Ho, here I come :)

Sorry, no pics. Just the written word, haha.
This week has been the beginning to my time here in Ho. After all the people on my program left this past weekend, I was left to pack and regroup myself for this next leg. It was wonderful to get to spend some quality time with my family after havinghad to study so much the past couple weeks. Yes, school is finally over and I hated so much to see everybody go, but all in all my semester was incredible and unforgettable.
Before coming to Ho, a couple weeks ago I was informed that I would be living with another volunteer, and to my surprise it was one of my best friends growing up in Seattle, Ally. I couldn't believe and it has been one of the biggest blessings having her here. She flew in on Monday but one of her bags didn't make it so she was able to recooperate from the trip for a couple days and then we headed to Ho and Wednesday. It has been great to have her here not only just because I love her, but she is a breath of fresh air. She sees Ghana with fresh, admiring eyes, and has helped me snap out of some of things I get frustrated with here. So all in all, our first couple days here have been awesome.
We live with a couple and there 5 year old son and each have a bed. It is apartment style housing, or what they call 'flats'. We took a tro-tro here and were met by the man in charge, Livinus. He is so wonderful and we soon met all three of his adorable kids. He showed us around town and we went to the clinic of New Seed International, as well, where I'll be spending some of my time. Ho is a lot different from Legon/Accra because it is a medium sized city/town in surrounded by a gorgeous hillside on one side and flowing jungle'esque-type surroundings on the other. It is so beautiful here, a lot less city lights, and not as many people.
On Thursday, we went to the New Seed office, but then were able to attend this workshop/conference at the hospital dealing with HIV/AIDS in the media. It was a great way to get more information on HIV so can be more knowledgable, and it was also interesting to see the way Ghanians discuss and deal in regards to the disease. My mind was on sensory overload, let's just say. But then that evening, a volunteer who had been there for a couple weeks was leaving the next day so we had a little dinner gathering by a volunteer house near the clinic and met a lot of kids around the area, played, danced and ate. It was so much fun and again, everyone is just about as kinds and generous as can be. Today we were at the hospital, where New Seed hosts discussion groups for HIV and AIDS in the community, as well as gives out food supplements and antiretroviral treatments. We were able to sit in and listen to the discussion (at least the bit in English) and talk to some of the people. The rest of the day has been pretty relaxed, and Ally and I are just exploring the town and happened to the internet.
We are going to be able to attend a wedding tomorrow, of one of the doctors at the hospital, with Livinus and other staff tomorrow. I look forward to all that will hold and I here church on Sunday is a whole other ball game in itself. We shall see.
I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying their summers. Take care.

The Rest of Egypt...

Once again, sorry these are all jumbled!


Muhammed Ali's Mosque

The entrance area to Muhammed's Mosque

In side the his mosque

The new library of Alexander the Great

Side-street in Alexandria

The Mediterranean

One of the mosques in the citadel

Once again, the inside area of a mosque- so beautiful

Good ol' Sphinxy

Cairo city sunset

The Nile running through the city

St. George's Cathedral in Coptic Cairo

The Hanging Church in Coptic Cairo

Entrance to the 'Step' Pyramid

I couldn't help it :)

View from the highway of Giza

Giza

Due to lack of time, and probably boredom on the readers part, I am going to condense the last five days into one to the best of my ability.
Sunday (Day 3) was the day of pryamids! Kelsey and I tended to do our own thing without the touristy stuff, but seeing that transport to the pyramids is a little tricky we took our hostel up on a deal to have a tour of Memphis, Saqqara and Giza. Our guide's name was Hendt and she was so sweet. She took us first to Memphis then Saqqara and we ended at Giza. Seeing all the amazing structure and architectural feats that I have read and learned about for years was slightly surreal. I just couldn't believe that I was standing in front of something so massive, magnificent and historical. But the desert was a lot closer to the city than I imagined, and you can actually see three pyramids in Giza from the highway. There was a lot of tourist-happenings going on all around so it kind of took away from the moment, but it was incredible all the same. All in all, it was so wonderful and it still doesn't seem real that I was able to see them. It was funny, because after that great 'historical' experience we headed back to the hostel and right across the street was a McDonald's. Neither Kelsey nor I eat there back home, but lacking meat and potatoes in Ghana, it sounded like a delicacy. Who would have thunk? We then perused the streets and walk along the Nile. It was such a pretty time of day and nice to just walk in cool weather.
Monday, Kelsey, myself, and then a girl we had met the day before who was traveling by herself ventured to the Egyptian Antiquities Museum. In the museum were a large portion of the artifacts retrieved from the tombs and surrounding areas in Egypt. This included the mask of Tutankhamen, mummies, statues, jewelry, pots and everything in between. All of Tutankhamen's artifacts were all I imagined and more. Once again, standing in front of artifacts and the bodies of so many people I had studied was unbelievable. The museum was so huge and full of so many things to see, it was almost overwhelming. Once we got our fill of Egyptian artifacts, we just grabbed some dinner and treated ourselves to the new Indiana Jones movie. The theater was beautiful, yet a little odd to be watching an American movie in Egypt, with Arabic subtitles.
Tuesday was probably one of my favorite days. Kelsey and I had bought train tickets to go for a day trip in Alexandria. The train ride was about 2 and a half hours and so, so, so much fun!! It was great to travel in a different way besides tro-tro, van, or plane. Being able to see the country side outside of the city was really neat, and to my surprise, when we got off the train, it was even a little cooler there. It then hit me that it was that way because Alexandria gets a nice see breeze because it sits on the Mediterranean Sea! I have never seen anything like it. The water was incredible and I could see have this was an attraction for travelers from afar a long time ago. Alexander knew what was up. The original library of Alexander the Great actually burnt down sometime ago, but they have created a brand new one with several interesting exhibits. We went and walked around in the library for a while, walked around the city and along the water and then had a wonderful dinner at a little restaurant. The city itself was much calmer than Cairo and I enjoyed the buildings and sights so much.
Wednesday, Kelsey and I went to the Citadel, which encompasses several mosques, including that of Muhammed, considered one of the last and greatest prophets in Muslim beliefs. Once again, the architecture in each place knocked me completely off my feet. I could have stayed there for hours on end just thinking, looking and looking some more. The mosques had been turned into a governmental place where there was still some worship held there, but mostly it was for tourism. Muhammed's tomb was even in the central part of his mosque. Everything there was just so astounding and incredible. After that, we had heard of this incredible mall that held everything you could imagine Starbucks, so we decided to check it out for kicks. Again, it was so crazy being in a place like this, because it was so westernized and I don't think Kelsey or I were really ready for that. But none the less, a cup of coffee in my hand has never tasted so good. We ate at a Mexican place and were happier than little clams after NOT eating rice! haha.

Then Thursday came along and it was our last day. Our flight left later in the afternoon so we went back to Khan-El-Khalili for some last minute meandering and ate at this fantastic pancake house. We got one that was kind of like a pizza and then another with honey and nuts...yum!! Then we got our stuff because we had to leave the hostel by a certain time and headed to the airport to wait out our remaining time. To our glorious surprise, we were able to have one last cup of coffee and even a Cinna-bon! wooo!! Our flight back was safe and even though Egypt was such a wonderful experience, I can't tell you how good it felt to be back in Ghana. Being away from Ghana for that time made me realize the things I love about it and that I will miss so much when I leave. I feel so comfortable here and there is nothing like coming home to a place where your family missed you too. I can't even think about leaving them now- they are all so wonderful and have truly become my family in my heart (as cheesy as that sounds).

But, sadly, Rachel left on Saturday (my roommate) as well as almost the majority of my program. This marks the last part of my journey here in Ghana. I leave for Ho tomorrow and will be there for four weeks. It's going to be a lot different from my time here in Legon, but I know it will be great all the same. I will probably not blog, or if I do not as much, while I'm there because of lack of internet situation, but who knows.

I miss everyone so much and I hope all is well wherever you may be. Take care to all.

Egypt- day 1 and 2

Sorry- these are all a little jumbled! :)This is a pretty weak shot, but it was from our hostel

In the mosque with our head coverings

The streets of Cairo- Talaat Harb

The Al-Ahazar Mosque

Inside the mosque- men studying the Koran

The final product of our henna

Our favorite restaurant!

Delicious tomari and lentil soup at Felfela's

Fishawi's Coffee house

The tourist side of Khan-El-Khalili

The oldest stall/business in the market...the Fez hats!!! too cool

Kelsey and I enjoying our Turkish coffee and hookah

My trip to Egypt was definitely the most unexpected part of my adventure here in Africa. My friend Kelsey and I decided to seize the carp during our break from school before exams and I am so glad we did! We were there for seven days and six nights and it was the perfect amount of time- not too much, not too little.

After a wonderful red-eye flight to Cairo, we arrived in Cairo Friday morning. It worked out great because the hostel we stayed at picked us up at the airport sans-cost so we weren’t completely confused straight out of the gate. We stayed at the Ramses II Hostel (catchy, huh?) and it was on Talaat Harb St. right in the heart of the city. It was a ten minutes walk from the Nile as well as the Egyptian Museum. We were on the 12^th floor and you should have seen the view from the balcony! Pictures just don’t do it justice.

It was such a bizarre feeling being back in a city. I’m pretty sure my experience would have been completely different had I been coming from America going to Cairo. I was in awe of all the tall buildings, highways and central buzz going on all around me. I was just used to a different pace and feel it was a different kind of shock I was in, because I was pretty well prepared for the culture having been in Ghana for awhile now, but the city just took me aback. The language was also a different kind of barrier. I really enjoyed trying to speak Arabic but I think I was the only one because everyone else just looked at me like I was a big weirdo. I could have sworn I was saying everything correctly but apparently not J I also think I’ve rediscovered a passion for languages that I have forgotten- I really enjoy learning and speaking them (although some people rather me not, ha).

The weather in Egypt was INCREDIBLE and such a nice change from the humid, grueling heat of Ghana. There was a nice breeze and so wonderful. But we just settled in the first day, got our bearings, and there was this really cute movie theatre next to our hostel and so we ended up watching a movie (in an actual theatre!!) that night- I think it was ‘21’. It was funny how many English movies there were, and then they just added on subtitles.

The next day we went to this huge bazaar called Khan-El-Khalili. Little to our knowledge, there are three sections to this bazaar: the Egyptian market, the Turkish Market and the Tourist market, and our taxi dropped us at the Egyptian section. This means that this is where everything is produced and a lot of buyers buy things in bulk to sell elsewhere. We got this feeling soon as we continued to walk and saw no other outsiders. But then we were sent an angel in the form of a guy named Hamesh. He was a student at the University in Cairo and was studying English. So he pretty much took us around the Egyptian market, got us good deals and was our tour guide and friend for the day with out asking for a thing! It was so nice and refreshing to meet someone like that. Before we crossed over to the dark-tourist side, we were able to go into the Al-Hazar Mosque, which is the oldest in Cairo. It wasn’t too big, but it was just incredible but at the same time a little heart wrenching, to see this awesome place of worship. We wore head coverings and were able to walk around while the people inside were studying. It was almost completely all men, and Hamesh told us they were all studying the Koran. It was really interesting and the mosque itself was beautiful.

When we went to the tourist side, I’m so glad we did because we happened across this really neat coffee place called Fishawi’s and before that had a delicious falafel sandwich-yum! Fishawi’s is the oldest coffee house in Cairo and it was my first experience with Turkish coffee. I am no expert so I have no idea how they make it that way, but it’s A LOT thicker and there’s this sludge-remainder at the bottom. Despite my description it was delicious. We also had hookah while were sat there and then a lady came up and gave us both henna on our hands. Yes and yes!

After a little more meandering, we headed the direction of our hostel and grabbed some dinner at this really quaint restaurant named Felfela’s. I had lentil soup with bread and falafel, and Kelsey had this amazing dish called tomari. It had rice, noodles and this delicious read sauce. Everything tasted amazing and it was the perfect ending to a great day.

Sorry I’ve written a novel. In between my studies this week, I will be sure to write about the next couple days. Three more exams to go…wooo! Take care to all and I miss you!