Ghana Day 8

[aggienaut]

   Today was officially a day of rest. Well I think at least during the morning local coordinator Courage was cracking the whip at his team to get some things done, and the media team was busy processing videos and photos. But anyway that left Arne and I pretty free. We lingered around the breakfast table from 8am till noon. After that I returned to my room and worked on the expense reports up to this point, and I forget maybe something else or maybe just a lot of procrastination and time wasting -- I think Arne may have accomplished a similar amount. Around 3pm by entirely unspoken agreement it seemed we all emerged from our rooms and converged on the dining table even though we we still weren't hungry. But Rolanda brought us bananas and mango to snack on -- Cecilia, who usually is the primary staffmember to attend to us had the day off. I don't know if Rolonda is just incredibly shy or what but she always seems to be bowing and shyly backing away almost apologizing.

   Around about 5pm, Arne and I and Williams and Nadia (two members of the media team) headed out to walk into town. Almost immediately I was greeted by a man in a suit saying "Mr Kris Mr Kris!" whom I didn't recognize (I'm actually terrible at recognizing people) but he clearly knew me, and then Yahaya the translator from the training came up as well and greeted us, the two of them were emerging from a building literally across the street from out guest-house. They said it was there office. If I'd known they were literally right there I'd have planned to meet up with them!
    Then we met up with Cecilia, our off-duty hotel friend -- this was coordinated, not a coincidence. She had agreed to show us around town a bit.



   Ceci showed up with a baby on her arm whom she introduced as her "auntie." I at first naturally assumed the syntax had become confused and the baby was her niece but she said no it was her auntie. Further investigation revealed that it was the baby of her "grandmother," and therefore her auntie, but it wasn't actually her real grandmother but a member of her extended family of her grandmother's generation; but African tradition (throughout the areas I've been anyway) is to liberally grant "brother/sister," "aunt/uncle" etc status to extended family or good friends -- Ceci even once asked if her sister had already brought us something, referring to Rolanda who is clearly not related to her.

   Anyway we walked down the main road for a fair distance, Nadia poked into some shops, looking at shirts. We encountered one of Ceci's uncles (an actual blood uncle I think?) who mentioned how he had looked after Ceci after her father died in a motorcycle accident (in 2013?).. and then mentioned how he himself lost his leg(s?) in a motorcycle accident. I hadn't noticed because he was sitting on a motorcycle.
   Finally we accomplished what had become the goal of our quest -- Nadia was fanging for some "Kenkey" which they apparently eat every day in her home region but not as much here and she's been missing. It consists of a corn dough you dip in a spicy sauce, which she also had with fish and the shito fish sauce. While she was ordering this from the place we finally found that sold it, Ceci took one of the "yellow-yellows" --auto-rickshaws-- home real quick to drop off the now sound asleep baby and return. We all then got on a yellow-yellow ourselves and proceeded on it back to the guesthouse -- though Ceci wouldn't come in because "if they see me they'll make me work."
   Then we (minus Ceci) spent most of the next two or three hours once again sitting around the dining table before finally withdrawing to our rooms. The End.



   I still have no appetite after three days now. I'm wondering, can one have "indigestion without discomfort?" because I don't feel like I have indigestion but I've felt full for three days while barely eating, making me suspect things are just sitting in my stomach going nowhere. But I don't feel any lack of energy so I don't know!