To mark two months since arriving in Ghana, I wanted to give you a snapshot into my life here – through snapshots.
Let’s start with home: Kwadaso Agricultural College is one of Ghana’s five national agricultural colleges. I live on campus along with the college staff and just under 200 students. My house is a little bungalow for staff that I share with the animal husbandry lecturer, Lois. The campus is one of the most beautiful places I’ve been in Ghana, rolling hills, green fields, plantain and mango trees everywhere. And it’s very well kept, not even a single water sachet in sight (which is not something I can say for any other place I’ve been in Ghana).
Home Sweet Home!
This is my home from the back. Behind me are our plantain and banana trees, and then we have that little yard. To the left is out water tank where we get buckets of water for bathing, washing, etc.. All of our ‘rooms’ are off the porch that you see there. Lois’ room and the living room are through the door on the right and the middle doors. The bath, toilet, kitchen and my room are all through doors on the left.
Our kitchen
Lois and I
Lois’ mom, with the help of a student (Francis) preparing one of my regular meals – fufu. It’s a doughy mixture of plantain and cassava that you eat with your hands with a soup.
Daily rain storm from our porch! You can hear and feel it coming a long ways away.
Some of the students making us fufu!
Some of the kids from nextdoor: Mustafa, Ahmed and Fafa. They are a lot of fun and love getting their picture taken. They know I love mangos, and when they collect them from the tree, Ahmed will shyly come to the edge of our yard and roll a mango across the yard for me. The girls are much less shy and always coming over for hugs.
Our porch, where I love to sit and enjoy a good book and some of Lois’ homemade bissap juice!
And on to work: Because of the nature of my work right now (scaling the A & E project to all of Ghana’s national agric colleges), I have seen more of Ghana in the last two months than I have seen of Canada in my life! My home is in Kumasi, I’ve been two Accra twice, Tamale at least twice, Damongo, Ejura, Bolga, Wenchi…all for either visiting an Agric College, a Farm Institute or EWB meetings.
My team! Robin, Siera, Rebecca, Don, me and Erin! Agricultural Extension Services Team!
Students in class at Ejura Agricultural College, learning about Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship. After taking this photo I did a guest workshop on social entrepreneurship for them. Not only do we want students to leave with greater confidence and skills in entrepreneurship, innovation and agriculture, but also with an increased understanding of the key role they will and do play in the development of Ghana’s agriculture sector.
Meeting with lecturers from Damongo Agricultural College. This is the life – meetings that take place outside casually relaxing under a mango tree.
Spending time with the Principal of Damongo Agric College and his lovely family, Ghanaian hospitality at its finest.
The Administration Block of Kwadaso AC (Kumasi), where I work when I’m here!
Some of my wonderful colleagues at the college. Mr. Minka, Eric and Ishak! I worked with Eric in helping to organize Ghana’s first Agric Engineering Design Competition and Ishak is KAC’s A & E lecturer!
What a beautiful campus! No water sachets in sight!
Some random things that I just love about Ghana…
Sheep! It’s not only because I grew up on a sheep farm or because I work at the agric colleges that I am constantly surrounded by animals – they are just everywhere. Cows in the plantains in the backyard, dogs fighting at night, cats at the store down the street, chickens in the gutter, goats and sheep wandering everywhere…and those are just the domestic ones!
Sunshine! This is the girls’ dorm at Ejura AC, where I stayed on my most recent visit.
There are two things here, these red flowers from a tree that I have put a picture of before and the rain!
Cloth! I already have three dresses made, with another 3 to be picked up next week!!
Kids! Shouting Obruni as I walk past, coming to shake my hand, their sing song “How are you? I’m fine”. These are the same group of neighbouring kids as above, Ahmed, Stephanie, Aquiya and Fafa!
Last, but most certainly not least, are mangos!!! YUM YUM YUM!
And that, my friends, is a snapshot of my life for the last two months!
