Day 1 in Ghana

No pictures yet, I have limited internet time and won't have the ability to upload the big photo files here. I should be able to soon, though.

It's hard to believe I've been here for just 24 hours. This time last night I was disembarking a British Airways flight on the Kotoka runway with 12 fellow students and 2 professors. It's worth noting that 12 is not what it should have been, as we had to leave 1 student behind. Ironically enough, he's the one who was born in and is a citizen of Ghana. To keep the story short, the UK handles a very small, specific law differently than the U.S, so he had to be rerouted through Germany and arrived just recently instead of last night with us.

If anyone had any doubts, it is HOT. Not so hot in terms of the actual temperature, but this redefines humidity. It's not all bad though, as air conditioning feels even more remarkable than I would've thought.

So, what's happened so far?
Well, the airport was a very intense experience. People swarmed to us as soon as we left the gates, introducing themselves and being friendly only to quickly grab your bag - not to steal it, but to carry it and then use it as a way to "demand" a tip. I was under the initial impression that all those around us were friends of the professor's, as a few were, but was taken aback when I was asked harshly for a $24 tip from 3 different people. I began to feel overwhelmed, a feeling many of my peers have shared that they too felt when walking out of the airport, and caved. I was $20 poorer for that mistake. It was the first and last time I'll make it.

Please, though, don't get the wrong idea. The people are very, very welcoming. If you had to feed your family, you might have done the same thing. The country has many people deep in poverty. It's not as though they took the money from me after all. Our hotel, the Afia Beach Hotel, is very nice. The food is good if a bit pricey, but that doesn't matter as Bentley's footing the bills whenever we're together as a group. After a meal and a bit of exploration, we called it a night.

This is at Afia Beach Hotel taken shortly after waking up on Day 1 in Ghana. Seems like a great place to swim, right? Not quite. What you can't see is the trash that cover much of the beach (although there are ongoing projects that attempt to mitigate this problem). Sanitary issues aside, the violent undertow makes it pretty dangerous to go in the water. Did anyone spot the wild dogs?

Breakfast was set at 7 AM sharp despite us all suffering from jet lag, and marked the beginning of what has been a long day. After eating, we went for "a walk". Now this walk turned out to be yet another nearly overwhelming experience. Just a minute or two walk from our hotel lies an incredibly desolate village/landfill. Yes, the two terms could essentially be used interchangeably. There simply is no adequate sanitation system in Accra and the result is an impossibly difficult buildup of waste and trash.

On our way to the slums. This is within a few minutes walking distance of our hotel.

Food isn't just hard to come by for people it seems. On the other hand, it might not be uncommon to see a pig do this in the U.S., either.

Walking up the path you see here was part of my sudden realization that I wasn't in America anymore.

At the end of our walk through this village lay a number of gift shops that tourists frequently visit, so we as white Americans quickly became the target of dozens of Ghanaian salespeople. Calls of "Come into my shop and have a look," or "Hello Friend" surrounded us as we walked.

I think I shook more than twenty hands on the way, again, everyone greeted me with a warm smile and a "welcome" or "Akwaba" (meaning welcome"). Wow, what an experience. Imagine dozens of extraordinarily friendly telemarketers calling you all at once. I maintained my discipline and didn't buy anything, though.

I failed to mention this in the blog, but we visited the Diaspara Ambassador to the U.S. on day 1 as well. I love this picture not only because of the Bentley t-shirts, but also for the sunglasses! Those are leftover sunglasses that I ordered for Bentley Interfraternity Council at the spring activities fair. They read "Bentley IFC" on the side of the frame and I brought along over 100 to give as gifts throughout our trip.

After this we headed to a few sustainability projects, Trashy Bags and Biofil, to learn more about how Ghana is attempting to combat its sanitation issues through business. If anyone is looking for a company to keep an eye on down the road, check out Biofil (if they even have a website). I am serious when I say that these people are brilliant and have likely found a solution to the waste issues Ghana and other 3rd world nations face. U.S. foundations have taken notice and Biofil has a bit of capital backing now, too. The founder of Biofil whose name eludes me at the moment is an incredible person with a background in mechanical engineering. He taught himself all there is to know about aerobic waste treatment.

This is at Trashy Bags. All of these bags will be processed into usable items like the one you see in the following photo!

Here's Niraj donning one of Trashy Bags' many items for sale in their store. Niraj is originally from Nepal and is working for KPMG in Accra this summer.

Here, Isaac of Biofil  is showing the group how the system itself works. The home I'm staying in actually uses this technology and I can only say that there is no noticeable difference between it and the wasteful (no pun intended) water based systems that we rely on in the States. This is not what your system would look like if you already have a toilet in your home of course. Rather, this setup can be used wherever a toilet is needed. It might seem like a petty topic to go on about, but my time spent here has really highlighted the importance in of available toilets in the economic development of third world countries.

To keep this blog from going on for miles, I'll conclude with my latest big discovery. I'll be living with the founder of Biofil's wife's sister, whose name also eludes me. I'm almost 100% certain that I'll be living there with another student, Max, who is originally from Haiti and now attends Bentley as well.

Here's a photo of Max, my fellow intern at PwC and living mate for the summer.

Again, pictures to come as soon as I can. I'll likely first post the photos that fit best with this entry and then post more when I make my next one.

The geckos here are huge! This one isn't as large and colorful as many that I've seen, but was an easy camera target as it basked in the sun in the dining area of our hotel.

This is Joe (short for Jehoshopat). He's my other PwC intern buddy. Joe was born in Ghana and has come to Bentley to study. It's exciting to be working alongside him as he's really helped me get over some fears and get out of my comfort zone (more on this in a later blog!) 

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