by Ryan Sauls, Study & Service in West Africa
On January 5th, 2013 I arrived in Ghana with my travel study class. I had a vague idea of what to expect, but I was still quite nervous (and excited). Coming from the blistery, winter weather of the eastern United States, my first major sensation was experiencing the humidity and temperature when I stepped off the plane. My first experience outside the airport was not the greatest, I was a bit confused and overtaken by our arrival. I merely wanted to get to a hotel and rest. Once on our bus and en route to the Ange Hill Hotel, I started looking at the country I had arrived in. We were in the capital city of Ghana, Accra. It was interesting to note the stark contrasts (that I noticed from upon our arrival and throughout the trip) around us. There were gated homes that were as nice as any mansion in the United States with small shack like dwellings in adjacent lots. This contrast (between the upper middle class and wealthy of the area, and the large amounts of poorer people) was apparent throughout the country, I noticed as I spent more time in the Ghana.
Our time in Accra was spent attending lectures hosted by University of Ghana professors (an interesting experience for sure, their views on "the west" were particularly intriguing), traveling about the city and visiting national monuments/places of interest. I was quite homesick during this time, the first 3-4 days, so at the time I did not enjoy it that much. Looking back, it was a great experience in Accra in which we were able to see urban life and take part in it. After our time in Accra came to an end we headed to the village of Bompata. Maryville College has had ties to Bompata dating back several years and Bompata has been a consistent, welcoming village stay for many trips. I knew of this history before hand due to our pre-departure meetings, but experiencing the connection first hand was amazing. Bompata was easily one of my favorite segments of the whole trip. The people were very welcoming and I felt a lot more at ease once we arrived. Once our stay at Bompata came to an end we headed to Kumasi (the capital of the Ashanti region and seat of the Ashanti rulers). Kumasi is famous for being a major trade hub and having one of the largest open air markets in all of western Africa (which we were able to experience firsthand). Kumasi was a very different experience from Accra, with its choked city streets and vibe. Kumasi was easily my least favorite part of the trip, probably due to the superb experience I had in Bompata.
After Kumasi our group headed down the Cape Coast (or Slave Coast) and visited the major slave forts of the area, Elmina Castle and Cape Coast Castle. The experiencing the rich, but dark, history of the castles was very interesting (despite the very tourist-y nature of the whole area). Also, we visited the Kakum National Park. This was one of my favorite experiences, as I overcame my crippling fear of heights to walk the full length of the famous Kakum Canopy Walk. After the visit to the Cape Coast area we headed back to Accra for our departure. As I mentioned before at the start of the trip I was very homesick, but by the end I had none of that feeling remaining. I felt a bittersweet feeling as our last day in Ghana passed, I had very much enjoyed my time in Ghana (I also was very anxious to be home, however). I learned many things while in Ghana, such as a new appreciation for a warm shower (only had two warm/hot showers while I was there). Overall, the trip gave me amazing prospective on life in the United States and elsewhere. It took me out of my comfort zone and made me a better person because of that.
On January 5th, 2013 I arrived in Ghana with my travel study class. I had a vague idea of what to expect, but I was still quite nervous (and excited). Coming from the blistery, winter weather of the eastern United States, my first major sensation was experiencing the humidity and temperature when I stepped off the plane. My first experience outside the airport was not the greatest, I was a bit confused and overtaken by our arrival. I merely wanted to get to a hotel and rest. Once on our bus and en route to the Ange Hill Hotel, I started looking at the country I had arrived in. We were in the capital city of Ghana, Accra. It was interesting to note the stark contrasts (that I noticed from upon our arrival and throughout the trip) around us. There were gated homes that were as nice as any mansion in the United States with small shack like dwellings in adjacent lots. This contrast (between the upper middle class and wealthy of the area, and the large amounts of poorer people) was apparent throughout the country, I noticed as I spent more time in the Ghana.
Our time in Accra was spent attending lectures hosted by University of Ghana professors (an interesting experience for sure, their views on "the west" were particularly intriguing), traveling about the city and visiting national monuments/places of interest. I was quite homesick during this time, the first 3-4 days, so at the time I did not enjoy it that much. Looking back, it was a great experience in Accra in which we were able to see urban life and take part in it. After our time in Accra came to an end we headed to the village of Bompata. Maryville College has had ties to Bompata dating back several years and Bompata has been a consistent, welcoming village stay for many trips. I knew of this history before hand due to our pre-departure meetings, but experiencing the connection first hand was amazing. Bompata was easily one of my favorite segments of the whole trip. The people were very welcoming and I felt a lot more at ease once we arrived. Once our stay at Bompata came to an end we headed to Kumasi (the capital of the Ashanti region and seat of the Ashanti rulers). Kumasi is famous for being a major trade hub and having one of the largest open air markets in all of western Africa (which we were able to experience firsthand). Kumasi was a very different experience from Accra, with its choked city streets and vibe. Kumasi was easily my least favorite part of the trip, probably due to the superb experience I had in Bompata.
After Kumasi our group headed down the Cape Coast (or Slave Coast) and visited the major slave forts of the area, Elmina Castle and Cape Coast Castle. The experiencing the rich, but dark, history of the castles was very interesting (despite the very tourist-y nature of the whole area). Also, we visited the Kakum National Park. This was one of my favorite experiences, as I overcame my crippling fear of heights to walk the full length of the famous Kakum Canopy Walk. After the visit to the Cape Coast area we headed back to Accra for our departure. As I mentioned before at the start of the trip I was very homesick, but by the end I had none of that feeling remaining. I felt a bittersweet feeling as our last day in Ghana passed, I had very much enjoyed my time in Ghana (I also was very anxious to be home, however). I learned many things while in Ghana, such as a new appreciation for a warm shower (only had two warm/hot showers while I was there). Overall, the trip gave me amazing prospective on life in the United States and elsewhere. It took me out of my comfort zone and made me a better person because of that.