Monday, September 26, 2005
First Email from Ghana Sept 26, '05
Greetings from Accra, Ghana
Well, I am here. I am in Ghana… on the first morning, I heard a bird that was different than anything I had ever heard before, plants that are colors and textures that I didn't know existed, smells, tastes…and I have only been in my new home for a few days. The group I am with is amazing; we are all so different- these are people I would not have normally met, yet we have something that has brought us together (into the PC and into Ghana). I have been able to find a connection, a real conversation with all 50 of the people in my group.
Right now I am in Accra where we are getting started with culture and language 101. We have spent the majority of our time in training and getting to know each other, so I have had very few opportunities to interact with the local people. I love learning the language, but b/c they want us to learn fast and so many people don't even know how to write in Twi, we are learning by listening and repeating--- we are encouraged to take notes as we hear it. No sentence structure, no crash course in speaking with tones… but then again I just started the language yesterday :D.
I will find out my site in a few weeks! There is a good chance I will be working to fight guinea worm in the northern volta region, but really I could be anywhere (starting in dec). the weather has been beautiful, but hot... and I think it will only get hotter. We have only seen accra so far, but I am very excited to see more of the country.
Starting next week I will be with a family in Krobo just out of Techiman (directly in the middle of the country). I anticipate the hardest part will be adjusting to what it means to be a woman here. The women here are strong and beautiful, but their place in society is very different than what i am used to. Men will ask me to be their second wives. I will not be able to do the things I did before… I will not be able to do what the men here do. My job as a Peace Corps volunteer is to gain acceptance in the community so that I can be a catalyst for change from within. I will not be able to do this if I do not assimilate. I must adapt ideas of not being an independent individual, as is so highly valued in the US, but as a dependent of a family and a community. Well, I better start adjusting b/c this will take a while.
jenell
Well, I am here. I am in Ghana… on the first morning, I heard a bird that was different than anything I had ever heard before, plants that are colors and textures that I didn't know existed, smells, tastes…and I have only been in my new home for a few days. The group I am with is amazing; we are all so different- these are people I would not have normally met, yet we have something that has brought us together (into the PC and into Ghana). I have been able to find a connection, a real conversation with all 50 of the people in my group.
Right now I am in Accra where we are getting started with culture and language 101. We have spent the majority of our time in training and getting to know each other, so I have had very few opportunities to interact with the local people. I love learning the language, but b/c they want us to learn fast and so many people don't even know how to write in Twi, we are learning by listening and repeating--- we are encouraged to take notes as we hear it. No sentence structure, no crash course in speaking with tones… but then again I just started the language yesterday :D.
I will find out my site in a few weeks! There is a good chance I will be working to fight guinea worm in the northern volta region, but really I could be anywhere (starting in dec). the weather has been beautiful, but hot... and I think it will only get hotter. We have only seen accra so far, but I am very excited to see more of the country.
Starting next week I will be with a family in Krobo just out of Techiman (directly in the middle of the country). I anticipate the hardest part will be adjusting to what it means to be a woman here. The women here are strong and beautiful, but their place in society is very different than what i am used to. Men will ask me to be their second wives. I will not be able to do the things I did before… I will not be able to do what the men here do. My job as a Peace Corps volunteer is to gain acceptance in the community so that I can be a catalyst for change from within. I will not be able to do this if I do not assimilate. I must adapt ideas of not being an independent individual, as is so highly valued in the US, but as a dependent of a family and a community. Well, I better start adjusting b/c this will take a while.
jenell
