Mole Park Trip - 2nd to last blog

This is the second to last blog I will be writing about my student teaching adventure in Ghana. First here is a summary of my second to last week teaching dating November 30 – December 2. On Monday I put together the answers for the 8th grade physical education exam. I then had the opportunity to proctor one of the IB exams for foreign languages. IB stands for International Baccalaureate. This is a very prestigious form of education used by many top notch schools around the world. Generally grade 11-12 students take IB classes which are very advanced and prepare them for the universities they hope to get in to. On Tuesday I graded the physical education exams and sadly got to witness the expulsion of two students from the school. The principal gave a long talk at lunch and eventually called two students up in front of everyone. He talked about their academic dishonesty and said that after lunch they would be leaving. The students had given money to a security man so they could get answers for the exams and make copies. The IB program and the school’s reputation would be on the line if the students were allowed to stay at the school. It was a difficult procedure to watch. After school I finished grading the exams and I was not very enthused. Not because I had to grade them but because the students did horribly. The very best grade in the class was a 50/60. The average was about 30/60 and the low grade was 18/60. This exam counts as 60% of the student’s grade with a practical part of the grade accounting for 40%. However, there was a higher note for the day. After dinner we did mock interviews as a group and I think that taking opportunities to do those types of activities and get feedback is very valuable. On Wednesday I helped grade some more exams and handed them back to students. It was a very light week being that exams were going on and we left early Thursday morning for our trip to Mole National Park.

Mole – Final excursion
We were supposed to be up and left for Mole National Park at 4:30 am. At 4:15 we all carted our belongings to the front gate and waited until 5 am for our driver to finally arrive. This solidifies that in Ghana and most places outside of the U.S. time is not that important. Attison, our driver, was not nearly as good as Bismark, our driver to Wli Falls, and we constantly noticed. We knew we had a long trip ahead. From our estimates it was going to take about 12 hours on a nasty bumpy road in order to get to Mole. It ended up taking about 14 hours and maybe costing us our only chance to see an elephant on the trip, but God has plans and I know I am trying to always realize that. We got to mole at about 7pm and had dinner and apparently an elephant walked right through the dinner area about an hour before we arrived. In the morning on Friday we went on two safaris. The one in the morning was a driving safari. We took a huge jeep and two men with a powerful gun and went in search of animals. We were amazed to see three types of antelope – bush buck, water buck and cob also warthogs and birds of many different kinds. In the afternoon we went on a walking safari and saw the same animals except we saw a mother and her baby warthog and a few heads of crocodiles pop up out of the water nearby. Both safaris were about two hours long and very fun. We did not however have the chance to see the elephant we longed for. The way Mole National Park is set up only a small amount of the park is actually used for viewing animals. There are hundreds of elephants, some lions, leopards, cheetahs, hippos and other very amazing animals but they are rarely seen because they are smart and hide from human activity. It would be awesome if it was possible to go to those back areas of the park but as of now they do not do that. We enjoyed some good meals, swimming, air conditioned bedrooms and Christina’s birthday while we were at Mole. The trip was a good reminder to not just look at the outcome or what you get in every situation but also the journey or the process.

Kumasi
On Saturday after breakfast we left for Kumasi. Kumasi is the second largest city in Ghana and is well known for its markets and kenti weaving among other things. We went to the cultural center in Kumasi for some shopping. It was very different than the cultural center we went to in Accra but we were able to find some things we liked. We arrived Saturday night at the university in Kumasi and stayed at the Engineering Hotel. This was the nicest accommodation we have had in Ghana. It was a very nice hotel similar to one in the states with air conditioning, hot water (even though I never use hot water here) and so on. We ate a nice meal at the restaurant there and enjoyed a good sleep in the very beautiful hotel. On Sunday we left for home in Tema but we decided to stop at the cultural center in Accra on the way through. This was possibly our last chance to get items or gifts for people. On Sunday night our power went out at about 10pm just before any of us went to bed. This wouldn’t have been bad except that it is very hot in our rooms and the fans are powered by electricity. I somehow got to sleep but my sheets and pillow were soaked in the morning.

Outlook for my final week
Monday – I am at TIS but exams are finishing. I don’t mind today because it gives me a chance to catch up on my emails and blogs because we have not had internet at the village mostly in the last two weeks or so. On Tuesday I may have a class to teach but I am not sure yet. We are also having our final party for the host teachers and administrators on Tuesday night for dinner. On Wednesday I may also have a class to teach but I am not sure yet and this will be my final day at Tema International School. We also have big plans for playing soccer and swimming with the SOS village kids on Monday and Wednesday night. Thursday we have the day to pack and probably use the pool for a little while and we leave for the airport at about 5pm. Our flight leaves around 10pm and we should be back in Detroit on Friday morning. On Saturday morning I will graduate and it is very weird to say that!

Final comments
I am going to miss my host teachers the Alex’s and the students/staff at TIS. It was hard to get to know all of their names because I only had them in class a few times. I will also miss the SOS village kids that we get to play with many nights during the week. I have decided they like me for only a few reasons. One, I have a lot of hair everywhere and no one here is really very hairy. Two, I am fairly strong and big to them. One girl calls me John Cena (a wrestler) and they constantly have me hurl them into the air. I have decided that is my main purpose in life. Hurling kids around for their enjoyment. I hope they also like me because I am kind but try to keep them from acting like crazy people at times. The group I am going to miss the most is our student teaching group. Many people have said how hard it will be not to cry and miss the kids like crazy and I will miss the kids a lot but I could not imagine how different this trip would have been if any one of my friends had not come on it. Graydon, Christina H, Whitney, Kendall, Nicole, Jen, Christina O, Dr. Mags and Barb are great people and I have really had the chance to get to know them. We have been through quite a bit together in only seven weeks or so and I would not trade it for anything. I will try to talk about the lessons I have learned, my spiritual growth, themes for the trip, cultural epiphanies and how to use this experience in going forward in my final blog. You will have to wait a few weeks for that one though. I need some time to process and write. I am actually very excited for the cold and the snow in a few days and to see people that I love. I will leave you with these today:

Bible study is not merely to inform us –it’s meant to transform us. –Daily Bread

God has a sense of humor. Attison was our drivers name and I jokingly kept calling him Atticus (from to Kill a Mockingbird) anyway, after a really deep talk about spiritual issues with one of my great friends Whitney the next day I woke up and read the daily bread and the title was “speaking the truth” and it was about Atticus Finch from To Kill A Mockingbird. What a funny guy our creator is! The message was speaking the truth even against opposition and persecution and the ending says “It’s better to declare the truth and be rejected than to withhold the truth just to be accepted.” God knows what we need and when we need it. If we just let him lead our lives it is amazing what he can do. I encourage you to seek out a relationship with him daily. Make it personal, it can be informal, give him your troubles and get to know him. I know I am really enjoying his friendship and sense of humor. Take care and God bless!