All the small things.

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I thought it might be a good idea to share with you a list of the things I love most about living in Ghana and being in the Peace Corps. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but hopefully it will give you some idea of the things that have given me joy over my year in country.

1. The music! 

I really love a lot of Ghanaian music. I don't know the names of half of the artists that I like, but I'll really have to get on top of that before I head back to America. I enjoy hearing it when traveling, out to eat, or just blaring from random radios on the streets in my market town. Here's one of my favorites by the very popular Shatta Wale.


2. Riding my bike!

I can't easily access the town where I live by car, and there's no food for sale in town, so I end up spending a lot of time on my bike, usually at least a few miles a day. When I first got to site, I found this to be a huge pain. I spent a ton of money on taxis getting my room furnished and once carried a stand-up fan six miles to my house on foot. That was a very stupid choice, because although at first the fan didn't seem THAT big, and the distance didn't seem THAT far, after actually doing it, my opinion had changed. But anyway, I now get a lot of enjoyment out of riding my bike, and it's a bike of a de-stresser.

3. Clothes

For clothing, where I live, most people either rely on second-hand clothing from the West or on clothing made to order by local tailors. I don't have much interest in purchasing clothes from the West. A lot of it is stuff that clearly made its way here because no one would be willing to purchase it back home; things like t-shirts saying "Johnson Family Reunion 2012" or "Batavia High School Class of 1997." But the tailored clothing is a ton of fun! You go to the market and buy two or three yards of cloth; it comes in dozens of colors, styles, and types depending on how much you are willing to spend. Then you take that cloth to the tailor and pick out a design. They usually have a few dozen different styles they like to make, but if you want them to try to make something from pictures you've drawn or found on the internet, I've found they're usually game to at least try. I love the creativity involved in participating in the creation of your clothes from scratch.

Here are a few pieces of cloth I purchased from one of my favorite vendors at the local market.

4. Visiting my friends at the health clinic

I usually spend at least a portion of every day visiting some of my friends at the health clinic. The three workers there--two nurses and a community health worker--are young women who speak excellent English. We have long conversations about history, politics, the differences between our two countries, TV, and more. I feel very lucky that I have them to hang out with. During training, there was a day when all of the volunteers finally got a chance to meet someone from their community, the person who had been assigned to bring them home. I remember crossing my fingers that I would be assigned to one of the few women--and indeed, I was! We may fight occasionally, but my clinic friends help make everything worth it.
Hi friends! Also, note their clothes!

5. The weather!

Okay, so I don't think this feeling is probably shared by a lot of PCVs in Ghana. It's a lot hotter year round than it is in most places in the United States, and there are definitely days when I wilt under the heat and humidity. However, it might be the summer baby in me, but I mostly enjoy the endless summer-y days. Sure, it is sort of miserable inside (my house generally hovers a good 10-15 degrees above the outside temperature), but when you're out in the shade and there's a breeze, I find the high nineties to be a comfortable place, temperature-wise. I also like the few hours just after dawn or before sunset, when it generally just feels like a pleasant summer afternoon. Anyway, feel free to remind me of this next time I'm complaining about the lack of seasons or slowly boiling in a puddle of my own sweat.

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