A Day in the Eastern Region

Yesterday we travelled as a group, all of us CIEE students, to the Eastern Region, which takes about forty-five minutes by bus to get to from East Legon. Unlike my last trip with Nikki and Melissa, this one was completely planned and we were shuttled around from one place to the next.

The first place we visited was Tettah Quarshie’s Cocoa Farm where we took a tour and learned about the uses of cocoa. A few weeks ago my mom and I were talking on the phone and she told me that “black soap” is on the rage in the U.S. because Dr. Oz recently recommended it. It is made in Africa and she told me that I should try to find some. While we were on the tour we found out that black soap is made from the dried outside of the cocoa plant, who knew?

After the tour of the Cocoa Farm we headed to Aburi Gardens for lunch and a tour of the gardens. On the tour of the botanical gardens we visited different lawns where there were all types of plants planted by famous people such as Queen Elizabeth II, the Head of State, and the Vice-President of Ghana. Our guide told us about a symbiotic relationship that takes between two different types of trees. One of the trees grew like a vine around the other and we were able to see what it looked like when the inside tree died. It left a giant hole in the middle but the outside tree was able to support itself, so cool!

Then we went to the woodcarving village, buying local at its best. I found myself bargaining for things and then getting caught in the trap of buying it! There was a pair of salad utensils that that I thought were really cool but I didn’t want to pay the eight cedi that she told me they would cost. Then she said she gave them to my sister (aka another white girl on my program) for seven cedi. I said I would only pay four cedi for them and left. As I was walking back by she whispered that she’d take four cedi – I was sold.

Moving from one tour to the next the day quickly went by until I was back at home. And how nice it was to be at home today and yesterday. Felix, Grandma, and I have gotten to talk a lot recently and I’ve enjoyed our conversations about bad characters, what to buy a friend that just delivered a baby, and all manner of things. Grandma and Felix will also try to talk to me at the same time sometimes, each getting louder as they try to get my attention, and I have to try to figure out who to look at. Grandma told Felix yesterday that she was reading a book and in the book it says that people should listen to other people. Felix agreed to listen and Grandma finished her thought. Sometimes we take for granted the power that listening can have.