Akwaaba!

(Akwaaba = Welcome in Twi, the local language that half of Ghanaians speak)

Next leg of the summer adventure has begun: I have been in Accra for the past few days and just started my course in food policy and hunger with NYU Wagner today. So far, I've been healthy and not too jolted by culture shock. Sure, Ghana is different from everywhere else I've traveled, but it also seems somewhat familiar. I'm not sure whether this is because it looks like a lot of movies and photographs I've seen or if it is because I just didn't know what to expect so I'm absorbing everything. Nevertheless, all of the traveling and settling in went well so I'm thankful for that.

We are staying in the NYU Accra dorms in a nice neighborhood of Accra, Labone. The dorm is really a large compound/house -- with high, white walls and full-time security, of course. Outside the walls, our street is quiet and could be just about anywhere. Then you get to either end of the street and you're reminded that this is Africa -- coconut seller at a small table with a bright umbrella at one end, and a small open-air barber shop at the other. I still haven't bought a coconut (which they cut off the top of for you to drink from), but plan on doing it tomorrow.

The city is huge, at least from what I can tell. We drive in vans or take taxis almost everywhere, and each drive generally takes a while. It might be the traffic, or the scary drivers on their motorbikes or in large trotros, which are like communal vans, but everything takes a while. Traveling takes a while, as well as everything else -- I've noticed that we do a lot of sitting around. Waiting for people/cars/food to arrive, or leave, is pretty typical around here. Yesterday, after a long circuitous and conspicuous walk through a windy street in the Osu neighborhood, we found a chop shop -- or local food vendor -- that was supposed to be really good (it was). There was a large group of students, and we sat down. It took about 15 minutes to actually order (the waitress left halfway through taking everyone's order and then came back like nothing had happened) and then over an hour for the food to arrive. This is typical, and something I definitely have to get used to. The chop shop was a great place to observe a different culture at work -- there were bottles of dish soap on the table, and the waiters would bring bowls of water and towels for the patrons to wash their hands before and after eating (as most eat with their fingers). The food took forever to come, but when it did, the waitress was very friendly and kept checking to make sure we liked it. I tried my first plate of red-red, which is a bean stew that comes with fried plantains -- it was delicious. So far, I really love Ghanaian food.

Food, traveling, Accra history, and lots of planning for the next two weeks -- that's what has been on my mind since arriving just two days ago. It feels like much longer. Tomorrow, we have a lecture on nutrition, a visit to the Ghana School Feeding Program, a visit to the Nkrumah Memorial and arts center, and then dinner. Its going to be a full, hot, and muggy day.