Recovering and back to work

Trip Start Mar 27, 2008
1
7
21
Trip End Oct 01, 2008


Loading Map
Map your own trip!
Map Options
Show trip route
Hide lines
shadow

Flag of Ghana  ,
Wednesday, April 30, 2008

The visit to Accra was a success. We stayed in a clean and comfortable hotel in the Dakumah district of Accra, which was recommended by Erin. It was a relief to find a cheap and safe hotel that I can use whenever I'm in Accra, either for business or for going to and from the airport. It was a long day on Friday. We ran around town getting quotes for printing Youth Alive, and I was shocked how high they all were. We had assumed that printing would be cheaper in Accra due to the fact that it is the capital and the home of big business in Ghana. That was definitely wrong. The trip to the supermarket also confirmed how expensive things can be there. Fresh cream was a whopping $11! And $3 for Kraft mac and cheese!
 
Despite these prices, it was a joy to be in a well stocked supermarket. I wandered around the aisles with my mouth gaping open and my jaw on the floor. I bought cheese, spices, sauces, canned goods and butter, and happily trucked it all the way home to Cape Coast on the bus.
 
When I got home I tucked into a baguette of French bread and my newly acquired cheese. To be frank the experience left me under whelmed. I suppose there is a reason that cheese isn't a local food, and I found that it doesn't suit the tropical palate. I've also found that if you're willing to go deeper into the markets in Cape Coast, which I found frightening at first, that you can find most things you're looking for. There really isn't much need to truck all the way to Accra for supplies.
 
On Saturday we had our first youth engagement workshop (YEW) for the Youth Alive! newspaper. While it was a long day the youth involved seemed really keen, and I met an interesting Quebecois journalist to boot. He was living in Montreal at the same time as me, going to Concordia University, and then went to work for the UN press agency in Senegal. Very interesting guy. He's now living in Cape Coast working freelance, and has agreed to work as an advisor on the project.
 
That night the whole house went out to our local, the Hacienda, for some drinks and dancing. I drank too much and had a great time dancing to high-life music, probably terribly. The new week has started slowly. We are still trying to kick start our nursing lectures at CHRAJ, and set up typesetting computers at Abusua. It's a public holiday tomorrow, on May 1, so I guess everyone has their heads in the clouds. I can't believe it's already May!
 
Print this entry Cape Coast hotels