Kumasi

We went to Kumasi to get the new office couple's apartment ready, the office set up, and them trained.  We arrived 2 days before the new office couple and the apartment wasn't finished!  Many Ghanians do their cooking outside, so it didn't occur to the contractor that power would be needed in the kitchen...you know...to plug in the refrigerator and other appliances!  There was still wet paint in the kitchen as we scrambled to move in and arrange everything required for a completely furnished apartment - finishing only minutes before they arrived.       

We stayed in the new mission home as guinea pigs to work out all the bugs before the new mission president arrived.  My favorite part of the home is the flower arrangement that Sister Thayne, Sunyani senior couple and interior designer extraordinaire (not pictured) created for the dining room table.  The Ghanian designer thought it was hideous - unfortunately there was quite a contrast in tastes throughout the home!

Since we had a couple of hours to kill, we went to the Kente Cloth Village.  History of the cloth goes back as far as 3000 BC and is believed to come from Egypt.  The looms are made by hand, have symbolic meanings and are accorded a great deal of respect.  Women spin and dye the yarn.  Various colors of yarns are combined in particular ways to reflect the symbolic significance of the cloth.

(Yellow symbolizes sanctity, preciousness, royalty, wealth, spirituality, vitality and fertility.  Pink is associated with the female essence of life - mild, gentle, tender, calm, pleasant and sweet.  Red is for seriousness, spiritual or political encounter, sacrifice and struggle.  Blue symbolizes spiritual sanctity, good fortune, peacefulness, harmony and love.  Green is for growth, vitality, fertility, prosperity, fruitfulness, abundant health and spiritual rejuvenation.  Purple is used for rituals and healing but worn mostly by females.  Maroon is associated with healing and power to repel malevolent spirits.  White symbolizes contact with ancestral spirits, deities and ghosts.  It is combined with black, green or yellow to express notion, spirituality, vitality and balance.  Grey is associated with spiritual blemish and spiritual cleansing.  Silver is usually worn only by women in the context of spiritual purification, naming ceremonies, marriage ceremonies and community festivals, it symbolizes serenity, purity and joy.  Gold symbolizes royalty, wealth, elegance, high status, supreme quality, glory and spiritual purity.  Black symbolizes intensified spiritual energy, communion with ancestral spirits, antiquity, spiritual maturity and spiritual potency.)    

Only men are allowed to weave the 4" strips of cloth, and the trade is passed from father to son.  Each cloth has a name and a meaning.  Like most of African art, it is a representation of history, philisophy, ethics, oral literature, religious belief, social values and political thought.  Many designs are unique and interpreted by the weaver.

Women are allowed to sew the strips together.  Originally, the cloth was reserved for only royalty or used in special social or religous occasions.  Men wear a piece that is 8' wide and 12' long (Toga style with the right shoulder and arm uncovered).  Women wear 2-3 pieces of varying sizes equal to about 6 yds.  Elderly women of high social status wear one piece like the men.

We went to the "warehouse" to buy Kente.  Suddenly we were swarmed by hawkers shoving cloth in our faces.  It became impossible to see anything else, I got closterphobic and started to feel sick - I made a quick exit but they followed me outside AND all the way to the truck...continuing to "sell" their wares INSIDE the truck as we waited for Elder Asay to arrive!

He has a neon "sucker" sign on his forhead and couldn't get away without buying a bunch of random things.  At least we got out of there alive and with our wallets! 

      

I really worked on the contractor of the new mission home to NOT install the ugliest mirrors I've ever seen - picture a teenage girl in 1970.  We and the Zolls were happy with the simple ones.     

We felt like we were camping because there were so many bugs to fix, the last one being a huge water break which drained the poly tank only 2 hours before the new mission president arrived.  We accomplished our mission and were on our way home when I asked Elder Asay what his favorite part of the trip was.  He said his favorite part was training Elder Palmer and knowing he understood.  I told him mine was right then - finished and driving home with my honey while eating a Butterfinger (a rare find here)!