The tempo has slowed quite a bit. My American visitors departed at the end of July and I returned to Hohoe from Accra the day after. I gather that my immune system was working overtime during their visit and was getting exhausted as I had a slight headache all morning long getting ready for the bus ride home. As the bus finally moved and I was done snacking on all the foods brought to me in my seat (sellers abound in the tro-tro stations) I didn't quite feel so well.
Then the four-hour ride started and I really didn't feel well. The minibus had a little LCD screen fixed to the front of the vehicle and the driver allowed the passengers to watch a Ghanaian movie. Those are not my favorite as the quality and production value screams "home movie" done on your friend's camcorder. As the trip wore on, I could feel a bit of queasiness build and my body started to ache. By the time I got home I was really in need of a taxi and a quick ride back to the house for some sleep. The first driver I inquired said "two cedis", I laughed at him and walked away. That felt really good actually, knowing when someone was just being silly with the fare and then making sure they got zero instead of the normal fifty pesawas.
My next attempt landed me in the right taxi with the correct fare and I was home in no time. I hit the bed and just felt terrible before the drugs that I took could take effect. It had been a while since I felt that ill here, and it was a long-ish night of fitful sleeping and violent kicking of sheets and blankets when the fever broke. The flu stayed with me off and on for around four days, just in time for me to get a few trainees to stop by.
By Thursday of last week I had four somewhat hardened recruits stop by and settle in for a few days of report-writing and internet surfing, plus maybe one or two tourist attractions. Friday night three more came and the house was a bit jam packed with bodies, but everyone remarked that they had a good night's sleep. In the morning one volunteer took it upon herself to make my kitchen into something useful, and breakfast was made for all. I must admit, Kate knows how to sling her eggs and make them taste great.
With Sunday came the end of the foursome and they made their way back to the Eastern region. I am going to be there myself come Saturday for another round of training, this time for the purpose of inculcating in me a sense of what to do in an emergency. I gather that the Safety and Security team will fill our brains with more facts about what to do and when, who to call and who to listen to, and so on. From there I will stay in the region and wait for Wednesday which will be a day to present what the Volunteer Advisory Council does to the trainees there in Kukurantumi. A short presentation and answering a few questions is on the itinerary. From there I can head back home and see the friends here in Hohoe once more.
To keep busy I have a few little things to do. I still do not have the server in the computer lab yet; I really want to be able to install the operating system on it and see if I can create a working network using the system and the notes I have collected to date. We have not judged the room adequate in the back of the lab to house the unit and my counterpart feels that the server should not be in the lab itself. I am still working on this as I don't mind where we put it, I just want to tinker and play with it and get the headaches out of the way as soon as possible, and what better time than when I have a lot of time.
On a personal note, I will be trying to pick up a few chords on the guitar thanks to the generosity of Matthew Morgan who sold me his acoustic guitar before he headed back to the U.S. Bless his heart, it sounds great and it makes my fingers hurt to play it. The A and E major chords are the first ones on my list. Plus I have been told I need to learn how to play the song, "Smoke on the water," first in order to truly say that I am learning the guitar. Just a few thousand hours and I might be decent at it.
Other time is spent fixing and helping those who are still in town or on campus with their computer problems. Nothing major yet has come through, but that will surely change the more I stop by the computer lab.
Still enjoying Ghana, but I am very thankful that I can enjoy it when I am 100% healthy.
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1 comment:
Not a very fun ride back home for you! Seems there is not a dull moment for you either: with people coming and going and you doing training, etc. You sound like you are keeping up and that you enjoy your work in Ghana. that's great.
I will write an email to fill you in on the events keeping me from cycling.
Take care,
Kerry
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