Time for a Nice Walk...

The past few weeks, with the exception of my traveling out of town, going to class, going to volunteer, or going to the grocery store, I haven't really left the house. That really hasn't been much of a problem for me. In fact, it's been great. I've been reading a lot, singing a lot, writing a lot, stretching, and doing whatever else comes to mind. However, everyone goes through phases, and I am now coming into a new one. First of all, let me stress that I've never been in a foreign country for so long. However, I'm not unfamiliar with being thrown into a completely new environment. Therefore, though I haven't had much difficulty adjusting to my life here, the past few weeks have been sort of an attempt to leave Accra and come back to myself for a while. Of course traveling was an exception because everything was new again - the Volta Region as well as Kumasi are very different from Accra, as different as Douglas, GA and New York City; or as different as Portland, OR and New York. Same country, different world. My temporary withdrawal from life here in Accra has been much needed. I didn't consciously decide to withdraw as I did. It was simply a natural reaction. No matter what we do, where we go, we always need to come back to where we were before, or else we might be swept away by forces beyond our control. So that's what I did. I made sure not to get swept away.

But as I said, I'm entering a new phase. My trip to Kumasi reminded me that, although it's less convenient in Accra than in Kumasi, sometimes just walking around a busy city and taking it all when while being a part of it all can be quite amazing. One of my favorite things to do anywhere is just walk around, even in Douglas where there's not a whole lot to see. So I've decided to go back out exploring and just see what happens. Well, after class yesterday, I had about four hours free, so I decided I would go out for a little exploration. Even if exploration just means weaving in and out of random streets, it's still something new.

Of course, I quickly came face to face with one of the reasons I don't go out as much anymore. Not even two minutes into my walk, I walked by this guy who was selling mirrors and we exchanged greetings. Then he wants to ask me what I'm doing in Ghana and where I'm going. This is fine. I don't mind telling him, nor anyone else, but then let's just part our ways and be content with brightening up each others' day. But then he said to me, "You seem like a really cool guy. I have a lot of friends, but I want some white friends, you know what I mean? Do you have a contact so maybe we could meet later?" I've talked to a few Ghanains about this strange phenomenon of people wanting my phone number the second they meet me, and they assured me that yes, it is only because I'm a foreigner. That's another thing that I realized kind of gets me down about Accra. In Kumasi, I felt like a random person. Sure, people would look at me and know I'm obruni, but they didn't more of it than that. In Accra, too often do people call to me, "Bra! Bra!" (Come! Come!). Too often do I meet people who want my phone number right when I meet them. Too often do cab drivers slow down and stare at me with a face that says, "You must need a ride." I just want to be anonymous. I made a resolve, though. Once I realized that this was one of the things that bothered me about Accra, I decided to make a plan for how to act towards it. From now on... "No, I don't own a phone. You can just write your number down, and if I decide to call you, I will. Now have a nice day." Ok, more polite than that, but I'm no longer worried about being culturally offensive to strangers who want my phone number. I won't be rude either, but I've decided to be a bit more assertive about making people realize I don't have an obligation to them just because I passed them on the street one day.

Luckily, for the next three hours of my walk, almost no one called me out. Alright, so things aren't so bad. I wasn't really sure where to walk, so I decided to go the familiar route to Osu and wander from there. Osu isn't downtown Accra, but it's sort of like that other spot where lots of businesses, restaurants, night clubs, and stores carrying imported goods are. And banks, of course. This wasn't really what I was looking for; I just needed a starting point. I went down the side streets, not on Oxford Street, the main road that runs through Osu. Going on Oxford Street means walking amidst stalled traffic and an overabundance of street vendors wanting to sell me something. Not fun. So I went down the side streets, and they were more or less whatever. Nothing special, just shops, hotels, restaurants. All around Osu (and Accra, I suppose), there's lot of construction taking place. It's filthy, trash everywhere. And the exhaust from all the cars combined with the heat and the smell of trash and open sewage can be quite a bit to handle.

Osu is definitely not going to be any sort of regular route for me. I'm going to explore more to see if there are any nice walking routes in the city. One thing that really bothers me about Accra is the fact that there are pretty much no sidewalks. At first, I just thought to myself, "Aww, bummer, so sidewalks." It's not so unfamiliar - lots of places in American cities don't have sidewalks either. Well, more pedestrian-friendly cities and pretty good about it, but many places are not. The more I think about it, though, it's completely ridiculous not to have sidewalks. It's a hassle and a danger for both the pedestrian and the driver. Pedestrians always have to be on the lookout for cars, and drivers have to be on the lookout for pedestrians. It's not always possible to get off the road when cars are coming. It's impossible for me to just forget about the cars; if I ignore one, it could hit me. It really makes me upset. In addition, having no sidewalks is almost a way of saying, "Travel in cars or don't travel at all." It just doesn't make sense.

There were a few good things about going to Osu. One, I had some coconut water (although I could get it pretty much anywhere). I also saw a store called "Hilarious Services - Communication/Instant Passport Pictures." I can just imagine the advertisements... "Come to Hilarious Services. Our services are so funny, you won't know what to do with yourself! After receiving our services, you won't be able to stop laughing! And then we'll take your passport pictures. Ha." After having walked through Osu for a good hour and a half (I pretty much covered it all), I suddenly saw the ocean in the distance. I had no idea that the ocean was so close to where I lived, but it is. It was still a good ways away, but I decided to go there. It's always great to see some place in the distance and know that you soon will be there.

I finally reached a dirt path that led to a small sand hill which blocked my view of the ocean. The ocean, however, was right on the other side of that hill. There was a little community between the main road and the ocean. As I got closer, I noticed how filthy everything was. Trash was all over the beach and in that little community. I was very disturbed to see six young school children playing in sewage water. Looking back on it, I wish I had said something to them about playing in sewage water, but I just didn't think to say anything at the time. I kept walking and came past a large church. The church was very pretty, but the surrounding beach was filthy as I said. I got to the sand hill, excited to be away from the filth, excited to see the water, and the first thing I saw was a kid taking a dump on the beach. And so I turned around and got the hell out of there. Please, I'm not judging, I'm merely stating my preference not to be on beaches where people poop.

I hit the streets again, but this time not in Osu. I walked west on a road parallel to the ocean. I came across more shops, more cars, more heat, and more sweat. I also saw one public trashcan (one on my whole walk). Before long, I realized I had no idea where I was anymore. Right after that realization, though, I saw the Indepence Arch and Independence Square in the distance. I had only driven by them in cabs before, so I thought seeing them on foot might be a good end to my walk. It took quite a ways to get there, but they were both very pretty. I can't wait to see what they look like on March 6, Ghana's 50th year of independence. After seeing the two, some guys asked me if they could have some peanuts I was eating. So I gave them some. After that, I took a cab home, sweaty and hungry, but satisfied. Sometimes I just need a good walk.