I know this is way overdue, but I think I am finally recovered enough that I maybe won’t get emotional writing it (not to mention if I don’t start now, it won’t happen since spring semester starts in 2 hours for me!).
Ghana was such an incredible experience- by far the most influential trip I have ever been on. Our group was made up of 7 current students, 1 alum, and two professors. We met a few times before leaving to discuss some readings about the culture and history of Ghana and the Presbyterian churches there, and then left for Ghana on January 8. I barely know where to start or how to get it all on here, so I will hopefully be able to do this in a series of blogs focusing on different aspects of the trip ranging from what we did, the lectures we attended, and finally how it impacted my understanding of my call.
So, the easy post! We arrived in Accra (the business capital and capital city) and stayed there for about five days. We were hosted by Trinity Theological Seminary, an interdenominational seminary with about 600 students. This is where we attended most of lectures, either on campus or going to other locations. We also got to do a few touristy things as well like visiting a wildlife preserve where we saw ostriches, baboons, and antelope and got to go on a wonderful hike to the top of the Shai hills (not too high, but incredibly beautiful!). A few days later we visited the rain forest and walked across seven rope bridges that hung over the canopy. Unfortunately we didn’t get to see any animals but the view was absolutely incredible. Later that day we visited the Elmina Slave Castle which was run by the Dutch and served as the main holding place for Ghanaians being sold into slavery. This was an incredibly moving experience as we walked through the cells where slaves were held and then stood in the final room, looking out at the coast where the ships would have been stationed, singing “Amazing Grace”. As I said in our debriefing that night, it was everything we have studied in school and so much more- something I have never wanted to see, but always wanted to see.
After our time in Accra, we drove a few hours north to Kumasi where we stayed at a Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG) hostel. Kumasi is the cultural capital of Ghana so we took advantage of that and visited the chief’s palace, kente cloth village, wood carving village, and lake. I think the lake was probably the highlight of the tourist visits in Kumasi (at least for me) because while we were there, there was a group of dancers performing traditional dance with traditional drumming- the best of both worlds for me after having studied both African dance and music. After they finished, the kids bombarded us and pulled us out into the circle and we danced with them for a while, drawing a very large and very loud crowd. While in Kumasi, we also split up to go to church, covering 5 churches total. This was definitely an interesting as experience as I saw most of my preconceived ideas wiped away- I don’t care what country you are in, Presbyterians are Presbyterians and we are all “the frozen chosen”. Yes, there was dancing and praise music as the beginning of service and maybe 2 more times after the sermon, but it definitely wasn’t what I expected. Ben and I walked in during the praise music and were seated at the very front next to the minister (I guess we have to get used to being there so why not?). The congregation then split up for bible study for about 45 minutes (very much like Sunday school but all took place in the sanctuary during the worship hour). After bible study they returned for scripture reading, a 20 minute sermon (much shorter than I expected), and about 40 minutes of announcements. Ben and I were introduced following the announcements and then a praise/ welcome song while we danced down at the front with the elders (I think that’s who they were).
After Kumasi, we went east to Ho where we were hosted by the Evangelical Presbyterian Church at their headquarters. Most of our time here was spent visiting missions that the church sponsors throughout the community- a school for teenage/ unwed mothers, health clinics, aging clinics, schools, and programs for homeless “street children”. This is where everything I kept pushing with Summer In The City really came into light as we saw them focusing on things at home, something that I see as key no matter where you live. After a couple days of visiting missions, we took one day to be tourist and visited a monkey sanctuary where we got to feed the monkeys as they climbed all over us- a very unreal experience. After the monkeys, we visited Wli Waterfalls. After a 45 min hike to the falls Ben, Ginna, and I were in the water about two minutes after seeing them. We had a picnic lunch by the water and just enjoyed each others company and talking to our Ghanaian host (this is when I learned that I will never be a proper wife unless I can learn how to make rice successfully… they were very disappointed when I told them that rice is the single thing I really cannot make).
Finally, we went back south to Accra for a few more lectures and meetings with church leaders, a visit to the church on the seminary campus as well as a Pentecostal church (that experience will come later…), and a drive around the city.
Leaving Ghana was not as hard as I expected it to be, and I attribute that to the fact that I am getting used to falling in love with places and then having to leave, but I always have plans to return. The people we met were absolutely incredible and I miss them dearly but and looking forward to hosting one of them here in Richmond this summer. Really, the only complaint I had about the trip was that I had trouble eating the fish (very boney and it looked at you while you ate it) and just got really tired of red sauce. I think after being there for two weeks and never having personal time (our bathroom doors didn’t even shut right so I don’t know that I can even count that as personal time), I’ll take a few complaints about food! And hey, I lost 8 pounds (I wont tell you how many I gained back already…).
