Kamikaze Canuck

After a couple days lazing around the beach town of Busua, we headed inland to a place called Lake Bosumtwi.  Lake Bosumtwi was created by a meteor crash and is about 10 km in diameter.

The lake is surrounded by 20-some villages each having distinct customs and culture.  Its calm, serene atmosphere causes you to forget that only 30 km’s away is the busiest (althought not biggest) city in Ghana; Kumasi (population 1.8 million).

We woke up early every morning and watched the fisherman scatter throughout the lake without making a sound, checking their nets.

No one is sure why, but no boats are used on the lake.  Instead, small logs are modified to sit on and small, dinner plate sized paddles are held by the fishermen who propel themselves manually throughout the lake. (see below)

The Slovenian manager of the guesthouse, Joseph, had relatives visiting from Slovenia who cooked us Slovenian foods and made great company for downing a few wobbly pops as the sun was going down.

Joseph asked Meg and I if we wanted to go into Kumasi with him for supplies.  He took us to the largest market in West Africa called “Kejetia”.  This time I had to take my camera because this was not to be missed.

Merchants packing heavy loads on their heads walk single file like ants through the narrow isles of the outdoor market yelling out the name of their products.  I can hear men hollering “big man!” as I pass by, trying to get my attention.  We follow Joseph and Agusia thorughout the winding market as they bargain for flour, fruit, bread, beer, and other supplies.   Joseph uses Agusia for bargaining at the market since the merchants will give a local woman a better price than a white skinned person.   Some of the merchants appear to be pissed off that Agusia is doing our bidding for us (because it cuts down on their profit of course).  At one point a stampede of 5 women breaks out and the baskets on their heads go flying.  One woman looks at me and yells “WHY WHY WHY!”.  I am puzzled as to what the hell just happened.

Man, I really want to upload a video of this market but these Ghanaian computers are just too damn slow.

After the market we returned to the lake and and went for a swim before we visited the local Rastafarian complex near the guesthouse.  The leader of the rastas is a man called Anche who is a very good friend of Joseph.

I have to admit.  This guy had a presence about him that I can’t explain.  An aura almost.  Anche was extremely well educated and filled us in on exactly what it means to be a Rastafarian.  I had no idea about the foundations of the religion or the strict rules involved.  Strictly vegetarian, Absolutely no harm to any human or animal, no alcohol, no cutting of hair or beards, etc.  It was a fascinating talk.  What a guy.

After ending our stay at Cocoa Village, we took a tro tro to Koforidua.

The dash is torn out/melted, no cover on the fuse box, no gas pedal (just a metal rod instead).  They literally drive vehicles here until they die.   I’m pretty sure this scene was filmed in Ghana:

Koforidua is home to the Thursday bead market.  The largest in Ghana (the size of a soccer field) and maybe the world.  Ghana is famous for its bead making (we actually got to visit a family bead making business which I will blog about at some point) and we took the opportunity to pick up some souvenirs and browse the colorful collection of beads for the morning.

Next stop:  Hohoe, Ghana.

T minus 5 days until Holland…… time is flying!