Okay, so now Anne and I are really freaking out because we've realized we only have ONE WEEK left of this paradise. This trip has been more than either of us have dreamed and can't imagine leaving it behind! But anyways, the past few days have been fairly uneventful. Sort of.
So Monday night, right when we were about to start doing laundry (an experience in itself) our WATER went out. So basically Anne and I were not only gross from travelling all day back from the Volta Region (a 13 hour journey... we left the hotel at 2:30 am and returned to our apartment at 3:30pm) and we didn't have any clothes. We kept thinking it would come back on, but eventually we just bit the bullet, went to bed, and hoped that it would be back on by the next morning. I woke up around 5:30 the next day to run, but luckily checked the water before I left. No water. Luckily (for us and the rest of the world) Anne and I were still able to make coffee using the bags of water we've bought to drink. And it really wasn't that bad--we've gotten used to a little grime and sweat haha. Later that afternoon, though, Anne saw the landlady and she came to fix our water--THANK GOODNESS! Tuesday was a really funny day at school though. It had poured all Monday night and was still sprinkling Tuesday morning when we left to walk to school. Not anymore than it's rained before, though. Well, we get to school and there's almost no kids, and the teachers are just hanging around (although that actually happens on a regular basis. They're all pretty laid back) near the entrance. Apparently almost none of the kids have decided to come to school Tuesday because of the rain. Grrreat. Haha, so Anne and I get to just chill with the kids and basically go to whatever classes we want. I taught the 8 or so kids that were in the Nursery 2 class (about 4 years old, some I think are 3). And by taught, I mean I said letters, they repeated them, and then I read them a great story about a chameleon who finds a friend (touching) and we had an in depth conversation about the noise an elephant makes. Such cuties! When their teacher came in, I headed up to the Stage 3 class, where Anne was having all the kids read aloud. After a while, though, the kids just wanted us to read, so we did. I have to admit story time always has been and always will be my favorite time. And as cheesy as it sounds, it was so fun watching the kids get into the story and the picture it was painting. Kids stories in Ghana are blunt, though. In the one we read, the King flat out says that he will behead the rabbit, very matter of fact-ly. Instead, though, all the little animals just pull on his ears to punish him for lying. Whew.
We did find out Tuesday night that the kids are actually on holiday Thursday (today) through Monday, so we won't get to see them again till Tuesday. We're really upset, especially since next Thursday is our last day. But we're trying to make the best of it and slept in until an unheard of 7:30am this morning and relaxed, before heading into Cape Coast, where we are now. We're going to go have lunch and then head back to our village for drumming and dancing lessons! Anne and I are finally catching on, woo, and having the BEST time. It's like being a part of the cool kids club when the teachers all join in and the kids just start dancing and jumping and laughing!! They kids are SUCH good dancers and they get so into it. I swear I saw a three year old break dancing and I got so jealous. But good news, I think being here has slightly improved my rhythm. Either that or I just stopped caring about rhythm... haha.
Yesterday the kids finished up their mid-term examinations. Anne and I spent most of the day watching stage three complete their exams and then grading and recording the grades. It really provided great insight to the differences in education in America to education in Ghana. The Madame explained the purpose of the exams as not to learn the level of the children but instead to learn how the school is doing and what the school needs to improve upon. It was also really interesting, and sad, to see the disparity among the children. For example, some children clearly understood everything, while others struggled to even provide an answer that related to the question. Most of these children seem to understand when you talk to them in class, but I think the written exam really throws them for a loop. Plus, so much of the education is relayed in an auditory manner... what about the kids who need to write everything down or see it done? Or read it? It's just interesting, because I think there are certain things that are valuable here that I think would be great integrated into the American educational system, but I also wonder how this educational system could be improved, especially given the limited resources. All that being said, please understand that I think CEJOCEP International School is doing amazing, blessed work for these children, and I think nothing but the best of the school and everyone who pours their life into it.
Before exams started on Wednesday, Anne and I got to watch the worship service. It's so cool watching all the little children get into the songs or the sermon one of the teachers, Mr. Richard (who we recently found out is just NINETEEN!) gives. They all raise up their hands and close their eyes and dance, just going with the praise music and getting excited about... God. And, there's this clap rhythm they always do in class when a student does something amazing or gets a really hard question right. And yesterday morning, one of the teachers yelled out, "Clap for Jesus!" and they all did that clap. I think that's what got me the most.
This weekend Anne, John, Mr. Essah (one of the teachers who's been helping us learn to drum--very patient, thank goodness!), and I, and hopefully Amanda, another UGA student who's working at an orphanage outside of Cape Coast, are planning to visit Kakum National Park and try out the canopy walk, which was created as a US AID project. Essentially, we'll be walking REALLY high on REALLY thin walkways/rope bridges as I understand it, through the rain forest. So it should be a beautiful view. However, the park is also known to be the home to countless birds. So let's think... heights + birds= my two greatest fears. faaaaaaaaaabulous. haha, but we're here and it should be amazing so I'm DEFINITELY doing it.
Anyways, my time's almost up, but I hope everyone's doing well and Anne and I send our love! Let us know how you're doing, too!
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