The weekend
Office this morning, then back to Kwamo in the afternoon.
I met up with the girl in the Peace Corps, Jennifer, who we gave a lift to a couple of weeks ago. She’s been here over two years and speaks Twi really well, which seems to get a pretty good reaction from locals. We went out for kebabs and hung out for a while. She’s really nice and knows a ton about the area. She also brought Dijon mustard along, which was a nice addition. Next weekend is American Thanksgiving, and they’re having a big dinner, so that will be great—turkey and apple pie.
Dr. Addae is going to Accra for a few days tomorrow (today when this gets posted) so I’m on my own for a few days. I’ll probably meet up with Martin on Tuesday for 2 for 1 pizza. I seem to have settled into a nice little routine here. Coming back is going to be so weird—this place is basically a different planet.
It’s now Sunday morning and I just wanted to write a bit about the Ashanti. They are the dominant tribe in Ghana and since I am in the heart of Ashanti almost everyone I talk to is one. They are incredibly proud people. They remind me a bit of Torontonians—“we run the show and to hell with the rest of you”—a statement that is both true and frustrating to outsiders. I found an interesting proverb of theirs: “If power is up for sale, then sell your mother to obtain it—once you have the power, there are several ways of getting her back!” It is strange, because the Ashanti place huge importance on community and family, but also put personal power as the highest goal one can aim for. They’re great people to be around and have a strong sense of identity. There are so many paradoxes about them. The reason they gained so much power in the first place was because of their role as the primary supplier of slaves in the region. They declined after slavery was abolished, but because they make up such a large percentage of the population, they’re back in power now.
I met up with the girl in the Peace Corps, Jennifer, who we gave a lift to a couple of weeks ago. She’s been here over two years and speaks Twi really well, which seems to get a pretty good reaction from locals. We went out for kebabs and hung out for a while. She’s really nice and knows a ton about the area. She also brought Dijon mustard along, which was a nice addition. Next weekend is American Thanksgiving, and they’re having a big dinner, so that will be great—turkey and apple pie.
Dr. Addae is going to Accra for a few days tomorrow (today when this gets posted) so I’m on my own for a few days. I’ll probably meet up with Martin on Tuesday for 2 for 1 pizza. I seem to have settled into a nice little routine here. Coming back is going to be so weird—this place is basically a different planet.
It’s now Sunday morning and I just wanted to write a bit about the Ashanti. They are the dominant tribe in Ghana and since I am in the heart of Ashanti almost everyone I talk to is one. They are incredibly proud people. They remind me a bit of Torontonians—“we run the show and to hell with the rest of you”—a statement that is both true and frustrating to outsiders. I found an interesting proverb of theirs: “If power is up for sale, then sell your mother to obtain it—once you have the power, there are several ways of getting her back!” It is strange, because the Ashanti place huge importance on community and family, but also put personal power as the highest goal one can aim for. They’re great people to be around and have a strong sense of identity. There are so many paradoxes about them. The reason they gained so much power in the first place was because of their role as the primary supplier of slaves in the region. They declined after slavery was abolished, but because they make up such a large percentage of the population, they’re back in power now.
posted by Tony at 2:53 p.m.
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