Small World

It truly is a small world when just the other day, my husband, Jim, and my boss at COLWOD, Sr. Jacky, realized that they had met and danced the night away some thirty years ago in Ghana! Jim was in Jirapa at the time, working hard and avoiding marriage in the late 1970s; Sr. Jacky was a young nun, teaching in Nandam. All the Church-related groups in the area were invited to a big Christmas party in Wa, the capital of the Upper Region and it was there that the two met on that festive evening long ago. Sister even recalled the color dress she was wearing; Jim said he remembered the fruitcake.

Some Facts and Figures

Although approximately 18-20 % of Ghana is Muslim, the city of Tamale is around 90 %. This just learned in a new one-week course I've been invited to attend on Islam. It is taught by Marie-Renee, a French sister, and she is excellent. Besides myself, there are five young seminarians in the class who are studying to be missionaries.
The highest number of admissions into Tamale Teaching Hospital is due to malaria, the second highest number of admissions is the result of Road Traffic Accidents (RTA). It is strongly recommended to avoid being on the road at night. Vehicles are frequently without lights and rules of the road are not well observed.
Ghana has recently introduced their new currency but continues to use the old as well until the transition period is to end in December of 2007. One new cedi or 10,000 old cedis is equal to about one US dollar (a little more, actually). Although it seems fairly easy to just drop four decimal points to go from the old to the new - ex. 500,000 old cedis is equal 50 new ones - juggling both the old and new bills and coins can sometimes be confusing especially when most Ghanaians continue to quote prices and fees in the old currency. For example, an old 5,000 bill is only worth 5 US cents whereas a new 5 cedi bill is worth about 5 US dollars or 50,000 old cedis. This situation, combined with us trying to practice our Dagbani numbers in conversation makes for an interesting exchange of funds when trying to pay for a taxi or a bunch of bananas.

Marketing and a Birthday

Here in Tamale, a city of more than 300,000, open markets abound where one can purchase anything and everything from fresh produce & packaged goods to items of clothing & household appliances, etc, etc. Venders sell a multitude of goods carried on their heads, wheeled with a cart, or from hundreds of roadside stands. There are also specialty shops, a general all-purpose store which ressembles a US dollar store (but which also sells larger items such as stoves) and small supermarkets much like 7/11 convenience stores in the US.
The other morning, Sr. Jacky introduced me to her favorite butcher. He, along with 20 or 30 other men were housed in a long slaughterhouse type of building. All were busy at their individual tables, carving up huge carcasses and preparing their customers' requests.
I also received a practical initiation to bargaining for produce in the open markets from Reggie. Now I have a pretty good idea of what I should pay for a stack of onions or green peppers and a bunch of plantains. What I didn't realize after selecting a number of various items was that Reggie would insist on carrying most of them in a big box atop her head.
Learning something new every day. Simple pleasures mean a lot and one soon realizes what little we need to live well.
Oh, - and I celebrated a very special birthday yesterday at the "Jungle Bar" with Jim, Jacky, Fernand, Marie-Renee (Jacky & Fernand are French Canadian whereas Marie-Renee is from France), Fr. Jon Kirby, and Damian, a South African doing agricultural work in the area. We had a delicious veggie pizza, Star beers and sodas. I wore a traditional bou-bou dress which was a beautiful present from Jim. Was great too to speak with the kids on our cell phone!

religious life in Ghana

We've gone to a variety of church services. Mass in a local parish is quite lengthy, - easily over two hrs with lots of singing, drums & a long sermon. The liturgy, itself, is followed by any number of announcements, special blessings, etc, etc. I enjoy the collection procedure. Rather than passing around a basket, everyone joyously parades up to the front of the altar where large baskets are conveniently placed - all to lively singing with some people even dancing up to give their donation.
One Sunday, we went to a beautiful church built by the Carmelites. Afterwards, we asked to visit with the four cloistered nuns in residence there. We sat in the waiting room behind the iron grill that separated us from their cloistered area & after a few minutes, the four sisters appeared - all so anxious to chat & ask questions. Their rare chance to talk is when they have visitors so they love to take full advantage.
Still another memorable service was a Mass said by Fr. Jon Kirby in a small chapel at the Tamale Institute for Cross-Cultural Studies (TICCS). Attending, were only Sr. Jacky, Jim & myself all seated closely together around a low altar table along with Fr. Kirby. It was a very personal & meaningful experience.
One very interesting discovery here is that whether the Ghanaians are Muslims, Christians, or traditionalists, they share many cultural beliefs such as a deep respect for their ancestors and elders. Conflict between the Muslim majority and the less numerous Christians is not an issue. They work and live side by side and the benevolent Ghanaian nature is apparent among all.

more from our temporary quarters

Jim recently put up a new mosquito net for our bed & its configuration is a lot roomier than the one we had before. Drifting off to sleep is often very pleasant, accompanied by the soft sounds of insects, the Muslim evening call to prayer heard in the distance, and the occasional conversation or laughter of others on the compound. No morning alarm needed either with the cock-crow of the rooster, chirping of birds & the greetings among the goats. This is the setting in which I feel most comfortable. Here inside the Archbishop's compound, in addition to his house, there is a small dwelling for his driver, Nevius, his wife, Esther, & their three children, and another for a couple of his extended family members which is where two of his nieces live. Regina, is his excellent cook & housekeeper & Millicent works nearby at the Youth Center. Then there is a pretty, little chapel attaached to a nice building (just steps across from the main house) with three guest rooms & this is where we have been staying. Our section consists of a large, comfortable sitting room, an alcove for our bed & our own shower/toilet facilities. We even have a small refrigerator. There is a TV too; it gets only one local channel & we rarely turn it on. There is also an A/C but we've never used it. The ceiling fams are fine, at least for now in the rainy season, - except of course when the power is off. Then nothing works anyway (unless one happens to have a generator).
Unfortunately, this type of setting does not seem available for just the two of us as far as more permanent housing is concerned. Some of the religious orders have very nice compounds too. But unless one has their own extended family compound, most homes are by themselves. Some are surrounded by a wall while many others are not. And scattered about too, are clusters of small dwellings which form little villages.
Thus far, we've been using only what we carried with us as the contents of the container are still stored on grounds near the hospital & we have no place to unpack all those cartons yet. Jim will gradually move the medical equipment but the necessary security measures & allotted physical space at the hospital are still to be worked out.
Purchasing a 4x4 Nissan pick-up is also on our agenda as we wade through the logistics of establishing local bank accounts & arrange for the transfer of funds. For now, our main means of transportation is either a hospital vehicle sent to pick up Jim for work (& in which I also hitch a ride to town) or the ever-present taxis that most people use & which we can easily pick up from the house by walking just over 1 Km to a "round-about" intersection. We're told that 80% of the vehicles in Ghana are taxis. Occasionally, we climb into a fairly nice one, but most have seen better days. It's amazing how they're kept running considering the condition they're in. Our friend, Matt Marshall, would do well here with all his taxi driving experience in NYC. Am sure he'd have no porblem weaving among the multitude of bicycles, motorbikes, goats and cows.
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Tamale Update

While Jim is getting the feel of how things are being done at the hospital, our search for housing continues. Some places we've seen wouldn't be too pleasant to come home to after a long day. A few other houses have been almost palatial in size, - the older ones in disrepair and the newer ones, unfinished & often quite a distance from access to town on long, narrow,dirt roads. One of these bigger places might be ideal for a couple of families to share so if any of you are interested in joining us for a shell....Good materials & workmanship in the construction of houses are a bit hard to come by but it is certainly possible as we've seen both where we are temporarily staying & at some of the residences of the religious orders.
The Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa have a residence just across the road from us. Three of the sisters living there are French Canadian so it's been fun being able to use my French. Among these very resourceful women is Sr. Jacqueline who runs a wonderful little shop in town which is housed in a couple of old metal containers once used for shipping. "Collaboration With Women In Distress" (COLWOD) is a charity organization founded in 1995 to help abandoned women. "Through teaching them skills such as tie-dye, batik & sewing, COLWOD enables them to achieve economic independence as well as regain their dignity. Every purchase helps to improve a life." Sr. Jacky is trying to help me as well by inviting me to assist her there when she needs an extra hand. Now if I can only stop shopping while I work! The handbags, breadbaskets, tablecloths, napkins, dresses, etc, etc are all beautifully made in various colorful fabrics. Maybe I can finally learn how to sew too! Hand-run sewing machines are everywhere in Ghana as all sorts of items are created without the luxury of electricity. Irons are filled with heated charcoal when electricity is not an option.
Last week, Jim & I met two young American couples associated with the Lutheran Church who invited us for home-made pizza. One couple lives in Tamale in a nice house (wish we could find a similar one!) with their 18 mo. old daughter & another baby on the way. Paul is an information technologist working on computers at the Ghana Institute for Literacy and Bible Translation (GILBT). Ali is busy running a Ghanaian household & being a mom. Paul is a missionary kid (an MK) who spent most of his boyhood with his parents in Liberia. His mother was recently honored by the President of Liberia. The other couple live about 2 hrs north in a rural village but come to Tamale regularly as Nathan is a bible translator with GILBT. Sarah home-schools their three children, ages 7, 4, & 14 mo. so you can imagine how full her days are. As the men conversed & played with the children, we women set to work on making three of the most delicious pizzas I've ever tasted! Ali uses a recipe for dough & sauce which is handed down from her missionary mother-in-law in Liberia. We had every topping available from mushrooms & onions, to peppers & pineapple. And a nice Ghanaian "Star" beer to go with it!

Ghanaian humor & A Request

Greetings from Tamale!
Have enjoyed your responses to hearing from us although we haven't been able to access them all and that is why we have a request to ask. If you email us, please don't reply from the multiple email we sent notifying everyone of our blogs. That one takes forever to download (much like photos) as it is connected with a number of recipients. Thanks!
The Ghanaians enjoy laughing at themselves as you can see from the following story which was printed in one of the church bulletins when we were in Accra.
Ghana the Land of Our Birth - A man dies and goes to hell. There he finds that there is a different hell for each country. He decides to pick the least painful to spend his eternity. He goes to Germany first and asks, "What do they do here?"
ANSWER: "First they put you in an electric chair for six hours. Then they lay you on a bed of nails for another six hours. Then the German devil comes in & whips you for the rest of the day. That is what will happen to you every day for eternity."...The man did not like the sound of that at all so he moves on. He checks out the USA hell, as well as Russia, UK, and many other countries. He finds out that it's the same everywhere. Then suddenly he sees that there is a very long line at Ghana. Amazed, he asks, "What do they do here?" And to his shock, he is told the same thing as in the other countries!! He was surprised and said, "But that is exactly the same as all the other hells. Why are so many people waiting to get in?" Answer: "Because there is never any electricity so the electric chair doesn't work. The nails were paid for but never supplied, so the bed is comfortable to sleep on. And even better, the Ghana devil used to be a civil servant, so he comes in late, signs his time sheet and goes back home to do his private business!!!" The man says "I LOVE GHANA!!!"