Believe it or not, we’ve reached the end of our cycle and I’ve reached the end of my semester in Ghana! It has been a wild, difficult ride, to be sure. When I arrived here, I was a different person. Living somewhere so foreign from the place you grew up is sure to change your perspectives!
I’ve learned many things in Ghana. I’ve acquired the skill of haggling prices like a Ghanaian. I’ve experienced firsthand what medical care is like in a country that most Americans consider to be “Third World”. I’ve figured out how to do laundry by hand, how to use the trotro system, and how to be brave enough to be myself in a country where I’m part of a clear minority and everything I do is noticed.
I’ve made friends with fellow Americans, exchange students from Germany and Norway, and so many wonderful Ghanaians. I’ve seen wildlife that I’d only seen in documentaries before, and I’ve had a wild monkey sit on my shoulder to eat a banana! I’ve learned a few words in several Ghanaian languages—I can say “Thank you” in Twi, Ewe and Nzema (medaasi, akbe, and medewaase, respectively). I’ve visited five of the ten regions in Ghana—Central (Cape Coast), Ashanti (Kumasi), Accra (Greater Accra), Akosombo (Eastern) and Volta (Hohoe).
