An Unforgettable Long Weekend

This weekend we had a real three-day-long-trip to Cape Coast and some places surrounding it. I hardly know where to start my story, because it was so full of great experiences, but I think soon you will see that, too!  

Day 1: Cape Coast and Elmina Castle

On Saturday, we left right after the graduation: we got a car to Kaneshie Market, from where we took a trotro again to Cape Coast, which is about two and a half – three hours of drive from Accra. Time passed pretty fast though since there was a lot to see on the way. After leaving the traffic jam in Accra (during which people were walking among the cars selling their goods) we got onto a very nice highway. To be honest, a lot of roads in Hungary could be jealous of this one: it was very nice and flat, with no holes on it at all. When we got closer to Cape Coast, we saw more and more bushes and also because of the forest there were a lot of people selling all kinds of animals by the road.

After actually getting to Cape Coast, we took a taxi to the famous Elmina Castle, which is near Cape Coast. The way there led by the ocean shore which was amazingly beautiful: just imagine the deep blue color of the ocean with a sandy beach, with palm trees on the beach and also some fishing boats left among them. It was really a great sight. Then now, do you remember that I wrote that there`s something very ancient in this country and also something very modern and that I didn`t know if there was anything in between or what it was? Well, now I know the answer: there were Europeans. First the Portuguese came here in 1472 for trading (they took gold for guns and gun powder), and it was also them who built Elmina Castle in 1482. But pretty soon their purpose of trade turned into slavery and the castle was used as the center of it: people were held in the castle among very poor circumstances (like a hundred woman kept in a room of about 40 square meters with no bathroom facilities whatsoever) and then also shipped away from there. The Portuguese were here for 155 years after which the Dutch became the major power who also continued the slavery. Then after another 235 years the English took over who at last stopped using the castle for the purpose of slavery (which doesn`t mean though that they didn`t continue it at other places by the shore). Now the presence of Europeans here seems pretty much contrary to me. On one side – just as a university professor told us on our tour around the castle – the European presence here and all that happened during that, was one of the biggest mistakes of the History. But at  the same time they also had a major effect on the culture and the political system of this country! Before that there were only independent kingdoms in this area, but it were the English who against the attacks from the more powerful kingdom, Ashanti, started to take control over more and more kingdoms and that way, create a unity. It was also them who gave the area Ghana`s previous name, Gold Coast. So I see that besides everything stands for the independence and against the European regime in Accra, Europeans left their heritage here as well: just look at the importance of Christianity for instance.

Anyway, besides all that, the castle is indeed very beautiful, not to talk about the sight of the ocean shore that you can see from there. Also down by the castle you can see hundreds of colorful fishing boats waiting to be pulled out to the ocean.

Cape Coast itself is a very beautiful city, too, with a pretty much different atmosphere than Accra. I felt like that it`s a bit similar to a Mediterranean town by the see, when I realized that no wonder why: Portuguese were here. See, we are again at the question that what was actually left here by Europeans.

After our tour at the castle we left for a small village where Richard`s (remember, he is my `project manager` here, who actually also takes really good care of me!) father lived. Although it was already dark on the way, but I could still see that apart from some villages there was only deep forest around. That`s why that`s why that most people are farmers in that area while further, around the village where we were heading to, they are mostly producing palm oil (since the area is full of palm trees).

Though while we got to the villages it was already very dark, and we didn`t even have too much time before going to sleep, I already had the feeling that we were at a very beautiful place again…

Day 2: Chief Palace, football match and many more

… And next day it turned out that I was right! The place was just very friendly and calm, with people sitting in front of their houses and with bushes and palm trees surrounding them. It was really amazing! And then, the best part of it is still coming. I soon found myself in something that felt almost like a tale. Maybe not a fairy tale, but a chief tale. Alright, I think I got to know a lot more about Ghana`s culture this weekend. It looks like that besides the government control there`s also another system that takes the control in this country. Ghana is divided into regions that all have their Kings and Queen mothers. These people are there to deal with all kinds of problems so that people don`t actually have to rely just on the government. By problems we also mean things like arguments between a wife and a husband – and these things are all supposed to be solved locally: the Queen mother takes care of all the women in the region while the King who she works hand in hand with, is responsible for all the men. Alright, they also have their chiefs in all areas of the region, so that since the Queen mother and the King can`t get to every place, the chiefs there can take care of the problem locally, too. Well, now, the main Queen mother of the Central Region happened to live right next door, and on Sunday morning they took us to the chief palace! At first we went to an older building that used to be the chief palace before. Well, here besides the Queen mother and the King there were other chiefs too from smaller areas who came to the meeting. They were all dressed in very fancy, royal dresses and the King was sitting on a golden chair, whole the Queen mother had an also nicely decorated wooden chair. And then the whole thing started and I just felt like that I got into the middle of something magical where I didn`t know how this magic worked. Well, I think it all started with that some of the chiefs went into the house (we were sitting at a place that was something like an inner garden) and told the spirits that we, visitors were there and asked their permission for us to stay. I think it was after this (but I`m not sure, things got a bit mixed up – which can represent how mixed up I felt) that there was some very was some very expensive kind of liquid that everybody had to pour on the ground. Then, there was also the libation to the spirits: in every 40 days they have this to say thanks to the spirits for taking care of their people and helping them avoid sickness and death. This looked somehow like that that they brought very expensive food that everybody had to taste, after which they through the food all around the place to feed the spirits and say thank you to them. Probably it was after this that we also had to introduce ourselves (as visitors) and tell them about our `mission`. I really enjoyed the ceremony, just also at the same time, as I said: I didn`t know how this magic worked. After having the ceremony here, we went to the actual chief palace, which looked almost like an average house from the outside, but it was very nice inside, with leather armchairs and everything. Here there was no ceremony anymore, but mostly chatting and things like that. I was again amazed how these traditions are represented in a modern world: just imagine these important people sitting there, in their fancy traditional dresses, while they are taking pictures with their cell phones and drinking Guiness and Sangria at the same time! I really find it amazing how all these things get mixed together. Like I said, there`s something traditional (like the chief system and  the libation to the spirits), something left here by the Europeans (like Christianity) and something modern, that stands against the Europeans, but at the same time wouldn`t exist if the hadn`t been present - and all these paths of the history are present right now, living by each other.

After this experience we also went for a walk in the village during which I had again about fifteen kids who started following us, we saw a little river, where women were washing their clothes and just as a contrast to the experience at the chief palace, we even took part of a church service (though it was in twi, so I didn`t understand so much...).
Then just to really mix the ancient with the modern, we went to see the Manchester City vs Manchester United match! It was a small room with two TVs in it, where they showed the match, you just had to pay half cedis to get in. The atmosphere was pretty much like at a match in a pub in Europe except for that here there was no alcohol and also that by the end of the match I realized, that I wasn`t just the only white person in the room, but I was also the only woman. Strange feeling... I guess I`m still not so used to being this much different...
Anyway, in the afternoon we even went to a town near, called Pastru, where we saw a huge river, surrounded by rainforest, and an oil producing place, and with a few islands in the middle. We even got stuck in the mud while we were trying to get a bit closer, after which it was again another adventure to get ourselves clean.
It was just really a great day that also left me a lot to think about.

Day 3: Kakum National Park

On the last day of our trip we left the village and got a car in the way of Cape Coast, just to get off in the middle and visit Kakum National Park. It`s a park of a unique rainforest where you can also find a canopy walk built in 1995 by two Canadians and six Ghanaians. We had a tour guider who took us to the canopy walk, which is about 40 meter above the ground, but actually is absolutely not as scary as it sounds. We had lots of fun on it, and the view of the rainforest that you could see from there was really amazing, too! It`s really worth going there, believe me (though it`s not so cheap, especially not for foreigner – for whom everything seems to be a bit more expensive here…).

Altogether,just as it stands in the title, it was really an unforgettable weekend, with a lot of great experiences, that I`m really thankful for! :)