Hey everyone!
I have had such an eventful 24 hours I hardly know where to
begin!
It all started when I received a call sometime Thursday
afternoon from a Peace Corps staff members wife telling me that they were going
to be in my area for the weekend and asking me if I would like to join that for
an evening. YAY! They were planning on staying at the Hideout, which is in my
top 5 favorite places on the planet (granted I have many more places to explore
but as of right now, its wayyy up there). I quickly (maybe too quickly) agree
and we make plans for meeting up. Yay for weekend plans that don’t include
bucket laundry and killing bugs. So I get there and we chat for a bit, go on a
tour of a nearby fort, and then go for a swim in the ocean. After some more chatting
I SHOWER (with water from the ceiling) off the sand and salt water, put on some
clean(ish) clothes and sit down with my book and watch the sun set while I
enjoy the breeze that I swear comes straight from heaven. After a bit they join
me and they have hummus and salsa and crackers for a little pre dinner snack.
DROOL! Our dinner arrives and it’s out of this world (I’m pretty sure the food
being so good makes up about 85% of why I love that place so much). After
dinner we play Phase 10 (I’ve never played before but it was really
fun…definitely on my ‘to purchase’ list) and I don’t lose terribly…for a split
second I was even kind of winning. It
starts to get late and the breeze is picking up making playing cards more
difficult so they call it a night. I stay up for a bit and chat with a few
other Americans who are also staying there for the weekend and eventually, call
it a night.
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| The community of Butre |
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| The fishing boats (hollowed out trees...for real) along the edge of the community. |
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| Life is sweet. |
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| "bridge' to get to where I was staying |
I am staying in the dorms, which is just a big room with 4
bunk beds, cheap and great for the volunteer on a budget. But it was only me.
Not too bad but kind of weird. I eventually fall asleep (after the ceiling fan
nearly catapults off the ceiling). Around 4 or 4.30 I wake up to use the
bathroom and LOCK MYSELF OUT! Bummer. Not too big of a deal, I just need to
wait until 7 when the employees show up again and get the spare key. I end up
watching the sunrise and a would be terrible situation turns into a pretty
pleasant one.
But then I try and catch my tro out.
I end up getting to the tro just as its filling. I’m the
last person on. I have to sit in the front. So in the front of the car it’s the
driver, an adult man in the middle and me against the door. We set off. We stop
along the way and pick up/drop off people. We are about 5 minutes outside of
Agona when shit gets real. A large, fairly new, pick up truck is coming around
a curve in the road too fast and is completely on the wrong side of the road,
the side we’re on. Since I’m sitting in the front I have the joy of seeing all
of this unfold. I see the truck on the wrong side of the road, I see it start
to swerve, I see our driver try and react, I see the front of the truck pointed
at the front of the tro. I see the truck as it hits our tro and then fly of the
road. The dashboard is in my lap and pressing into my legs and feet and there
is glass from the windshield everywhere. The driver turns the tro off and
climbs out of his door, which is untouched. I can’t get out of my side because
the door is squished and the dashboard is in my lap. With the help of some of
the other passengers the guy in the middle gets himself out and starts helping
me. With some help, I make it out of the driver side door. I take a quick
inventory and discover that I am more or less fine!!!
I now out of the tro and trying to get my bearings after
what just happened. I look over to the other car and there is only one person,
of the 4 or 5 that were in the car, left that hasn’t gotten taken to the
hospital. All of us that were in the tro meander around for a bit, the people
that need to go to the hospital go and the rest of us are kind of looking at
each other like “what now?” If this was America I would have suggested we call
the police…but since were not, I don’t. Calling the police hasn’t even crossed
peoples minds. What for? It’s not as though there’s the question of insurance
or liability to sort out.
Eventually another tro stops (to gawk) and some of us get on
that tro to ride the rest of the way to town. I am among them. They try and
make me sit in the front again. No sir, I would rather walk on my hands back
home then get in the front (I didn’t actually say that…only because my Twi does
not extend that far…but if I could have I would have). The entire tro erupts
into a sort of nervous laughter (which is very uncharacteristic for Ghanaians)
and some of the people in the back squish to make room for me. No hand walking
required.
I make it back to town (which is about 1.5 miles from my
house) and realize that I am suddenly very tired and sore so I treat myself to
a taxi ride home. Which was wonderful but I was suspicious of every car we
passed.
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| My tro |
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| Other a****** car |
Moral of the story: I’ve got some angels. Thanks Pop.
I hope everyone is staying safe with that giant storm I keep seeing postings about on facebook! If you need any tips about what to do when the power goes out I am more then qualified to help you out! <3
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