The End Days

Thursday, December 14^th

I had initially planned on going to the refugee camp one last time today. Raghav called me at nine, and I just wasn’t quite ready to get my day going. For one reason or another, I haven’t slept well the last few nights, and exhaustion has shortened a lot of these last few days.

I went back to sleep for a bit more time, when I got a call from Duncan. He said that he would be going to Aburi in the afternoon, which I thought was a great idea. Francis also planned to go to Aburi, so I made it a party of three. Both Duncan and I weren’t particularly hungry, so we split a smallish 15,000 bowl of Rich Love, which was rather delicious. From there, we went to Zongo Station, where we were met by Francis. The three of us got to Aburi by the middle of the afternoon. I needed a couple things tweaked with my face carvings – they needed to be lightened and they needed hangers on the back. All of this was done very quickly. I also bought a carving of the “Thinking Man,” which is a very cool piece of work.

For most of the trip on the way back, Duncan and I couldn’t stop talking about the last twenty weeks and the sense of finality that each of us was feeling. It seems that with every passing day, something else is “asaa” or it’s the last time for this or that.

I returned to Legon, grabbed my laptop, and headed to Volta. Finally, the internet café was open, so I was able to work on a fast computer – my own.

After an hour of internet playtime, I walked to the Night Market where I got my dinner – fried rice with shredded beef sauce, one of my favorites here.

I spent the rest of the night studying for my last exam (Underdevelopment Theory), watching Barcelona crush Club America (Mexico), and just relaxing.

Friday, December 15^th

I sure didn’t sleep that much last night, but the few hours of sleep I got were really good. I was awakened at 7:15 by a rooster. I guess it’s better than a preacher.

The plan for today was to go to the Accra Brewing Company, and then go to Barclays on High Street to get some coins for my poker set. The day turned out nothing like this.

I was due for a day like this – a day where nothing really goes right and nothing at all gets done. I don’t think I’ve had a day quite like this. It was a day that tested my patience to the fullest.

Duncan and I met at the tro-tro stop in front of school with the hopes of catching a tro-tro to Circle, but traffic was hellacious. It wasn’t even worth trying. We split from there: he went to get some palm wine and I decided to go to High Street.

First, though, I decided to stop at different Barclays to see if they could help me. They told me to go to High Street, which I expected. After some quick bargaining, I got a taxi to High Street. Traffic was horrendous, still, so I decided to get out of the taxi and walk the last three kilometers.

Barclays told me that they didn’t have coins and to go to the next building down. So I tried Standard Chartered, who told me likewise: to go to Bank of Ghana. I went to the next building and I saw Ghana Commercial Bank. I figured that this was the same as Bank of Ghana. I went in and waited. The wait wasn’t so bad though. Christmas music, which usually drives me crazy, reminded me of being home, so it was actually quite nice. The told me to go across the street, into a building buried behind a wall – the Bank of Ghana.

The lights were out in Bank of Ghana and the line was the longest I’ve ever seen in a bank. I spoke to one man around 2:30 who told me that he had been waiting since nine in the morning to be helped. There was no way I was going to wait five hours to get turned away. I found a person who worked in the bank and asked if I could get coins. “No, power is out, we can’t get coins.” What? Are you kidding? I am fed up with it. Three hours of my time, and eighty thousand cedis in taxis gone to waste.

I returned to the university to pick up my plane tickets for my flights on Sunday and Monday. This is all very exciting. Especially after a day like today, I’m ready to get back Stateside.

On campus, I picked up my shirt from Sandra, which turned out, as expected, beautifully. I’m very happy with it. I also threw around a Frisbee with Mark and Raghav. It was nice to get the blood flowing a bit. And to see Ghanaians look at crazy Americans throwing around a plastic plate. Once thoroughly tired and sore, I went into Annex A, just to hang out for a bit.

For dinner, I returned to the Night Market. Through all the waiting I had to deal with, I never had the chance to eat. I was very hungry, and the price of my meal – 26,000 cedis – showed it.

The rest of the night is devoted to studying. One more exam

One more full day.

Saturday, December 16^th

Today was as frustrating as yesterday for the same reason. Basically, I had an appointment with someone that I waited eleven hours for, and by the end of the eleven hours, it was cancelled. It is very representative of how African appointments work. I’m very frustrated by it, but I’m keeping in mind that I am on a plane tomorrow.

Three good things happened today, amidst all the waiting.

1) As I was getting units for my phone, I made eye contact with this girl. She smiled at me, and I tried to ignore her. After getting units, I passed her. We said “hi” to each other, and then she said, very calmly, “You are handsome.” I will miss that – how straight-forward the girls are. I smiled, and said “you are very beautiful.” She smiled, and I walked away.

2) I absolutely nailed my underdevelopment final. Not only was it easy, but I felt very prepared for it. I know I’ll get an A in that class. It should be a very nice semester for me.

3) I consumed a nice amount of beer – a Stone, a Castle and a Club – in celebration. I got through it all. Although I still feel very torn about leaving, I’m glad to come home.