Mt. Afadjato and Mona Monkeys

It’s hard to believe that I’ve almost been in Hohoe for two weeks. Time is flying by.  I’m still maintaining my morning routine at Happy Kids, and having lots of fun with them. This week we spent most of our time on math, specifically multiplication, long division and simple word problems. My class loves division, but has taken some time to get the hang of writing problems out the long way. They love the challenge and ask me to leave them problems to work on before I leave everyday. Next week we will spend more time on English and the class will start writing their autobiographies.

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Mt. Afadjato

Tuesday afternoon the group hiked to the top of the highest mountain in Ghana, Mt. Afadjato. Mountain climbing isn’t exactly my thing, but I was excited to make it to the top with the group. As our van approached the mountain we got a beautiful view of the challenge ahead. As we headed to the trail we passed a sign that finally answered the question of just how high up we were going. 885 meters (about 2900 feet) above sea level. Our energy level was high and it seemed as if we all wanted to run right to the top. Now seems like a good time to remind everyone that climbing a mountain or hiking of any kind really just isn’t my thing. As we started the climb, we realized that our path was a steep one filled with rocks and lots of leaves. I couldn’t help but think that this would be one of the few times in my life that a walking stick would actually be useful. While I made it to the top, the trek was certainly no easy one for me. I’m not sure if I would have  even wanted to go the whole way if it wasn’t for one of our staff members, Ruth. Although I’m certain Ruth could’ve jogged the whole way up, she hung with me in the back and took on my ‘slowly but surely’ motto. She helped me over the loose rocks, pointed out the sturdy branches to grab onto during the especially steep parts and played the perfect mix of Rihanna and Akon on her phone. I should mention that Ruth was wearing a long skirt and flip flops and barely broke a sweat. The view at the top was beautiful and filled with lots of mountain ranges overlooking Togo, Ghana’s neighbor to the east. With the whole group at the top we took some pictures, relaxed our legs a little bit and then made the trek back down. While not at all as strenuous, going down the mountain was much scarier than going up. 

The group at the top

Ruth and me at the top

  

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Thursday afternoon the group loaded up the van once more to head to the nearby Tafi Atome Monkey Sanctuary. I wasn’t really sure what to expect from a monkey sanctuary, but was told that we could feed the monkeys which sounded like fun to me. We got there (after stopping to buy some bananas), met our guide and headed into the woods. It was at this point that we learned that the ‘sanctuary’ these monkeys live in is really just a part of the woods that the village has agreed to leave untouched. The monkeys are able to play and roam around naturally, although they often venture into the village to look for berries or other treats. It took a little bit of time to find their exact location in the woods, but we eventually found a large group of them hanging out by an old cemetery. Our guide taught us how to properly feed the monkeys, holding the banana a certain way if you wanted them to jump on you. It was here in this cemetery where I had a pretty intense stare-down with a few monkeys, got chased by a mother monkey carrying a baby around her neck, and allowed a monkey to eat a banana out of my hand while resting on my arm. I realized that my camera was dead as soon as we got there, but will be sure to share some of the pictures the other volunteers took once I get them.

This week we also had another Ewe lesson, learned how to make the traditional Ghanaian Batik design on fabric and spent an evening at Obama Gardens cheering for Ghana in the African Cup of Nations. Ghana won 1- 0 against Botswana, so it was an exciting night.

Random things I’ve noticed/learned:

• Roosters crow all day long, not just at sunrise.
• It’s always good to carry toilet paper or tissues in your bag. Sometimes behind a tree is the best restroom option.
• Country music is quite popular here in Hohoe. The staff members love it and I frequently hear Taylor Swiftish music blasting from passing cars/taxis. 
• Most people have two names - a traditional Ghanaian name and more European-inspired name. Some of the names of the kids in my class are Kodjo Roland, Yayirah Bless, Amewoga Emmanuel, and Asem Holly. They all call each other by their Ghanaian name, but introduced themselves to me with the other one. They are all slowly revealing their full names to me. 
• The food has been delicious, but food in Ghana is 85% carbohydrates. Look for a full food update soon.
• We were able to see the moon for the first time last night!