I would like to start by saying that I appologize for the length of this blog. Our internet was down for about a week and there have been some great experiences. So read at your own risk!
Part 1 Tuesday 11-3-09 through Friday 11-6-09
My class schedule is a little different from that of a typical class in Michigan. I teach a 1.5 hour physical education class on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays. I also teach or observe a 45 minute study skills class on Monday-Friday. I help coach/teach volleyball and swimming after school from 4-5:30 on Monday-Wednesday. The rest of the time during class is either spent going over how my teaching went, talking to administration and other staff, overseeing the construction of a sports complex or just sitting down somewhere. I taught my first lesson and it went pretty well. I also "taught" a study skills lesson which more or less turned into talking about myself and where I am from and having students introduce themselves in front of the class.
The food I am able to eat at the school is very authentic. Here is the typical lunch menu.
Monday - Beans and rice, fried fish, egg, gari - ground cassava and some sauces
Tuesday - Banku - fermented corn dough (looks kind of like a mashed potato ball), okra soup, rice
Wednesday - not sure of the name but (spinach stew), rice
Thursday - repeat tuesday
Friday - repeat monday or wednesday
For dinner we usually have rice with fish, chicken or beef and sauce.
For breakfast we have 2 pieces of bread, some type of oatmeal or occasionally eggs.
After school we all play with the kids at the SOS village and either go swimming, play soccer or just hang out and mess around. The kids are amazingly cute, many are really intelligent and speak many languages, very gifted athletes especially at soccer. I have never watched a mob of 5 year olds play such a flawless game of soccer. We are also going to start being a little more adventurous into town as far as looking at the markets and going to the beach among other activities. In the evening my group of 8 usually gets together and either gets online, plays games or just talks about something. It has been a really good group so far.
Part 2 The craziest weekend ever! Saturday 11-7-09 through Sunday 11-8-09
Saturday morning Bismark, our driver, picked us up to head north and east toward Wli Falls. This stretch of road is easily the bumpiest pothole filled stretch of road in the history of creation. After about 4 hours in the car we were close to the Wli area and were going to climb Mount Gemi - the largest mountain in Ghana. We turned down what supposedly was the road to climb the mountain. However this road did not look like it was driven on for probably at least 6 months. The mini two track road led us first to a small river that after some deliberation by Bismark we decided to drive through (successfully). Keep in mind that African jungle was on either side of us as far as the eye could see and there was only room to drive one vehicle on this road. As we came close to the mountain the road ended and we decided something wasn't right. So we reversed back to a split in the road a ways back. We attempted to take this split but our van just couldnt make it over the monster ditch so our van was stuck. It was approximately 95 degrees, sun beating down and our group was trying to dig/push our van out of this ditch in the middle of the African jungle. After three minutes my entire shirt, shorts etc were completely soaked with sweat. This continued for the next two hours as we tried to get our van unstuck. Eventually Bismark was able to get some help from a local village and we got the van out. We then stopped for lunch at a beautiful resort owned by two kind Germans. Afterwards we went to the falls and saw probably the most amazing thing I have ever had the pleasure to view. This waterfall and area was absolutely breathtaking. Following the waterfall we cruised around Hohoe to look for a place to sleep but it was very shady and nothing was really available. We ate dinner at a very intersting restaraunt and headed to Hoe where we actually had reservations at a fairly nice hotel. We got there at about 11pm. I was asleep for much of the driving in the dark during this time but I can assure you it was an extremely fast and pothole adventure. The next part of the story is by far my most intense and just weird experience in Africa. We got to the hotel late and Graydon and I were roommates. We settled in and were laying down watching soccer when I passed out. At about 2:30 am I somehow woke up and glanced over at Graydon, or so I thought it would be. Instead I saw a black African man laying in the bed next to me. I also noticed that the closet door had been swung open. At this point my heart began to race, I began to pray and critically think about what in the world was going on. Every possible scenario went through my head. Did they kill Graydon and steal our stuff and for some reason were waiting for me to get up to kill me. How did they get in, I had checked all the doors and windows before going to bed. After a few minutes of just incredible thinking and asking God for protection but being ready to be with him in heaven I slowly reached for my knife and cell phone that were lying behind me on the bed. I slowly crept to the edge of the bed and my heart raced for minutes which seemed like hours. I was ready to fight to save my life and ready to die and be with Christ. I finally got enough courage to stand and start walking to the bathroom where I would prepare myself to be jumped. As I moved across the room the lighting changed to my absolutely thankful suprise Graydon had been asleep next to me the whole time. I cannot explain how the light had completely morphed Graydons features, skin color and clothing into something different or how the closet door swung open but it had and all of that emotion was calmed. I checked the room quickly and started explaining the story to Graydon. This was by far the most intense moment of my life. Somehow two other members of my group had experienced the same lighting/change of their roommates but in a much less frightening way. We woke up Sunday morning and headed for the monkey sanctuary to feed some really cool monkeys by hand and then we went back to the Wli falls. This time we hiked up a very tough mountain to get to the upper falls and a place where I believe not many people have experienced. It was so beautiful along the way and at the falls. It is the neatest place I have ever been. Following this trip to the falls we headed for home and arrived late Sunday night to shower, unpack and get ready for another day at school.
This was our second trip within the overall Africa trip and it was very amazing. God's beauty was seen everywhere as we drove through absolutely gorgeous mountains, trees, flowers, Wli falls and so on and so on. Even through the struggles of travelling and getting stuck our group stayed calm, worked hard and supported each other. Going up the mountain - and I will say right now this mountain was a tough climb and fairly dangerous our group worked together and were determined. I have really grown from this experience. I trusted God with my life literally on several occasions, worked extremely hard and tried to be a leader for our group when I needed to be. Only when we are challenged can we grow. If you are living your life in comfort and afraid to take on challenges or afraid of persecution I am here to tell you you are not growing. You don't need to go to Africa or do something crazy to be challenged. Really delight in those challenges and grow. Also don't deny God in your life. It is by his love that we are here, by his mercy and grace that we are able to do anything and have the opportunity to live with him one day. If you are going to do anything do it for him and don't take for granted the opportunities you have. Use your opportunities and grow! To those that were able to read this thanks and you may now go back to your normal lives :)
Adam
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