Hey Charlie! - Ghana
May 22nd - June 19th, 2017
Africa holds a special place in our hearts. Kate has spent half of her life there. Jamie was born there. Their Dad still lives there. Long family history.
It was time for me to get a taste of the good life.
When you think of Africa you probably think wild animals, safari, lots of desserts. In reality, you’re thinking of only part of Africa. While dusty, Ghana is a fairly green country with large forest coverage. It’s hot though. Real hot.
Several times we found ourselves in Accra, the capital city and home to Uncle George who works as an engineer at a PVC manufacturing company — he’s working on PVC windows! We were lucky that cousin Nana was also visiting Ghana while we were there, so we got to spend lots of time with her.
Unbelievably, I have no pictures of us all playing Tarneeb (a popular Lebanese card game) or Spades, which cumulatively we likely played for 30+ hours.
We visited the stomping grounds around Tesano, including the neighborhood pool and even their old house. Amazingly Baba, the same guard from their time living there is still working the neighborhood and remembered everyone. A reunion of sorts.
One night we did a quick drive by Great Mission International where Kate worked helping Orphans for 6 months, and another night we celebrated Zahi’s birthday with rocket candles (apparently not very healthy).
Kumasi is only 150 miles from Accra, but it’s a 6 hour drive. No joke. Between checkpoints where armed guards search your car (aka want you to bribe them), bumpy roads, and traffic, it was a trying journey that we made several times during our stay.
However, the scenery is gorgeous and the company was pretty good, too. ;)
Beatrice, Solo, and Junior all are employed by and live with Zahi at his home in Kumasi. Sista B has been with the Nakhle’s for her entire career both in Ghana and in Lebanon, and she can coooooook. Seriously, we ate a ridiculous amount of delicious Lebanese and Ghanaian fare while we were there. My favorites were okra stew and kousa mahshi (stuffed zucchini). Kate is in love with the fufu and molokhai.
Praise the Lord, Kate has already started to learn to make these dishes — I am one lucky man!
Fufu is a foundational dish in Ghana, and is made from beating together plantains and cassava root with a big stick in a wooden drum. We tried it.
After cards, a significant amount of time was spent juggling a football with Solo and Junior. We setup a make shift football-tennis court and had several tourneys. I think I won once.
Near the end of the trip we took everyone to try Thai food for the first time, but it was Ghanaian style which meant my mouth is still on fire. Sista B let Kate and I tag along for a church service — the worship was on point and Kate even got to celebrate up front because they did May birthdays. :)
Zahi runs a business distributing Everpack supplies in the Kumasi area. It’s a really nice setup that allowed him to work half the day and then spend time with us and be our official tour guide. He took us all over the city (and Ghana for that matter) and showed us the Golden Tulip, a superb swimming pool and even a local light show at Rattray Park where we danced the night away.
He also bought us a gargantuan supply of Fan Ice, a delicious Ghanaian treat of ice cream packaged in a little plastic baggy, all for $0.20. Again, I have no picture of this but believe me when I tell you I ate it daily. I did.
Beyond Accra and Kumasi, Zahi took us on excursions all over — truly a great host!
Ghana Excursions
Ada: We spent a weekend in Ada with Rommel, Zahi’s cousin. The house sits beside a river and sports a great pool for listening to music, a pier for gazing at the sunset and talking late into the night, and a fun little boat to zoom around the river in.
Gomoa Fetteh: It’s one of the only areas of coastal Ghana where the ocean is calm enough to swim in. Zahi made an investment into some beach land many years back. The process of buying land in Ghana involves getting in contact with the chief who resides over the area — pretty cool! Now he’s working on developing the land. After her time at the orphanage, Kate spent a few months living in the town assisting with the opening of a home for pregnant girls living on the streets in Accra.
We spent the day at the beach body surfing, playing volleyball at a neighboring resort, and eating a ridiculous amount of freshly caught lobster. Ya, that’s right. A local fisherman walked by and we bought his entire catch of 10+ lobsters (one big one, most smallish) for $20. Seriously. Kofi Atta, who manages the land while Zahi is in Kumasi, cooked them over a fire on some rocks — it was delicious.
Cape Coast & Elmina Castle: Near Gomoa Fetteh is the old capital of Ghana under the British, Cape Coast. It’s a harbor town with some nice beach front restaurants like Oasis where we hung out and played cards.
Close by is Elmina Castle, which was a prominent player in the Atlantic slave trade. Over 30,000 Africans would pass through the cells there on their way to the Americas. We read a harrowing account of one female slave, Ama, and her experience there and beyond.
On the road we stopped by a Crocodile Cafe. It’s a mix between a restaurant and a hands-on nature experience. They’ve filled the lake around the restaurant with crocodiles and will take you around to feed them, and even touch them should you dare. Honestly, probably a bad idea but everyone seemed chill about it, so we did it.
Kakum National Park: One of my favorite excursions was our time in Kakum National Park. We spent our time doing the canopy walkway — exploring 7 hanging bridges 130 feet up in the air. While we didn’t see much of the wildlife the park boasts (the park covers 145 square miles, and hosts forest elephants, leopards, monkeys and more), the experience of being so high in the African jungle was magnificent and exhilarating.
We did eat some cocoa plant, which was scrumptious!
Exploring Ghana was a joy. It’s clear why it’s a place that Kate and Jamie treasure, full of warm people, fond memories, and exciting adventures. We’re thankful we had the opportunity to make it there on our trip and for the time spent with with Kate’s Dad, Nana, George, Sista B, Solo and Junior.
Until next time, bye charlie!
Btw, charlie (chaa-lay) is a Ghanaian slang that can be meant as ‘friend’ or to express sympathy or disappointment (oh charlie, why).
