Getting out of Ghana

Trip Start Sep 05, 2008

Trip End Jan 01, 2009

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Flag of Ghana Accra, Ghana
Monday, December 1, 2008

We were very late leaving GTL yesterday because we were waiting for a ride. Maybe our first mistake. We got to the STC station in Takoradi in time for the 2pm busy. It left only 10 minutes late to our happy surprise. Happy until about 30 minutes later when we were told that our luggage was still at the station in Takoradi. Actually at this point it was just Katherine's luggage. But she had to get off the bus at Cape Coast to wait for the next bus which had her luggage and I decided to wait with her since I wasn't in a hurry. So I looked on our bus to get my luggage off and it turns out mine wasn't there either. The next bus came maybe 30 minutes after we arrived in Cape Coast and had all our luggage. I am not sure how out of all the luggage left by the bus ours were the only bags left behind.

Because of all the delays and horrendous traffic we didn't get to Accra until about 8pm

Accra rooftops

. Katherine's flight was just before 10pm so she rushed off to the airport and I tried to find the guys I was meeting up with at Crystal Hostel. Nobody knew where Crystal Hostel was but luckily I had the phone number for one of the boys so I called him. Unfortunately he was very drunk and his directions were a bit off. But two taxis and 15 cedis later I found them. The hostel was fully booked - something I was told never happens - but they squeezed me into someone's room.

This morning I spent hours at an Internet cafe. The guy next to me totally tried to acquire me as his obruni wife while I checked my email. It was at this time I discovered poor Katherine was still in Accra! She was denied boarding last night even though she was there 55 minutes before take off. As a result I went to the airport quite early today just to be safe. Saw Katherine there. She managed to get on tonight's flight back to Amsterdam. And I waited for my red eye to Nairobi. I was exhausted but couldn't sleep much on the flight. Instead I watched Hancock and was happy to be awake for the flight over Entebbe. It is so beautiful from the air. It looks like a fading star still hot at the centre, spreading out along the dark shores of Victoria Lake. I am now only a few kilometres south of the equator. So how does it feel to be back in the southern hemisphere? Cold! It was only 16C when we landed and I got goosebumps walking the short distance across the tarmac from the plane to the terminal. Now I am really exhausted and hope to find a sleeping lounge. No luck yet and the currency exchange bureau won't exchange my cedis!