Accra II

So on our last night in Accra, I just wanted to record some more observations.  I know I need to do it now, before I get used to the way things are and forget how different they really are.

One cultural difference that absolutely blows my mind: the kissing noise.  The dreaded sound that causes my teeth to involuntarily clench after 2 years of living in South America.  However, here it is simply used to get someone's attention, or to inform someone that they are in the way and need to move.  I learned this difference the hard way, getting irrationaly upset at a man on a bicycle who simply wanted me to move out of his way.  Another attention-getting gesture is snapping, which of course can seem offensive to Americans at first.

Another pleasant surprise, and a stark contrast to Chile, has been that no one stares at us.  We can be spotted miles away in a crowd, yet no one pays any attention to us.  No cat calls, whistles, nothing.  I love it.  I figure that we're so obviously foreign that the locals simply observe that and move on.

I've also noticed that Ghanaians rarely yell.  The 'mates' in charge of shouting out the destination of their tro-tro don't speak much louder than a normal conversation.  When someone wants the tro-tro to stop, it seems to me that they almost mention it off-handedly, but somehow both the driver and the mate hear, and the vehicle stops.  Irate drivers communicate their displeasure toward others by leaning out the window and speaking to them; this isn't to say that they are any less upset than drivers in the States would be, just that they feel they can make their point at a lower decibel.

Lauren and I have yet to tackle a meal in true Ghanaian fashion, but it's only a matter of time.  When we first entered a restaurant for the first time, we were confused by the presence of a basket on the table, containing dish soap, lotion, and a towel.  The waitress brought over a dish of water with a spoon in it for Lucas, who had ordered a traditional fufu dish.  He removed the spoon and washed his hands thoroughly, consumed his meal with his right hand (the left is considered unclean, as it is used to wipe the bottom), then washed it again afterwards.  Lauren is threatening to film our first attempt at this.

One aspect of life here that Lauren and I are finding hard to swallow is the commonplace practice of littering.  There is trash everywhere, and no one thinks twice of tossing a plastic bag into the bushes, or of picking their way through scattered mounds of trash on their way to their destination.  We haven't noticed any sanitation service in existence, and we're pretty sure everyone is responsible for burning their own trash.  I'm not sure how city dwellers manage this.

Ok, that's all until next week!