Culture

The culture in Ghana is quite different, of course, than the US. Greetings are very important. For example, when you are walking down the street, you not only say hello, but also ask how they are doing as well as their family. To walk past someone without saying hello is rude. Of course the awkward part of this whole thing is that being white and not knowing the language very well. Walking down the street for me can be exhausting. I live with my “parents” in a very nice house that is about a mile from where my classes are. I have to pass a school, the center of town and the market to get to my language class. Hardly anyone here has a vehicle which means everyone walks. So as I walk I bumble my way through the greetings with everyone I meet, and most of the time they ask me more questions and I have no idea what they are saying. Couple this with the fact that I am an “Obroni” (a white person) makes this an interesting walk to class to say the least. As I pass houses, the young children (under 5 years old) run up to me chanting “obroni, obroni” in their musical voices, waving constantly. If I happen to not acknowledge them, they just chant louder and louder. Then the older folks want to shake my hand, ask me where I am coming from, where I am going and if I am from the US. When I tell them I do live in the states, that ask if they know Ashante, their cousin that moved to the States 3 years ago....Needless to say, by the time I get to language class, I have already had a good lesson.

Another interesting and fascinating thing is how open and friendly the children are. In the States, we are taught never to talk with strangers. Here you will see 3 and 4 year old kids walking around by themselves. Older kids will come and walk with you for a bit, asking you how your day is. Even the older teenage boys act different. When I come upon a group of them, at the onset they look the same. Baggy pants, baseball caps, sitting on their bikes, trying to look cool. But, as soon as I say “Mahaa” (Good Afternoon), they break into beautiful smiles and their whole countenance changes. 

The day starts early here and ends late. The family gets up at 4:30 and they start working at 5. The first thing is sweeping the yard. It is all dirt around their yard and every morning they sweep away the debris. Then my Mother will make breakfast for everyone, cleans the house and, when the kids have left for school, she goes to market to sell flavored ice she made the night before. The man goes out to farm this time of year and does not return until dark. Meals take a looooong time to prepare, Even though they have propane stoves, most women choose to cook outside on a fire they make. There are no microwave or TV dinners here. Most meals include a dough like substance. It can be banko, fufu, kenche, ( I know I am not even close to spelling these right). Sometimes this dough is pounded from maize, other times it is nuts that they grind into a paste, or other starch items. All of these are ground, pounded and kneaded into these dough balls, that in themselves take a lot of work. Then they need to make the stew. This includes crushing tomatoes, onions, garlic and other things using a mortar and pedstal. Then they put the stew ingredients into a pot and add some type of meat. Of course there is no running water here so they have to fetch water from the bore hole, which can be quite a distance away. I have seen preteens carry over 10 gallons of water on top of their heads without spilling hardly a drop. Oh, of course they also do laundry by hand, sweep the whole house by hand and bathe using buckets. No luxury here; I am constantly amazed by their strength, stamina and willingness to help.  So the next time you want to complain because your french fries from McDonald’s are cold....think about these women.