Ghana

So, Ghana.... It wasn't really what I was expecting. I thought I would love Ghana and I just didn't to be honest. I was grabbed on the wrist several times in Takoradi by men which was the first time that had happened and my roommate almost got pulled down an ally and luckily we were paying attention and said no and got out and it didn't hurt we had my 6'7" friend Chip (AKA "strongman" as the local Ghanians called him) following us and removing hands. We went to Cape Coast, hiked through the forest and walked on canopy bridges, visited a slave castle which was incredibly powerful and then stuck around for a choral concert in the castle that night. We then made our way to Accra and spent a day in the city and then I had a field lab doing a drumming workshop at the University of Ghana in Accra. The drumming workshop was probably my favorite thing that I did, but I did have a great time with my friends. We pretty much laughed our way through Ghana, I think I was smiling 90% of the time.

I do have one really funny story about the choral concert though. I should start off with Ghanaian distaste of photographs. In general Ghanaian people get really upset if they see you taking photos, so if walking in a market in Ghana and you take pictures you will hear about five different people start shouting at you and even running towards you. So we had been at the slave castle in the afternoon that day and saw there would be a choral concert that night in the castle (which was actually a really cool venue) so we decided to just stick around the area and go back around 6:30pm for the concert when the people at the castle told us to be there. So we came back at 6:30pm and there were almost no people in the castle for the concert, and none of the choral groups were there so my friend Huw decided to go up on the edge of the castle by the canons that overlooks the ocean and take photos. About 10 minutes later we heard all these sirens coming towards the castle and then about 10 military guys came in carrying flare guns and posting themselves around the castle. They were there because the Ghanaian minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts and the Minister of the Central Region were at the concert. So the soldiers are milling around and I see one head off to where Huw is by the canons taking photos and my first thought is "oh crap Huw is going to be in trouble with this guys for taking photos," but the soldier just headed up the steps and eye-balled Huw a few times and ignored him. So I quit paying attention and about 4 or 5 minutes go by and all of a sudden a hear a shot ring out from where Huw is by the cannons and instantly I assume Huw has been shot for taking pictures or something so I whip my head over and see smoke rising from the ground by the soldier's feet and the soldier looks stunned. Several people got up and just left from the audience, and the guys supervisors marched over and ripped the guys flare gun away and starts having a strongly worded chit chat with him. Huw miraculously showed back up and said the guy had been holding the flare gun behind his back and set it off accidentally into the ground. Luckily Huw made it out unscathed, but for about 10 seconds I was certain he was going to be Semester at Sea's funniest statistic from Ghana with "one student shot with flare gun."

I didn't take many pictures in Ghana but I will get some from friends to add later but here's the few I had!