Toothy Critters!

Our Grandsons are always asking us about the animals we've seen.  So this post is for them.

There are no GOOD snakes in Africa!  Nearly all of them are poisonous and feared by locals.  Rightly so - because if you get bit, luck is against you to make it to any hospital equipped with the anti-venom to save you!  It only takes seconds to die when bit by some of them anyway.

Then of course there are the fearless Obrunis Missionaries.  There are MANY reasons to pray for them!

Last week we went to a "Monkey Sanctuary" my camera took mostly blurry pictures that day.  Sorry!

Beautiful beaches should be shared with waste and wildlife?  We have yet to see a beach without waste or a pig in a pen.  Actually we've never seen any animals in pens. 

Goats are not branded or tagged and also roam freely.

As well as the sheep.

Unless of course they are being transported in the usual manner!

Speaking of transportation - we saw several of these in Assin Foso.

No Black Angus here.  Beef tastes as wild as these bad boys cruising the streets everywhere.

The cattle driver is never far behind.  I think the stick is for the cows and the knife is for the bulls?

Rabbits were also found at the Monkey Sanctuary, not sure if they are protected pets or dinner - probably the latter.

We came home one night and found this kitten - unfortunately, it found it's way to our neighbors kitchen ... yumm? 

Mighty hunters display their trophy "Bush Meat" - looks like "Road Kill" to me.  This is Grass Cutter.  It is eaten fresh in stew...

Or "Smoked" - you see it for sale on the side of the road between Mankessim and Winneba everyday.

We also went to Haunes Cottage for lunch and to pet the Crocadiles.

You have to pay GHC 6 extra for them to feed them.

We hoped to see a whole chicken not a little nugget!

Grandpa wasn't worried - they looked pretty fat and lazy!

There was one that carried cute little Crocadiles in it's mouth to the water for a swim.  We were told to stay away from this one!

These are Grandpa's favorite animals and they are everywhere!  He likes to watch the males turn these bright colors and fight.  They smack each other with their tails and chase each other trying to bite off their tails.  I like to watch them pump pushups! 

This female layed 4 eggs in a hole she dug.  She covered them with dirt and left them to hatch by themselves a few weeks later. 

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)!

Powerful Play!

The senior missionary couples got together for a few days of "R & R" recently - thanks to the Fife's for planning the whole thing - they call us the Cape Coast Crew! We started out on the Volta River; the pace was slow and peaceful and the scenery was beautiful. 

OK, so our boat had a motor.  It wasn't quite as slow as the natives canoes that we zoomed by as they fished!  There are many inhabited islands on this huge river, which are accessible only by boat.  We landed on two of them for a little looksy.  

MTC President Graham is showing the school children his i-Pad.  Doctor Fife brought a couple of soccer balls and 1" balls as gifts; we brought toffee for the kids.

This is the Boabab Tree also known as "The Tree of Life".  They live for 700-900 years while providing food, water and shelter for those that live under it's canopy.  When you see a cluster of these trees in the distance you can be sure there is a villiage under them.

There is a 501c3 organization called Empowered Playgrounds; they design, engineer and install Teeter Totters and Merry Go-rounds on remote school playgrounds.  The set up is $10,000 USD and will last for many years. 

When the children play on them (which is like constantly) enough electricity is generated to power the school, the doctor office and other public buildings in the village.  Each family is also given a lantern, which the children take home at night and is the single source of light at night.  The playground also generates enough electricity to recharge the lanterns everyday.  Ten children could easily fit on this one, but the rain created a lake under it and some didn't want to venture.

Elder Zoll will tell you that this Merry Go-round is hard to push...so what are you saying - we're heavy?  :)

The second island we visited was very much like the first - no cars, therefore very quiet!  We enjoyed a lazy stroll on a path through the trees.

Can you imagine how long it takes to place sea shells upside down, one by one, to create a surface on which to walk?  I'm sure it makes the rainy season less muddy!  

The second day we went to Shai Hills nature reserve.  There were a few ostriches behind fences, but also wild baboons roaming without them.  A few ran across the road in front of us "as fast as demons" and of course Elder Zoll and Elder Asay had to stop and chase them.  Imagine those hunting shows when they start whispering and breathing heavy with an adrenaline rush and you'd get the picture...except Elder Asay was trying to call them in with his own expert baboon call.  You'll have to ask him to do it for you some day.  Needless to say, we didn't get a picture of the baboons - I think the expert call scared them away!

Doesn't this outcropping look like the one on Lion King?  We hiked up to a cave there where the natives still return every year to honor their ancestors.  The cave is filled with bats, which is why Elder Asay was eager to be the first to arrive!  Fortunately since it rained earlier, the bat dropping aroma was bearable.  It was pretty cool.  As we walked on the trail, I could visualize their homage, sitting in the cave around a fire, listening to the wise counsel of the chief...of course I have a vivid imagination!

These birds were beautiful when they flew away...I guess they aren't used to seeing a truck screech to a halt with a fast ninja u-turn to get the perfect shot!

After we got back to Cape Coast, we went to visit the McDowells at Forever Young School.  They are on their third mission to Ghana - this time a six month humanitarian mission to help this boarding school of 600 students, ages 2-18, learn how to garden.  They are also administering immunizations to children in most of west Africa.  This school was founded by Billy Johnson, pioneer of the Church in Africa.  It is now run by his son Brigham.  Later in July, the funeral for Brother Johnson will be held here.  I'm sure it will be a huge afair attended by everyone!

It's hard for me to imagine parents sending their children away to school to live.  Some of them are just out of diapers!

I guess if you're big enough to wash your own clothes by hand, and can reach the clothes line you'll be ok.

This prep room is where they clean and chop everything to cook.  There were no refrigerators or freezers.

Their food is still cooked in a traditional way - in huge pots over fires.  The stone floor was just mopped and is still wet.  Everything was very clean.

This is the cafeteria.  The tables are outside because they are still mopping the floor.  Notice the sinks outside to wash their hands and their own dishes. 

The garden is huge and beautiful.  They are growing enough maize to feed the children for a year!  Cocoa is the biggest export of Ghana, next to gold.  The pods grow on the trunks of the trees.  The fruit is harvested when it is yellow, the beans are removed from the soft flesh - it is quite a lengthy process to get it to be the chocolate I recognize and adore.  If I went to the school there, you'd bet I'd have the cocoa thing figured out.

Later, after we got back from Forever Young we went to Alices to do our usual service projects.  This time Elder Asay and a few of the boys in the village tore down the broken wash house and started a new one.

Ishmael split the bamboo while Elder Asay and his boys planted the poles.  The road was flooded out so we couldn't get the palms to weave and finish the walls.  Maybe next time?

Elder Asay taught the children "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes".  They laughed and giggled...and clapped when he was finished.  They did it over and over and over.  They say "Okie dokie", he replies "smokie".  Then when we leave he toots the horn beep, beep, be, be, beeeeep, they reply "awayyyyy".  So fun!

President and Sister Shulz were not available when this missionary needed to return home for medical reasons, so we tried to make as special for him as the regular groups going home.  Best wishes Elder Baraza from Kenya!

I laugh every time I see these missionary bikes outside the building at the Mankessim Branch.  You probably can't see the cute little bells...no gender specific colors for men here but at least they're wearing their helmets!