say frothy? but i like the milk a lot.
well- back to world i suppose.. just 3 work weeks left.. crazy.
Monday, July 14, 2008
told you i was bad at this..
happy monday!
the weekend was fun- franklin and sandra and i went out friday night and met some fun people.. still not quite used to the.. let's say.. forwardness of african men. haha. but it was fun.
church yesterday. sweet jeepers. i mean.. these people go to church. service is at least 2 hours long and the worship gets down right rowdy- people dancing and jumping and clapping.. the music is so loud you can't even hear yourself, let alone the person next to you.. so good voice or bad you can sing as loud as you can. haha. it's just nice not to feel.. i can't describe it. you never feel like people are looking at you, or that you're supposed to be doing a certain thing, or that certain things are frowned upon.. everyone is so caught up in praising God that it doesn't matter what you do- because no one notices anyone else. they know a lot of our old school praise songs.. so it's been a fun blast from the past at church and on the radio. the service is in 2 languages- the pastor preaches in english and then there's a translator to the local language. the whole place is alive..
i learned how to make fufu on saturday. :) you take plantains and mash them with the biggest morter and pistol i've ever seen until it's like a dough, and then you do the same thing to yams, and then you mash them together.. and there you go! serve with peanut soup- which has nothing to do with peanuts- and you have a traditional ghanaian favorite. sandra says everyone loves to eat it but no one likes to make it because it takes so long and it's hard to make the dough. last night evelyn and i walked down to one of the shops and bought local chocolate- they say it's milk chocolate.. but it tastes like it's halfway inbetween milk and dark.. it's really good though.. i'll have to see about bringing some home.
just hanging out at the office- half day today. we didn't get here until about noon.. haha. not a bad way to start the week.
:)
the weekend was fun- franklin and sandra and i went out friday night and met some fun people.. still not quite used to the.. let's say.. forwardness of african men. haha. but it was fun.
church yesterday. sweet jeepers. i mean.. these people go to church. service is at least 2 hours long and the worship gets down right rowdy- people dancing and jumping and clapping.. the music is so loud you can't even hear yourself, let alone the person next to you.. so good voice or bad you can sing as loud as you can. haha. it's just nice not to feel.. i can't describe it. you never feel like people are looking at you, or that you're supposed to be doing a certain thing, or that certain things are frowned upon.. everyone is so caught up in praising God that it doesn't matter what you do- because no one notices anyone else. they know a lot of our old school praise songs.. so it's been a fun blast from the past at church and on the radio. the service is in 2 languages- the pastor preaches in english and then there's a translator to the local language. the whole place is alive..
i learned how to make fufu on saturday. :) you take plantains and mash them with the biggest morter and pistol i've ever seen until it's like a dough, and then you do the same thing to yams, and then you mash them together.. and there you go! serve with peanut soup- which has nothing to do with peanuts- and you have a traditional ghanaian favorite. sandra says everyone loves to eat it but no one likes to make it because it takes so long and it's hard to make the dough. last night evelyn and i walked down to one of the shops and bought local chocolate- they say it's milk chocolate.. but it tastes like it's halfway inbetween milk and dark.. it's really good though.. i'll have to see about bringing some home.
just hanging out at the office- half day today. we didn't get here until about noon.. haha. not a bad way to start the week.
:)
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
and by 8:30.. i meant 10
goooooooood morning!
chilling at bari house (where the office is).. excitement of a little while ago- we're all sitting here working and suddenly there's all this shouting from outside- and we run to the door (any excuse to stop working.. haha) and there's a guy running as fast as he can go past bari house along flattop junction (the road) with about 20 people chasing him. he was carrying a couple yams (note: yams here are about a foot tall and not eaten at thanksgiving.. which.. they dont' celebrate anyways... and the yams are white.. it's like a stretched out potato.. kind of.. anyways..) so we're standing up on the balcony (the office is on the second floor) laughing- i guess the guy stole the yams and everyone who had been standing near the stand and the owners were chasing him down. just past bari house he tried to hop in a cab- but couldn't get the door closed fast enough and some of the people caught him. they took the yams and started beating him with them.. which is funny. but the story isn't funny.. because after they beat him with vegetables franklin said they probably took him back behind the front row of stores to hang him- that's how people deal with local offenses around here..
one of the major problems in ghana is that they have a judicial system (not too unlike the one in the US) but people don't use it- they want instant gratification, or revenge i guess would be a better way to put it. the politicians keep coming on the radio and encouraging peope to take criminals to the police station.. not to just punish the criminals themselves..
here's how this morning went.. haha
time- 8:05, i'm sitting with benedict on my lap and franklin is working at his computer
Franklin: oh kayte, we would like to be leaving around 8:30
Me: oh ok.
*jump in the shower, get dressed and packed up, return to the living room at 8:25 ready to go. Franklin.. has not moved*
Franklin: oh kayte, my own words i am eating them.. let's say we will be leaving at 9.
Me: sure ok
time- 9:45. still sitting in the living room while franklin gets ready
time- 10am- we pull out. haha. surprised? nope. not in the least :)
but- we're just hanging out and getting some work done. i have to turn in a draft of the china-africa project on thursday so it's crunch time- which is fine with me. i love this project but it'll be nice to start something new.. one can only google for so many hours at a time before it starts to get to you.. haha.
the guys came to refill the water tank this morning which means no more bucket showers! usually it's just on saturdays, but the people were late coming so we had to wait until today. the water is kept in huge drums outside, and it gets pumped inside. when it gets too low, it won't pump through, so you have to go outside and fill a bucket and shower like that. sandra says that the spicket (i've never tried to spell that word... haha.. i don't think that's right.. ) we'll say the "tap" in the kitchen hasn't worked since they moved in- so we wash dishes with water in a bucket and things air dry. there's definitely no excess here- at home everything is excess. i mean- i'm the last person EVER to blab on about water conservation and environmentalism because i think it's a bunch of bologna. my point is that at home almost everything i do is excess- the variety of food i like to stay happy, the gagets in my room, the game systems we have down stairs, the 5 or so tvs in my house, the school i have the privlege of attending... i mean.. i don't know. i'm not saying we shouldn't have these things- because i'm not giving them up.. but i think we just need to be a little bit more thankful for what we have. when you have water pressure in your shower in the morning don't rush to conserve water- just be thankful that you have what you have. because there are people who don't have it.
ok... back to work. leaving around 5 today :)
chilling at bari house (where the office is).. excitement of a little while ago- we're all sitting here working and suddenly there's all this shouting from outside- and we run to the door (any excuse to stop working.. haha) and there's a guy running as fast as he can go past bari house along flattop junction (the road) with about 20 people chasing him. he was carrying a couple yams (note: yams here are about a foot tall and not eaten at thanksgiving.. which.. they dont' celebrate anyways... and the yams are white.. it's like a stretched out potato.. kind of.. anyways..) so we're standing up on the balcony (the office is on the second floor) laughing- i guess the guy stole the yams and everyone who had been standing near the stand and the owners were chasing him down. just past bari house he tried to hop in a cab- but couldn't get the door closed fast enough and some of the people caught him. they took the yams and started beating him with them.. which is funny. but the story isn't funny.. because after they beat him with vegetables franklin said they probably took him back behind the front row of stores to hang him- that's how people deal with local offenses around here..
one of the major problems in ghana is that they have a judicial system (not too unlike the one in the US) but people don't use it- they want instant gratification, or revenge i guess would be a better way to put it. the politicians keep coming on the radio and encouraging peope to take criminals to the police station.. not to just punish the criminals themselves..
here's how this morning went.. haha
time- 8:05, i'm sitting with benedict on my lap and franklin is working at his computer
Franklin: oh kayte, we would like to be leaving around 8:30
Me: oh ok.
*jump in the shower, get dressed and packed up, return to the living room at 8:25 ready to go. Franklin.. has not moved*
Franklin: oh kayte, my own words i am eating them.. let's say we will be leaving at 9.
Me: sure ok
time- 9:45. still sitting in the living room while franklin gets ready
time- 10am- we pull out. haha. surprised? nope. not in the least :)
but- we're just hanging out and getting some work done. i have to turn in a draft of the china-africa project on thursday so it's crunch time- which is fine with me. i love this project but it'll be nice to start something new.. one can only google for so many hours at a time before it starts to get to you.. haha.
the guys came to refill the water tank this morning which means no more bucket showers! usually it's just on saturdays, but the people were late coming so we had to wait until today. the water is kept in huge drums outside, and it gets pumped inside. when it gets too low, it won't pump through, so you have to go outside and fill a bucket and shower like that. sandra says that the spicket (i've never tried to spell that word... haha.. i don't think that's right.. ) we'll say the "tap" in the kitchen hasn't worked since they moved in- so we wash dishes with water in a bucket and things air dry. there's definitely no excess here- at home everything is excess. i mean- i'm the last person EVER to blab on about water conservation and environmentalism because i think it's a bunch of bologna. my point is that at home almost everything i do is excess- the variety of food i like to stay happy, the gagets in my room, the game systems we have down stairs, the 5 or so tvs in my house, the school i have the privlege of attending... i mean.. i don't know. i'm not saying we shouldn't have these things- because i'm not giving them up.. but i think we just need to be a little bit more thankful for what we have. when you have water pressure in your shower in the morning don't rush to conserve water- just be thankful that you have what you have. because there are people who don't have it.
ok... back to work. leaving around 5 today :)
Friday, July 4, 2008
fast food temple
ok. so.
i have officially supped at the fast food temple. glorious indeed. i can't wait for my camera to get here so i can take pictures... today we passed the "Power of Christ Commands You Clothing Shop". hahaha. i love it.
but.. since monday.. i warned you i was bad at this... tuesday was beach day!! :) but people here don't go to the beach like we do- we gather blankets and towels and umbrellas (ella, ella) and camp out in a spot close to the ocean and spend the whole day in that spot. people here don't bring much of anything. there were so many people- and there were street vendors selling food and jewelry and "Jesus Loves You Baked Goods"... and the music is so loud the ground feels like it's shaking and people are dancing and singing and playing soccer everywhere.. it's intense. but there were palm trees everywhere and the weather was beautiful. we didn't want to buy food (even though we did) so we packed enough food to feed a small country and found a spot in the back where the other families were. benedict was sooo cute in his little beach hat.
back at the office today- even though sandra and i didn't get here until close to 11... and franklin still isn't here. he had to take sandra's mom to the italian embassy to work out her papers so she can go home in a couple weeks. She (rose mary- sandra's mom) has lived in italy for about 10 years but came down here to help sandra and franklin with the baby and the bread business they have. i've been forever spoiled by fresh bread everyday.
we probably won't be here for long, we brought benedict with us because rose mary wasn't home yet when we left. he wont' stand for being here until 7 or 8, which is how late we were here a couple nights this week.
i think tomorrow sandra and evelyn and i are going shopping :) she said something about a mall- but somehow i doubt it's like the malls at home... haha. but we're going into "town". people keep talking about "going into town" and i have no idea what that means.. haha. accra is huge- and it's divided into districts.. maybe "town" is in the middle? who knows.
ok. must be productive. i'm supposed to finish this china/ghana virtual institute research thing by the middle of next week.. which.. is going to be pushing it... so glad tomorrow is saturday. :)
i have officially supped at the fast food temple. glorious indeed. i can't wait for my camera to get here so i can take pictures... today we passed the "Power of Christ Commands You Clothing Shop". hahaha. i love it.
but.. since monday.. i warned you i was bad at this... tuesday was beach day!! :) but people here don't go to the beach like we do- we gather blankets and towels and umbrellas (ella, ella) and camp out in a spot close to the ocean and spend the whole day in that spot. people here don't bring much of anything. there were so many people- and there were street vendors selling food and jewelry and "Jesus Loves You Baked Goods"... and the music is so loud the ground feels like it's shaking and people are dancing and singing and playing soccer everywhere.. it's intense. but there were palm trees everywhere and the weather was beautiful. we didn't want to buy food (even though we did) so we packed enough food to feed a small country and found a spot in the back where the other families were. benedict was sooo cute in his little beach hat.
back at the office today- even though sandra and i didn't get here until close to 11... and franklin still isn't here. he had to take sandra's mom to the italian embassy to work out her papers so she can go home in a couple weeks. She (rose mary- sandra's mom) has lived in italy for about 10 years but came down here to help sandra and franklin with the baby and the bread business they have. i've been forever spoiled by fresh bread everyday.
we probably won't be here for long, we brought benedict with us because rose mary wasn't home yet when we left. he wont' stand for being here until 7 or 8, which is how late we were here a couple nights this week.
i think tomorrow sandra and evelyn and i are going shopping :) she said something about a mall- but somehow i doubt it's like the malls at home... haha. but we're going into "town". people keep talking about "going into town" and i have no idea what that means.. haha. accra is huge- and it's divided into districts.. maybe "town" is in the middle? who knows.
ok. must be productive. i'm supposed to finish this china/ghana virtual institute research thing by the middle of next week.. which.. is going to be pushing it... so glad tomorrow is saturday. :)
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