Tough Times

Hello everyone,

Last week from Monday to Thursday morning, I spent with Sapisco at the village where he teaches, it's called Anumso. It's a small village with no electricity :) The highlights of the stay are:

• bathing in a bathhouse that is made of sticks and tin.....open roof so if it rained I could have bathed in the rain.....

• also the latrine was funny, I took pics of it....it's a big hole in the ground, with two by fours over it, so I got to stand on two by fours, squat and shit in the space between the boards, lol......let's just say it took my body a few days to get used to the idea, haha. And how funny to be able to talk about my bodily functions with a man, who never once thought it was disgusting or that women just don't do that, lol....

• I saw the most pregnant goat ever, I also took a picture, I'm telling you, you will laugh when you see how pregnant she was.

• The people of the village have to cross a river to go to farm so there's a canoe at the riverside (also took picture)

• there was a traditional priest doing an offering to the river, so I got to talk him for a second, also took picture. Sapi does not like traditional priests at all....he says the people worship the actual priest and not the the "river god" or "sun god" or something, I don't know. I don't think Foase has any traditional priests left....

• I caught a baby lamb....still with its umbilical cord...also took picture! yay! lambs are very beautiful but when they turn to sheep they get dirty and ugly.....

• Sapi's school is run down, but it's very nice in size....his class is only 28 students.....wow. I wish Foase was like that....but no the smallest class size in Foase is 45.....(why don't African men realize that having babies is NOT productive? god.....that's their excuse, "god will provide. the bible says to be fruitful, that women should bear as many children as possible and not to worry about the environment cuz god will provide. I got this explanation from the Foase P4 teacher who told me if I didn't have children I was going against the bible) Anyway, Sapi's school is nice and small :)

So Wednesday or Thursday I will be traveling to Cape Coast to visit my friend Dixie and Angela and her boyfriend from the USA. Dixie works at Kakum national park or forest or something like that. Anyway it's supposed to have swings bridges up in the canopy, I can't wait :) I will come back to Foase around Tuesday. Unless I talk to John about Foase then I'll go to Accra to talk to him and then back to Foase.....

The last week in June I will be heading up to the Upper West to do a Sexual and Reproductive health talk with James. He wants me to talk to the women while he talks to the men. Good idea, no? :) So I’m really excited about that.


After doing some major thinking, soul searching, and problem solving, I have decided I must come back to the US sooner than planned. I came to do work in Ghana and with the way my village operates, the men who are my counterparts, and Kumasi being my market town, I have no energy left to even try to change sites. And after emailing with the previous volunteer, I don't think my peace corps boss will move me anyway....there's something fishy between him and my landlord.....A man that I hate and have visions of beating his head in with a stick and watching him bleed to unconsciousness.....bad huh? Def'ly need to get out of there. But, I have these fun things to look forward too...and I’m building relationships and contacts for the next volunteer. ...Also before I leave I must get carvings made for people :) (sorry, I’m very broke, being a volunteer and all, so I can't get EVERYONE something, but I’ll do my best) So wait for more updates, maybe a miracle will happen and I’ll be moved to live with Angela or something, but that's highly unlikely.

Don't get me wrong, I love Ghana. but I simply cannot stay here for my physical, mental and spiritual self......

I will travel after I quit being a volunteer for a month or two, just to spend time with Sapi and Angela and a few others before I leave.
....


I love you all and miss you.....

Kristina