I’ve a bit of catching up to do with this blog apologies...
On arriving back in Ghana Steve had a taxi waiting to take us to his uncle Eric and look at a room/flat in Accra we could rent for the 2 months I’d be over here. As usual the traffic was horrendous and I think it actually took us around 1 ½ hours to get there.
Uncle Eric turned out to be a lovely man living close to the flat in Christian Village near Achimota. The room we saw was on the top floor (3rd), self contained with a kitchen, fridge and gas stove included. Very basic but for only 2 months and around £100/month in a big capital city I thought it was a bargain, if a little like a studenty type place. I was just happy it had it’s own bathroom with shower and proper sit down loo. If we were paying for a place I didn’t fancy bathing from a bucket of water or having to use a smelly hole in the ground. Call me picky...
While uncle Eric went to the caretaker to say we’d take the place Steve guessed that I was pregnant. Bit of a surprise for him I’d say, however he had been wondering why I’d cut my trip short and was back in Ghana 3 months early. After the initial realisation and shock, I’m glad to say he was very happy (and still is). Uncle Eric was also happy when we told him and the guys decided they’d need to celebrate with a shot or two of apelation (local gin) or whiskey.
So flat accepted, rucksack dumped, time for a bite to eat and some sort of celebration for my birthday and the happy news. We headed in a taxi to a nearby drinking spot/restaurant that did proper pizza! Yay! The guys had some sort of shot and beer while I had a boring old fanta. The pizza however made up for it so I didn’t feel too fed up. Lol.
A relatively quiet birthday but after the palava of getting back to Ghana I was shattered and looked forward to an earlyish night and some sleep.
The following few days we taken up with sitting in a car garage waiting for an old 1980s Benz to be fixed so we could drive it for a few months. Steve’s friend Rasta (nicknamed for obvious reasons), owned the car and said we could borrow it while I was over here instead of taking taxis and tro-tros everywhere.
It was agreed we would buy a new battery and fan in exchange for borrowing it. Ok, not bad, cheaper than hiring a car. Although when I first saw the car my initial opinion was that no way was this thing ever going to move again and was only good for the scrap-heap. Beat up, old school do not adequately describe what a pile of junk it was.
I was assured by Rasta and his friend Mario that it was a good car and drove well. So we decided to see how things went. What a mistake...day after day the mechanics found something else wrong with it...alternator, starter motor, heating blocks, and so on. There was no way we were going to pay for all these parts and work to be done.
The first day bored out of my mind in the garage I thought ok, maybe it’ll be sorted tomorrow. The same the next day and so on...I think it was spending the entire xmas day sat in the garage listening to my ipod that I’d had enough. It didn’t feel like xmas over here anyway to be honest. Not the commercialisation we get back home or the weather. However, in my head it was still xmas day and melting in a garage wondering how my life had come to this, was not how I wanted to spend it. Merry bloody xmas Sam! Lol. I laugh now but at the time I was seriously peed off.
I had serious words to say the least with Rasta about how shit the car was and how did he ever drive it to the garage in the first place? It was only good for scrap and even then there wouldn’t be much that could be salvaged. He was still adimant that it was a good car and soon it would be fixed. I kept emphasising the fact that we would not be paying for the repairs and would take the battery and fan back, to sell on if the car wasn’t working soon. I ignored his pleas, I was not in the mood.
So xmas day completely ruined this year. On the plus side I spoke to family which cheered me up and had some xmas messages from mates.
Boxing day we mainly stayed at home, had a drink at a local drinking spot and watched tv. It was nice not to be stuck at the garage listening to something else wrong with the car.
Not too far from the flat there is Accra Mall. A shopping centre based on those in the West. Air-coned, clean, restaurants, cinema, shops and supermarket. Obviously I like it, Steve on the other hand doesn’t. I wanted to pick up some shopping from the Shoprite supermarket xmas eve, so we headed there and off I went trolley in hand and eyes wide open with glee at the familiar foods I could buy. Haha, no need for just banku, yam and rice...
Some of the food is more expensive than back home. A luxury over here imported from Europe or the States. However, I can put up with paying around £1.40 for a tin of Heinz beans, £3.50 for not much mature cheese and £3 for proper no holds barred butter if it means I don’t have to eat yam or rice all the time. Proper seeded bread is only around 60p and most imported fruit is about the same price as home. Most things you can pick up here, including all manner of confectionary but there is a lack of the veggi/meat free things. Apart from the latter, heaven and probably the reason I’m putting on weight. The baby is tiny so no excuse from that department.
Steve started to push the trolley around without, I have to admit, much co-ordination or consideration for anybody else. Although I did notice quite a few people like that so maybe it’s just how they do it over here, and a few back home as well.
Whatever I put in the trolley Steve would quetion how much it was and say it was too expensive. I did try to tell him that most of the stuff would last for more than one meal and in the long run cheaper than buying individually from a local store. He was having none of it, even when I proved that some items were cheaper than buying at the market (not all I have to admit). Anyway some things I can only get at Shoprite, such as proper butter, cheese and cooked beetroot so well worth a visit now and then so long as I can barter down the taxi prices they try and charge me.
On that first visit I think I did go a bit overboard and bought loads of things with a bill of around £100. Fine for me and not too far off my shopping bill back home. Steve nearly had a stroke.
All ok on the pregnancy front. There's La Paz Hospital annex nearby the flat so will visit after New Year's for a check up etc.
Luckily the mozzies seem to be keeping their distance for the time being. Fingers crossed they'll continue to do so.
Bye for now
Sam xx
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