Hitting the Town
Sunday, June 20th, 2010Saturday, June 12
Okay, now I know why I barely got one “obruni” in Accra before. It was because the whole time, I was with Kelvin and Lexis.
I went out in Accra by myself for the first time today, and I got a million obrunis. I also got my first marriage proposal (I was told I’d get a ton), although I suppose it wasn’t a proposal exactly. The man just said, “I am going to marry you. How do you feel about that?”
I was supposed to meet up with Naa, another Haverford student, but I never heard from her. It turned out she’d been locked out of her house without her phone. Anyway, I decided to go out on my own, and Kelvin gave me directions.
I went all over Accra: to the National Museum; Makola Market; and Osu, a district with restaurants, shopping, and clubs.
The museum was small but interesting. It had an upstairs and a downstairs that were maybe the size of two rooms at the Brooklyn Museum, and I was the only visitor. There were some interesting artifacts and photographs, and a lot about the first Ghanaian President, Kwame Nkrumah. Sadly, I think I was most excited by the bathroom, which had a mirror. There are never mirrors here, not in bathrooms or anywhere. I know it sounds vain, but I’ve missed them. I was so excited I didn’t mind that the toilet didn’t flush.
Afterwards, I headed to Makola. I managed to get through the market without getting haggled into anything, though I’m looking forward to going back later and bargaining. I bought some coconut juice on the street to sustain me through the tro-tro to Osu. I drank it straight from the rough brown shell.
In Osu, I managed to shake off the street vendors who were attacking me. I tried my first Ghanaian ice cream at the downstairs in Frankie’s hotel – vanilla cake gelato. I went upstairs to use the bathroom and they had a mirror too! And liquid soap. What an exciting day. I ambled out with my ice cream in hand, and the US-UK match was just starting. There was a huge crowd gathered around a screen in the street. I sat myself on the curb and made friends with the kids next to me.
I didn’t get lost the whole day until it was time to go home. I was standing on the corner waiting for a tro-tro or shared taxi, but none of them were going in my direction. Everyone at the outdoor café wanted to talk to me, but no one wanted to tell me I was on the wrong side of the street.
When I finally got a tro-tro, I took it too far and missed my stop. Ugh. Kelvin and Lexis came to pick me up in the car, and I got home in one piece.
It had been a long and adventurous day. A good day in Accra.