Adventures with Joe

So Saturday morning I'm awoken at 4:30AM by my roommate Patrick and his girlfriend Meredith, who boisterously burst into our bedroom after a prayer vigil that clearly went far into the morning and must have been pretty nuts. (Oh those crazy evangelicals!) How lucky was he that I had set my alarm for 4:45AM to get up in time to catch a bus to Winneba (Westward, halfway to Cape Coast). So I got up and left without incident. Regardless, I'm currently looking into a single room for next semester.

The bus is for the Student Representative Council of the University (or SRC for those in the know). It was free - and an hour late, of course - but we arrived with plenty of time until the ceremony began - which, was also late. The big event? The swearing in of the new president of the National Union of Ghanaian Students (NUGS), kinda like the CFS back home. The new prez, a firebrand named Samuel, had a great speech and really threw down the gauntlet, using taboo words like "comrades" and making it clear that he was staying out of politics. (The outgoing president having been in the pocket of the ruling party) Afterwards, I met up with Joe and we had some fufu for lunch, checked out the beaches, and went to a celebratory beach party.

At the beach party, we sat around a table and had Guinness with activists, former politicians and the new women's issues executive on NUGS. We talked on everything from student issues to abortion and it was the most intellectually stimulating conversation I've had with Ghanaians in two whole months of being there. It appears that Joe and I have been firmly entrenched in the student activist movement in Ghana, all in the span of about 10 days. This looks to be an exciting year!

As dark came, we rode Joe's moto (i.e. scooter) and stayed at the Lagoon Lodge in Winneba. It's a nice place, looks kinda like a Florida beach house and they have good drinks (try the pineapple-orange juice, it's fantastic), although food was a bit pricey. We talked with Germans, an Austrian and Dutchwoman, the latter of which is volunteering in the Liberian refugee camp. I might check that one out... In the morning, we explored a nearby beach and vowed to later climb the local mountain.

We took the moto down the empty highway to Kokrobite and sang some tunes. I must say that I definitely get why Joe and Jon have motos, because they're a blast to ride. I got a lesson from Joe and I'm pretty decent on it. Anyways, we checked into Big Millie's resort, a cheap, well-decorated and environmentally-friendly Rasta resort. It's got so much character that the nearby hotels have no business, really. They have huts, but we opted for the cheap outdoor mosquito-net platform. The beach there is the best I've seen so far in Ghana and it wasn't too busy for a Sunday afternoon. Joe and I played in the waves, sat on the beach and read into the evening.

Dinner was bruschetta and pizza over deep conversation at the nearby Italian-run hotel. We spent the evening back at Big Millie's with a box of wine. It being Canadian Thanksgiving, my entire family was gathered at my Aunt Patty and Uncle Sean's with me being the black sheep in Africa. Phone reception was terrible, but I got to speak with everyone for about 5 minutes and that's all I needed. If there was any time and place that I could talk to them all and not feel homesick, it was after a great evening with the sea breeze in the air.

We woke up after sunrise and had an early-morning swim, a great big breakfast (they have everything) and took the moto back into Accra, weaving through traffic jams all the way there. Any trip with Joe is an adventure and this one was no different. A little education, a little relaxation. Sweet.


Oh and by the way, the Ghanaian football team beat Cape Verde something like 4-0 in the final World Cup qualifier, which means that they will be going to the big show in Germany next year. Go Black Stars!