More and More Ghanaian

Little things remind me that I am acclimating to Ghanaian life…

1. When my teaching day has closed, I don’t immediately rush to my house to change into shorts. I can actually continue to function in the weather while wearing trousers

2. Ghanaian TV is becoming palatable. I get 9 channels on my TV. 6 of them are Ghanaian. The other three are South African. At first, and still mostly, I prefer the South African stations because they show syndicated programming from the US sometimes: Friends, CSI, Girlfriends (yes, I even watch WB shows); and they also at times carry Al Jazeera English, and CNN International. The Ghanaian stations show a combination of local Ghanaian news, political talk/rant shows, music videos ranging from hip-life to reggae to gospel, Christian and Muslim preachers, Brazilian soap operas with English voiceovers (sexy Brazilian women speaking with ridiculous English voices – it’s actually quite comical) and Nollyhood movies (Nigerian, that is). Well, the preachers still aren’t my style, but I have found myself getting into the occasional Nollywood film – mostly set in rural villages and usually featuring an angry, boorish man wearing a white undershirt, running around yelling and screaming at all the women who live in his house, from his wife/wives to various daughters, sister-in-laws, and nieces. All the while, the women are usually plotting a way to get back at the man either by slipping something in his food to make him ill, or stealing his secret stash of money and slipping away in the night. They are strange, to say the least, have terrible sound (WAY over modulated!) but of late, are becoming more attractive to me.

3. I’m starting to take Ghanaian food. For two months I survived on pasta. Lots of pasta. And occasionally I would eat rice – plain white, fried, jollof (spicy tomato based). A few weeks ago I tried “red-red” again, after taking it the first week I was here and really disliking it. This time – quite good! I’ve had it a few times since. It’s sort-of like Ghanaian baked beans (made with fish and palm oil, giving it a red color) that you eat with plantains fried in palm oil – which also makes them red. Thus the name.

And last night, at a local restaurant, with all sorts of choices before me including pizza, I opted for: FUFU with Lite Goat Soup. And it was yummy. I have some FUFU and soup left in the fridge (I ate all the goat meat) waiting for lunch today!

4. I’m using little British english terms more and more as you may have noticed in reading this: "classes close”; “trousers”; “take” Ghanaian food; etc.

Children

I’m reading Cameroonian author Kenjo Jumbam’s 1980 work The White Man of God.

“The novel describes the family and village life of a group of Lamuso-speaking people, a community in which Christianity (brought by European missionaries) has been accepted by a substantial number of villagers, while the ancient traditions of their people are maintained by many others, in its own hierarchy. Because the indigenous culture is so vital and socially cohesive here, Christianity can only make inroads by discrediting it. “

It’s a fascinating work that, to my outsider’s mind, seems like it could be set in Ghana just as easily as Cameroon (which it not too far down the coast from here). 

There are many interesting insights in the book: village culture, religious and cultural change and conflict, local politics, and so on. But because the book is written from the perspective of Tansa, a young boy of perhaps 12 years, we get a unique insight into the family. And as a prospective parent, this passage, set shortly after the birth of twin boys, really resonated:

We all suffered from sleeplessness and Mama suffered most because, in addition to the worry, they sucked her and would not take anything other than breast milk. To make matters worse the breast milk dried up and in those days nobody knew anything about other forms of milk. I looked at the trouble and pitied parents. What rewards do parents get from having children? Is it all labour and worry and continuous anxiety. From the time a child is born they labour to make him grow, to keep him happy, to educate him, to see that he is settled in life. And whenever he is ill they suffer every discomfort to make him well again; they suffer with him psychologically and if the child’s illness increases so to their mental pain, uneasiness and anxiety increase. They greater the number of children, so too the greater their worry. And all that for what? What actually is the pride of the parent? Just to see his child grow up healthy and happy and prosper in life. That is all. All! And having children seems to be the cry of every parent, of every man and of every woman. A clamour for worry, for uneasiness, for pain! Do they know this? Do then realize this before they long for children? A childless couple does not have all these worries, they do not spend sleepless nights, they never sit upset near a sick child and long for every word of encouragement from the doctor or the medicine-man. They never experience all these unpaid-for pains. All their earnings are theirs to enjoy in whatever way they please. They do not have to pay school fees, buy books, school uniforms and they do not have to go to the doctors at night because the child has suddenly fallen ill.

It’s funny. seven months ago I could imagine myself being Tansa. Now, I think of little else besides my princess in the offing.

Cross Cultural Education

On Thursday a group of my students will participate in a class-to-class internet video chat with an honors world cultures class at the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater.

A former student of mine from Germantown High School, Sara Hoffman, is in the class and suggested the idea to her professor.

Since then the professor and I have exchanged student information including questions and impressions, and pictures, to prepare for the chat.

Unfortunately, on my end broadband Internet access on campus is limited to my house, so I can’t have my entire class take part. So, I’ve selected a handful of students to take part.

To give you a peek into the cultural differences between the two student groups, I’ve put together a collage of images from both groups.

Shhhhhh!

Quiet, The Puffer's Hiding.

(photo by Cori)

The Country of Africa

From today’s headlines:

In Nigeria: Hundreds, Many Children, Killed By Machete-Wielding Attackers

Here is the story’s lead

“NPR's Gwen Thompkins, reporting from Nairobi, Kenya, says "no one can say for sure what prompted the attack. But in January, a Christian strike on a Muslim village killed hundreds of people"

Why is Ms Thompkins reporting this story from Nairobi, Kenya?

I can not help but wonder if airing a story about violence taking place in Nigeria, by a reporter situated in Kenya, contributes to the impression held by many non-Africans that Africa is simply one large, troubled, nation-state?

During my stay in Ghana, I have heard the frustration of colleagues who claim that outside media characterizes Africa as a continent immersed in widespread violence, civil instability, dictatorial rule, "backward" customs, and poverty.

There’s no denying reality. Compared to other continents Africa has the least economic wealth and the highest rate of poverty. It also has suffered from some horrific civil and international wars during recent decades.

However, should poverty or civil upheaval in one location impact the reputation of another, simply because they share the same landmass?

Do drug wars in Mexico change your views about the safety of the streets of Washington DC? Are you worried about the state of democracy in France because Russian media is under constant attack by the Kremlin? Does a military junta in Myanmar (Burma) cause you to doubt the freedom enjoyed by South Koreans?

But when you hear about people being hacked apart by machetes in central Nigeria, does it affect your view of Africa, in general? I think for most non-Africans the answer is “yes.”

Before I arrived in Ghana family members, friends, and colleagues urged me in so many words to “be careful.” Certainly some of them were referring to the risk of various sicknesses, chief among them malaria. Others may have been warning me of Ghana’s high rate of vehicular deaths. But I also know some were referring to a general uneasiness with civil and social stability in Africa. I did not receive the same sendoff in 2006 when departing for Hungary. I know these were well-meaning and heartfelt words, but what impressions about Africa were lurking in the background?

In Ghana, I was headed for a country that has enjoyed civil peace for nearly two decades; a country that many call the “most hospitable in West Africa;” a country that seized its independence from Britain without bloodshed following centuries of horrific maltreatment. Hungary, meanwhile, had gained its independence from the clutches of Soviet control only 15 years prior, was involved in the two deadliest wars of the past century, was a point of deportation for ten’s of thousands of Jews headed for the slaughter, and remains home to ongoing violence with its ethnic neighbors fueled by hyper-nationalism.

So, Ms Thompkins is reporting about a tragic series of events in Nigeria; events that seem to be rooted in a complex local relationship that runs along religious, political, ethnic, and economic fissures. The violence is a direct result of the pressures created by this mix. Is there any sense in connecting this to Kenya? 

You might be surprised to learn that Nairobi is farther from Jos, Nigeria (2,050 miles) than the distance between South Korea and Myanmar (1,900 miles), DC  and Mexico City (1,850 miles), or Paris and Moscow (1,500 miles).  Each of these pairs share a continent, yet we have no difficulty separating the last three sets of locations in our mind.

Can you imagine a reporter describing a drug cartel shootout in Mexico and then ending her field report with “Gwen Thompkins, NPR News, Washington?”

It wouldn’t make sense. And neither does this.

Lots of Pictures

I have uploaded and labeled 123 pictures from my weekend trip to Gyimah's town of Twenedurase. It's a great look at the real Ghana (that's not to say I haven't been living in the real Ghana. It just sounded good to write....thought it might get more of you to click over there).