Ghana, O Ghana. The very name invokes a sense of awe and exotic mystique in the minds and hearts of all those who hear it.
And for me personally, it represents a major milestone and turning point in this phase of my life.
This marks the very first time I have ever set foot on the African continent, and I must admit, I was not sure what exactly I was expecting.
My first great impression was the arduous ten-hour flight that symbolized the beginning of my unprecedented voyage. Having ridden Delta Airlines before to China from America and back, I was not at all unused to its services, and the in-flight entertainment system consisting of movies, games and TV shows was more than satisfactory.
The immense difficulty of falling asleep properly, however, coupled with the barely passable food and my already badly sleep-deprived state (having only had two hours of rest before arriving at JFK Airport) left me in a somewhat less than optimistic mood.
And so when the plane finally landed in Accra at around 7 am local time (but around 3:30 am in New York time), I was more than a little relieved. The airport itself was not at all as sophisticated as the one I was so accustomed to seeing in New York; it was quite simple actually.
After handing in the two mandated forms given during the flight and lining up with dozens of others for the security check-in, I proceeded to the circulation tray where the many pieces of luggage were being claimed. I waited for my single piece of luggage a very long time — maybe for as long as forty minutes — but find it eventually I did, and after doing so, I and the other five students on the same flight that I was made our way to the exit, where a cheerful African man, whose name we soon learned was Christopher, wearing a prominent NYU T-Shirt was waiting for us outside his minivan.
The sights from the streets as we drove through them nearly overwhelmed me, and it was on more than one occasion that random passerby would stare at me through the window; thus came my first personal glimpse into the rich culture of Ghana and her people. We stopped briefly at a casino-like place to exchange some of our U.S. currency bills to the Ghanaian Cedi, and after that we finally arrived at the house prepared for us at Church Crescent.
I learned that I would be sharing my room with two others for the next two weeks, and soon thereafter began chatting with both of them enthusiastically, despite my growing exhaustion. We had a round of rock, paper and scissors for who got which bed, and I ended up getting the upper bunk bed, which happened to be the one of my preference.
We then went to a nearby supermarket to purchase some much-needed basic goods (bottled water, bread, pasta, detergent, etc.) before coming back to settle and begin unpacking in earnest.
Around 11 am or so, Professor Edozien himself came over briefly to extend his warmest welcome for our stay here. Not long afterwards, all the students who had arrived gathered for a lengthy lunch at a nearby restaurant, engaged in casual if lively conversation all the while. Several complimentary dishes of coleslaw and hummus, as well as many chunks of free bread, were quickly provided. While it did take quite some time for all the dishes to arrive, I myself enjoyed a delicious cheese omelet with spicy tomato soup for all of 28 Cedi, even through the ever-constant distraction of mosquitoes and flies.
Two hours later, we headed back to the house, and much too tired to do much else, I finally succumbed to my weariness and fell asleep on my bunk bed.
At a quarter to seven, I was woken up again when it was announced that we would meet with Professor Edozien for our dinner, whose price was already included as part of the tuition fee. It was a nice little buffet of sorts, complete with a salad, rice and fruit as dessert, and after finishing the meal, we parted ways with the Professor once more and returned to Church Crescent, where most of us prepared to settle down for good and end the day.
