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June 28/29, 2006 Wednesday ? Thursday
Went to have dinner at a small place in Osu called the Venus this evening, but since I arrived way too late, I got some really feckin hot chicken wings to satisfy my appetite and a few drinks, after which we went to a beack party at Labadi Beach. First time I went to the beach in Accra, we had to dash the guards at the beach a little to get there, but 50 cents ain?t all that much.
What can I say: surreal. Loud reggae music booming out of speaker, with only a few people really dancing, and a big ?terrace? in front of that, surrounded by small food and booze stalls which would sell popcorn, kebab and all kinds of alcohol (yes, any Western type as well). Of course African style, so don?t think clean and luxury, but it was there. We got some seats and some drinks, and I sat down to watch around, which was in fact problematic because all the time we?d be bothered by hawkers, beggars of just people trying to hook up with a ?Bronyi?, just for the sake of it. The sea managed to calm me down though, like it always does, and it was unlike anything I?ve seen so far ? imagine sitting in a wooden chair on a beach, lighted by gigantic spotlights (so bright that all I saw was shadows, since I was looking right into them), listening to reggae music, hearing the waves wash ashore, seeing drunken dancing rastafari Ghanaians who could barely stand and smelling a strange mixture of ganja, sea-air and burning debris. Yes?people burn their litter on the beach, which is probably the best way to get rid of the litter around here anyway with a non-existent recycling industry or garbage collecting service?
Had some good talks out there with the people I was with, a really cool group by the way. But other than that?it wasn?t really a party, and the sight of beggars and hawkers just standing on the side, looking at the people that have the means to feast and drink was pretty pathetic, disillusioning really. The harsh reality of Ghana surrounding the perfect picture in the middle. And then the guy that was as drunken as a lord, let his motorcycle fall over numerous times before he could get it to stay upright, and still got on it and just raced away along the waterline. I actually expected him to smash it into the sand at some point in a terrible crash, but it didn?t happen, thank god. Lots of white surfers out there, volunteers and the occasional Westerner that has somehow lost his or her heart to Africa and has decided to stay.
Also saw some gruesome photographs of a woman that had been stabbed and burnt in an attack, the pics were taken when she was still alive and were actually published by at least 2 newspapers around here. Made for a nice ethical discussion about it, but aside from that, it confronts you with the fact that life is much rawer here than where I come from. Death and injury are everyday reality, although you?re more likely so suffer from either of the two conditions by getting into a traffic accident. It?s not like society here is violent, far from it in fact! You?ll rarely see fights around here, or the kind of random beatings which are increasingly taking place in my country (Holland), but life here just isn?t as safe as in the West. Diseases, traffic accidents, working accidents, they just all happen much more often than at home. This was a particularly horrifying case though, and it could have been a photo shot in a warzone just as easily.
Another example could be the cripple beggars you see?they?re kept off the streets back home, but here you can spot the most extreme bodily deformations on the street, it makes you genuinely wonder how they have managed to stay alive out here, where adequate care for the disabled is something very rare, if not barely existent.
But still, people here know how to laugh, maybe even better than the average European or American who leads a much more luxurious life. Maybe if you only can go up, it?s just no use crying about your misery, and you might just as well laugh it off?
June 30, 2006 Friday
Allright, I went to see George Akanlig today, who is my contact at the Legon University Campus, and he had (to my big surprise) already arranged accomodation for me! Not just that, but at the incredible rate of only $25,- a week ? very basic, but it should be simple, clean, and above all put me right in the middle of the ?action? of my thesis research. The campus itself looks magnificent, my own university diesn?t even come close to it (it doesn?t even have a camous anyway). My room will be situated right opposite the house of George, so I?ll regularly be able to join for a shot of Akpeteshie and some good conversation. It?s only one month, but it should be some fun I reckon ;-). The guy is a crackup, and we always are laughing constantly when together?
The rest of the day wasn?t really something special though, did some dining at my favourite place (The Orangery), had a few drinks at the spot right around the corner (Semi?s Place), which always has a gigantic screen with a beamer playing some soaps or Nigerian movies. Those last ones are hellafunny by the way: in every movie some damsel in distress gets abducted and abused by evil criminals, and then some guy comes to the rescue and en passant ends a whole criminal organization as well. Another one is the comical version, many of which feature a certain actor with a stunted growth ? that little guy is so incredibly funny, you gotta try and see one of his movies. They are always overacting, the camera shots are cheesy, the sound is badly mastered, but still?Nigeria is turning out so many movies each year that after Hollywood and Bollywood there is since a little while officially ?Nollywood?!
Yesterday I went out for dinner with the group of volunteers to the most expensive joint in town: ?El Gaucho?, run by a real Argentinean guy too. He?s doing really well with that place, not surprising when the meals there are from 9 dollars up to 20 when every other ?upmarket? place will serve plates at 6 to 9 dollars. Blasted a whole lotta cash on that one, and I?m saving my next visit to the evening before I leave, lol. We went to the Bywel bar after, a place with live Jazzmusic every Thursday evening, and it has a good mixture of Obronyi and Obibinyi (white and black people), a very pleasant atmosphere, good drinks and it even serves fries until deep in the night for those that get hungry. The beer that is drank most often here is Star, although at a few places you can get some real Guinness as well (Star is more agreeable IMO). Another one is Club, and there?s another 2 or 3 beers available around here that are perfectly acceptalbe by any standard (for my American friends: I think it?s a little better than what you guys get, a little less than the Dutch or Belgian beers).
The local dishes here are very edible by the way, and if it weren?t for my tendency to eat really diverse, I would be capable of eating Ghanaian food only for the time that I?ll be here: not everything maybe, but most of it does taste pretty well ? I especially like the fufu with palmut soup or groundnut soup, and the Jollof Rive with Chicken, and of course?Red Red. Black-eyed peas in tomatoe sauce, with fried plantain slices. It looks a bit off to some people, but it tastes absolutely fabulous!
Continueing about food and drinks while I?m at it: when travelling or on the road and hungry, you can eat more of the thing you see than you would expect. Some people will sell pastries with meat inside (look like dough shells with meat in them, half circles), spring rolls, cookies, plantain crisps, boiled eggs, bananas/oranges/pineapples/melons. You name it, simply make sure that any fruit is cut and sliced freshly before you, and that eggs are still whole when you buy them. There?s always the risk of it gone bad but you should smell that soon enough. The pastries will usually be warm when you buy them, just avoid them when they?re cold or not really warm anymore. One of my favourites on the road or as a snack is a coconut: just walk up to the kid that sells them, and he?ll behead one right there. Drink the juice, and have the seller cut it in half: he?ll usually make an extra cut in the shell that seems unnecessary, but you can tear that piece off and use it to scoop up the meat inside and eat it. There?s your complete meal! Not to mention that coconuts are very nutritious and hold almost anything you need in your food to complete a balanced diet.
Soft drinks are literally anywhere, you can get those and water all over the place. Coke, Fanta and Sprite are widely spread, even into the most remote corners of the country. Usually sold in bottles, and they will also be opened right in front of you ? as with the fruit, this is a habit that will ensure that what you get is fresh and not contaminated. Say what you want, but in that respect Ghanaians are very hygienic people! Water is sold in 0.5 liter and 1.5 liter bottles, and in 0.5 liter sealed plastic bags, usually referred to as ?pure water? (?Pjuuuuuuuuhh Woataaaaaaaaaahhh!!!?). You simply put one corner from the bag in your mouth and chew it off untill the water comes through, then you suck it empty. Soft drinks will do between 30 and 50 dollarcents (3000 ? 5000 Cedis), and water 60 cents for 1.5 liters, 30 cents for 0.5 liters and 3 cents for the plastic bags. A life saver in this climate, and extremely cheap as well, so don?t save on it.
Some vendors will also sell some home made drinks, in bottles or knotted plastic bags: you might wanna avoid those, since they usually have not been made in very hygienic circumstances, and anyone can have touched it ot it?s ingredients in the process. Not safe. Today I also tried some sealed yoghurt ice pack, wich is handled the same way as the sealed water bags: it?s really refreshing, and safe to use as far as I can determine?we?ll know for sure within 24 hours, hehehehe?.
One last one before I close this one off: Kebab. YES?kebab?my nickname with my teacher is Kebabfia, which means ?Kebabchief? in Ewe. I eat it a lot...in my country the food and drugs administration would give you a fine so high that it would make you shit in all the rainbow?s colours for working in ?unhygienic circumstances?, but I?ve never ever had any problems with the consumption of those, and though very spicey, they make for a very tasteful addition to your menu here. Get them like?.everywhere! No street without at least 5 kebab vendors, seriously. When hungry, eat two or three, but be ready for a spicey treat. If you can handle some spicey stuff, you?ll just enjoy them more.
Well, that?s it for today?much more a lecture on food here, but who knows, it might come in handy should you some day decide to check out Ghana for some reason ;-)
Pepijn | Yao
July 12 2006 ? Wednesday
Eh, umkay?lagging behind a bit on the updates methinks eh? Well, nezzermind, here?s another one
.
I made some great progress on my research to begin with, in fact, I have so feckin much material that I?ll be busy reading and analyzing it for a long ass time, I?ll have to start that work here already. Got my hands on the official reports about the APRM performance of Ghana, which went surprisingly smoothly: I just contacted Foreign Affairs, teld them what I was looking for, had to send an email and within 2 hours the official report was deliver to by mail. I had expected anything ranging from total ignorance to a lame bureaucratic fight, but not this. Gotta say this is credit points for Ghana?s govt. here?
Then I also got a few names of Democracy and Corruption NGO?s I should check out, and then I went on a report/studying paper download spree, holy smackers and then some! Not only that, but in return for the report one of my main contacts now here has provided me with a survey held in Ghana last year into the public?s corruption perception. Now there?s some nice counterweight to the official numbers and statements.
As for daily life: going well I think? I?m playing basketball every day right now, so I?m not only staying shape out here, but in combination with the pretty damn healthy food here I?m actually making physical progess, hahah! Last thing I expected to happen, but I guess I got a lucky break for once?and my B-Ball skills are also improving of course. Also hope to hit the Dojo for a nice martial arts training here later this week, that should be fun too. All in all I can?t really complain about my physical condition and food, that is all pretty much in good order. I?ll be going out again next week I think, maybe to that beach party again: this time with some black company to fend off those hawkers out there that pretty much ru?ned the first time. Speaking of which?never thought this would happen, but the university campus is actually only topped by the Osu quarters in Accra! So incredibly many freeloaders around here, it?s unbelieveable, and I am as a matter of fact getting fed up with those lame ass losers. I don?t feel sorry for them in any way, really?neither do the Ghanaians that have some decency left in themselves. They actually despise their fellow countrymen that go round asking Westerners if they can do their laundry, or simply ask for some ?support? for their school fees or medicine. And it?s annoying, because you know when it happens again, some jackass calling you from 100 feet away and catching up with you because no matter what you want you shall and must tell them your name, shake their greasy hand and then?
?can I do your laundry? ? No, for the same charge I take it to Star Wash on campus and get it back dried.
?I am looking for a friend outside who can support me? ? Good luck, I?m broke and am also looking for support.
?I am looking for someone so maybe I can come to the United States (they all think I?m American by default) so I can make some money and get my own business? ? meaning I need to invite them to my country and play nanny for a guy that hasn?t got a clue how to get around there, let alone that he gets the 9000 euro scraped together that you need if they are to grant you a visa in the first place, because?you know?I?m f**king not gonna get those 9 grand together for you mate! By the way, they don?t speak English in Holland.
Today I got a guy playing he was sick last week and??I was sick, still not better, I need medicine you know?maybe you can buy me the medicine, look at my eye, you see it?? ? No I don?t see it, but can you see this ?? Do I look like a pharmacy to you? Hm? Do I?
Sometimes it?s the guy himself, but equally often it?s mommy/sister/auntie/brother/uncle/daddy. Whatever.
?Maybe if you leave and you don?t need something you can leave it and give it to me, I like your shirt/trousers/shoes/necklace/bracelet/bag?.? ? Hell yea why not, I buy a new wardrobe every 3 months, no problem dude. Hope you don?t mind the skidmarks in my underwear.
Or just plain: ?I?m hungry man, can you give me some for food?? ? Do I look like a bank? You had enough energy left in you to chase me 300 feet to catch up with me while you kept shouting white boy/jungle boy/bushman/obronyi, in fact, you caught up with me! Dang, I guess your body somehow has adapted extremely well to living without food, cos when I?m hungy, I can?t perform at all to be honest...
?and just keep going with examples. This all sounds extremely sarcastic, and well?.it is I guess. Doesn?t mean I suddenly hate the people here, far from it, but at times it can get really annoying to be harassed by ignorant fucks that simply assume that white = rich & wealthy, and don?t see a human being with his own thoughts, dreams and goals but a walking ATM. At times I do put on my mp3 player when I go round on the campus, so I can ignore people that try to get my attention with the sole purpose of becoming my 5-minute-friend with the aim of extorting some money out my pocket with a little emotional blackmail
. The past few days though I?ve become a real asshole to those people, so today when I got this guy complaining about his illness (he was pretty damn healthy a few days before!) and asking me for ?medicine money?, I bluntly told thim to fuck off since I wasn?t a human being to him anyway, and that I didn?t want to see his face again either. Worked like a charm .
Wow what a rant?guess I needed to vent this urgently! I have some great friends walking around here as well though: there?s George Akanlig, Deputy Senior Tutor here, who got me a room @ 100 bucks a month. Fair price IMO, no luxury stuff, and I think I already mentioned the cockroach league that came with it, but that has been taken care of allright. George has been at my uni a while ago, where I met him. Stand up guy, and working far too much at the moment.
Asamoah, George?s sidekick, also helping me with any problem I have around here.
Prof. Kwame Boafo-Arthur, THE man in the politics department: provided me with an as yet unpublished chapter written by him for an editorial. Good shiz, and he also brought me in contact with Dr. Alexander Frempong, an incredible crackup who immediately added his last name to mine, which has now become Yao Foli Frempong Ata! Dang what a name?it?s said to be of aristocratic length now, hahahah?.Frempong?s assistant Yao Atuobi (yes, there?s many Yao?s around here), who is at this moment my main contact for my research. I?ll also be trying to help him with his Anti-Corruption NGO?who knows what will come of it, and it?s a laudable initiative to me, as well as something I have a keen interest in of course!
Richard, an on-campus resident, Karateka, and the only Ghanaian student that gets sent more money by his dad than I make every month. Safe to say he?s not out for anything, and he?s a great guy ? always watching my six here and warning me for possible dangers. He?s an even worse basketball player than me though, I beat him 5-2 today.
And last but definitely not least, my 4 musketeers from Asylum Down, Maxwell, Francis, Sassou (Jones) and Nana Kissii, whom I?ve met as a group the very first night I was here. They?ve been helping me out a lot with finding places and getting around safely, for example on my photoshoot afternoon and when I went to the market to get some shirts ? the last occasion was with Maxwell, and at some moments pretty agressive towards both him and me, as some salesmen just won?t take no for an answer and will get physical when you try to leave. Not that I can?t handle it, but it speaks for him that he simply acted as a kind of bodyguard, really cool. Tomorrow Sassou?s mother is going to make me the best Fufu with palmnut soup in Accra, she says?I love that shit, so it?d better be really good!
A general observation to conclude this update:
Life is much intenser here, more colourful, and it has a completely different vibe to it than what I?m used to. I cannot descibe it, you?ll have to see, hear, smell and taste it for yourself. Africa is raw, like an uncut diamond, and so is life on the continent ? it is beautiful, but the edges are razorsharp.
Motorcyclists don?t wear any protection at all, still do 80 M/Hr on the road while zig-zagging between the rest of the traffic; Richard still has a scar from a knife-attack from a guy that was harrassing his girlfriend; a girl I met got robbed with machetes twice; people take a piss whenever and wherever they like; my opponents sometimes play basketball barefoot on rough asphalt; a white man is an opportunity; a white woman is an opportunity; Ghanaians always seem to have fun; walking through a field with fireflies giving a show at night when you?re drunk; the police officer stopping your cab at night demanding ?money for batteries?; the gigantic spontaneous parade even after Ghana lost to Brazil; the blind beggar with a completely deformed body that blesses you for receiving a little bit of money; the kid being carried on mother?s back that in a reflex touched you when you passed by, eyes big with excitement and an even bigger smile on it?s face; the oil-lamp lit foodstalls at night flanking the roads, the silhouet of a man crossing the road in the headlights of a car coming from the opposite direction when there?s no other light; the vultures occupying the football pitch by day; the dog looking for scraps in the waste next to the road; the man sleeping in front of the bar in broad daylight?.I could go on for a long, long time.
ps: I?ve got a busload of very noisy Togolese people on the floor above mine. They start shouting and making noise every morning around 6am?I can?t wait for them to leave, really.
pps: their busdriver (as all busdrivers around these parts) thinks it?s somehow necessary to start the engine at 7am and let it roar for the next 20 minutes or so, pushing the throttle off and on, and as a grande finale outting the pedal to the metal for a long time, actually increasing the wear on the engine by aboutFUCK I just get a BIG ASS cockroach climbing up the desk, WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!
????????
Got the fucker with my RAID ?Kills Insects DEAD? spray?it?s having it?s last spams as I write this. DIE, cockroach! I?ll posthumously name him Kim-Jong Il. Serves this one right for scaring the shit out of me. Damn?that spray isn?t all that good for me too *COUGHCOUGH*
Grtz, Yao
Went to have dinner at a small place in Osu called the Venus this evening, but since I arrived way too late, I got some really feckin hot chicken wings to satisfy my appetite and a few drinks, after which we went to a beack party at Labadi Beach. First time I went to the beach in Accra, we had to dash the guards at the beach a little to get there, but 50 cents ain?t all that much.
What can I say: surreal. Loud reggae music booming out of speaker, with only a few people really dancing, and a big ?terrace? in front of that, surrounded by small food and booze stalls which would sell popcorn, kebab and all kinds of alcohol (yes, any Western type as well). Of course African style, so don?t think clean and luxury, but it was there. We got some seats and some drinks, and I sat down to watch around, which was in fact problematic because all the time we?d be bothered by hawkers, beggars of just people trying to hook up with a ?Bronyi?, just for the sake of it. The sea managed to calm me down though, like it always does, and it was unlike anything I?ve seen so far ? imagine sitting in a wooden chair on a beach, lighted by gigantic spotlights (so bright that all I saw was shadows, since I was looking right into them), listening to reggae music, hearing the waves wash ashore, seeing drunken dancing rastafari Ghanaians who could barely stand and smelling a strange mixture of ganja, sea-air and burning debris. Yes?people burn their litter on the beach, which is probably the best way to get rid of the litter around here anyway with a non-existent recycling industry or garbage collecting service?
Had some good talks out there with the people I was with, a really cool group by the way. But other than that?it wasn?t really a party, and the sight of beggars and hawkers just standing on the side, looking at the people that have the means to feast and drink was pretty pathetic, disillusioning really. The harsh reality of Ghana surrounding the perfect picture in the middle. And then the guy that was as drunken as a lord, let his motorcycle fall over numerous times before he could get it to stay upright, and still got on it and just raced away along the waterline. I actually expected him to smash it into the sand at some point in a terrible crash, but it didn?t happen, thank god. Lots of white surfers out there, volunteers and the occasional Westerner that has somehow lost his or her heart to Africa and has decided to stay.
Also saw some gruesome photographs of a woman that had been stabbed and burnt in an attack, the pics were taken when she was still alive and were actually published by at least 2 newspapers around here. Made for a nice ethical discussion about it, but aside from that, it confronts you with the fact that life is much rawer here than where I come from. Death and injury are everyday reality, although you?re more likely so suffer from either of the two conditions by getting into a traffic accident. It?s not like society here is violent, far from it in fact! You?ll rarely see fights around here, or the kind of random beatings which are increasingly taking place in my country (Holland), but life here just isn?t as safe as in the West. Diseases, traffic accidents, working accidents, they just all happen much more often than at home. This was a particularly horrifying case though, and it could have been a photo shot in a warzone just as easily.
Another example could be the cripple beggars you see?they?re kept off the streets back home, but here you can spot the most extreme bodily deformations on the street, it makes you genuinely wonder how they have managed to stay alive out here, where adequate care for the disabled is something very rare, if not barely existent.
But still, people here know how to laugh, maybe even better than the average European or American who leads a much more luxurious life. Maybe if you only can go up, it?s just no use crying about your misery, and you might just as well laugh it off?
June 30, 2006 Friday
Allright, I went to see George Akanlig today, who is my contact at the Legon University Campus, and he had (to my big surprise) already arranged accomodation for me! Not just that, but at the incredible rate of only $25,- a week ? very basic, but it should be simple, clean, and above all put me right in the middle of the ?action? of my thesis research. The campus itself looks magnificent, my own university diesn?t even come close to it (it doesn?t even have a camous anyway). My room will be situated right opposite the house of George, so I?ll regularly be able to join for a shot of Akpeteshie and some good conversation. It?s only one month, but it should be some fun I reckon ;-). The guy is a crackup, and we always are laughing constantly when together?
The rest of the day wasn?t really something special though, did some dining at my favourite place (The Orangery), had a few drinks at the spot right around the corner (Semi?s Place), which always has a gigantic screen with a beamer playing some soaps or Nigerian movies. Those last ones are hellafunny by the way: in every movie some damsel in distress gets abducted and abused by evil criminals, and then some guy comes to the rescue and en passant ends a whole criminal organization as well. Another one is the comical version, many of which feature a certain actor with a stunted growth ? that little guy is so incredibly funny, you gotta try and see one of his movies. They are always overacting, the camera shots are cheesy, the sound is badly mastered, but still?Nigeria is turning out so many movies each year that after Hollywood and Bollywood there is since a little while officially ?Nollywood?!
Yesterday I went out for dinner with the group of volunteers to the most expensive joint in town: ?El Gaucho?, run by a real Argentinean guy too. He?s doing really well with that place, not surprising when the meals there are from 9 dollars up to 20 when every other ?upmarket? place will serve plates at 6 to 9 dollars. Blasted a whole lotta cash on that one, and I?m saving my next visit to the evening before I leave, lol. We went to the Bywel bar after, a place with live Jazzmusic every Thursday evening, and it has a good mixture of Obronyi and Obibinyi (white and black people), a very pleasant atmosphere, good drinks and it even serves fries until deep in the night for those that get hungry. The beer that is drank most often here is Star, although at a few places you can get some real Guinness as well (Star is more agreeable IMO). Another one is Club, and there?s another 2 or 3 beers available around here that are perfectly acceptalbe by any standard (for my American friends: I think it?s a little better than what you guys get, a little less than the Dutch or Belgian beers).
The local dishes here are very edible by the way, and if it weren?t for my tendency to eat really diverse, I would be capable of eating Ghanaian food only for the time that I?ll be here: not everything maybe, but most of it does taste pretty well ? I especially like the fufu with palmut soup or groundnut soup, and the Jollof Rive with Chicken, and of course?Red Red. Black-eyed peas in tomatoe sauce, with fried plantain slices. It looks a bit off to some people, but it tastes absolutely fabulous!
Continueing about food and drinks while I?m at it: when travelling or on the road and hungry, you can eat more of the thing you see than you would expect. Some people will sell pastries with meat inside (look like dough shells with meat in them, half circles), spring rolls, cookies, plantain crisps, boiled eggs, bananas/oranges/pineapples/melons. You name it, simply make sure that any fruit is cut and sliced freshly before you, and that eggs are still whole when you buy them. There?s always the risk of it gone bad but you should smell that soon enough. The pastries will usually be warm when you buy them, just avoid them when they?re cold or not really warm anymore. One of my favourites on the road or as a snack is a coconut: just walk up to the kid that sells them, and he?ll behead one right there. Drink the juice, and have the seller cut it in half: he?ll usually make an extra cut in the shell that seems unnecessary, but you can tear that piece off and use it to scoop up the meat inside and eat it. There?s your complete meal! Not to mention that coconuts are very nutritious and hold almost anything you need in your food to complete a balanced diet.
Soft drinks are literally anywhere, you can get those and water all over the place. Coke, Fanta and Sprite are widely spread, even into the most remote corners of the country. Usually sold in bottles, and they will also be opened right in front of you ? as with the fruit, this is a habit that will ensure that what you get is fresh and not contaminated. Say what you want, but in that respect Ghanaians are very hygienic people! Water is sold in 0.5 liter and 1.5 liter bottles, and in 0.5 liter sealed plastic bags, usually referred to as ?pure water? (?Pjuuuuuuuuhh Woataaaaaaaaaahhh!!!?). You simply put one corner from the bag in your mouth and chew it off untill the water comes through, then you suck it empty. Soft drinks will do between 30 and 50 dollarcents (3000 ? 5000 Cedis), and water 60 cents for 1.5 liters, 30 cents for 0.5 liters and 3 cents for the plastic bags. A life saver in this climate, and extremely cheap as well, so don?t save on it.
Some vendors will also sell some home made drinks, in bottles or knotted plastic bags: you might wanna avoid those, since they usually have not been made in very hygienic circumstances, and anyone can have touched it ot it?s ingredients in the process. Not safe. Today I also tried some sealed yoghurt ice pack, wich is handled the same way as the sealed water bags: it?s really refreshing, and safe to use as far as I can determine?we?ll know for sure within 24 hours, hehehehe?.
One last one before I close this one off: Kebab. YES?kebab?my nickname with my teacher is Kebabfia, which means ?Kebabchief? in Ewe. I eat it a lot...in my country the food and drugs administration would give you a fine so high that it would make you shit in all the rainbow?s colours for working in ?unhygienic circumstances?, but I?ve never ever had any problems with the consumption of those, and though very spicey, they make for a very tasteful addition to your menu here. Get them like?.everywhere! No street without at least 5 kebab vendors, seriously. When hungry, eat two or three, but be ready for a spicey treat. If you can handle some spicey stuff, you?ll just enjoy them more.
Well, that?s it for today?much more a lecture on food here, but who knows, it might come in handy should you some day decide to check out Ghana for some reason ;-)
Pepijn | Yao
July 12 2006 ? Wednesday
Eh, umkay?lagging behind a bit on the updates methinks eh? Well, nezzermind, here?s another one
. I made some great progress on my research to begin with, in fact, I have so feckin much material that I?ll be busy reading and analyzing it for a long ass time, I?ll have to start that work here already. Got my hands on the official reports about the APRM performance of Ghana, which went surprisingly smoothly: I just contacted Foreign Affairs, teld them what I was looking for, had to send an email and within 2 hours the official report was deliver to by mail. I had expected anything ranging from total ignorance to a lame bureaucratic fight, but not this. Gotta say this is credit points for Ghana?s govt. here?
Then I also got a few names of Democracy and Corruption NGO?s I should check out, and then I went on a report/studying paper download spree, holy smackers and then some! Not only that, but in return for the report one of my main contacts now here has provided me with a survey held in Ghana last year into the public?s corruption perception. Now there?s some nice counterweight to the official numbers and statements.
As for daily life: going well I think? I?m playing basketball every day right now, so I?m not only staying shape out here, but in combination with the pretty damn healthy food here I?m actually making physical progess, hahah! Last thing I expected to happen, but I guess I got a lucky break for once?and my B-Ball skills are also improving of course. Also hope to hit the Dojo for a nice martial arts training here later this week, that should be fun too. All in all I can?t really complain about my physical condition and food, that is all pretty much in good order. I?ll be going out again next week I think, maybe to that beach party again: this time with some black company to fend off those hawkers out there that pretty much ru?ned the first time. Speaking of which?never thought this would happen, but the university campus is actually only topped by the Osu quarters in Accra! So incredibly many freeloaders around here, it?s unbelieveable, and I am as a matter of fact getting fed up with those lame ass losers. I don?t feel sorry for them in any way, really?neither do the Ghanaians that have some decency left in themselves. They actually despise their fellow countrymen that go round asking Westerners if they can do their laundry, or simply ask for some ?support? for their school fees or medicine. And it?s annoying, because you know when it happens again, some jackass calling you from 100 feet away and catching up with you because no matter what you want you shall and must tell them your name, shake their greasy hand and then?
?can I do your laundry? ? No, for the same charge I take it to Star Wash on campus and get it back dried.
?I am looking for a friend outside who can support me? ? Good luck, I?m broke and am also looking for support.
?I am looking for someone so maybe I can come to the United States (they all think I?m American by default) so I can make some money and get my own business? ? meaning I need to invite them to my country and play nanny for a guy that hasn?t got a clue how to get around there, let alone that he gets the 9000 euro scraped together that you need if they are to grant you a visa in the first place, because?you know?I?m f**king not gonna get those 9 grand together for you mate! By the way, they don?t speak English in Holland.
Today I got a guy playing he was sick last week and??I was sick, still not better, I need medicine you know?maybe you can buy me the medicine, look at my eye, you see it?? ? No I don?t see it, but can you see this
?? Do I look like a pharmacy to you? Hm? Do I?Sometimes it?s the guy himself, but equally often it?s mommy/sister/auntie/brother/uncle/daddy. Whatever.
?Maybe if you leave and you don?t need something you can leave it and give it to me, I like your shirt/trousers/shoes/necklace/bracelet/bag?.? ? Hell yea why not, I buy a new wardrobe every 3 months, no problem dude. Hope you don?t mind the skidmarks in my underwear.
Or just plain: ?I?m hungry man, can you give me some for food?? ? Do I look like a bank? You had enough energy left in you to chase me 300 feet to catch up with me while you kept shouting white boy/jungle boy/bushman/obronyi, in fact, you caught up with me! Dang, I guess your body somehow has adapted extremely well to living without food, cos when I?m hungy, I can?t perform at all to be honest...
?and just keep going with examples. This all sounds extremely sarcastic, and well?.it is I guess. Doesn?t mean I suddenly hate the people here, far from it, but at times it can get really annoying to be harassed by ignorant fucks that simply assume that white = rich & wealthy, and don?t see a human being with his own thoughts, dreams and goals but a walking ATM. At times I do put on my mp3 player when I go round on the campus, so I can ignore people that try to get my attention with the sole purpose of becoming my 5-minute-friend with the aim of extorting some money out my pocket with a little emotional blackmail
. The past few days though I?ve become a real asshole to those people, so today when I got this guy complaining about his illness (he was pretty damn healthy a few days before!) and asking me for ?medicine money?, I bluntly told thim to fuck off since I wasn?t a human being to him anyway, and that I didn?t want to see his face again either. Worked like a charm .Wow what a rant?guess I needed to vent this urgently! I have some great friends walking around here as well though: there?s George Akanlig, Deputy Senior Tutor here, who got me a room @ 100 bucks a month. Fair price IMO, no luxury stuff, and I think I already mentioned the cockroach league that came with it, but that has been taken care of allright. George has been at my uni a while ago, where I met him. Stand up guy, and working far too much at the moment.
Asamoah, George?s sidekick, also helping me with any problem I have around here.
Prof. Kwame Boafo-Arthur, THE man in the politics department: provided me with an as yet unpublished chapter written by him for an editorial. Good shiz, and he also brought me in contact with Dr. Alexander Frempong, an incredible crackup who immediately added his last name to mine, which has now become Yao Foli Frempong Ata! Dang what a name?it?s said to be of aristocratic length now, hahahah?.Frempong?s assistant Yao Atuobi (yes, there?s many Yao?s around here), who is at this moment my main contact for my research. I?ll also be trying to help him with his Anti-Corruption NGO?who knows what will come of it, and it?s a laudable initiative to me, as well as something I have a keen interest in of course!
Richard, an on-campus resident, Karateka, and the only Ghanaian student that gets sent more money by his dad than I make every month
. Safe to say he?s not out for anything, and he?s a great guy ? always watching my six here and warning me for possible dangers. He?s an even worse basketball player than me though, I beat him 5-2 today.And last but definitely not least, my 4 musketeers from Asylum Down, Maxwell, Francis, Sassou (Jones) and Nana Kissii, whom I?ve met as a group the very first night I was here. They?ve been helping me out a lot with finding places and getting around safely, for example on my photoshoot afternoon and when I went to the market to get some shirts ? the last occasion was with Maxwell, and at some moments pretty agressive towards both him and me, as some salesmen just won?t take no for an answer and will get physical when you try to leave. Not that I can?t handle it, but it speaks for him that he simply acted as a kind of bodyguard, really cool. Tomorrow Sassou?s mother is going to make me the best Fufu with palmnut soup in Accra, she says?I love that shit, so it?d better be really good!
A general observation to conclude this update:
Life is much intenser here, more colourful, and it has a completely different vibe to it than what I?m used to. I cannot descibe it, you?ll have to see, hear, smell and taste it for yourself. Africa is raw, like an uncut diamond, and so is life on the continent ? it is beautiful, but the edges are razorsharp.
Motorcyclists don?t wear any protection at all, still do 80 M/Hr on the road while zig-zagging between the rest of the traffic; Richard still has a scar from a knife-attack from a guy that was harrassing his girlfriend; a girl I met got robbed with machetes twice; people take a piss whenever and wherever they like; my opponents sometimes play basketball barefoot on rough asphalt; a white man is an opportunity; a white woman is an opportunity; Ghanaians always seem to have fun; walking through a field with fireflies giving a show at night when you?re drunk; the police officer stopping your cab at night demanding ?money for batteries?; the gigantic spontaneous parade even after Ghana lost to Brazil; the blind beggar with a completely deformed body that blesses you for receiving a little bit of money; the kid being carried on mother?s back that in a reflex touched you when you passed by, eyes big with excitement and an even bigger smile on it?s face; the oil-lamp lit foodstalls at night flanking the roads, the silhouet of a man crossing the road in the headlights of a car coming from the opposite direction when there?s no other light; the vultures occupying the football pitch by day; the dog looking for scraps in the waste next to the road; the man sleeping in front of the bar in broad daylight?.I could go on for a long, long time.
ps: I?ve got a busload of very noisy Togolese people on the floor above mine. They start shouting and making noise every morning around 6am?I can?t wait for them to leave, really.
pps: their busdriver (as all busdrivers around these parts) thinks it?s somehow necessary to start the engine at 7am and let it roar for the next 20 minutes or so, pushing the throttle off and on, and as a grande finale outting the pedal to the metal for a long time, actually increasing the wear on the engine by aboutFUCK I just get a BIG ASS cockroach climbing up the desk, WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!
????????
Got the fucker with my RAID ?Kills Insects DEAD? spray?it?s having it?s last spams as I write this. DIE, cockroach! I?ll posthumously name him Kim-Jong Il. Serves this one right for scaring the shit out of me. Damn?that spray isn?t all that good for me too *COUGHCOUGH*
Grtz, Yao
, well maybe not when it's happening to you...
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