...OK, I'll be honest. Parts of this road, named simply "Ghana Main Road", aren't paved at all.
Hello from Wa in the Upper West Region of Ghana!
My host, George Guri and a driver, Dominic, picked me up at the Agape Guest Lodge around 6:15 a.m. this morning. We arrived in Wa at 7:30 p.m. There was plenty to see (too much to see) and do along the way.
In Ghana, Accra is its own modern world. Once we we wound our way out of Wa - in some convoluted way to avoid early morning traffic jams and led by George's brother Don - the road got much quieter.
Ghana has a huge problem with air pollution. There are no controls on exhaust fumes from cars and trucks, so the road to Wa was, first of all, very smelly. I'm going to have to down a whole lot of antioxidants to counter that.
There are a few large cities along the way - Kumasi, Weinchi, Boila, etc. But you have to remember that "Large City" is relative and that "large city" doesn't necessarily mean amenities...just more people.
As we made our way north, long stretches of paved road gave way to bumpy, unpaved areas that were under construction. But these areas didn't slow us down as much as the many times we had to stop to avoid hitting miscellaneous goats. I say "miscellaneous" because they didn't seem to belong to anyone, they just seemed to be wandering around. Everywhere. Why did the goat cross the road and stop in the middle to lay down? No idea, folks.
Travel in Ghana is apparently different that any car travel I've done. There are no rest stops and no real desire to rest. Lunch was a few of these frozen yogurts in bags - like an ice cream bar without a stick. You let it melt and then Dominic pulls out his machete from under the seat, slits it open and you drink it. Yeah, the machete under the seat was a bit of a surprise to me, too!
And areas to...let's just say it...go to the bathroom in a manner an American would expect to do that...are few and far between. The reason for this is that men just go by the side of the road. I read once that "Life in Ghana happens along the roadside" and this is true. The roadside is full of vendors selling melons, oranges, bananas and bags of cold water, men urinating in ditches, children pointing and waving at the apparently rare Obruni, and the occasional naked guy walking aimlessly. George, by the way, did not approve of the miscellaneous goats, most of the vendors OR the naked guys.
Driving north the vegetation turms from deep green jungle-type stuff to savannah. We stopped a couple of times - for gas, a restroom break for me at one of the two places along this journey George felt were good enough for a woman, and a couple of times for fruit. - where George haggled endlessly while Dominic mostly just wanted to get going.
It's clear to me that there are no white persons much outside of Accra. I was looked at curiously (as in "What's that Obruni doing riding with those two African dudes?") but we were never stopped at any of the numerous police checkpoints. Children along the roadsides mostly waved and smiled, and were delighted when I waved and smiled back. I'm sure I was their first Obruni.
I do believe I insulted a girl when I wouldn't buy her avocado. Sheesh! She wanted C$5 for one avocado. Even an Obruni knows that's not right.
Four years ago, my church started supporting needy children in the Upper West region of Ghana by sending money for school uniforms, shoes and supplies. After years of emails, letters, cards and sparse phone calls, the time has finally come for me to step boldly where no one from my church has stepped before ... on the road to Wa.
It's a man's world on the road to Wa?
ReplyDelete