He put me on hold and then Britney Spears Christmas came on....

I am sitting on the front porch of my home stay, and the beautiful African rain is just coming down! In the distance massive thunderclaps can be heard and are far more intense than anything I've ever heard back home. I'm in heaven. This of course is my state after being caught in the rain for the first time since arriving. We had our scheduled plan for the day cancelled last minute due to an unforeseen illness (not me...no need to worry!), so we had planned to get several errands done in town. Unfortunately, the only thing we were able to accomplish was some research and an unnecessary cookie purchase. By the time we walked the driveway home we were soaked...but it was marvellous! It's hard to believe that only a few hours ago I got up early to hand wash some clothes (which are now semi-drying in my room)! It's funny though, knowing the rain was getting closer the vendors at the market moved quickly to get their goods indoors, marking the first time in my two weeks in Ghana that I noticed anyone moving fast!

This past weekend we had a holiday on Monday giving us an extra day to explore and adjust to life here. After a fairly frustrating day on Friday, we were pretty excited to do some fun things that would give us a needed mental break from work. On Saturday morning we awoke at our regular time, quickly ate breakfast, and then made our way into town to meet up with some of our YMCA partners and boarded the trotro. Our destination you ask? Boti Falls and Umbrella Rock! Both located at the same park, the trip there is approximately half an hour give or take. The first stop upon arrival was down what seemed like only a few steps on the way down (but felt like twenty flights of stairs on the way back) to Boti Falls. Basically this is two waterfalls which cascade into a pool of murky brown water below. It is believed that one is female and the other is male. This is a common theme of this park, as there is also a rock that has an imprint of what looks like male and female genitalia (sorry folks - there's no photographic evidence of this, but it exists I can assure you!) and another rock that the locals believe if you sit on it you will have twins (and you can bet I avoided testing that theory without a second thought!). I think we spent about an hour or so taking pictures and taking in the sights before making our way up those dreadful stairs.

Next we took a short break to catch out breath, chug some water, and have a few snacks. Then we made our way to Umbrella Rock, which is a rock that has eroded in such a way that it creates an umbrella type shape.

Just hanging out under a massive rock that could crush us if it decided to fall... 

To get there we started by following a group of school kids, and it seemed fairly easy, until we reached what I will only refer to as the moment I realized just how out of shape I am, or a very steep decline down a mountain I was not even aware I was on. Good times. This might also be a good time to mention I have a highly arthritic left knee that doesn't usually take too kindly to what I was about to subject myself to. But, thanks to my stubbornness and my ever present willingness to fall to peer pressure, I began to make my way down the cliff. I'm not going to lie, it really hurt. And by the time we made it to "the cave that can hold over 300 people" I was pretty much done. Well, that was until someone said it wasn't to bad of a trek to the Rock. They lied. To get to Umbrella Rock we had to climb back up that same cliff but at a different spot. It was a struggle for sure, even though my teammate Megan (who also has a bad knee) managed to do it while carrying a baby someone randomly gave her! When we made it to the top, it was beautiful. I was pretty happy that I kept going. We enjoyed the views, had several photo ops and then began what I was told for the second time would be a much easier, much quicker alterative route back. And once again, they lied.

As we walked along a dirt road in the intense heat of the sun, I realized I was entrusting my safety (and that of my fellow volunteers) to two guys we barely knew. Hands down probably one of the stupidest things I've ever done. ...but it sure beat having to climb down and then up that mountain again! Scott - I had the necklace you gave me on, so I knew I was safe! Since our day ended much later than we anticipated, we returned home and to be honest I can't really remember what we did other than relax and then go to bed at our usual 7pm.

Sunday meant church day. As you may remember it wasn't such a great experience last week. This week  I went to the church across the street from home with my home stay family, and what a difference! I'm not willing to change my believes by any means, but I've gotta say hearing a room full of beautiful harmonies bouncing off the acoustics within this semi-constructed building was so incredible it made my heart smile. I didn't even know what they were singing about because pretty much the entire three hour sermon was in the local language of twi (pronounced ch-wee). Afterwards we returned home and had some watermelon with what I'm quite certain had a 4 billion to one ration of seed to bite! It wasn't quite as sweet as what we would get at home, but it was really tasty. The rest of the day we spent relaxing and reading.

Our Monday began with a quick breakfast, before we made our way out the door and headed to meet William (our program coordinator) in town for adventure number two over the long weekend. This time we met William (who was dressed as if he were preparing for a tennis match - towel and all) and began walking to a part of Koforidua we hadn't yet been to. The purpose of this trek was to climb "the mountain," which is he only way we've had it referred to, and what might also be referred to as "how to test if arthritic knee pain is real!" Hint: it is.

Hiking this mountain consisted of nothing more than walking up the road that goes to the top. But this particular mountain's peak is the highest in Koforidua. We were told it would take us an hour and a half each way, which you might realize doesn't make much sense, being as it usually takes less time on the way down (thanks gravity!). At the base of the road, it was 8:25am and after a very hot and at times steep incline, we successfully made it to the peak just short of 9:30. We found a side trail at the top that took us to a beautiful look off, where we could see the entire city! It was pretty awesome! William handed out a choice of apple or pineapple drink and we all happily sipped away while snapping photos. And this is where William transitioned from "William" to "William the can crusher"! After we each finished our drinks he proceeded to crush each can with virtually no effort and in no time. I have video to prove this. It was epic.

Koforidua from the top!

Yours truly and William

On the way back William and I discussed what the future of his son might look like when he reaches our age. Then I proceeded to scare the poor guy by telling him about Global Dimming and upon me finishing my rant my knee gave out and I slid "gracefully" down the road ...like 5 inches, but it's way funnier to imagine me doing so for a longer distance (I think anyway)! I also enjoy that this fall happened within 10 feet of finishing the hike. Classic Emily.

So there you have it...I climbed 2 mountains in three days and still sunburn free! I'll check in again soon!

- the Orange Canadian

Week 2, Attempt 2: Or, why technology and I are not friends!

I can't believe I'm finishing up my second week here in Ghana! So far there have been a few challenges, but nothing I can't handle. The biggest challenge is perhaps the pace of life here. I'm so accustomed to a usual routine of go-go-go, which is pretty much the complete opposite of how things work here. This week began with a series of meetings in Koforidua. For two days we went here and there meeting with our local partners, which was great except what should have taken us maybe half a day took us two not quite full days. The 'workaholic' in me is struggling greatly, but this is by no means a hindrance on my experience!

On Wednesday we travelled to Nsawam to meet with the partner we'll be working with there (and where I had the pleasure of experiencing my first bout of diarrhea - yeah, you're all welcome for that image!). The drive to and from was beautiful, despite being smashed in the back of the trotro! While in Nsawam, we visited three of the schools we'll be working with- all of which were quite different. The first was a wealthy-ish Catholic school. The second was a newly forming school for youth unable to afford private school in the area. Now, when I say newly formed, I mean they are literally building the school piece by piece as the students are studying. The third school was an all girls school, which was stunning. The drive to and from was beautiful, but was also where we all got a glimpse of "poor Africa". However, the most eye-opening point of the day was the realization that this third school, along with the surrounding neighbourhood, relied on boreholes as their main source of water. In this moment I felt this heavy overwhelmedness (which I'm fairly certain is not a word), that I have so much work to do, and none of it relates to why I'm a actually here! Writing about these issues briefly in my thesis does not compare to the reality of the situation staring you in the face. David (because I know you're reading this) - why did you encourage me to study water issues in Africa?! 

Thursday was semi-similar to to Wednesday, except we spent double the time smashed into the trotro headed to Asamankese. Again the drive was spectacular, and the purpose of the visit was the same. The highlight on this adventure, however, was our brief stop at the YMCA school, where we were surrounded by tiny children excitedly waving and trying to touch us... except for that on little boy we made cry because we we're white! (Still got it!) Seriously though, this quick stop was one of the most delightful moments of my life!

I look like a giant!

Check out those tiny little faces waving good-bye!

So, that's what life has been like for me this week. We have a long weekend ahead of us, so we're hoping to do a little hiking and sightseeing over the next few days.

Before I sign off, I want to address two things:

1. A number of you have asked what the washroom situation is like at the home stay. Well, we have two rooms - one has a toilet in it, but there is no sink (thank goodness for that excessive supply of hand sanitizer we all brought!). The second room is a shower, which just so happens to be home to the most amazing waterfall-like shower, thus making it incredibly difficult to stick to my 5 minutes or less rule. 

2. I had fully intended on uploading pictures to each of these blog posts, but unfortunately, the cord my tablet requires to attach to my camera isn't working. I am hoping to be able to fix this soon, but rest assured I am taking plenty of pictures and video to share with you when I get back. Handled! ...I hope!

I hope you are all doing well back home! Until next time... the Orange Canadian

Spotted: Conrad Murray

So here it is the first Sunday I am in Ghana. So far my experience has been good. One of my fellow volunteers, Megan (who insists I share with everyone that she's awesome - which she is), invited me to join her for church, to which I accepted. This was partly out of curiosity and partly because I didn't want for here to go alone the first week. Well, it turned out that church was cancelled that week due to a conference in Accra. We started on our walk home when we passed by a Pentecostal church. Being as neither of us had experienced church in Africa we decided to see if we could join in. There were two seats at the back, which we had hoped we could sit on, but they insisted we sit at the front, where everyone proceeded to either video or take pictures of us as we walked to our seats. This level of "celebrity" is something we've experienced since arriving in Ghana, but perhaps not to this extent.

Church was already in progress when we arrived, so the room was quite lively. The preacher (or whatever he's called - ignorance is bliss!) Was practically yelling at those in attendance. And that's when I realized, either Conrad Murray was before me, or he has a relative in Ghana! This of course was only the beginning of what turned out to be one of my top 10 most terrifying moments in life! What followed was something I'd watched in a Donna Seamone class. On a screen it seemed interesting, but when a grown woman is twirling around screaming and then falls to the floor a foot away from you convulsing because the spirit found her, it's not quite the same! Needless to say I'll be passing on this in the future!

Sunday ended on a spectacularly high note - our first African rain! I captured some video of it which I'm hoping to be able to edit together and post here. It was so refreshing after a fairly warm few days. Most of us watched it from the front porch, while a few others danced about in the yard. It was absolutely breathtaking ago witness the power of the rain. And thus began rainy season...

-the Orange Canadian

Listen inside, Listen outside...

Greetings from Ghana!

I have arrived safely in Koforidua, after spending a few days in Accra. It's pretty warm, but I'm not finding it as difficult as I had imagined. I have no idea what the temperatures have actually been, other than hot!

On the flight flying into Accra I witnessed an incredible lightening storm! Upon arrival there was a light rain, which felt pretty great after sitting on a plane for nearly 7 hours. I had no problems with luggage or getting through "customs"!

Freddie (a senior project manager) was there to greet us, and from there were went straight to the hostile we spent 2 nights at. The first two days basically consisted of orientation, although the first morning Freddie took us on a "Cole's Notes" tour of Accra.* We had lunch at a restaurant that rested near the Atlantic (the title of this post is from one of the walls at this place...even thought it was pertaining to the fact that in the night time it's a dance bar, I thought that it might make for an interesting mantra for the trip...). ESSTers - the amount of plastic collecting in the water was heartbreaking! We need to do better! Other sights included Black Star Square, the Freedom Arc, and Dr. Kwame Nkrumah's Mausoleum.

The drive to Koforidua was beautiful! We drove through mountains, forest, and even passed by Bob Marley's wife's house!

The home stay is pretty great. I am sharing a room with three girls, and have the pleasure of sleeping on 2 of the sketchiest sets of bunk beds I've ever encountered. If I don't come home, it's because they broke, and I've been flattened.

(If you look close - that's a map of Nova Scotia hanging on the wall...and I didn't bring it. It was just waiting there for me!)

The food is AMAZING! Lots of spice! Unfortunately, there aren't many fruits or vegetables, but we're trying to get as much in as we can.

I'm sorry if this seems rushed and kind of all over the place! I feel like I have so much I want to share with you all, but can't process it enough to actually make coherent sentences!

This coming week we will be meeting with our partners. The group is also making plans to spend the long weekend in the north, as well as another trip to Cape Coast. I'm super excited to be here, and am looking forward to seeing what the next 11 weeks will bring. As of now, it looks like I will only have internet access once a week, so I'm hoping I will be able to update you all at that time!

I hope all is well back home!

-Abena (the Orange Canadian)


*Note: For those of you too young to understand whats Cole's Notes are, it's a condensed, easily digestible version of something, generally a book, but in this case a major city.

One year ago today...

One year ago today I awoke to the sound of my Gramma giggling. I had just been dreaming that I was in Africa, and that I awoke to see the continent I have longed to visit for sometime. Little did I know that at that exact moment she passed away. Now, one year later I am hours away from departing for that trip to Africa... What a crazy year this has been!  

Perhaps it is lack of sleep, or the fact that I still have about 20 items left to complete on my todo list, which is preoccupying my mind, but I feel surprising calm today. This is unusual for me to be in this state prior to a trip of any kind! I think, really, it may just be the fact that for the first time in my life I feel fearless. I feel strong. And, I've also swallowed my Malaria pills two days in a row! 

Yesterday I did something I was reluctant to do - attend my undergraduate graduation. Despite the fact that I got a lovely sunburn, and was forced to say 'good-bye' to an overwhelming amount of people, I'm actually really glad I sucked it up and went! I'm thankful I had these final moments with so many people that I love, because as I've learned this past year, we have no control over what happens in life. I wanted to make sure that everyone knew I loved them, and appreciated them, regardless of whether they were physically in attendance, or there in spirit! This way, if something happens to me throughout this pending journey, or something happens to one of them, there are no regrets. 

My heart is so overwhelmed with happiness and love from the last few weeks of the various visits and activities I have involved myself in. Seeing the pride on my brother, step-dad, and grandmother's faces has made everything I have been working towards worth it - even if it meant not having my Mom there to share it with. 

I cannot wait to share my coming experiences with you! See you on the other side (of the world!)! 

the Orange Canadian

PS AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! I'm going to AFRICA! NO MORE SLEEPS! 

2 more sleeps...

With only two more sleeps to go, the excitement is starting to kick in! This past week has been overwhelmingly hectic, but filled with lots of visits and coffee with people I love! To conclude my week of stress-filled, pre-travel craziness, I spent the day shoving the items I will need for the next 3 months into 2 bags (only to be 'interrupted' by a new friend who gave me some amazing insight!). I'll be honest, I didn't think it was possible to cram 12 shelves of SPF 1 million* into so little space, but I am happy to report that I have successfully done so!

Tomorrow I will spend my last full day in Nova Scotia graduating. I'm not going to lie, I'm not overly excited about this, but at least it will keep me busy enough to be able to get through the day! Tomorrow also marks my first day for taking my Malaria prescription a.k.a the first of 96 horrible pill swallowing days** (stay tuned for updates!)!

Two more sleeps and all packed up. Come on a-venture - I'm ready for you!

the Orange Canadian


*SPF 1 million is a fictitious sunscreen protection level. Anything beyond SPF 30 is unnecessary, even if it does come in containers marked up to SPF 110! Furthermore, I did not actually pack 12 shelves of sunscreen. 
**There will not be 96 full days of horribleness, only 96 moments of horribleness on account of my irrational fear of swallowing pills!

It's all beginning to sink in...

It's hard to believe that just over 5 months ago I received the phone call telling me that I had been accepted into the placement I am less than a week from departing for. Where have these days, weeks and months gone?

As May 12th nears closer and closer, I will admit, I am becoming more and more anxious. Really, this started a little over a week ago, when I woke up in the middle of the night in a panic after finally realizing that I only had 2 weeks left in the country I have lived my entire life, minus a few weeks of vacation over the years. Everything I have ever known is about to change. While I am extremely excited for these coming experiences, I am also becoming increasingly nervous. The idea of leaving my family and friends for 12 weeks is now overwhelming to think about, but this in itself is something that excites me, for I am realizing this trip isn't about running away from all that I have been faced with this past year. I'm about to embark on adventure I have been dreaming about for nearly half of my life! How crazy is that?!

One thing that has been really amazing over the last few weeks has been revisiting old spots I loved as a child and as I grew into adulthood, while rekindling and reinforcing some amazing friendships along the way. In the last few months, I have reconnected with a friend from nearly a decade ago, visited a trail I used to use to train when I was running, attended a concert from my favourite childhood musical act the Backstreet Boys with my childhood best friend (and one of my present day best friends), I've spent time sitting under a tree collecting thoughts and daydreaming about what's to come, and had endless cups of coffee and laughs with many of the people I love just to name a few things. I have never felt more overwhelmed with love and support as I have this past year. I have never felt so lucky to be surrounded my so many people who are eagerly awaiting tales from the road. People who are equally, if not more, excited for my journeys ahead. It is all of these things that make my heart fill with so much happiness that it makes my eyes cry! I am one lucky gal.

It is less than one week away from departure. It is less than one week until I realize a dream I have dreamt since I was a child - even if the context and motivation has changed (although I'm still determined to snuggle a lion!)! I am saying good bye to everything and everyone I have known and loved, and despite the panic that washes over me, or the sadness I sometimes feel when I think about how much I'll miss home, for the first time in my life, I am ready for this. Holy doodle! I am ready to live!

the Orange Canadian