Where heaven meets earth

This will no doubt be the most difficult of blogs to write.  With all my thoughts and memories for an entire week emerging on to one page it will be difficult to pick and choose the stories that might be most interesting for you.

We arrived at the airport in Nairobi in the early hours of the morning and were greeted by two very tall dark men (Martin, our key contact in Nairobi and one of his employees) who drove us to our hotel in downtown Nairobi.  Were we crazy wandering off with two strangers in an unknown city in Africia?  Probably but hey, I do like an adventure!  We arrived at our budget hotel (to say the least) and Joanne and I laughed as we entered our tiny little room with two twin beds surrounded by mosquito netting. What the heck were we doing in the middle of Nairobi at 2 am in a budget hotel where the best security was my overweight suitcase wedged up against the door.  And so our Kenya experience began.

Four hours of sleep was not quite enough but we rose early to have a good breakfast in the dinning room which overlooked a small park next to the hotel. Everything looked so much better in the morning and I was surprised how lush and green it was. Martin was waiting to introduce us to Daniel who would be our guide, companion and body guard for the week.  The ride from Nairobi to Maasai Mara would take us 6 hours and as we drove out of the city center toward the Rift Valley, I noticed that Nairobi is quite modern although there are pockets of low income and slum housing.  Nairobi is home to the 2nd largest slum in Africa known as Kibera...over 1 million people are said to reside there in conditions that you and I can't imagine.

Rift Valley

The view of the Rift Valley was breathtaking.  Mountains, trees and small villages here and there on the valley floor.  The valley runs from Jordon to Mozambique and in the background are dormant volcanic mountains.  What a beautiful country!

As we leave the viewing area we see baboons cluttered along the highway...our first sighting of African wildlife...and the euphoria cactus trees line the highway which winds down the side of the mountain.  The valley floor is cluttered with acacia bushes (thorny bushes which the giraffe's love to eat) and we see many gazelle's, zebras, bustard birds, cattle and goats being manned by shepherds dressed in traditional Maasai clothing.  We were headed for the Masai Mara which is located on the north of the Kenya Tanzania border and is part of the Serengeti ecosystem.

Further into the Maasai Mara region, the land becomes very dry and rocky.  There are still patches of grass where you see wildebeests and zebras grazing but for miles in every direction it is flat. The roads were very rough for 4 of the 6 hour drive and for a good deal of the trip through this region we drove off the main paved road which was too rough for vehicles.  Only in Africa would you have to drive beside the highway to avoid fatal pot holes!  Needless to say we arrived exhausted and sick to our stomachs.  Nothing a bit of fresh air and some lunch didn't cure.

Our first side trip would be to the Maasai village just outside the main reserve gate.  Unbelievable. 

Three Maasai warriors 

The villages are built in a large circle with huts lining the outside and a large open pen area in the middle.  Thorny brush lines the outside of the circle which is used to keep wild animals away at night.  The inner circle is used to keep the cattle which are out grazing during the day.  A very primitive society to say the least. 

Maasai cow dung hut

Beliefs in polygamy (men having up to 20 wives with 8-10 children each), drinking of fresh cows blood and milk as a means of survival in the wild goes well beyond my comfort zone.  But I must say that stepping inside the hut (which by the way is made from cow dung, not mud) was a rude awakening.  I couldn't see for the smoke from the smudge inside stinging my eyes and it was almost completely dark but for the small round hole at the top of the wall to let out smoke.  In this small hut would sleep upwards of ten people along with a few calves which were not safe in the larger pen at night. 

Maasai woman

Maasai warrior sitting by hut

This particular village had 399 people - 1 King, 20 wives and the rest were children, some of whom had started their own families with wives from neighboring villages.

Our safari rides were wonderful!  Our van was equipped with a pop-up roof which was open all the time.  I tended to stand while we rode along to avoid the motion sickness and I loved having the wind blowing in my face and the sun shining down on me.  I joked with Joanne that I looked like a dog hanging it's head out of a car window. 

The view out on the Mara plains was spectacular....the largest of skies and smokey grey mountains off in the distance in every direction.  Complete freedom unlike any I've ever experienced before.  It was the only time I've ever truly been at peace and I'll never forget that little piece of my heart I left there that afternoon on the Mara plains.  

We saw many animals (over 25 different animals and countless birds) and of course all but one of the big 5 (the leopard eluded us).  My favourite to watch however were the giraffes and the lions. Both such majestic and elegant animals.  But some of the most fun to watch were the wort hogs that ran in small groups usually consisting of a dad, mom and many babies. We were quite fortunate as well to see a herd of 39 elephants.

Male lion catching some shade

Giraffe's on the plains near Mara River

After a bottle of South African red wine (we sampled many through the week since work was over after all and this was now vacation) we settled into our tent for a good nights sleep.  Unlike Ghana with the hard beds and pillows, I sunk down into my bed with soft white linens and pillow-top mattress that had been warmed by our steward with a hot water bottle.  I'm in heaven...I'm sure of it, I thought.  And as the sound of crickets ecoed in the night I could hear the rolling thunder in the distance and shortly afterward the tapping of rain on our roof.  The last I remember were the tears running down my checks and the feeling of complete peace...it was the best night's sleep I'd had in months.

Our mornings started early with a big breakfast and then out for more drives.  In subsequent days we visited Lake Nakuru and Lake Naivasha which were also wonderful and provided a completely different view of Kenya with pelicans, flamingos and hippos. 

Lake Naivasha

Pelicans at Lake Nakuru

 Our 2nd last day was spent boating around Lake Naivasha and hiking in Hell's Gate.  Again, such a diverse landscape and the rock formations and gorge at Hell's Gate were completely unexpected.  We were guided by a Maasai worrier (they're everywhere!) and Joanne and I joked with this young lad (he called himself George of the Gorge) about why the Maasai women didn't have many husbands instead of the other way around and he said that was strictly forbidden...I told him it was just a matter of changing their frame of mind :-).  Might it be possible for Joanne and I to alter the rituals and beliefs of this ancient and primitive tribe?

Hell's Gate Gorge

Feeding giraffes at sanctuary

Our trip back to Nairobi the next morning was smooth sailing and I wrote in my journal most of the way and reminisced about the our week of adventure.  The day in Nairobi was fun and I thoroughly enjoyed the elephant orphanage and the giraffe sanctuary. We saw 18 orphaned elephants less than 29 months old who would be cared for before being returned and integrated back to the wild at around 3 years of age.  We were close enough to touch them and watching them play and eat was quite cute.

Elephant orphanage

Joanne and I with Daniel

Our accommodations and itinerary were fabulous and we have both Martin and Daniel at African Veterans Safari to thank for our experience. As two women traveling alone through Kenya, we never once felt unsafe with Daniel.  A big brute of a guy, he was actually such a teddy bear and we thoroughly enjoyed his stories and his company. We spent the last hours together with Daniel and Martin in a downtown coffee shop sharing our stories and laughing at the many challenges along the way (flat tire, mud, rutts, broken safety plate under the van, broken radio, chasing baboons from our picnic lunch, smashed cell phone and finally Daniel coming down with Malaria).  You can't control the things that happen to you but you can control how you react to them...we (yes, even Joanne, the ultimate nervous Nelly :-)) embraced each and every one of our small challenges with a whoop and a holler and later a good laugh.

As much as I thought Ghana would be a life changing experience...and it was...Kenya was where I found myself again.  Where I truly felt at peace for the first time in over a decade and where I fell in love with this beautiful country and it's people.  I promised myself that I would visit here again....this place where I left behind a piece of my heart and where heaven really does meet earth.

Where heaven meets earth

"Maktub"...and so it is written

Alot can be accomplished through teamwork

Yesterday was our final presentation to the client which was held at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Accra.  Heading into the presentation I was a bit nervous knowing that some of our recommendations may not be met by the entire Board of Directors with enthusiasm but I was thrilled to hear the client's rave reviews on our project results and was pleasantly surprised to see not only our Country General Manager but the clients President and Board Chairman.  What a satisfying feeling knowing that our work made such a big difference that even the Big Guys came out the support the event. 

View from IBM offce in Accra (Statium, Independance Sq and client office in background)

The client treated our entire IBM team to dinner at a local restaurant and I had the pleasure of hosting Dr. Kwaku Osafo, the Chairman of the Board for our client at our table.  Dr. Osafo is an extremely down to earth and knowledgeable gentleman and runs an economic development consulting firm in Ghana.  He studied at Standford, speaks many languages and has visited 117 countries.  We had wonderful conversations about his travels, his school days in California, his economic development work in Africa and his traveling stories.  What a pleasure it was for me to have met his acquaintance and to have enjoyed such a fun evening with the client team.

Dr. Osafo and I at dinner.   Our IBM client group (minus Ranga)

IBM and Client team

But it's now Friday and my last day in Ghana.  Seven of our team spent the day in Accra shopping at a local market.  On the bus ride home, we enjoyed the dried plantains and coconut cookies from the street vendors whom we now feel comfortable buying from out of the van window.  I'm even getting good at haggling with the artisans.  It was a great relaxing day and exactly what I needed after such a hectic work week.

Artisan market

  When I arrived in Ghana one month ago, I had no idea just how fast the time would go.  I remember stepping down out of the plane 4 weeks ago Saturday in my jeans and roots hoodie wondering how the heck I was going to handle this heat....and it WAS HOT and sticky every single day.  I can't say I handled that part well at all.

But I've grown use to it here and could probably stay forever were it
not for my family at home who I miss so dearly.  Life is much less complicated here and I’m learning to love the simplicity of it all.  It's funny how at the beginning of this trip everything was such a shock and I constantly took pictures, asked questions and blogged.  But I've gotten use to the traffic, the street vendors, the honking horns, spicy food, the sandy sidewalks and red dust on my shoes.  There are fewer starring people now (or maybe I just don't notice), and I think I walk a lot slower than I did when I arrived.  I enjoy my meals more (don't rush) and look forward to a refreshing Star beer each night at dinner.  I know my hard bed and pillow are like heaven now at the end of each day, although I still can't manage to sleep much.

Some of the things I don't think I'd ever get use though and these include:

• the loud music, 
• the intermittent internet connectivity, 
• men urinating where ever and when ever they feel the urge (even if it's in front of you on sidewalk),
• only getting BBC/CNN and soccer on the TV.  
• Being man handled in the crowds
• The volume of food they tend to serve at meals
• Rough roads
• Power outages 
• And the poverty and the struggle of many   

I've had wonderful experiences here and can really only summarize it as saying it's been everything I imagined and nothing I imagined.  The people are friendlier, the environment safer, the countryside more beautiful.  I'm fortunate to have seen Cape Coast, Kakum National Forest, Mt. Gemi, Akzombo, Volta Region, the ocean, beach parties, Ghanaian home cooking, Tema, Accra, and the list goes on.  I met many people from all over the world including India, Nigeria, England, Switzerland, Russia, US, Brazil, Mexico, Japan, China, Germany, South Africa...and the list goes on.  My team teased me as I usually knew by name most of the other guests at the hotel.  It's amazing what conversations can be opened with a simple "Good morning".  But I learned early on in the trip that many local and foreign visitors seem to interpret "hi, how are you" as "let me give you my number"...we got a good chuckle out of the forwardness of some individuals on a few occasions....and no, I never did give out my number.

But as I wind down my day (still packing to do, dinner with the team and no doubt some sad farewells) I reflect on this experience as truly life changing..both personally and professionally.  I thoroughly enjoyed consulting with external clients and perhaps I need to look for opportunities in that area of the business.  Personally, I come away with an insight into the many cultural backgrounds of my IBM team mates who are each unique and wonderful in their own way.  I've learned a lot about my own tolerance levels and areas for further development. I never quite got use to Ghanaian time and the tardiness with which our team activities got under way. :-) Theo after all, taught me well of the importance of people's time.  But in hind sight, this experience has taught me each of us can and should contribute in what ever way we can to make this world a better place.  I also come away with a profound respect for Ghana, it’s culture and most importantly, it’s people.  Barbara, our CDS lead has been a godsend for us and Francis, well, he holds a very special place in my heart and I wish him well.    

So just to let you know, Joanne and I are off to Kenya tomorrow where we'll officially be "off the map".  I look forward to yet another African adventure.  I’ll be sure to blog about it when I arrive home in a week.  Until then....my Ghanaian adventure is official winding down…

Meda ase p Ghana!  Yεbεhyia!

Freakin' Insanity

As we rode home tonight from Accra back to Tema, with four of us crammed into a small cab going 100 km (which is very fast in Ghana) and swerving in and out of traffic, Joanne sat with her hand over her eyes asking, “are we still alive”?   I chuckled and joked with her that one week from now we’d been in absolute silence (except I’m sure for the sound of crickets) in our tent somewhere on a game reserve in Kenya…it’s something that is hard to imagine after the weekend we’ve had but something we are both looking forward to.

My day started rather slowly.  I’ve been battling with some sort of sickness with restless nights, gut wrenching pain off and on, a headache and half a dozen other nasty symptoms but at 3 am this morning my fever broke and I was able to get up this morning feeling somewhat normal.  I don’t have time to be sick this week as it’s my last week in Ghana so I double up on my malaria meds and start the antibiotics my Dr. from home sent with me.  That should get me through 7 days and then it won’t be long before I’m home.  But I slowly came to life this morning, dressed in my boubou (long shirt like dress) for church, managed to get a slice of toast and a black coffee into me and was ready to go by 7:30 a.m.

Tony, from TemaTech, one of our clients picked us up this morning in a van and drove us to his Charismatic church.  While not located in the safest area of Tema, we none-the-less were excited to see what Charismatic Christianity was all about and thankful we didn’t have to find our way there by ourselves.

What a blast!!!

Standing on church steps

I wasn’t able to partake in the dancing (not quite enough energy yet) like some others (Joanne can really boogie when she wants to Eric!) but we had such a wonderful time watching the congregation experience their Sunday morning rituals.  The Ghanaian culture is a very religious one and this particular branch of Christianity places a lot of emphasis on joy, faith and hope through singing and dancing.  Quite refreshing!  Our host, Tony was thrilled to have us there and the congregation greeted us with high fives, hand shakes and hugs during the meet and greet portion of the ceremony.  

Sunday school

The music was wonderful and the congregation really got into their celebration.  The minister spoke in English and welcomed each of us from our native countries which he had listed out and the interpreter translated everything into Twi (local language here).  The sermon this morning was about wastefulness and although the ceremony from end to end was 3 hours it seemed far shorter than that.   I figured I’d spent my time well this morning and thoroughly enjoyed the event. 

Our host at church..Tony

I skipped lunch to grab a nap so that I could get through the rest of the day.  Our next trip in the afternoon to Accra to see a football (soccer game) would be quite a different adventure.

Soccer in Ghana.  How do I describe it?  Utter insanity!

We arrived late at the soccer game as we’d stopped by Accra Mall for lunch (I managed to eat a few kernels of popcorn but couldn’t stomach anything else).  As we walked closer to the stadium, it was evident that there were still crowds lined up for tickets to the Accra vs. Kotoko game.  Francis (our CFO) went in search for tickets as the group of 7 of us stood waiting.  I’m quite use to being started at by now but still a bit shocked when men reach out to grab your arm or make a comment directly to you…for the most part I ignore it.  But today was unique…we had a gentleman approach us asking if we wanted tickets so after standing waiting to find tickets for half an hour “heck, yes” we wanted tickets….it was going to cost us double however but the 10 Ghana cedi’s (about $7 Cdn) was a very small price to pay.  So off Frances and the gentleman in the army jumpsuit and the chains (not decorative chains but heavier gauge steel chains) around his neck went.   We all wondered what the chains were for and if we’d actually get our tickets.   Twenty minutes later (we were almost ready to give up and leave), they came with the tickets and we proceeded to go to the gate to enter the stadium. 

Our Accra fans

At the stadium entrance, utter pandemonium started with shoving and pushing by the crowd of people swarming us trying to get into the stadium gate with us.  Our group of seven were hanging on to each other and we could feel people pushing up against us, almost knocking us over.  At one point Joanne asked if those were Kerstin’s hands on her neck ….that’s a negative Joanne.  She broke her gold chain in a struggling match with the man behind her who was trying to pull it off her…Denis’s side pocket of his leg of his shorts was undone and someone was grabbing at his wallet and I could feel hands searching up and down my legs for things in my pockets….freakin’ insanity!  Jorge got a bit intense yelling at people to leave us girls alone.  Suddenly the crowd started pushing us backwards away from the gate almost knocking us down the steps.  While we didn’t realize it at the time, we soon learned what the guy in the army jump suit did with his chains…he was having no luck clearing the crowd for us to pass, so he started swinging the chains at the crowd around to clear a small enough path for us to get through.  We were literally pulled through the steel gates one by one by the security teams and once on the other side, were sent on our merry way by GI Joe.  But we all paused briefly on the other side, in shock wondering what the hell just happened.  The little extra we had to pay to GI Joe was well worth it!

Crowd watching soccer

Inside the stadium, we found some 2^nd row seats.  I was amazed to find such good seats given that we were an hour late for the game but I soon realized it was much easier to see the game if you were higher up on the rows as the parades of singers and dancers down at the lower level blocked your view of the game.

Parade at soccer field

June, who is our Chinese delegate, was…..well…… how do I say it?.....given some what of a ….hmmmm, presentation of sorts.  She was sitting quietly with us taking in all the sites when suddenly a young man jumped up two rows from the front aisle and almost landed in her lap.  He proceeded to kiss at her (often interpreted here in Ghana as a way to get attention…not like we interpret it in Canada).  He scared the crap out of her and proceeded to lean in with his face not 6 inches from her and dance rather suggestively in front of her.  Our entire team watched with open mouths and Francis said later he was ready to step in at any time to stop the shenanigans but he too was in too much shock.  The young man…with nothing on but his pants…which barely covered the poor lad, continued to entertain June for a few moments dancing and shaking before he bounced down out of the stands and ran off to entertain his next victim.  Needless to say, when we arrived at the pub after the game for some dinner, June ordered a Cosmo AND a dry martini…poor girl will never be the same!

June after eventful evening

I had all kinds of questions for Denis (Brasil), Jorge (Mexico) and Kerstin (Germany) about soccer in their respective countries but none of them could equate the experience we saw today to what they see at home.  Freakin’ insanity is what comes to my mind!

But after some yam chips and a couple of STAR beer after the game, we headed back to Tema.  The moon was full tonight and I wondered if that contributed to the craziness of today’s events.  I feel as though between being sick, church this morning and soccer tonight I’ve been to heaven and to hell and back all in one day! 

Post soccer smile on Akiba

But I’m feeling much better now between the antibiotics and the beer (of course I could keep the beer down!) something’s working.  As I settle in for the night, I’m comforted to know my girls are back from skiing in BC with Daddy and June is fast asleep after her eventful evening.  Tomorrow I start my last remaining week in Ghana.  I have such mixed feelings about going home but I’m so grateful for ALL my experiences here (even the days I feel like crap help me appreciate the days I feel great). 

Full moon in Ghana

So as I watched the full moon rise high in the sky on my way home to Tema I remembered a phrase I say often to Em and Liv and I hope they’re thinking of me too…”I love you to the moon and back girls”…and the African beat of the music thumps away in my chest from the woofers in the back seat of the taxi…do they ever play music softly here?.....EVER?

All work and no play

This week is crunch week.  We have some huge deliverables for our client this week in terms of completing workshops, wrapping up loose ends and preparing documentation.  Next week will be a few days of presentations to the clients followed by a media day next Friday with the IBM West African Executive and the IBM Ghana Country General Manager.  Thus, my blogging will be minimal until the weekend.  But I thought I'd share with you a picture of one of my peaceful moments I steal each morning from this crazy schedule, albeit I can find a quiet moment only at 6 a.m. before everyone arrives for breakfast. 

A peaceful moment before the hectic day starts

At this time in the morning the sun is just coming up and is peaking over the roof line by the pool.  I generally take some notes for the day, write in my journal or close my eyes and enjoy the sounds of the birds and the wind blowing in the palms.  Around 6:30 a.m. I start to hear the traffic (car horns are constant here), the hotel staff are talking and laughing in their local language and I can hear the children on the street and sometimes playing in the school yard close by (they start early in the mornings here).  The solitude is brief but it is the one piece of my schedule I'm holding sacred while I'm here in Ghana.

Volta Dam in the distance at Akosombo

Wow!  What a fabulous weekend!  Saturday was spent in mountainous Volta region on the east side of Ghana.  It was a 3 hour drive from Tema along the coast and then north.  The Volta region is home to Ghana’s hydro-electric energy source and coincidentally is linked to the client we’re working on so it’s great to see the source of energy for the country.  Akosombo is a town that hosts the 50 yard dam built by Italians which resembles the Hoover dam in Nevada but to a smaller scale.  It’s beautiful in this area with the hills and lakes and the temperature seems cooler.

Mt Gemi

We then traveled through a number of villages before climbing high on a very, very, very rough road to the highest human settlement in Ghana known as Amedzofe (A-med-zo-fe).  There we walked up Mount Gemi to the summit where the German’s built a cross in 1939 and which sits, still untouched by time.  Actually, the village itself would have looked much the same 100 years ago except for the school and hotel which are additions in the last 50 years.  

At the top of Mt. Gemi

We were fortunate to get out and walk through the village (the first time we’ve been allowed to venture out of the tour bus on our own) and take some pictures of locals in the market and sample some palm wine (kinda sour but served over ice it would have been superb).  Palm wine is tapped from palm trees and the alcohol content in the juice is natural without fermentation and increases in strength from early morning to mid day when it can climb to 20% alcohol content.  Our palm wine was about 15-20% but it tasted like fruit juice to me. 

Mona monkeys

After a lunch overlooking the valley, we ventured down to Tafi Atome to visit the monkey sanctuary where the monkeys climb down from the branches in the forest to eat bananas (or grab them if you’re not holding tight) from your hand.  It was great fun for us to get so close to these Mona monkeys.  It was actually a Canadian who helped establish the sanctuary some time ago.

Lots of ant hills that stand 6ft +

On the trip home from Volta region we came across rain and I wondered how the villages here where most homes are built of mud bricks and thatched roofs with stand the strong winds and rain.  I’m sure the dirt floors were slippery. 

Tables and chairs clutter the beach

Sunday….the most fun I’ve had in Ghana yet.   

I worked a bit in the afternoon before heading to the beach with the team.  I was not as interested in the beach as others as I’m not much of a sun worshiper but little did I know that beach parties in Ghana are like spring break in Fort Lauderdale.   

Very busy even at 5 pm

 People everywhere and most wear clothes (jeans, shirts, and dresses), not bathing suits.  The music was blaring and there were a ton of tables, chairs and umbrellas for people to use.  We were attending a birthday party for a friend of Samantha’s (Francis’ girlfriend).  Drinks, food and entertainment were provided and we greatly enjoyed the hospitality.   

Lots of wave riders

As the sun set, however, a whole different Ghanaian culture emerged…one much less conservative than what we see during the day.  The dancing was a blast although Akiba and I stuck very close together (literally hanging on each other) while locals surrounded us.   We laughed and danced for a bit before heading home early.  It was the best time I’ve had dancing since I was 20!

Samantha and Akiba

We girls went swimming in the ocean in the evening.   The waves were reasonably gentle compared to what I’ve seen along the Jersey Shore in the summer and the water was so warm, it could have been a bath.  It was peaceful as most people were up dancing on the sand and the moon was out.    The music in the background has a distinctly African-reggae beat to it which makes it perfect for dancing.  Little did we know there's a Ghanaian version of Lady Gaga...right Denis?

Needless to say, the beach was a blast and we plan to head back again next weekend to join in the wave riding and the dancing.

Cape Coast and Elmina Castle

Coconut Grove Resort

Coconut Grove Beach

Located 165 km west of Accra, Cape Coast is a beautiful location within Ghana.  There are lovely long beaches with coarse white sand, mahogany coloured rocks along the shore and tall palm trees along the coast line.  We saw many contrasts in the Ghanaian culture in this region…from the wealth of foreign vacationers at the Coconut Grove Resort, complete with its pool and pool side bar, chalets, and beautiful beaches to the underdeveloped poor areas of the region with its chaotic sprawl of homes, shacks and lean-to’s.  

Beach at Coconut Grove Resort

Elmina - a fishing town

One of the towns we visited was a little community called Elmina (about 20,000 people), a fishing village where we saw boats being made and a massive sprawl of boats and fisherman in the little bay off the coast.  The name Elmina is derived from the Portuguese who first started trading in this area in the late 1470’s.  They traded spices and various products with the Ghanaian people in exchange for gold.  The Portugese thought gold to be in abundance here so named the settlement “the mine” which was interpreted as “El Mina” and thus, the name has existed for the last few hundred years as “Elmina”.

Exterior wall of Castle

Inside walls of castle

In 1482, The Portuguese build a castle as the West African headquarters
for their trading but in 1600’s as the Portuguese continued to exploit the African people, it was used to channel slaves and was the largest sub-Saharan slave trading depot in Africa. 

Dungeon doorway

 Elmina Castle sits on the tip of a bay and the beauty from the top of the castle looking out in all directions is breath taking.  But, the castle, despite its beauty leaves you feeling quite haunted and the dungeons and holding sells are dark and musty.  

Holding cell

 One particular dungeon left me nauseous.  I could smell gun powder (I remember my grandfather making shotgun shells when I was little and to the smell of the powder in the holding cell brought back the childhood memories quickly).  The armory for the castle was located in the next room to the cell and the gun powder smell still lingered.   I could also smell human waste and what I imagined to be death.  But only in this cell…I’m still puzzled by this.  Perhaps these smells would remain forever in memory of the souls that died there.  A few people in our tour group stepped outside quickly after entering.  Perhaps the smell got to them as well.   The female slaves were held in this wing of the castle and were segregated from men (their husbands) for fear of spreading disease, but that didn’t prevent the Portuguese soldiers, captains and commanding officers from regularly committing rape on these women or tying them to balls and chains as punishment for rebellious behaviour.  Many children were born at the castle out of these atrocities and were given Christian names, educated and treated well by the Portuguese, unlike their mothers who would be shipped off to be slaves in a far off locations (Brazil, Caribbean, southern US states).

Chains used on the slaves from point of capture until on the ship

After being housed in the dungeons for long periods of time (months in most cases), the slaves would crawl through the portals in the walls and climb down ladders or slides into holding areas before they went through the “door of no return” where they were taken by small boats out to waiting ships before heading over seas.  

Hole and slide which the slaves slid down to go through the door of no return

In the book “The Book of Negroes” (or “Someone Knows My Name” where is titled in US, New Zealand and Australia) is written by Lawrence Hill and he talks about the main character Aminata Diallo and her life in captivity and slavery.  The book had a profound impact on me when I read it well over a year ago and last week, standing and peering out the “door of no return” I could recall Aminata's persistent longing throughout her entire life to go home to Africa.  

The view from the “door of no return” is beautiful…white sandy beaches, blue water and waves that lightly brush the shore line.  This is in stark contrast to what the castle stood for and was used as for hundreds of years.  But I’m learning that Ghana’s history and its present day life are so full of contrasts. 

Door of no return