Hi all.
The internet here is super frustrating. It goes out once per day, regularly, and then it's really slow. I tried to load pictures, and it didn't work, and then it wouldn't let me post anything. So I will try again to do pictures later.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Adventures in Ghana: Part 1
May 13
We arrived in Accra (pronounced awk-RAW or AWK-raw) around 8AM after about 20 hours of travelling. It was really humid when we stepped off the plane, and I found it a little hard to breathe. We went through customs with no problems. I laughed when I saw a sign that said “Ghana welcomes all visitors. Ghana does not welcome pedophiles.” Too bad for all the pedophiles who thought Ghana was going to welcome them. I wanted to take a picture of it, but I also didn’t want to get in trouble with the customs people, so I didn’t.
We next went in to get our bags. That was an interesting experience. They have little baggage carts for free, and there was absolutely NO room around the baggage carousel because everybody pushed their cart right up next to it. In the US, as everyone reading this should know, we try to give people a little room so they can get in and get their bags, and the carts are generally away from the carousel. I was a little bit annoyed by this. We got our bags just fine, and as we left the airport there were guards checking everybody’s claim tickets to make sure nobody was taking bags that didn’t belong to them. I found that comforting.
As we left the airport, we were accosted by several “helpers” who pointed out the sign to our hotel shuttle, which we already saw, and then wanted us to pay them. I was annoyed by this, but I also felt sad for them because I know they didn’t have any money or job skills, which is why they were preying on travelers. When we finally got to our hotel, I felt tired and overwhelmed. I felt like every person in Ghana thought I was rich and wanted to take my money for doing nothing. I didn’t want to go anywhere, or do anything.
After resting for a bit, we went for a walk to the nearby mall. At the mall, we got some water, some malaria medicine, a cell phone, and an alarm clock, and it was very nice to be able to get around on our own. We ate some pizza at our hotel, which was surprisingly very good, and we went swimming in the hotel pool. It was very relaxing, and I felt much better about being in Ghana.
That evening, we went to the Accra temple dorms to meet up with some MPA students who were staying there. It was really nice to be with other BYU students and to get our bearings. We ate dinner with them and had a very nice time.
May 14
We woke up fairly early and went to listen to a presentation given by some MBA students (here for a different project than the MPA students). They were presenting findings of some research they had been doing to a microfranchise organization called HealthKeepers. We went to a French bakery for lunch and wandered around Accra with them. It was helpful to go around with them because they were used to Accra and knew how to get good deals on taxis. At some point during the day I remembered it was my birthday. We went to the temple again for dinner with the MPAs. We got some good advice on how much to pay for souvenirs in the Accra area, and saw the kinds of things that were available, as they were all packing up to leave the next morning. My family called, and it was wonderful to talk to them even though we are so far away. I don’t know how much it cost, but hopefully not too much. Anyway, it was worth it to me and was a fabulous birthday present. We were able to do a session in the Accra temple that evening, which was truly wonderful. It was a great day.
May 15
Jason Fairbourne, Peter’s boss and the one who arranged for us to come down here and work, arrived this day. We ate another pizza, went to the mall a couple of times, bought some plastic laundry hamper things for our project in Tamale, and went to a part of the city called Osu for dinner. Here we were accosted by a few vendors, and we bought our first gift. Sara was the only one to request a specific gift, so we bought her the flag she had asked for. The gutters in this part of the city smelled AWFUL, much worse than the gutters in the rest of the city. It became very obvious they were an open sewer when we walked past a man, facing the street, urinating into the gutter in plain view. We went to an Indian restaurant for dinner with some MPA students who were staying longer than the rest of their group to work on another of Jason’s microfranchsie projects in Accra. We tried to go to reggae night on the beach, but they charged a cover fee and we were tired, so we just went home.
May 16
We woke up at 4:00 AM to get ready to fly to Tamale. We left the hotel at 4:30, and our flight left at 6. You have to be ridiculously early to the airport in Accra, especially for international flights. If you don’t arrive 3 hours in advance (for international flights), they may give your seat away. The airplane was about the same as any small plane you might find in the US. I wasn’t afraid at any time. They did provide us with in-flight snack and beverage, which surprised me on such a short flight. We arrived in Tamale around 7AM.
Welcome to Ghana Part 2: Tamale
Tamale is in a beautiful region. Although a Ghanaian at the Accra temple told us it was “dry like Salt Lake City,” it is still humid here. Just not quite as humid as Accra. Our home here is a new (as in, not quite finished) hotel known as Bab’s Palace. It is really nice here, in many ways nicer than our hotel in Accra. Everything here is clean and nice and new. The downside is that the internet goes out daily, the hot water in our room does not work, and the bathroom always smells. I took a cold shower yesterday, but it wasn’t so bad. Supposedly Peter figured out how to get the hot water to work in our room. Even if he didn’t at the very least we can take hot showers in the room next door whenever its occupant is out of town. I will do a separate post with pictures of our home later.
I like the city of Tamale much better than I liked Accra. Accra is way too crowded, and the traffic is horrendous. Tamale has beautiful scenery, fewer people, and it isn’t as hot or humid. Also, we can walk down the street in Tamale without being accosted by beggars or salespeople. For the most part people just treat us the same as anybody else, which is really, really nice. There are definitely fewer modern conveniences in Tamale than Accra. There is no grocery store in Tamale, and there are only 2 restaurants where we can safely eat (there might be more, but according to Jason there are only 2 restaurants where we do eat). That’s okay, though. At least there are those two.
On Sunday, May 17 we went to a football match at the Tamale Stadium. We entered through the VVIP entrance, and ended up not having to pay for tickets for some reason. I really enjoyed the game. Neither team was very good, and it was as fun to watch the fans as it was to watch the game. A man sitting in front of us was wearing a shirt that flared out at the waist, as if it were a little girl’s dress. Both times when the local team scored a goal, he made his shirt twirl around in celebration, and I thought it was funny. Everybody got soooo excited when Tamale’s team scored a point; you would have thought they had just been given a million dollars or something. Also, some of the people sitting on the tier below us got really upset about something, and nearly started a brawl. I was happy they subsided, but I think Peter and the other student working out here were disappointed.
Yesterday (May 18) and today (May 19) have been pretty boring. I have played several games of solitaire (with real cards, I don’t have my own computer) while Peter works. Yesterday we made a couple of outings to go out to lunch and to tour the workout facilities at the Tamale stadium. There is a 25-cedi membership fee and a monthly fee of 5 cedis to use the facilities. One Ghana cedi is about 80 cents US, so when I’m shopping I usually just consider one cedi to be one dollar and then I never overspend. Things in Tamale are mostly cheaper than they were in Accra, which is nice.
Every evening since we’ve been here we have watched a couple episodes of Alias on a projector in the living room. Peter and I didn’t bring any movies, and so when Jason goes home and takes his ipod I don’t know what we’ll do in the evenings. Maybe play more games, or maybe we’ll go to sleep earlier.
So that is our life so far.
We arrived in Accra (pronounced awk-RAW or AWK-raw) around 8AM after about 20 hours of travelling. It was really humid when we stepped off the plane, and I found it a little hard to breathe. We went through customs with no problems. I laughed when I saw a sign that said “Ghana welcomes all visitors. Ghana does not welcome pedophiles.” Too bad for all the pedophiles who thought Ghana was going to welcome them. I wanted to take a picture of it, but I also didn’t want to get in trouble with the customs people, so I didn’t.
We next went in to get our bags. That was an interesting experience. They have little baggage carts for free, and there was absolutely NO room around the baggage carousel because everybody pushed their cart right up next to it. In the US, as everyone reading this should know, we try to give people a little room so they can get in and get their bags, and the carts are generally away from the carousel. I was a little bit annoyed by this. We got our bags just fine, and as we left the airport there were guards checking everybody’s claim tickets to make sure nobody was taking bags that didn’t belong to them. I found that comforting.
As we left the airport, we were accosted by several “helpers” who pointed out the sign to our hotel shuttle, which we already saw, and then wanted us to pay them. I was annoyed by this, but I also felt sad for them because I know they didn’t have any money or job skills, which is why they were preying on travelers. When we finally got to our hotel, I felt tired and overwhelmed. I felt like every person in Ghana thought I was rich and wanted to take my money for doing nothing. I didn’t want to go anywhere, or do anything.
After resting for a bit, we went for a walk to the nearby mall. At the mall, we got some water, some malaria medicine, a cell phone, and an alarm clock, and it was very nice to be able to get around on our own. We ate some pizza at our hotel, which was surprisingly very good, and we went swimming in the hotel pool. It was very relaxing, and I felt much better about being in Ghana.
That evening, we went to the Accra temple dorms to meet up with some MPA students who were staying there. It was really nice to be with other BYU students and to get our bearings. We ate dinner with them and had a very nice time.
May 14
We woke up fairly early and went to listen to a presentation given by some MBA students (here for a different project than the MPA students). They were presenting findings of some research they had been doing to a microfranchise organization called HealthKeepers. We went to a French bakery for lunch and wandered around Accra with them. It was helpful to go around with them because they were used to Accra and knew how to get good deals on taxis. At some point during the day I remembered it was my birthday. We went to the temple again for dinner with the MPAs. We got some good advice on how much to pay for souvenirs in the Accra area, and saw the kinds of things that were available, as they were all packing up to leave the next morning. My family called, and it was wonderful to talk to them even though we are so far away. I don’t know how much it cost, but hopefully not too much. Anyway, it was worth it to me and was a fabulous birthday present. We were able to do a session in the Accra temple that evening, which was truly wonderful. It was a great day.
May 15
Jason Fairbourne, Peter’s boss and the one who arranged for us to come down here and work, arrived this day. We ate another pizza, went to the mall a couple of times, bought some plastic laundry hamper things for our project in Tamale, and went to a part of the city called Osu for dinner. Here we were accosted by a few vendors, and we bought our first gift. Sara was the only one to request a specific gift, so we bought her the flag she had asked for. The gutters in this part of the city smelled AWFUL, much worse than the gutters in the rest of the city. It became very obvious they were an open sewer when we walked past a man, facing the street, urinating into the gutter in plain view. We went to an Indian restaurant for dinner with some MPA students who were staying longer than the rest of their group to work on another of Jason’s microfranchsie projects in Accra. We tried to go to reggae night on the beach, but they charged a cover fee and we were tired, so we just went home.
May 16
We woke up at 4:00 AM to get ready to fly to Tamale. We left the hotel at 4:30, and our flight left at 6. You have to be ridiculously early to the airport in Accra, especially for international flights. If you don’t arrive 3 hours in advance (for international flights), they may give your seat away. The airplane was about the same as any small plane you might find in the US. I wasn’t afraid at any time. They did provide us with in-flight snack and beverage, which surprised me on such a short flight. We arrived in Tamale around 7AM.
Welcome to Ghana Part 2: Tamale
Tamale is in a beautiful region. Although a Ghanaian at the Accra temple told us it was “dry like Salt Lake City,” it is still humid here. Just not quite as humid as Accra. Our home here is a new (as in, not quite finished) hotel known as Bab’s Palace. It is really nice here, in many ways nicer than our hotel in Accra. Everything here is clean and nice and new. The downside is that the internet goes out daily, the hot water in our room does not work, and the bathroom always smells. I took a cold shower yesterday, but it wasn’t so bad. Supposedly Peter figured out how to get the hot water to work in our room. Even if he didn’t at the very least we can take hot showers in the room next door whenever its occupant is out of town. I will do a separate post with pictures of our home later.
I like the city of Tamale much better than I liked Accra. Accra is way too crowded, and the traffic is horrendous. Tamale has beautiful scenery, fewer people, and it isn’t as hot or humid. Also, we can walk down the street in Tamale without being accosted by beggars or salespeople. For the most part people just treat us the same as anybody else, which is really, really nice. There are definitely fewer modern conveniences in Tamale than Accra. There is no grocery store in Tamale, and there are only 2 restaurants where we can safely eat (there might be more, but according to Jason there are only 2 restaurants where we do eat). That’s okay, though. At least there are those two.
On Sunday, May 17 we went to a football match at the Tamale Stadium. We entered through the VVIP entrance, and ended up not having to pay for tickets for some reason. I really enjoyed the game. Neither team was very good, and it was as fun to watch the fans as it was to watch the game. A man sitting in front of us was wearing a shirt that flared out at the waist, as if it were a little girl’s dress. Both times when the local team scored a goal, he made his shirt twirl around in celebration, and I thought it was funny. Everybody got soooo excited when Tamale’s team scored a point; you would have thought they had just been given a million dollars or something. Also, some of the people sitting on the tier below us got really upset about something, and nearly started a brawl. I was happy they subsided, but I think Peter and the other student working out here were disappointed.
Yesterday (May 18) and today (May 19) have been pretty boring. I have played several games of solitaire (with real cards, I don’t have my own computer) while Peter works. Yesterday we made a couple of outings to go out to lunch and to tour the workout facilities at the Tamale stadium. There is a 25-cedi membership fee and a monthly fee of 5 cedis to use the facilities. One Ghana cedi is about 80 cents US, so when I’m shopping I usually just consider one cedi to be one dollar and then I never overspend. Things in Tamale are mostly cheaper than they were in Accra, which is nice.
Every evening since we’ve been here we have watched a couple episodes of Alias on a projector in the living room. Peter and I didn’t bring any movies, and so when Jason goes home and takes his ipod I don’t know what we’ll do in the evenings. Maybe play more games, or maybe we’ll go to sleep earlier.
So that is our life so far.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Leaving on Tuesday
We are leaving for Ghana on Tuesday. We will be in Tamale (pronounced TOM-uh-lay) until the end of August. If you don't know already, Peter has a job there helping people to start microfranchises--really small businesses to help poor people get out of poverty. I am not sure what I'll be doing yet. Probably helping, or volunteering somewhere else. We will have internet access, so never fear, the blog will be updated with lots of fun pictures. More details to come next week, when we figure out just what we've gotten ourselves into. :-)
Monday, May 4, 2009
Watch this!
Last night we watched Elder Bednar's CES fireside, and I thought it was really, really good. You can get the link to it here. What I got out of his talk was that we need to focus less on media-oriented life and more on things that are real. He talked particularly about people who are addiced to online gaming and social networking. While I don't really consider myself an "addict," I do spend more time on the computer than I should, so I appreciated his comments. Check it out! You may receive inspiration on areas you can improve in your life, so you can get the most out of your short time on earth. :-)
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Graduation!
We have officially graduated from college. Well, I have. Peter applied for graduation in August, so he'll graduate then. All of our family came out for the occasion. I think Peter's family was a little annoyed that he wasn't in any of the programs, but oh well. They got to see him walk across the stage, which was fun for them I hope. I originally didn't want to walk, but I actually enjoyed it a lot. So thanks to Peter for making me do it. :-) Thanks also to all of our family who came out to support us, it was wonderful to see you!
As usual, the pictures are on Peter's computer and I am not. So here are copies of pictures my sisters have put on facebook. Enjoy!
My sister Rebecca, me, and our cousin Linnea.
My sister Anna in my cap.
Peter, me, and our (my) family. In case you're wondering,
As usual, the pictures are on Peter's computer and I am not. So here are copies of pictures my sisters have put on facebook. Enjoy!
My sister Rebecca, me, and our cousin Linnea.
My sister Anna in my cap.
Peter, me, and our (my) family. In case you're wondering, the medal around my neck is for my honors graduation.
Peter has a gold tassle because he is getting a BS,
and I have a white tassle for my BA.
While my family was here, we got family pictures taken.
This one is by far my favorite, can you guess why?
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Nearly Done
The month has been crazy so far, but we are almost done for good! I had my last final today. All that is left is for me to give a presentation tomorrow. I still have a lot of work to do before my museum exhibition opens Tuesday night, but it's pretty much on track. (If you received a card or an email from the Museum of Peoples and Cultures, inviting you to an exhibition opening, it's from me. Please come.) Peter has one more final tonight, and one on Tuesday, and then he will be done.
Our families are coming in on Wednesday for our graduation, and I am really excited to see them.
Our families are coming in on Wednesday for our graduation, and I am really excited to see them.
Monday, April 6, 2009
A baby shower
I had every intention of taking lots of pictures of my best friend's baby shower, but... I forgot.
So I will just tell you about it instead.
My friend Lauren and I decided we should throw a baby shower for Amy--all three of us were roommates freshman year. It ended up being a lot of fun! Almost everybody who was invited came, and there were lots of good presents and yummy food.
We played two games at this baby shower, and I'm passing them along in case somebody else wants to use them. For the first game, we shoved infant diapers into a clear plastic container and made everybody guess how many were inside. For the second game, we passed around yarn and scissors and everybody had to cut a length of yarn that they thought would fit around Amy's stomach. Then, Amy measured them around herself to see who was the closest. Almost everybody cut the yarn way, way too big, and it was funny to see. The same girl ended up winning both games, which I thought was amazing. I guess she's really good at sizing things.
For dinner, Lauren made homemade pizza. It was delicious, easy, and really quick to make. Try it out. :-)
Lauren's Famous Pizza
Dough (makes 2 pizzas)
1½ cups warm water
¾ tablespoon dry yeast (1 ¼-ounce package)
1 teaspoon sugar
4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus additional as needed
Stir together water, yeast, and sugar. Let the mixture rest until the yeast blooms, 3 to 4 minutes.
Place 3 cups flour and the salt in a mixing bowl. Add the yeast mixture and oil, and stir together to form a sticky dough. If using a mixer, use the dough hook after this point. Otherwise, knead in 1 more cup flour until the dough becomes a smooth, elastic ball, approximately 5 to 8 minutes. Add a little more flour so that the dough comes away from the side of the bowl. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a cloth, and let rise for 30 minutes in a draft-free spot before splitting and rolling into shape.
Note: this dough does not require a ton of kneading. However, the more you knead it, the crust will become stronger and chewier.
After making the sauce, preheat the oven to 500 degrees. If you have a pizza stone and paddle, preheat the stone in the oven (if using just a pizza stone, it will take longer to cook each time the stone cools down so it’s better to leave it in the oven). Each pizza takes 8-12minutes to cook.
Sauce (makes enough for 2-4 pizzas. I usually use a 24 oz jar of pasta sauce and a 6 oz can of tomato paste and add heaping amounts of the other ingredients and it will make enough for 4 pizzas)
1¾ cup tomato sauce or 1-15 oz can (1 prefer to use pasta sauce—better flavor)
½ cup (4 oz) tomato paste
2 teaspoons sugar
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
Combine ingredients in a blender til smooth. I normally have to add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil because it is too thick.
Toppings
Basic (for most pizzas)-1 cup of shredded fresh mozzarella (the kind that is floating in the liquid tastes best), ½-1 cup parmesan (adds the special flavor), oregano and basil (fresh basil is best) to sprinkle over pizza last (use almost a tablespoon of each)
Other ideas:
Margherita-just mozzarella, sauce, fresh basil. I like to add fresh, sliced tomatoes and a little parmesan
Quattro Formaggi (4 cheese)-you can buy a great shredded cheese assortment at Trader Joe’s, or you can buy
your own assortment. My favorite mix: mozzarella, asiago, fontina, parmesan
Pepperoni-a classic, for picky eaters. Fun fact—if you order this in Italy you will get peppers on your pizza
Prosciutto-use 2-3 oz of this special, cured Italian ham. My personal favorite. Tear the ham into strips (like 2 in
by 1 in) and place on top with basic toppings. Also can add things like mushrooms, or carmelized
onion/roasted garlic/gorgonzola
Artichoke-put artichoke hearts on with basic and chicken if you wish
Barbecue chicken-not very Italian but still good! Use a thin layer of your favorite BBQ sauce instead of tomato,
mozzarella, and strips of grilled chicken
Alfredo chicken-use alfredo sauce instead of red sauce, mozzarella, and grilled chicken strips. I still like to
sprinkle basil and oregano on top
So I will just tell you about it instead.
My friend Lauren and I decided we should throw a baby shower for Amy--all three of us were roommates freshman year. It ended up being a lot of fun! Almost everybody who was invited came, and there were lots of good presents and yummy food.
We played two games at this baby shower, and I'm passing them along in case somebody else wants to use them. For the first game, we shoved infant diapers into a clear plastic container and made everybody guess how many were inside. For the second game, we passed around yarn and scissors and everybody had to cut a length of yarn that they thought would fit around Amy's stomach. Then, Amy measured them around herself to see who was the closest. Almost everybody cut the yarn way, way too big, and it was funny to see. The same girl ended up winning both games, which I thought was amazing. I guess she's really good at sizing things.
For dinner, Lauren made homemade pizza. It was delicious, easy, and really quick to make. Try it out. :-)
Lauren's Famous Pizza
Dough (makes 2 pizzas)
1½ cups warm water
¾ tablespoon dry yeast (1 ¼-ounce package)
1 teaspoon sugar
4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus additional as needed
Stir together water, yeast, and sugar. Let the mixture rest until the yeast blooms, 3 to 4 minutes.
Place 3 cups flour and the salt in a mixing bowl. Add the yeast mixture and oil, and stir together to form a sticky dough. If using a mixer, use the dough hook after this point. Otherwise, knead in 1 more cup flour until the dough becomes a smooth, elastic ball, approximately 5 to 8 minutes. Add a little more flour so that the dough comes away from the side of the bowl. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a cloth, and let rise for 30 minutes in a draft-free spot before splitting and rolling into shape.
Note: this dough does not require a ton of kneading. However, the more you knead it, the crust will become stronger and chewier.
After making the sauce, preheat the oven to 500 degrees. If you have a pizza stone and paddle, preheat the stone in the oven (if using just a pizza stone, it will take longer to cook each time the stone cools down so it’s better to leave it in the oven). Each pizza takes 8-12minutes to cook.
Sauce (makes enough for 2-4 pizzas. I usually use a 24 oz jar of pasta sauce and a 6 oz can of tomato paste and add heaping amounts of the other ingredients and it will make enough for 4 pizzas)
1¾ cup tomato sauce or 1-15 oz can (1 prefer to use pasta sauce—better flavor)
½ cup (4 oz) tomato paste
2 teaspoons sugar
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
Combine ingredients in a blender til smooth. I normally have to add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil because it is too thick.
Toppings
Basic (for most pizzas)-1 cup of shredded fresh mozzarella (the kind that is floating in the liquid tastes best), ½-1 cup parmesan (adds the special flavor), oregano and basil (fresh basil is best) to sprinkle over pizza last (use almost a tablespoon of each)
Other ideas:
Margherita-just mozzarella, sauce, fresh basil. I like to add fresh, sliced tomatoes and a little parmesan
Quattro Formaggi (4 cheese)-you can buy a great shredded cheese assortment at Trader Joe’s, or you can buy
your own assortment. My favorite mix: mozzarella, asiago, fontina, parmesan
Pepperoni-a classic, for picky eaters. Fun fact—if you order this in Italy you will get peppers on your pizza
Prosciutto-use 2-3 oz of this special, cured Italian ham. My personal favorite. Tear the ham into strips (like 2 in
by 1 in) and place on top with basic toppings. Also can add things like mushrooms, or carmelized
onion/roasted garlic/gorgonzola
Artichoke-put artichoke hearts on with basic and chicken if you wish
Barbecue chicken-not very Italian but still good! Use a thin layer of your favorite BBQ sauce instead of tomato,
mozzarella, and strips of grilled chicken
Alfredo chicken-use alfredo sauce instead of red sauce, mozzarella, and grilled chicken strips. I still like to
sprinkle basil and oregano on top
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