Soooo, Thursday after my last post I actually lost the ring that Ross gave me right before I left for Ghana. So, the past week has been a lot of running around trying to find it and constantly feeling swamped with stuff (oh, and fighting with Daniel).
So, Friday I spent the day with Daniel going to Osu to get my computer looked at. We had to pay for something called a job card just for them to look at it. They told me the next day when I called that the problem was the motherboard but they still haven't given me a price to fix it. I called today and tried to talk to the guy who is looking at it but I couldn't understand him on the phone (btw it's really hard to understand the accent of Ghanaians over the phone) so I am just gonna call again tomorrow.
Saturday I spent with Daniel again. He took me to Madina Market on the official market day which means everything is cheaper and more busy. I wanted to take pictures while we shopped but there just isn't time. Too many people and you have to move it through the crowds to get anywhere (and to ensure you don't get stolen from). I got a ton of groceries though. Including 15 eggs for 3 cedi, about $2 US. I didn't even know I was getting 15, I asked for half a dozen. Apparently, a dozen is 30 here. Or she didn't know what I was talking about. lol. After all that time at the market, I went back to Daniel's house so that he could bathe and change before coming back to the hostel with me, since he had to work when we got back (btw he works in the evening at the internet cafe in our hostel from 7pm to 7am). So we stopped at his house and I saw a regular Ghanaian home or a lower middle class family. It was interesting. The house itself wasn't very big and as far as architecture it was a lot like one of the rooms in the hostel. In the main room there was just a table and chair, a fridge and a freezer, a small desk/table, and a couch. Nothing really matched but it didn't seem to matter. There was nothing on the floor (just plain concrete) and nothing on the walls but a clock. There wasn't counter space or anything like that either. I didn't even see cupboards. It was interesting to say the least.
Sunday, I was very tired and slept in until 10am which started a fight between Daniel and I because he was expecting me to be up much earlier to come and make him an egg sandwich. I was planning no such thing and got mad over the expectation. I know now that if you vaguely say you will do something for someone (like make them an egg sandwich) it is considered a promise and they expect it like immediately, the next time they see you. Definitely not a cultural aspect I had understood before. But anyhow, I got really mad at Daniel and ended up blowing up on him so that he left and went home without food. I felt so bad about it that I made redred that night for him for dinner. We made up after a long talk which clarified some of the cultural assumptions we were both making, and then we promptly got into another fight the other night because I couldn't sleep and he was being childish and wouldn't leave my room when I asked him. Needless to say, our relationship is interesting, informative of the Ghanaian culture and honestly, taxing at times. I want to be friends with him, but every once in a while I feel that there is an ulterior motive. He's a good friend, but I think (at least for now) I need to have some time and space away from him.
This hasn't been difficult to come by since Monday started a whole week of craziness. I found the play I am going to direct, called War Brides, but I have to get it approved on Thursday. It is a drama which looks at the effects of war, especially on the women who are left behind. It addresses the issues of war torn areas, the struggle for peace, and womens' role in society. I am also adapting it so that it can be a little more universal. Right now the vernacular and such is set in Germany or round abouts during wartime. I want to update some of the language and make the names different. I am thinking of setting the piece in Ghana, just to make things simpler. My playwriting class went really well on Monday, since we read what I have of my play. Everyone seemed to enjoy it and my professor was very impressed by my writing capabilities. He also gave me some good suggestions for the piece. I spent Monday and Tuesday cleaning my room in my spare time, and found out Monday evening that the choir that I have been attending the evenings is the wrong choir. I am signed up for choral ensemble, but I have been going to the University Choir rehearsals. I thought they were the same thing. They're not. So I am dropping those rehearsals and started going to choral ensemble this Tuesday. We have 6 hours a week of rehearsal so it's pretty intense overall, but I am glad to be in there. In fact, through choir I met a girl who is also in the film I am doing and she let me know when we were having rehearsals, since I missed the last two. So, last night (Tuesday night) I went to dance class and showed off some skiiiills, then went to film rehearsal where I practiced being a prostitute (p.s. I think I am gonna give my character a smoking habit, so it makes stage business fun, but the Ghanaian girls around me-even though I am faking it- are obviously disapproving lol). Then after rehearsal I went back to the hostel to meet up with two of my international friends who have roped me into performing with them at this talent show. We are going to sing "Lean on Me" in three part harmony, at least we hope. lol. We practiced a bit last night, but we have to practice again tomorrow afternoon. Also I sort of don't want to do it because I want to go to Togo with some friends that I heard are traveling this weekend, but we will see.
Lastly, today I had all my classes and sat around planning my trips around Ghana. I think I have just enough time to do a weekend trip almost every weekend and maybe one or two trips out of Ghana. We shall see. But I have a friend who offered to be my traveling buddy, so I am pretty excited about all that. Now I just have to budget it out and make sure I have the money. lol. Also, on a happy note, I FOUND MY RING!!! It took almost a whole week, but a tracked down the girl who picked it up from the bathroom. She had been trying to find the owner with no luck. Then this morning I put up a few signs in the International Programs Offices saying that it was missing and TADA, I came later today and the girl had turned it in to one of the offices. I got her number from your study abroad coordinator so that I could thank her. Needless to say, I will NOT be taking this ring off my finger for anything ever again. lol. Welllll, I need to sign off. I have rehearsal for my film thing tonight and then the dreaded task of doing laundry after that. More updates to follow. Love you all.
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