Sickness

Aug. 27

I felt a lot better this morning, which was good because I had a full day of class. After class Anna and I went with Jeff to help him get his hair cut. Outside the salon was a small café. They had a peanut butter and chocolate sandwich, so naturally I got one. About halfway into the sandwich my stomach starting feeling weird, so I stopped eating. After a few minutes I realized that my food was not going to stay down. I hurried away to catch a taxi to my dorm (the walk would’ve taken me at least 15 minutes). It took me longer than I thought it would to get a taxi and in that period of time, I got sick…twice… on a tree. (I know that I might be over-sharing here, but I’m willing to tell you about it so you can get a full picture of my experiences while I’m here.) J Anyways, a few minutes after expelling the contents of my stomach on a tree, I managed to get a cab. I’m feeling much better now that I’m in the comfort of my room. The story is pretty funny in hindsight.

Aug. 29.

Wednesdays are our long class days. I like to think of Wendesday as Humble Day. Our afternoon classes consist of Twi language, African drumming, and African dance. I’m terrible at all of them, so the only way to get through them is by being humble and laughing at myself. 

Our instructor for African dance is intense. I really can’t decide if he’s really cool or really scary. Today we danced for an hour and half. By the end, all of us were soaked in sweat. I’ll admit, I had a lot of fun today, but it was a lot of work. I think African dance is what we should to instead of Zumba at home.

I got a new placement for my internship as well. I’ll be working at a school in a rural town called Adenkrobi. I’m not sure what exactly I’ll be doing, but I get to start tomorrow!

I bought 10 hours of internet for my room for about 5 Ghana Cedis, which is about $2.50.  I think it was a good decision. I’ve been able to get into contact with my family and some friends on Skype much easier this way. The connection isn’t as good as it is in our classroom in the institute, but it makes it easier to work with the time difference.

Final Update on roommates: I am not getting a Ghanaian roommate. I’m pretty bummed, but also thankful that I can finally unpack my stuff and make this place feel more like home.

Aug. 30

Today was the first day of my internship. We didn’t go to Adenkrobi today, so that was a bummer. Daniel, the guy in charge of us, picked us up and took us to his work site in Pig Farm (yes, that is the name of a section of town). We “designed” the classroom that he wants us to paint. So basically, we just painted with poster paint on paper as a brain storming exercise. I’m hoping to do something a little more exciting next week.

I did some homework when I got back and then Krista and I went to the mall to get dinner. I spent the rest of the evening cleaning my room. Super exciting day... haa.

Aug. 31

The Adenkrobi School only needed us for one day this week, so I have the day off today. When I woke up this morning I went right to work on cleaning and unpacking. I am completely unpacked now! It feels great. This room really is starting to look a bit homier now.

To celebrate the day off, Krista, Caitlin and I got brunch at a little place on campus. (Pancakes and freshly squeezed orange juice!) The pancakes were more like crapes, but still really tasty.