So, I arrived in Ghana over a week ago (Thursday night).I had someone from my hotel pick me up at the airport and went straight on to bed.Friday I set off for a walk in Accra.There are not a lot of tourist places to go, but I enjoyed just going for a walk and seeing a different lifestyle.Friday was a holiday because of Eid.Ramadan is over!Everyone was in a great mood, and I could have sworn that living in Ghana, life is a big party to which we all are invited!And while smiles and laughing abound all the time, perhaps it is not true that life is always a party - in fact it can be quite hard.I haven't seen too many houses yet in Ghana.People live in cramped, box-like homes made of various things - clay, containers, wood.But it is normal and I don't feel too out of place walking around because people are happy to chat with you and share greetings.After my walk I went back to my beach hotel for a drink of water and a break from the heat.You cannot swim at the beach because of the strong currents.The waves were crashing all day long.At night I went to sleep to either the noisy fan or the noisy ocean.After a break and a meal of potatoes and vegetable curry (very tasty and very spicy - typical of most Ghanaian meals) I headed in town looking for a bank machine and found a festival!Everyone was dressed in their nicest clothes and lining the streets for a parade of horses and their riders, trucks with music and loaded with people.Joy was in the air!I wanted to stay and party with them, but it would soon be getting dark and I did not want to have to walk back to my hotel by myself in the dark.

Saturday - Day 2

I set off early for the bus station because I did not have a reserved ticket. Because of the long weekend I was afraid I might be out of luck.But things could not have gone smoother for me all day.I have heard stories about how you have to be prepared to wait in Ghana, nothing leaves right away, but that was not the case for me.My bus left Accra only a half hour after it was scheduled to depart. The bus had big, cushy, leather seats and air conditioning.It was a great way to travel!It was about a 4 hour ride to Kumasi where I caught a taxi to the tro tro station.The tro tro was full when I got there and we left right away.It was an amusing ride in a van packed full of people that were laughing and joking with each other.In Techiman I caught a shared taxi to Nkoranza, the town that I now call home.In Nkoranza I caught a taxi of my very own that dropped me off at my doorstep for less than $1.In total, my eight hour journey cost 25 cedis.One cedi is worth less than a Canadian dollar.So it was very affordable and quite enjoyable!A new adventure!

So now I am adjusting to life in Ghana.The people are wonderful and I am enjoying it.But culturally it is quite a change.Right now we are in a rainy season.For me it is always hot, but for the locals it is the cool season.The rain does bring the temperature down.Every day it is sunny and hot.Sometimes the rain does come, but always there is sun at some time.Because we are near the equator, every day is twelve hours long.I have adjusted to waking up just after the sun, about 6am.The sun starts setting at 6pm and by 6:30 it is dark again.It is an early end to the day!I work until my adopted son is finished his supper - between 5:30 and 6pm.So it gets dark while my co volunteer and I are cooking supper.And then it is a pretty quiet evening.

Perhaps I can talk more about Ghanaian culture another day!