Kokrobite
The plane ride was pretty uneventful, except for all the screaming babies. The three others from Toronto arrived the day ahead of me after a nine hour delay – they flew back and forth from Addis Ababa to Djibouti three times before finally deciding they would just go straight to Accra. (The Cameroon passengers had a bit of a problem with that and staged a 45 minute stand-off. I’m sure everyone was relieved to arrive in one piece.)
I arrived in the darkness and haven’t spent much time in Accra, so I’m not very familiar with the city yet. We seem to be in a very bustling neighbourhood, filled with fastfood shops and clubs and Internet cafes and lots of ex-pats “working” at NGOs. Accra is very developed and most people seem very nattily dressed. Even the kids working the streets seem fed and clothed. It will be interesting to start working and see exactly what the situation is.
We spent yesterday and most of today in Kokrobite (ko-crow-bee-tay), a beachtown about a half-hour’s drive from Accra. We all piled into a taxi and took a tro-tro, which is essentially a stripped down van with extra seats that everyone piles into. You just tell the “mate” where you want to get off and the driver slows down long enough to get you and your belongings out. Getting to the actual tro-tro station was a mission all its own, as it snakes through or around a major market that was just crammed with people. Anyway, the trip cost us a very reasonable 25 cents.
The atmosphere of Kokrobite reminded me of Zanzibar – the huts, the “beach boys” – but the sand and the water were disgusting. The currents are strong and they churn up a lot of debris, plus the locals tend to treat the sand like a toilet. I really didn’t swim, just stuck my legs in, because the water was cold! It’s freezing here right now. I’m wearing jeans as I type this and I’ve been wearing long-sleeved clothes to bed. Those that have been here for the past six months have been wearing sweaters. Those that just arrived are finding it chilly too. Of course the mosquitoes have still managed to find little bits of skin. I’m just covered in bites on my elbows, legs and stomach.
The local guys, all Rastas, came out and did some drumming last night, which was really great. We built a little bonfire and just sat around until our eyelids started closing. The JHR volunteers that are here now spend quite a bit of time in Kokrobite, so they seem to know everyone and everyone knows them.
I think it’s fair to say I had the worst sleep of my life last night out in Kokrobite. It’s so cool I was cold and the beach huts had no sheets nor mosquito nets, so there was no protection from the bugs. I’m not sure whether I’m jetlagged or still spinning from the arrival, but I haven’t been able to fall asleep very easily. And the nights are just a cacophony of noise – bats and bugs and kids and dogs and cocks and music. As soon as it’s light out, a different sort of noise starts up. The birds and the babies and the sounds of people getting up and getting out – spitting and “showering” with a couple pails of water, washing clothes, etc.
We don’t start our actual jobs until next week, so this week will be a little more easing into Ghanaian life – finding our offices, locating the grocery store, sending out email, all that fun stuff. I leave on Thursday for a village (not sure which one or where yet) for a four-day home stay with a local family. I guess the idea is to give us a little taste for local life and culture and the villages will be much different than Accra. (ie Not developed.) The woman I’m replacing, Sarah, is very cool and it’s nice to have company that’s experienced with the country and the newspaper. Some of the stories she’s been telling us about the stories she’s worked on sound amazing. It just sounds like the most incredible way to get to know a country.
I arrived in the darkness and haven’t spent much time in Accra, so I’m not very familiar with the city yet. We seem to be in a very bustling neighbourhood, filled with fastfood shops and clubs and Internet cafes and lots of ex-pats “working” at NGOs. Accra is very developed and most people seem very nattily dressed. Even the kids working the streets seem fed and clothed. It will be interesting to start working and see exactly what the situation is.
We spent yesterday and most of today in Kokrobite (ko-crow-bee-tay), a beachtown about a half-hour’s drive from Accra. We all piled into a taxi and took a tro-tro, which is essentially a stripped down van with extra seats that everyone piles into. You just tell the “mate” where you want to get off and the driver slows down long enough to get you and your belongings out. Getting to the actual tro-tro station was a mission all its own, as it snakes through or around a major market that was just crammed with people. Anyway, the trip cost us a very reasonable 25 cents.
The atmosphere of Kokrobite reminded me of Zanzibar – the huts, the “beach boys” – but the sand and the water were disgusting. The currents are strong and they churn up a lot of debris, plus the locals tend to treat the sand like a toilet. I really didn’t swim, just stuck my legs in, because the water was cold! It’s freezing here right now. I’m wearing jeans as I type this and I’ve been wearing long-sleeved clothes to bed. Those that have been here for the past six months have been wearing sweaters. Those that just arrived are finding it chilly too. Of course the mosquitoes have still managed to find little bits of skin. I’m just covered in bites on my elbows, legs and stomach.
The local guys, all Rastas, came out and did some drumming last night, which was really great. We built a little bonfire and just sat around until our eyelids started closing. The JHR volunteers that are here now spend quite a bit of time in Kokrobite, so they seem to know everyone and everyone knows them.
I think it’s fair to say I had the worst sleep of my life last night out in Kokrobite. It’s so cool I was cold and the beach huts had no sheets nor mosquito nets, so there was no protection from the bugs. I’m not sure whether I’m jetlagged or still spinning from the arrival, but I haven’t been able to fall asleep very easily. And the nights are just a cacophony of noise – bats and bugs and kids and dogs and cocks and music. As soon as it’s light out, a different sort of noise starts up. The birds and the babies and the sounds of people getting up and getting out – spitting and “showering” with a couple pails of water, washing clothes, etc.
We don’t start our actual jobs until next week, so this week will be a little more easing into Ghanaian life – finding our offices, locating the grocery store, sending out email, all that fun stuff. I leave on Thursday for a village (not sure which one or where yet) for a four-day home stay with a local family. I guess the idea is to give us a little taste for local life and culture and the villages will be much different than Accra. (ie Not developed.) The woman I’m replacing, Sarah, is very cool and it’s nice to have company that’s experienced with the country and the newspaper. Some of the stories she’s been telling us about the stories she’s worked on sound amazing. It just sounds like the most incredible way to get to know a country.
posted by Palmer in Africa at 6:07 AM
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