Something New

A man practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places, making new friends, taking up new hobbies and adopting new viewpoints. -- Wilfred Peterson

I had the most lovely Saturday traveling to a new city, Sunyani, with a new friend, Ameyaw (O-may-ow).

Sunyani is about 40 minutes northwest of Bechem. A 2GH taxi ride and we were there! Taxi drivers aren’t messing around here. 80+mph isn’t uncommon. I just made sure to hold on tight and enjoy the scenery, trying to keep my mind off of the potential for death by speed. Upon arrival, a quick stop at the bank and a bookshop. Sunyani is a much calmer version of Kumasi. All of the same items can be found here, but without the overwhelming crowds and insanely crowded streets. Large chicken coops are found along the streets filled to the brim. You can purchase a live chicken to take home with you for dinner!

First, we stopped at the Eusbett hotel for a drink, where in the nice refreshing pool there was a statue of a little boy urinating. ?? Not entirely sure I understand the symbolism of that, except just to get a chuckle out of everyone. Afterwards, we had lunch at a restaurant where soccer was the main attraction and everyone’s attention was directed at the television. This is serious business! Apparently, people have a team and they stick by it. Ameyaw was very kind and checked to be sure that I was comfortable there, which I’m guessing he asked because I was the only white person in the room. It was all good. Considering the soccer game, I wasn’t of much interest. Just fine by me! Following lunch, we ventured outside of Sunyani for a nice visit to Ameyaw’s aunt. The quiet of the smaller communities is nice. Neighbors cross over into each other’s yards with ease, everyone greets everyone, and the loudest sounds you hear are that of the chickens. No traffic or loudspeakers announcing what beliefs you should have, which is exactly what you get in larger cities here. Everyone’s yard is it’s own garden. Plantain and paw paw trees, cassava plants, pineapple sprouting from the ground, orange trees, and cocoa yam. All of this right at your fingertips! Simply lovely!

At the end of this most wonderful day, I arrived home and was hit with the most uncomfortable case of indigestion. I never have this problem at home. It feels like something is stuck in my chest and I really want to burp, but I can’t! I didn’t eat anything different or new, so I’m not really sure what is sparking this little dilemma. I hope this Zantac saves me. :/ Strange things happening to my body, especially while I’m over here, makes me nervous…

Throughout the last few days I have picked up a few more Twi words. I’m learning…slowly and surely. Friday, while I was teaching, one of the Twi teachers here at the university came into my class while I was reading aloud a poem. She giggled a bit, which prompted even more giggling from the class. Madam Mary announced that no one could understand me because of the difference in tones and stresses when I am speaking or reading. Yea lady, I get it. But you don’t see me laughing at people here when they speak. I just focus and concentrate and TRY. Most of the students are doing just that, but those few chuckles made for a somewhat humiliating feeling. Though we all speak some of the same English words, the way we pronounce some of them is very different, so it sounds like completely different words. For example, when I say “star”, you hear the sound of the r at the end of the word. However, when a Ghanaian says “star”, it sounds more like “sta”, with no sound of r. Also, the letter t gets enunciated very sharply here. When I say “peanut butter”, it almost sounds more like “budder”, but Ghanaians sound like “butta” with super sharp ts. So, even beyond the Twi challenge like the English challenge! Yippee-do-da-day.