24.7.06
Last night I got back from Accra, where I spent a weekend with Philo basically doing nothing.
Friday night, we picked up David and Elka, and took them to see some boats that they might buy, and then we took them to a party for Belgian Independence Day in Accra…Philo and I stayed at the party for a little bit, but it was really boring and not much of a party. I mean, people were drinking and stuff, but everyone was just sitting around talking and listening to bad 80s music, which made me laugh..it was totally not conducive for a party at all. So we left, and went to a beach bar called Next Door, where they had (awful) live music, and where we met Philo’s uncle or something who’s ridiculously wealthy and has a Hummer and 11 houses in Accra. But he was funny, and told us these crazy stories, and then Philo and I danced in the “disco” that they had in Next Door, which was a lot of fun…I think we stayed until about 3:00 in the morning, and then went to her cousins’ apartment and stayed the night.
Philo didn’t tell me this when she invited me to Accra, but she was going for an “outdooring.” What that means is that as soon as a baby is old enough that they know it will survive, they officially name it, and bless it, and that sort of thing, kind of like baptism but not as churchy (although they have a minister there). So…Saturday I slept while Philo and the cousins went to the ceremony, and then Philo spent all day cooking for like 30 people…she had vaguely said that we were going to throw a party Saturday night, but didn’t say that there would be 30 people and that she would be in the kitchen starting at 11 in the morning cooking for all of them. So…since I can’t cook, I sat in a stranger’s house all day meeting more strangers and feeling completely awkward for hours on end. Then of course, everyone got completely smashed, so I had belligerent, harassing strangers to deal with. One man in particular was just really obnoxious, and had I not been the only white person and an invited guest of everyone there, I would have decked him in a heartbeat, and probably beaten the shit out of him, he was that bad. He would have embarrassed himself less getting his ass kicked by a girl than staying as drunk and stupid as he was…ugh, it was really awful, and he was like three inches from my face screaming that Philo and I couldn’t go out by ourselves and that he forbid us from leaving, and blah blah, and I just really wish I had busted that stupid loud mouth of his. Anyway..I told Philo that I had to get out of that house or I would lose it completely, and she agreed, so we went out Saturday night. I called Alex and told him to meet us at this club called Vanity, and we were on our way and stuff, and then she ends up calling old friends of hers and meeting with them for seriously the better part of an hour while I’m bored to tears and poor Alex is waiting for us. We finally got to the club and I had fun, but Philo left after like an hour and went to sleep in her car. So, with the exception of dancing and seeing Alex, I kind of wish Saturday hadn’t happened at all.
Yesterday was not much better…I basically left once to get breakfast from a gas station down the road, and then another time to eat rice balls with Philo at like 3:00…the rest of the time I was sitting there doing nothing and being bored and irritated that we hadn’t left already to either go home or do something fun, because Philo said, oh, we’ll shop and go to the beach and blah blah, and of course none of that happened, and I just sat. We finally left at like 7, which really irritated me. It was basically a really awful weekend, with the exception of Friday and Saturday nights when I went out.
So...the plan, as of now, is as follows:
Today I go to Tefleh to get my rain jacket, meet the Canadian girls, get Odette to make receipts for my market food purchases, and make John do my internship paperwork (that he’s probably lost). I also have to visit Philo’s shop and see Aggie.
Tomorrow I have a class. Maybe I’ll hang out with the Canadians? Or Don and Philo and David and Elka? I promised to see them all again before I left.
Wednesday I have nothing official to do and so I think that will be my big packing day.
Thursday I’ve resolved to go to Accra and do some fun stuff-shopping for souvenirs, visiting Alex’s shop, visiting the beach boys, and going salsa dancing Thursday night.
Friday Corrine’s friend Mike is leaving too, and I think at like 9 pm, and I’m leaving around 7 pm, so I think maybe we’ll spend the day together doing fun stuff then too. And then I’m coming home, but on my way I have to buy Jana and Sam chocolate and gummy bears from Germany.
So..this week will be fun, just to make up for the bad weekend.
Friday night, we picked up David and Elka, and took them to see some boats that they might buy, and then we took them to a party for Belgian Independence Day in Accra…Philo and I stayed at the party for a little bit, but it was really boring and not much of a party. I mean, people were drinking and stuff, but everyone was just sitting around talking and listening to bad 80s music, which made me laugh..it was totally not conducive for a party at all. So we left, and went to a beach bar called Next Door, where they had (awful) live music, and where we met Philo’s uncle or something who’s ridiculously wealthy and has a Hummer and 11 houses in Accra. But he was funny, and told us these crazy stories, and then Philo and I danced in the “disco” that they had in Next Door, which was a lot of fun…I think we stayed until about 3:00 in the morning, and then went to her cousins’ apartment and stayed the night.
Philo didn’t tell me this when she invited me to Accra, but she was going for an “outdooring.” What that means is that as soon as a baby is old enough that they know it will survive, they officially name it, and bless it, and that sort of thing, kind of like baptism but not as churchy (although they have a minister there). So…Saturday I slept while Philo and the cousins went to the ceremony, and then Philo spent all day cooking for like 30 people…she had vaguely said that we were going to throw a party Saturday night, but didn’t say that there would be 30 people and that she would be in the kitchen starting at 11 in the morning cooking for all of them. So…since I can’t cook, I sat in a stranger’s house all day meeting more strangers and feeling completely awkward for hours on end. Then of course, everyone got completely smashed, so I had belligerent, harassing strangers to deal with. One man in particular was just really obnoxious, and had I not been the only white person and an invited guest of everyone there, I would have decked him in a heartbeat, and probably beaten the shit out of him, he was that bad. He would have embarrassed himself less getting his ass kicked by a girl than staying as drunk and stupid as he was…ugh, it was really awful, and he was like three inches from my face screaming that Philo and I couldn’t go out by ourselves and that he forbid us from leaving, and blah blah, and I just really wish I had busted that stupid loud mouth of his. Anyway..I told Philo that I had to get out of that house or I would lose it completely, and she agreed, so we went out Saturday night. I called Alex and told him to meet us at this club called Vanity, and we were on our way and stuff, and then she ends up calling old friends of hers and meeting with them for seriously the better part of an hour while I’m bored to tears and poor Alex is waiting for us. We finally got to the club and I had fun, but Philo left after like an hour and went to sleep in her car. So, with the exception of dancing and seeing Alex, I kind of wish Saturday hadn’t happened at all.
Yesterday was not much better…I basically left once to get breakfast from a gas station down the road, and then another time to eat rice balls with Philo at like 3:00…the rest of the time I was sitting there doing nothing and being bored and irritated that we hadn’t left already to either go home or do something fun, because Philo said, oh, we’ll shop and go to the beach and blah blah, and of course none of that happened, and I just sat. We finally left at like 7, which really irritated me. It was basically a really awful weekend, with the exception of Friday and Saturday nights when I went out.
So...the plan, as of now, is as follows:
Today I go to Tefleh to get my rain jacket, meet the Canadian girls, get Odette to make receipts for my market food purchases, and make John do my internship paperwork (that he’s probably lost). I also have to visit Philo’s shop and see Aggie.
Tomorrow I have a class. Maybe I’ll hang out with the Canadians? Or Don and Philo and David and Elka? I promised to see them all again before I left.
Wednesday I have nothing official to do and so I think that will be my big packing day.
Thursday I’ve resolved to go to Accra and do some fun stuff-shopping for souvenirs, visiting Alex’s shop, visiting the beach boys, and going salsa dancing Thursday night.
Friday Corrine’s friend Mike is leaving too, and I think at like 9 pm, and I’m leaving around 7 pm, so I think maybe we’ll spend the day together doing fun stuff then too. And then I’m coming home, but on my way I have to buy Jana and Sam chocolate and gummy bears from Germany.
So..this week will be fun, just to make up for the bad weekend.