Ship Happenings! :D

B10 (10.10.2010)

Every B-day we have salsa lessons in the union and its really fun. Today, not only did we have lessons, we also had a Salsa night where people came down and we just shed our inhibitions and dances Salsa and Meringue, well our versions of the dance! :D It was soo fun even though I had to leave for a big portion of the night to do my group project for Emerging Market Class.

That night, we got caught in a storm. Everyone was outside on the deck, watching the huge waves crash, the lighting and thunder. Lighting on the ship is very interesting. For a moment, the sea and sky light up and everything becomes white, before turning pitch black again. It was amazing to see how excited students were that we were stuck in a storm!!

Its interesting how the little things like lightnings are so beautiful but back home, we’re never just admired them. I guess we get so caught up in our activities or TV, facebook, etc to admire. When stripped off all these frivilous things, we have more time for so many other things like writing a journal, admiring nature and having wonderful conversations with people actually and not through facebook wall posts. I’ve had such great conversations with people - from kids to lifelong leaners, to professors and fellow students. Its because we have time to actually sit down and talk. Its nice to have these conversations instead of talking through facebook wallposts!

I’m going to remind myself to TAKE THE TIME AND DO THESE LITTLE THINGS.

B11 (12.10.2010)

Open Mic Night!! Isn’t that interesting. The activities on the ship never seized to amaze me. We’ve had Karaoke night and now this. :D

We had several fantastic performances from poetry readings to stories and thoughts sharing. We had people play the guitar, piano and sing for us either existing songs or new compositions. Then Aaron did some AMAZING stand up comedy!! The number of talented people on the ship never seizes to amaze me. :D

People are so courageous to go up and perform, even when they have not much clue what they are going to do. Inhibition levels are much lower among the whites. I can do Indian Dance but its not very often that I would go up and decide to perform with so many people looking at me, especially if I haven’t practiced. I’m nervous about the presentations and speeches I have to give.

I’m having an AMAZING TIME on this voyage. No regrets at all for taking it. Academically, I’m performing quite well even without putting in much effort. All except in one class, but I don’t actually care that much for it anyway. :D

A12 (13.10.2010)


 Talking to Edger on the concept of self and individuality and he commented how that concept is alot stronger among Americans and I realized how true that it. They did what THEY wanted to do, from the school to the major they specialized in. I still needed to ask and consult not only my parents but my entire family had an opinion on it. Ultimately, I’m doing something that isn’t my first (Econs overseas) or my second (law) option. I enrolled in USP because my dad wanted me to, MPP because he thought it was a great idea. Where is what I wanted in the whole equation?? Alot of my identity has been shaped by what my parents and society perceive. There’s very little room for me to experiment and mould myself to be who I am.

Morre Africa!

Cape town:
Day 1: Walked around, saw the stadium and walked around more. Lunch at nandos. Supposed to hike table mountain but because of cloud cover, decided to do boulder. Reached train station and realized the last train back would be at 5 and we would miss it. Went to green market square and shopped for a bit. Then went to the mall, heard the concert for a bit and then did grocery shopping. Came back, headed out for a bit. Jazz club, walked down Long street.

Day 2: Woke early, hiked table mountain. Had lunch on top and then took the cable car down. Broke the group and went to district 6 instead, and since it was closed went to the castle. Was closed, but went in to use the washroom and ended up meeting the guards and talking. Took a visit to the Langa township and bought some local food. Came back, walked down long street and finished shopping. Ate at the shopping district.

Day 3: SAFARI.

Day 4: SAFARI - day Game drives and as well as the night drive

Day 5: SAFARI (cool spotting). Shopping at the mall, met a local shopkeeper, memorable conversation. Went out to a bar that night with the bunch and had an amazing time.

Day 6: Operational Hunger. Visited a school where we weighed the kids, a primary school where we heard the choir sing and donated a “one world” football to their school, lunch home and finally an after care place where we witnessed traditional African Dancing. Project done by a non-profit called Operational Hunger to help people living in Townships.

Here’s a bit more of the interesting parts of some of the days:

Day 1:

While walking around the city, I noticed several things. Firstly, the buildings all looked very new and the city in general was very clean. Secondly, even though it was a sunday, it was really really empty and quiet. There was no overcrowding or anything like that. Thirdly, among the few cars that we saw, many were great brands like ford and BMW convertibles, sports vehicles, etc. Fourthly, there were almost no one begging or asking for money, which was really interesting. It in no way reminded me of a developing country, with poverty!

Day 2:

While hiking, I met several interesting people. One of them was an old lady, with her husband from UK and they were visiting and daughter-in-law who live in Cape Town. She was talking about how UK and is and about places I should consider visiting. I also met two native South Africans and was talking to them about how South Africa has changed to accommodate the world cup. They told me how everything were revamped for the world cup and how homeless people, beggar were removed in an attempt to “clean” the city. They said they did not even know where these people were moved to, or what happened to them. We talked about townships and it was interesting to hear their opinions. Both of them advised me not to attend the townships, because that’s where crime thrives. They said they have never gone to one, only driven past and that too when they absolutely have to. They talked about how because of the income inequality, townships on whites and colored have started to sprout but are kept under the carpet. They talked about the ineffectiveness of affirmative action and the detrimental effect it has on whites trying to get a job. Most of their children work outside South Africa now. It was really interesting chatting to the locals about what they thought of Apartheid and their government’s actions. Neither of them liked their current president. I truly believe that traveling and trying to understand local cultures means talking to local people and in this port, I was at a good start.

We climbed to the top and enjoyed the view for a long time. We saw cape point, the southern most point of the African continent as well as the point where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Indian Ocean. I really wished I could have gone to see the point, but that just means I have more reasons to come back to South Africa. We had a long lunch at the restaurant on top and took the cable car down.

.....

we decided o see the district 6 museum, since I had heard so much about it. We took a cab down there, but unfortunately the museum was closed. On the map, there was a castle nearby and we decided to check it out, since we were there!

The castle wasn’t a castle. It was merely a fort. But still, we wandered inside and it was closed too. But Megan had to use the washroom and she asked the guards who allowed her to go in. While she was gone, I started talking to the guards/ military police and asked them about the best place to eat African food was. They told me it was the townships and that I should visit one definitely. They explained how during the townships, the blacks were pushed into one area and the malays into another, thus getting the malay village. I remembered Singapore doing that but we managed reintegration fairly successfully. Thanks to a small population and a dictatorial government. That began our conversation and we started talking about townships, how they work and Africa as a nation. One of them commented how the Apartheid hasn’t completely ended and the Blacks haven’t gotten freedom yet. While they had political freedom, they still do not have economic freedom and safety and they still live in places like townships, separated from society. They were really disappointed with their current political leaders because they felt that they hadn’t done much. We talked about leaders and one of them said they admired Oliver Tambo, who led the ANC when Mandela was in prison while the other admired Steve Bico. We started talking politics, comparing it to a place like India and the world cup. They worried about how the world cup may end up crippling their economy as so much money was pumped in and now its not being used. They were really interesting to talk to and I learnt so much from them.

After talking to them a bit more, they kept persuading me to visit a township, though they did say I should go with someone I know since it could be pretty daunting and difficult trying to figure it out alone and not get mugged by the locals. Soon, one guy suggested we ask another guy if he could bring us around the are for a bit, and we did. He told us he’ll bring us to Langa, the nearest township. He got changed, brought his car out to the front and we went in with both the guys. Throughout the whole time, I did not get a bad vibe from either one of the guys. Plus, it wasn’t them who offered or even started the conversation. We did. In the car, I asked Megan if we were being completely stupid, and she said she felt comfortable as well. Its really hard when you travel like this to be able to draw the line between being trusting and being stupid. In his car, one of the guys was talking to us about the languages her spoke - Afrikaans, Korsa, Sutu, Twala, Zulu and English and how we would say phrases in each of these. The words sound almost nothing like each other. One of the guy’s name was X!olani (click) and the other was Lulamile. We drove on the N2 to get to the township. The N2 stretches from Namibia to Peter St Marisburg, a place just after Durban.
 

Just as the car leaves the expressway that leads to Langa, its a whole new world! Graffiti on walls, Litter, ONLY blacks, small homes, broken windows, makeshift houses, small roadside cash shops, raw chicken on street, vegetable street vendors. These are just some of the things that immediately catch your eye. It is NOTHING like Cape Town, despite being only 10 minutes away. Hell, its nothing like the expressway a minute away!! The first few moments there was shocking. Things were unimaginably different. The houses were smaller and were of different kids. There were little apartments, about 3 floors, several building congregated in one area. There were little brick houses, that would have been maybe a 1 bedroom or at more 2 bedroom houses, with a luxury of a bathroom per house. As we drives further into the township, we see houses made of wood, of shipping container where the whole house was a single room. The shops were basically shacks, and people were selling everything by the side of the road. It felt alot like Ghana. We stopped at this little roadside food stall to try some African food. The lady in the shop used to work for Desmond Tutu’s foundation hospital and school but her mother got sick and so she had to leave the job and come back to the township to take care of her mother, and then she decided to set up such a stall. She tutors alot of the township kids and is determined to go back into working for a non-profit for the betterment of her people. When we told her we were sailing with Desmond Tutu, her face lit up. She’s held him in high esteem, just like all other South Africans I spoke to.

We then stopped at a local beer brewery. I don’t know if we can actually call it that, since people were making beer just outside a home in a dustbin and selling it. It was cool to watch them do it. Interestingly, their beer turns out white. The guy said the beer is very filing and creates a bloating effect, so after drinking the beer, you don’t feel like eating. I bet this was useful in the past, when they did not have that much to eat. We stopped at small schools, the schools were rundown, with few benches. Most kids would probably sit on the ground. We drove around the township a bit more before heading back. The guys explained the significance of Langa township. It was one of the earliest townships created during the apartheid time and the  nearest to Cape Town. Hence, the township had grown alot because of immigrant population. People come to Cape Town in an attempt to find work and end up there. There’s little electricity and clean water.

Touring a township, guided by two locals was an amazing experience. The stark contrast is something that hits you. Once you stratch the surface, you see a completely different place! I’ve seen extreme poverty and slums in India, and they are worse than this. But what hits you here is the contrast between the places. When asked about why upgrading efforts are not being made, the reply was that the government does not care enough. Its basically an “out of sight, out of mind” policy. Also, people don’t want to live in townships. They look at those as temporary housing. It reminds them of the segregation during the apartheid and that they are still in poverty, just so close to people living in million dollar properties. Interestingly, apartheid hasn’t completely ended in South Africa. I tried really hard, but no where did I ever see a Black and a White  talk or hang out together. Even the restaurants they eat at, clubs they party in seem different. Economically, they are at very different standpoints. I felt that the difference is deeply rooted and people haven’t been able to accept each other completely yet. Both sides still have some amount of resentment and feel the inequality. They are simply tolerating each other at the moment. Oh the facade Cape Town wears....

Day 3:

On the first day game drive, we saw elephants, giraffes, baboons, buffalos, and different kids of antelopes and birds. The elephants we saw were so near us, it was amazing. We saw a mother elephant guide her baby across the road while blowing her trumpet. It was amazing. We saw a couple of herds of elephants at the watering  hole. They gave us juice and chips as a break. It was amazing to spot animals in their natural environment, just walk and eat normally.

Back at the resort, we had a braii dinner. The food they gave us was absolutely delicious. No doubting that. They had amazing lemon meringue cupcakes, cheesecakes and pastries. After dinner, we went to sleep soon because we were so tired and we had to wake up so early. I got  to use some internet on Liz’s laptop.

Day 4:

The next day, we were up and ready to go by 5.30am after having a pre-breakfast and taking our breakfast packs. We took the same car as the day before with Stephan. The day was amazing. We saw so many different animals - elephants, giraffes, buffalos, zebras, hippos in water, monkeys, loads of antelopes, impalas, etc. The cars were connected by walkie-talkie radios so when one spotted an animal, we would all go there. So that way, one of the card spotted a lion and we all went. It was really far away but we still managed to see it, though through the zoom on some powerful cameras. When existing, I asked Stephan if its likely to see a leopard or cheetahs. He said that leopards though rare are spotted if one is lucky but cheetahs are not likely. There are so few cheetahs in the whole of Kruger that one is spotted once a month or something if we are lucky.

Before lunch though we heard that there was a leopard in a tree, eating an impala and we rushed to see it. It was amazing, the leopard was on a branch with the carcass. It then jumped down and disappeared for some time before climbing another tree. Though far, we managed to spot it. Stephan told us we were pretty lucky to be able to see this. Later though, we got luckier. We heard, while driving around that there was a cheetah somewhere and we drove there immediately to catch it. When we got there, we saw it on a rock, barely a couple of meters from the road. It was just sitting down and then it spotted a warthog across the road, ran across the road, just in front of our vehicle and chased the warthog for a bit. But since the warthog was big, it gave up pretty easily and just returned to the area, crossed us again and then walked around in the grass before disappearing. It was an amazingly rare sighting according to our guide. It was so enthralling seeing a real cheetah this close, in its natural environment. I was so exuberant.

We continued our tour, spotting more animals along the way. I took loads of pictures and videos of the animals in the safari. On returning to the hotel, we freshened up a bit before going for a night safari. They separated us into a big vehicle and a smaller vehicle. I was sitting in the front of a bigger vehicle. The driver of this vehicle wasn’t as friendly as Stephen. He stopped at all the animals and would explain to us what was going on there. We managed to see hyenas with its little cubs, which were really cute. The little cubs are very dark at first and then grow lighter and develop spots. As cubs, they look like regular cute dogs. We spotted hippos at the watering hole. We saw rhinos, which were cool because in all the day, we had not seen rhinos.  We did see a leopard crossing our vehicle again, which was amazing. It was probably looking for something to hunt, since they do their hunting at night. We managed to see hippos outside the water, which was also an interesting sighting. After a while though, once dark, our drive became more unenthusiastic and drove as his duty. He did not spot animals for us, not stopped much when one of us spotted animals, which was annoying. But then again, the people at the back of the vehicle were being annoying. They were making noises and talking when he talked. They were whistling, something that he told us not to do explicitly. In the day, most animals are used to the vehicles but at night, they aren’t used to vehicles in their natural environment. That’s why the park closes and you cannot drive your personal car in at night. So, we had to behave. Whistling and talking loudly was being stupid. Plus, they were smoking at the back; wanted to go to the bathroom and were asking about nightclubs. Evidently, they weren’t there for the animals.

Day 5:

That day, we spotted our usual animals, but we heard that there was a cheetah with its kill and Stephan rushed us there and it was the most amazing site ever. We did not see the cheetah kill, but we saw it with the food, just by the side of the road, barely 5m from us eating its kill. There were alot of cars there, but it did not bother the cheetah one bit. It continued feeding and remained in its natural environment, just as it would have. It walked around and scanned the area, before heading to a corner to sleep after its lunch. Stephan was amazed at that sight too, he said he had never seen a cheetah so close. Apparantly, there are only 150 - 200 cheetahs in teh whole of Kruger, and Kruger is more than 120000 acres. So that is really really rare.

But that wasn’t the only amazing sighting of the day. A while later, we heard that there were lions in an area and headed there. They were at a distance, but still closer than the ones that we had seen earlier. They were lying down, so I did not get to hear them roar or something like that. But we spent a bit of time looking at them. Following that, we heard there was a leopard somewhere and we rushed there as well. There, we managed to see a leopard just along the road. It walked along the grass for a bit, and came towards our car before crossing the road just in front of us. It came towards as and stopped. For a moment when it starred at us, I was actually a bit frightened. It was incredibly close. I mean, if I stretched my hand out of the car, I could have possibly patted it!!! It was an incredible sighting. We had a quick breakfast and saw the other usual animals as well. Well, when you see so many elephants, giraffes, zebras, impalas, and other deers they become usual sightings that you don’t even stop much for them.

That day was an amazing day and I was so glad I went for the game drive and not the lame elephant riding. We went to the airport and came back to Cape Town. That night, when we returned to the ship, we decided to head out and enjoy our last night in Cape Town. Before heading out for fantastic night, Candice, Brian, Megan and I went to the mall so I would be able to buy some last few souvenirs. At the market, I was talking to one of the shop owners and I asked her what her ethnicity was and she told me she was colored. She explained the concept of colored - they were mixed blood or people from the Caribbean region. She was very interested in the ship and learning onboard. She offered to bring me to see her other Indian friends in Cape Town that weekend, but I had to refuse it since we wouldn’t be around at that point. She asked me if I had noticed people staring at me as I walked around, and when I said I have, she explained the hierarchy of people in South Africa, during the times of the apartheid. First came the whites, then the colored, the chinese, Indians and lastly the Blacks. Indians were not considered colored! Thus, alot of the Indians stuck together. Even now, they live in particular areas, the biggest being in Durban and in some pockets of Cape Town (the richer areas). So, when they see me hanging out with a bunch of white people, many of them notice and they start to wonder. It made me realize why people were staring, why Indian families would start whispering something when they saw me and only smile sheepishly, almost like they didn’t want to associate themselves with me. I may be reading too much into it, but I found that interesting. Wendy, the shopkeeper, herself lives in Cape Town and her daughter is going to Paris to start her career as a fashion designer. We talked about how South Africa has changed since the apartheid to the world cup and what the future may hold.

Day 6:

The township of Kayaletshya was one of the biggest in Cape Town and there was close to 400,000 living there though it was build only for 12000 families initially. He talked about the clean water, electricity and sanitation problems this expansion has brought. We saw wires on the ground, that were live wires for electricity sharing between the houses, since many did not have it. Life in these townships was so simple. But many people here weren’t as happy as those we met in Ghana. My guess is that they see the luxury and the inequality and therefore aren’t contended with what they have. That’s how human psyche works isn’t it? We aren’t happy with what we have because we see someone who has better!

10 things about South Africa
1. SAFARI. The animals we saw were amazing, how can one not love them
2. Elephants. My favorite animals.
3. Table Mountain and the hike. The view is breath-taking and the hike fun. Plus, its my first mountain
4. Township visits. It was a chance of seeing the real South Africa
5. Taking to the locals. They were always really interesting experiences.
6. CHILDREN. The kids at operation hunger and other places were soooo adorable. One thing that’s the same everywhere is kids!
7. Brai. Delicious food at the safari spoilt me, the most tender chicken I have ever had.
8. Crafts and jewelry. I wish I had spent more on stuff. Shopping in South Africa is amazing.
9. The South African accent! It sounds alot like the Australian one, but it is still pretty sexy to hear, though I pick the British one over this.
10. The diversity of the country. From townships to million dollar property, within a few kms.

Ghana 2 - delayed post

The water village:

The boat ride to the village was amazing. It was almost an hour long and we went through narrow and wide water areas. The depth of the water increases from 1 feet, to 2 to 7 to 9 to 13 to 26 feet and beyond that as well. The scenary was amazing, it was water and greenery. We were lucky that we had gone in the rainy season, so we got to go in the canoe the entire distance. In the summer, alot of the river area dries up and one has to drive alot to get to near the village and only the last leg is done on the canoe. We went through 2 forests that were supposed to have monkeys but the villages had caught them and eaten them up. We also saw fences at the water front, which serves at gates to the village. The tour guide/rower commented that people would be thrown overboard if they were uninvited guests.

The scene leading up to the village was amazing. Greenery and houses on stilts. In the distance, we saw a woman rowing a canoe with her kid to the village. She was rowing it by herself. Here we were, with a guide and struggling to row the canoe, and she was doing it completely by herself, while looking after her kid as well. It seriously put us to shame. Beyond that, the fact that she was by herself, without any male companion or such was really heartwarming. In Ghana, the societies are matriarchal, meaning that inheritance s passed to women down generations. Also, each tribe and colony has something called “Queen Mothers” who resolve problems and conflicts taking place. So, instead of going to the judisciary, one could come to the Queen Mothers for help. Plus, the Mothers do alot for the society. They work in professions that contribute to societies, like teaching and nursing and one is even a radio DJ!! Megan met them and was telling me all the stories. Also, many of the high government positions in Ghana like secretary of state and some justice positions are being held by women. It was great to see women being empowered so much in Ghana. Coming staight from a place like Morocco, where it’s not safe to be walking alone to a place, within the same continent, where women are respected and treated so well was interesting. Also, its hard to see developing nations accrue rights and liberties to women and this was interesting. There aren’t that many matriarchal socities out there anyway!!

So, we finally got to the village and it was an amazing site. The village was split into rows and columns. Each column belonged to one large family. We got to see the oldest house in the village and the other houses. The houses had a small common room, with TV and such, and maybe one other room. I didn’t really see a toilet or a kitchen, so I’m guessing its alot of communal living there. The guide did say, that the toilet was shared. As we walked down, the kids would come up to us and ask us to take photos of them, wile they would pose in weird positions. Then, they would be so excited to see the photo on the digital frame, and they’ll point to show where they were, show it off to all their friends. It was amazing to see the kids playing and getting so excited over us taking photographs of them. There were kids everywhere along the “main street”. Some were selling food while other were playing or taking care of their siblings while helping in household chores. We walked passed their school, which was a very modest looking little hut, with long wooden benches, the kind you see when you watch Indian movies set in villages. They had a blackboard with some random drawing. We saw their elementary school. For middle school, they had to row across the river to their village on land (where the chief of the village spent most of his time) and attend school. For high school, they had to go back to the village outside theirs. It involved rowing out for about an hour (the distance we had done), and then walking a bit to get to school. Its no surprise why many of them do not go to school then.

We walked passed the church of the village, which was the best building. It was bigger than all the houses and well-maintained. It somehow disguts me how they would put in this much effort to have a good place of worship but less effort into something more practical like schools!! They also had a little wooden hut like this, about a meter away from the village. That wooden enclosure (for the lack of a better phrase) contained their tribal spirit. For reasons of protecting the people, it had to be kept a distance away. We passed a big plot of water at a shallow end, which would become a soccer field during the dry season. At an area, there were some villagers gathered giving feedback or talking to a group of officials as well. Ultimately after our tour, we sat near the guest house and relaxed for a while. During that period, they came up to us, registered us for our ticket and asked us to make a donation to the village for its development, which we did. Ultimately, we started to leave.

Throughout our little tour, kids would come up to us and ask us for pens or pencils or a couple of cedis. We had be told by our guide not to give the kids the any Cedi but to give it to them instead (which I thought was a clever way of saying, just tip us!). So as we were leaving, the kids kept coming to us and asking us for pens and pencils. I only had one, so I took it out, and one of them snatched it out of my hand. I felt really bad for the others who wanted it. I had a bunch of pencils I had brought to give away sometime, but it just didn’t strike me to bring them along with me! But as any of us took out anything, alot of kids would just surround us. Finally, drew took out a bunch of pencils to give away and the kids just swarmed him, pulling and trying to snatch the pencils from his hand. It was really a devastating sight. He randomly distributed what he had, and when he was done, they wouldn’t let him leave. The tour guide had to come back to break up the group and help Drew. Honestly at that point, I felt so terrible. The kids were creaving basic things like writing materials and seeing them swarm us broke my heart! It was pencils, just pencils!!

Anyway, after getting away, we got into our canoe, this time Kevin, Me and Jason with the tour guide and made our way out. At that point I asked roughly how many tourists the village gets per year and the tour guide told me that it was more than 1200 and some years it has been about 12000. That is alot of tourists, each paying at least 10 cedis.  So even if we assume that the village gets 5 cedi for every tourist, that makes it 6000 cedis!! And some make donations at the village itself. That is alot of money! Yet, the village is in the condition it is in! I wondered if it was corruptions among people and the cheifs and the money trail never reached the people. Or could it be, that the charm of the village was that it was on stilts and underdeveloped and if they were to change anything, the number of tourists to the destination would fall. My current thesis is the latter. For the sake of keeping the number of tourists high, they have kept the image of an underdeveloped society present. I don’t know if I should be admiring the ploy of the village or sad that commerce drives everything. I wonder if the people have all their needs met with the money and everything is a show for us?

Last day:

The last day in Ghana was great. We had breakfast, with a still drunk Lorelei and Daniel, Candice and I left to meet the 2 local guys they had hung out with the day before. We were just going to hang around the city and stuff with them. We met them (Frank and Daniel) at the driving school and they took us to the bus depot. From there, we took a bus for about an hour and got down near a village. The village was where Frank lives. As we entered the village we were greeted by everyone coming out of the village to look at us and crowd around us. The kids were so excited to see us. This was the first time they had seen foreigners. They would touch the while people’s hand and faces. Some of them would come and ask me if I was from Africa because I was brown. When I told them India (it is alot easier for people than singapore), they would “oooooo” and “aaaaahhhh” but still be puzzled why I was brown. They would often compared their skin tone with mine and comment. It was really interesting to see how kids reacted to new people and things. They would all be so excited to take pictures.

A lady then called us into her house, offered us something to drink, which we politely declined and requested us to take a picture of her, which we did obviously. We played with the kids, I allowed some of them to take pictures with my camera. Then the lady who invited me to see her house, handed me her baby. He’s be around 7-8 months. I carried him and played with him for a while. I was talking to the the lady and her husband about me and my travels as the rest were hanging out and walking around for a bit. She’s a housewife while her husband owns a shop at a little town nearby with his brother or something. I told them about my travels and all and the man dissappears for a bit and reappeard with a bangle which he gives me. He says he doesn’t know if I believe in God, but they do and they believe that the God will protect me as I travel and the bangle is supposed to mean that God will protect you. He told it was his way of blessing me. I had nothing much to offer in return but a hug and that God will bless them too. It was by far the most touching thing a stranger could ever have done for me. Who would have ever imagined that. Even in the poorest of settings, these people are willing to offer whatever little they have for you, like food. But the biggest thing is that, they are genuinely nice people.

We toured the village and visited Frank’s house which was really small and dark. They don’t really have electricity inside the village there. He sat us down and we watched some Ghanaian TV thing which was very sensual music videos. The ass is considered more sensual here than boobs. Just FYI. Hahaha.

So as we toured the village, the kids kept following us all around and running excitedly behind us. Frank said they were excited to see new faces, especially those of white people because they had never seen foreigners. He said the Ghanians loved the white (anyone not African) because they felt the white had everything. They were a source of admiration. They felt that the whites were developed, had more money and were happier. I told him that we weren’t a happier society and that in fact the Ghanians were a better and happier society. In our quest for development and success, we work like crazy, forgetting things like family, community, society and relaxation. We lead such stressful lives. We have no camaraderie among people in our society or community because we have no time to mix around or be social. In developing, we have forgotten our roots and culture. The Ghanians still have that. They like happily in a community. They have celebrations - they even celebrate death! There’s drumming, and dancing and having fun. They are indeed the happier society. This leads me to reflecting, why we want to develop so much. Why do we keep chasing the higher GDP per capita figures? Do we not realize what that leads to - greater income inequality and overall increased unhappiness! Is there a way or a point that we could stop at and just cherish what we have?

So after being around in the village for a bit, we took a tro-tro (a little public van service) to some place, got down and transferred into a taxi to a manganese plant. We saw the outside of the plant and it would have been great to be able to enter the plant but it was not possible, so we left. We then went to a gold plant, we couldn’t seen the actual plant because it was closed and permission was needed. But we could see an old shaft and an underground mine that is no longer in function. So, that was amazing. And while we were there it started to pour and we were enjoying the rain, while enjoying the view. We hung around the mines for a bit more before going to another nearby town called Twadi or something along those lines. Its smaller town, on the outskirts of Takoradi. We walked around and ended up in a market. As we tried walking through the market, it started to pour.

Just a couple of seconds later, one of the ladies selling vegetables made room for us in her little shop and invited us in for shelter. She was so elated to have us in her little shop. Her neighbors and friends were so excited as well that she had us in her shop. They were making jokes and laughing and enjoying. When the rain got worse, she made more room for us so we could move in and be safer. Soon, it was time for us to leave, even though the rain hadn’t subsided. The moment we walked out, one of the ladies took a huge umbrella and said she’ll walk us out. She ushered the girls into the umbrella and tried to hustle us to the bus station. She expected nothing in return and just waved us goodye. I was amazed at the level of humanity and niceness of the people. They were so ready to help us and just volunteered without expecting anything in return. I experienced quite a bit of this when I was in India as well, but at least then I was an Indian, and spoke their language. Here we were truly strangers with nothing in common. It was heartening to see that people someone in the world care for strangers. Back home certainly these things probably won’t happen. When we progress economically, we seem to regress socially.

We took a tro-tro back to Takoradi and on the way we stopped to pick up some bananas which were amazing. They were roasted or something. We stopped at the market, went in for a bit and walked to a local grocery store. The store was packed with people, basic goods, less variety of products. The most interesting thing was that we could not get chocolate anywhere. Ghana is a huge cocoa producer. It does export alot of cocoa to Britain and other places but we would expect some amount for local production. When we asked at the grocery store, they told us that the chocolate factory, the sole one in the whole of Ghana, was undergoing renovation and therefore there was no Ghanian chocolate anywhere in Ghana. We would get some Cadbury, very expensive, at some big place. Not at the market we were at anyway. It was shocking to see that. Firstly economically, I saw the primary resource/ secondary resource markets. By exporting just cocoa, they would be getting less money but would be able to get alot more if they exported chocolate instead. But then again, corruption, investment and government policy made it hard for companies to set up and get a chocolate production plant going. When speaking to some locals, they told me that many of the cocoa producers sneak their cocoa and sell it in Ivory Coast because the Ghanian government gives the farmers a very low price on their cocoa. Secondly, people don’t get to enjoy produces of their own land, something I found really sad.

So ultimately, we walked back to the ship and on our way, we saw a small group of children. They came up to us almost immediately. Some of them immediately grabbed my hand and started talking to me while holding my hand and walking with me. They asked me about life on the ship, where we were going next. I tried asking them about school and they just giggled. Some said they went at times, others just giggled. So when one of them saw my ring, they asked me if I could have one. Then they would say, “give me something to remember you by. I want to remember you” and when you told them you did not have anything they would ask for one cedi. They hung around us for a while and took some water from us. Ultimately, Lorelei took out a 25cent coin and they all rushed towards her for it. She decided to throw it up in the air to play a game and all of them immediate tried to grab that coin from her. They rolled on the ground for the single coin. I was so pissed off at her at that point. You NEVER throw money at kids and let them roll around for it. It’s disgusting and demeaning. When I told her that, she said her granddad played that game with them when they were kids. But that was a different issue, with money you are less likely to fight over 25 cents. These kids will. I was really annoyed with her. Never ever demean someone for your entertainment. But after that, the kids did not walk with us anymore.

We came to the port and asked if Frank and Daniel could come in with us to see the ship. The official did allow and they were amazed to see the ship. They had never seen a cruise ship. We tried to explain what the different decks contained to them and talked to them for a while. Then finishing our last cedis at the market, we got back to the ship and headed for dinner. After dinner, we hung around the deck to see the ship leave. The Ghanians below started drumming, singing and dancing celebrating our departure. They had all the rights to be happy. They had just conned several American tourists and made hefty profits. :D It was great though.

On the whole, Ghana was amazing. It taught me alot of different things. I got to experience the humanity and niceness of the people, who were filled with joy and exuberance. They were always enthusiastic and bubbling with energy. These people celebrated everything, including death. They lived in poverty, but found ways to make themselves happy. Ultimately, happiness is not liked to money or material goods or anything superficial. It is a state of mind, controlled by you. And that’s what Ghana reminded me of. It put everything in perspective - development, community and humanity. At the same time, being at the slave castles made me question humanity and how people, no matter the time, could be so cruel to each other. How do we even let slavery in some part continue to happen. Ghana has given me alot to soul search. I honestly loved Ghana - its my favorite country thus far.


My top 10 things of Ghana:

1. People - they are the most friendly people around. Random strangers waving, saying hello, asking how you’re doing with no hidden agenda at all!!
2. A renewed sense of gratitude. Seeing people happy at the village, with so little makes you feel soo grateful for everything you have in your life.
3. The simplicity of their life - they didn’t have chocolate in the country because a plant went down. They didn’t have restaurants!
4. Humanity. All around, there was a camaraderie among the locals. A lady walked us in the pouring rain to the bus stop!!
5. The visits to the slave castles. It was the most powerful and overwhelming experience ever.
6. The drums and dances. The drumming and dancing of the locals we saw as the ship pulled away was amazing. Their drums are made so well as well.
7. The little market they had. So different from anything I had ever seen!
8. The handicrafts!! Shopping in Ghana is amazing. The beads, bowls, drums, masks, paintings, bags, and I could just go on. I had to stop myself from overspending.
9. Red Ray! Its a banana dish. I love the way they cook their bananas. And the roasted road side one!!
10. The kids. Kids are kids anywhere, but I loved the way they came up and posed for picture. They grabbed you, held your hand and hung onto you!!

Ghana 1 - delayed post

Ghana

Spent four day in Ghana and honestly, it was just too short. The place and the people were were just amazing.

So, quickly:
Day 1: City orientation, walked around Takoradi with Megan in the markets, bought a cloth and gave it to stitch from a small tailor. Tried Ghanian food at a local restaurants, which was awful actually.
Day 2: Castles and slave dungeons. Went to the Elmina castle, had an awesome lunch, local shopping and then the cape coast castle before coming back. The seashell and met the random Ghanaian
Day 3: Went to pick up the dress and went the water village independently with Megan and met other SAS kids.
Day 4: Met up with Daniel and Frank, two local guys who brought us to their village with the kids swarmed us to take photos of them. We then went to a manganese and gold mine and then to a small village market before heading back to Takoradi.

Just a few thoughts to share about Ghana, from different days:

The market in Takoradi: At the market, men and women all looked and many again asked me where I was. Ghana gets alot of visitors from Europe and such, so they have seen white people. But not many Indians come here, so they were very interested in knowing about India and bollywood. I was just amazed at how much people were interested to know where I was from, and that they knew India and recognized me as an Indian. Instead of walking the peripheral of the market, we ventured inside. It was the best thing we ever did. The market was so different from anything I had ever seen in my life in Morocco or India. It was a market for the locals, not a foreigners one. The inside was little lanes, tiny, with shops on either side. You walked in a single file. There was no order of shops inside. There would be a couple of fish sellers and next to them a lady selling cloth or beads.

The castles and slave dungeons visit:

I did the castles and slave dungeons tour with semester at sea. We first drove to Elmina castle. The Elmina castle was constructed by the Portuguese in 1482. It was first established as a trae settlement for gold but soon became an important stop in the Atlantic Slave Trade. The dutch fought a war wit the Portuguese and seized the caste in 1637. The slave trade continued under the dutch till 1814 and the fort came to the British possession in 1871, becoming an fort and a training ground for millitary. Following Ghana’s independence, the castle was transferred in property and today is recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. That’s the brief history of the castle.

So we entered the castle and they showed us around, the parts where the male slaves were kept. About 600 slaves were kept in a small area and it would almost always be very dark there and everything the slaves do would be done within the area. They would eat, drink, bodily functions, bleed, vomit and die in the same area. The area the females are kept in a similar kind of slave castle, with 400 of them together. They would have their mensuration there as well. The female slave dungeon was below the Staff quarters where the staff like soldiers and visiting Governor’s used to live. So they would call the women to assemble in the area and the officials would pick out one girl, she would be cleaned and sent upstairs to be raped by the official. After the rape, she would have to just return back to the room with the other women. If the girl protested or anything, she would be chained to a cannon ball in the middle so that everyone could see what happened and she would be lashed. If a women got pregnant, she was allowed to go to the nearby town to give birth and would have to return to the ship immediately. The rebels as they labeled them and the freedom fighters as we called them were kept separately as well so they would not be able to influence the rest. Their cell contained absolutely no ventilation and was even more suffocating than the others. They also showed us the “door of no return”, from where the slaves would leave the castles on the ships. Those who went out never came back, and hence its name. The castle contained two churches. One built by the Portuguese and one built by the Dutch when they took over since the Portuguese were predominately Catholic and the Dutch Protestants.

I am still unable to recount everything about those torture chambers. Thinking of them still makes me shiver.

The moment we finished our tour and exited, there were tons of local sellers waiting for us to come to buy their products. They pounced on us with trays or jewellery, beads, etc. One ploy used was that they would come up to us and ask us for our names and start writing it on a seashell. As the guy who approached me started doing that, I told him I had no money, he said its no problem and that it was just a token of his friendship. Then he passed me a yellow form saying he was collecting donation for some school’s soccer team. I turned it down immediately and returned the seashell. I almost went through the whole bunch of people when this guy names Tony came up to me and introduced himself. He asked me if I was Indian and where I was from. I told him that I was from Singapore and he stood there talking to me for a while. He then asked for my email and handphone number. I did give him my SAS email and real Singaporean number because I figured he would not make an international phone call and also my number now has been deactivated. But as I was boarding the bus, he called me back and wrote my name on a seashell and gave it to me to remember him by. As I sat on the bus, he came down beside my window and his friends were making fun of him. One of them asked me to donate to the scam football thing and asked me to pass the paper to a friend of mine, none of us donated. Then the other guys were asking me for a dollar or something. And finally one guy asks for something to remember him by and when I tell him that I have nothing, he points to my hairtie around my wrists and asks for that as a token. I give him my hair tie and he gives it to Antony. They asked me if I had a boyfriend back home or if I was married and when I said no to both one guy remarked that “you so pretty, you should find a boyfriend” to which I just laughed, thanked him and said I will when I get back. He told me then that I should find one from Ghana and take him back with me and they all pointed to Anthony and laughed. I could just smile sheepishly. The lifelong learners of the bus told me its probably a bad idea to give emails as they will email you for money. But with emails I have the option not to reply and plus, its an SAS email and will be deactivated after a couple of months so I figured nothing to lose.

After that incident, we drove to a beach house resort kind of place for lunch. The food was good and the people I hung out with were interesting. After lunch, we just hung out at the beach, played around for a bit. I bought some stuff from a local craftsmen and we left for the second slave castle.

The second castle we visited was the Cape Coast castle. The castle was built by the swedish for the trade of timber and Gold in 1653 and taken over by the Danish in 1663 and then by the British in 1664 and used for the Atlantic Slave Trade. After the independence of Ghana, it was returned and now is a World Heritage Site as declared by UNESCO. Barack and Michelle Obama visited the site in July 2009.

Our tour guide who was with us the entire time usually works at this castle and gave us the guided tour. He told us how the slaves were segregated when they entered the castle and how the body of the slave is stamped by with agent  (the person who brought them in) and future owner’s names. The slaves were bought even before they were shipped and reached their destination. They were commodified that early on. Since the sale had taken place, one would assume there is incentive to keep the slaves in healthy conditions so that they would eventually reach the destination. He then talked about them trying to break down the resiliance of the slaves. If a slave had a community, a belief, a name, an identity he was not a slave! Everything core to the person had to be broken down, and hence the horrible conditions. Can you imagine having a tag imbedding in you and going through the process where they complete just break you, tear you away from everything you have known?

 He brought us to room where now a spirit lives. Apparently, the spirit used to reside there but when the castle was built, locals moved the spirit away with prayers and now since it belonged to Ghanians again, the spirit has been restored to its original place. The spirit - keeper showed us how the prayer took place as all the kids clicked photographs and shot videos of the event. Its sickening to see how religion degrades its sanctity to become a spectacle for an uninformed, apathetic, indifferent bunch  of tourists. I guess, money corrupts even religions practices!

We entered the male dungeons and we were immersed in complete darkness with the exception of a little window through which the slaves were watched. The slaves were subjected to the same tortures as those in Elmina castle. We visited the “door of no return” where the sign had been changed to the “the door of returned” to invite the family members and desendends of the slaves to visit and pay their respects. The site from the door is amazing. The blue ocean, vast sky and greenery in the distance. Yet, walking out that door to that beautiful sight would possibly be the worst thing in the lives of these people. Its awful to see how such beauty can be associated with such horror. We visited the female dungeons and then the room where they kept the rebels. The room was completely dark. Pitch black. My heart just sank being in that room.
When we walked outside, there was the sign on the wall reading ”In Everlasting Memory of the anguish of our ancestors may those who died rest in peace. May those who return find their roots. May humanity never perpetuate such injustice against humanity. We, the living, vow to uphold this” Reading that made me swell up. I did not continue the rest of the tour, instead went to sit on the wall facing the ocean. A multitude of things went through my mind, things I just cannot put into words. How could humanity ever perpetuate such crimes? Even in those times, how could we subject fellow human beings to that kind of horrible treatment?

How did the church and religion organizations stand for these? There were churches and religious organizations within these slave castles/ dungeons. They supported what was going on and provided excuses to perpetuate the actions! Is that what religion ultimate stands for? It is a tool that we use as a ploy to get what we want and do what we want. We justify it by just cocking up some bullcrap about it being in some religion text. The Brahmins treated the other castes horribly giving some of these things as reasons. How could we do it? And knowing we did it, how can people still stand by their religion in today’s world. People still justify treating the untouchables in India that way, just as churches justify the acts of slavery. And ultimately how can the victims of the crime believe in the same crime as the perpetuators of the crime? I would be so pissed off and have lost my sense of believe in God completely or at least that God. In Ghana, the majority are Christians because of their colonization. Shouldn’t they be totally put off by the idea of God in that context?

Lastly, reading the sign I broke down. Today, slavery still exists and is still one of the biggest crimes thriving around the world. The form of slavery has changed from being used as workers to sex slaves around the world. Human trafficking to me is no different than slavery. And that crime is ever so rampant. How do people stand by it and not do anything? How do perpetuators of the crime live with themselves? Desmond Tutu talks about how people are innately good in his book? Are they really? Do these people who perpetuate these crimes have a strand of goodness in them?

The rest of the day was a blur. I was way too overwhelmed to think or do anything. I was so caught up in my own thoughts. That was definitely the most powerful trip ever.

Quick update

Quick update: more coming some up soon, after south africa I promise.

1. Neptune day.
2. Breakfast with Desmond Tutu
3. Breakfast with Cathy Rodgers and lecture by Desmond Tutu.

I'M IN SOUTH AFRICA TOMORROW. :D