My Weekend in Cape Coast: A Picture Book

I got to the bus station about 11:30 am on Friday and the next available ticket was for 2:30 pm. The bus left an hour late and before we'd even left the city borders, a tro-tro cut us off and we ran into it. Well, barely tapped it. The drivers got out and shouted at each other before heading to the nearby police station. Meanwhile, our bus took up a lane, forcing the rest of the traffic to merge. Two near collisions like ours were narrowly missed. I finally arrived to Cape Coast at 7:30 pm. A long day's journey that makes me reluctant to want to go to the North for Easter...




The Iowa-Ghanaians. Both Mamma and Papa K got their phds from the U of Iowa and I met their Prince in Iowa City before leaving. He even made me Ghanaian food, the best I'd tasted till I had the food at his house here in Ghana. Yum. My new favorite:



Red-red. Beans that you eat with plantains. Hmmmm!



This seamstress made a house call and I got a dress IN AN HOUR! Amazing! The only slight problem is that it's fitted and I find it difficult to get off. Each time I try to take it off, I find myself somehow claustrophobic and thinking I'll have to cut it off. Instead, I think I'll have a zipper added. There was no time for such things that morning.



Because we had to go to Speech Day, which is like a combination of an Awards Ceremony and Homecoming. Here are some high school boys in their uniforms.



On Sunday, after church, we went to Elmina Castle, where the Porteguese and Dutch loaded slaves for Brazil and the Carribean.



View from the Castle of Elmina



Dock outside of Elmina Castle



View of Cape Coast Castle, which the British used. Over 15 million slaves passed through these two castles. The last ships sailed in 1860, which is really not that long ago...



Then we went to a funeral event held 40 days after the man had died (they have a funeral at the time of burial, too). As I understand it, the traditional belief is that the spirit stayed around for 40 days, so this was like a farewell party.






I didn't dance this time because I need to practice in the privacy of my own room the chicken-like dance move that they do. I have a short video clip from my digital camera, but haven't figured out yet how to put that on here...

It was a good weekend!

More details to follow.