Ghana Part I

Judy and me at Africa beach

In Ghana I didn't know what to expect. I thought the two ports, Takoradi and Tema, that we were about to visit would be one of two things, either smaller developing cities in between a whole lot of farmer land (similar to what I'd seen in India) or completely undeveloped towns of dirt roads and shacks (similar to the stereotypical images that comes to mind when someone mentions Africa). The reality was somewhere in the middle of these two scenarios. But, in both ports I was greeted by warm and friendly people. This I've decided makes a port for me. If the people are welcoming then I don't care if I'm sleeping in a concrete room with a thatched roof and goats outside of my door (which I did on my village homestay) or visiting the fanciest of city centers.

For the first two days in Takoradi, I eased into Ghana. I got off the ship mid-morning with the goal of visiting the local market for a couple hours and then off to a ocean hotel with my friends Judy and Louise who had discovered the "African Beach Hotel," on their last voyage in the spring.

As soon as I was off the ship, I was immediately struck by the heat and the smells (a mixture of sewage and other pungent scents) of the area. Next to the ship, merchants had set up stands of goods for sale--glass beaded braceleta, handmade shirts and pants, paintings, bags with colorful fabric, if it could be made, it was being sold (these same merchants packed up their goods and relocated next to our ship in Tema ready to sell to us for two more days). As I passed by each table the sellers called out encouraging me to buy, "Madame have a look," "Madame come inside," "Please see what I have." Ignoring these calls felts strange and rude, but it was necessary to get past without buying anything.

The port was too far away to walk to the Takoradi market so we were shuttled to the port gates. This was the most stressful part of the experience--being dropped off at the port gates made us sitting ducks for the hawkers (much more aggressive than the sellers near our ship) that swarmed us encouraging us to buy their cheap bracelets, necklaces, and hats. If you mentioned your name aloud, two minutes later you would have a bracelet made for you on the spot and handed to you with the expectation that you would pay money in return. The only way to survive was to not make eye contact and talk to no one or play along until a cab came to the rescue.

The narrow paths through the market

The market in Takoradi is winding series of alleyways and stalls. Here you could buy the weekly groceries, shoes, underwear, the latest dance music and even have one of the tailors make new clothes.




This was not a market for tourists, this is where the local families shopped for their daily goods.

Stall of bath products

We were warned in advance that people in Ghana would not want their picture taken so I stuck to taking pictures of the produce. My favorite was the baskets of pre-grilled chili peppers.

Grilled chili peppers

The women managing the booths in the market looked tired and bored. It was not a major market day and we were some of the only people walking by. Halfheartedly they would try to sell to us, but it was clear we were not going to buy used shoes or dried fish. Some of the ladies thought it would be fun to try to sell to us anyway. A lady selling crabs asked us to make a purchase. "We have no kitchen." we said. "I'll find you a kitchen," she responded. "I'll make you a good soup with crabs and vegetables," she teased pointed to everything she was selling.

Live crabs for sale

This seller teasingly called me her sister. [Picture taken by Louise].

Several hours of wandering through the maze of stalls in the market was enough. It was mostly the heat that made it hard to spend too much time exploring. When we had had our fill, Judy, Louise, and I found another cab (and started a huge fight among the cabbies as to who would get our fare) and headed to Africa Beach.

Small shops outside of the hotel

This was a small oasis away from the town and away from SASers (what we fondly call the students on our ship). It was mostly filled with local couples on dates and dock workers escaping their ships for a few days (just like us).  It was a perfect place to relax, swim in the pool, read a book, and watch the ocean. This was all preparation for the village homestay that was to come.

Ocean view from the hotel