Three Days in Accra; Tomorrow, Winneba and Cape Coast

7/9/17

Sunday, a trip to the mall for money, cell phone minutes and most importantly ICED COFFEE! After a morning of reading and writing at the cafe we meandered over to SkyBar. A ritzy bar in one of the tallest building in Ghana. The students discovered the bar and convinced Michael, our Accura guide, to take us over. It had a fabulous view of the city. We enjoyed watching airplanes take off from the international airport and the students taking selfies.  Unfortunately, I did not have my camera, again. I had planned to stay at the cafe to get more work done. I did get a few nice panoramic shots with my iPhone. The rest of the day was spent writing and doing laundry.

7/10/17

Today was another good day— in part because it was the first day that we had more sun than clouds. What a glorious blue blue day! We had a relativity easy day— a brief lecture and interaction with a wonderful woman named Gifty.. After a our daily commute to Korle Blu we had a lecture from the the director of the National AIDS Control Program. He was a fantastic lecturer. Before he started he took, a bit more time than necessary to get to know each student. We learned later that he was stalling for his boss who never showed up. However, he took what he learned about each of us and incorporated it into the feature as well as getting folks on their feat to demonstrate how HIV works. I now have a basic understanding of how the virus works and the basic strategies they are employing to defeat it. Primarily by focusing on the four areas HIV/AIDS effects and affects society. They focus on the economic, educaitonal, social and health aspects. While one person may be infected their community is affected by that impact. I would have lived to have heard more specific details about the education strategies they are employing to combat some of the some of the stigma around condom use. It sounds like their primary strategy is to take care of all the mothers which seems to be leaving a large number of undiagnosed men in the world/country. 

After the lecture Gifty shared her words of wisdom. She was quiet an inspiration. Two brief quotes that stood out to me were: “It is not the illness that defeats us but out mindset. When we change our mindset we change ourselves,” and “In this life, no one will do it for you, or make you happy, you have to happy yourself.” She serves as a reminder that you have a choice in how you approach life many challenges— and there are many in the world with more on their shoulders than you. 

After the lecture I enjoyed sitting next to Michaela as she got to know a sweet waiter who dotted on her throughout the lunch. Eventually he asked her if she had a moment, if she would come speak to him later. Apparently on previous trips a large number of the women would get purposed to by many of the men- but this is one of the first times that we’ve had a young man ask for her contact information, with grace. After dinner we went to an amazing art studio— they had an incredible breadth of artwork, wood carvings, books, beaded necklaces, prints and dynamic paintings ranging from abstracts, scenic silhouettes to portraits of Obama. It was certainly a highlight— particularly for someone who isn’t thrilled about all the medical lectures.  

Full of beauty, next to the ocean!

Aoife, Adrian and Claire

And next door to the museum, a small dump. The sea is also full of trash.

7/11/17

Tuesday was another eventful day— we visited two markets including the artisan market where many students were overwhelmed on our second day in the city. This time we were prepared and many of the students did well bartering. The first market we went to was predominantly a fabric market. We bought brightly colored fabrics adorned with broad, bold patterns. In the stalls are reams of cloth hanging from stall windows and stacked like wood cabins reflecting light like bright candy. Many of the students are hoping to get the fabric made into parachute pants, skirts and shirts by various local artisans who Dr. Johnson has met over the years and has come visit us at the University Guest House. 

Everyone is tired after a busy morning of haggling...

After exploring the two markets we headed back to the University of Ghana for a lecture on Substance Abuse Treatment and Policy. It was give by a Bio-Medical Engineering Professor who used to do research (and probably teach) at Northeastern. Unfortunately, his lecture focused primarily on the scientific reasons for addiction and a drug that he has researched and helped to develop that antagonizes the brain so that you no longer have cravings. It was a disappointment. All in all, it was a lovely day.