15 Fun(ny) Facts About Ghana

(From an Obruni's Perspective)

1. It never gets old to scream "Obruni" over and over again- sometimes for five or more minutes. This applies to both children and adults.

2. Depending on the time of day, you will be greeted by these fun friends in the latrine:
Night- Cockroaches. And not the Jersey cockroaches, these are at least 4 ins. in length
Midday- Flies- you'll hear them buzzing from 10 ft. away
Dawn/Dusk- Lizards

3. It is not unusual to see a child as young as 3 carrying another child on their backs, while hauling a 20 lb. load of firewood on their heads.

4. Obama is a superhero to all Ghanaians. One fellow PCV was asked what Obama will do if he 'runs into' Osama Bin Laden while visiting Ghana... apparently they know something we don't!

5. Celine Dion is also a superhero from America. (I didn't bother with the Canada thing.)

6. Clothing is optional and breastfeeding is a public event. One day I saw a woman feeding twins- one on each breast! I proceeded to buy soap from her.

7. If a taxi is meant to hold 4 people, the driver won't leave until there are at least seven sweaty passengers crammed in. This applies to all transport in Ghana.

8. On a hot day (which is everyday) the windows in all vehicles are rolled up. Who needs to breathe?

9. There is a gang of roosters that has decided that I should not be allowed to sleep, and enjoy hanging out under my bedroom window. Also, roosters cock-a-doodle-doo at ALL hours, not just daybreak.

10. People spray paint their animals to tell which ones belong to them. It is not unusual to see pink chickens or blue goats wandering around town.

11. All food must be made into a sticky, tasteless mush before Ghanaians will eat it. Hours will be spent in this two person labor of pounding plantains, cassava, yams, corn, wheat, rice...EVERYTHING. And since there are no utensils it must be served boiling hot to burn your obrunis fingers and raise their already elevated body temperatures. This includes breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

12. There is no social etiquette to cell phones. Everyone has one and will answer in all situations, even church.

13. It's not unusual to be riding in a tro-tro that has a "Jesus Saves" sticker on the back window and a marijuana sticker on the front while listening to Akon blaring.

14. Although English is the national language and most Ghanaians can speak it, it is expected that all obrunis be fluent in whichever one of the 70+ languages your town speaks.

15. You have not lived until you've taken a cold bucket bath under a palm-fringed African sky and watched the stars twinkle.