I got my first article published!

Here is the unedited version of my article on my experiences in Ghana (I'm not retyping the whole thing just to include the changes my editor made, sorry).





"I am a daughter, an older sister and a soon-to-be wife, a student, a journalist, a mentor. I am a cat lover, a sports fan, and as of last week, I am an obroni.

Before I can talk about my first week in Ghana, though, it is important for me to explain where I’m from. I grew up in New York in the United States with my mother, father, and two younger siblings. We lived in an upper middle class neighborhood. My father worked and my mother stayed at home to take care of us until we were all in school, then she worked in a school as a primary school teacher. When I was 14, my father decided to start his own business so we moved across the country to the beautiful state of Oregon, where I now attend college at the University of Oregon as a journalism major.

Already I have seen much in Ghana that is very different than how I grew up and where I live now. The thing about Ghanaians that I am most impressed with is their kindness. When one of my friends and I got sick one of my first days here, our bus driver drove us to the pharmacy, made sure we had everything we needed, then walked us across the street and helped us buy bananas before taking us home. He went out of his way to help us without expecting anything in return, and I was very surprised and grateful for that.

Again at Reggae Night at Labadi Beach our group was welcomed with so much kindness and openness that would not have happened where I’m from. We were invited to dance and made a part of the fun even though it was clear that we outsiders. My community at home is known for being very close and friendly, but it doesn’t compare to what I’ve experienced in Ghana from complete strangers. When you’re walking down the street at home, it is not uncommon to make your journey without talking to a single person. It is almost overwhelming here the about of attention I receive here but at least so far it has all been smiles and waves and polite hello’s.

When someone in the United States is different, it often means that they are excluded. It seems to be the opposite here. When my housemates and I went to Cape Coast the past weekend, we visited El Mina Castle and four of us decided to walk onto the beach to check out the fishing boats. For a few minutes, we watched a group of men work to pull a huge wooden boat onto the shore until the men at the end of the boat beckoned us over. They told us to join in so my friends lined up along the side of the boat with the Ghanaians and lifted the boats with their backs, everyone laughing the whole time, while I took photos. I tried helping to pull the ropes at the other end of the boat after that, although I’m not very big so I don’t think I was much help at all. I never would have expected to be so openly accepted by them and I’m glad I got the opportunity to be a part of their day.

We were told before we got to Ghana that some people would try to befriend us because we are obronis and we have money, but that has only happened a few times. Overwhelmingly, the kindness we have been shown has been genuine and we have met some really good people during our stay so far.

One of the things that has been hardest for me to get used to here is the idea of bargaining because in the United States, whatever price the seller gives you is the price you pay. There are a few markets where bargaining is acceptable, but even in those places most people don’t bargain because it’s uncomfortable for us. At first I felt rude asking for a lower price when I was bargaining for my Black Star jersey, as if I was insulting the vendor. I bargained a little and ended up paying 25 cedis, a price I was happy with considering I would have probably paid the equivalent of 100 cedis or more in the United States for the same jersey. My friend thought he got a great deal on a Ghanaian flag which he bought for 30 cedis until he found our our Ghanaian bus driver bought the same flag for 15 cedis. I know that I have gotten “ripped off” more than a few times since I’ve been here which is frustrating because bargaining is a skill I want to get good at, but I always have in the back of my mind how much I would have paid in the United States for the same object so most of the time I don’t mind paying a few extra cedis to make a deal.

It is not hard to understand then, based on what I said about my attitude on bargaining, why Ghanaians perceive us as wealthy because we are from the United States. In Ghana, we have a lot of purchasing power because our dollar goes much farther here than in the United States. For example, if I was in the United States and I had $5, I would only be able to buy enough bottles of water for my two siblings and myself, and they would be only three-fourths of a liter. In Ghana, I would be able to buy twice as many bottles of water with twice as much water. So when Americans come to Ghana, we are relatively wealthy compared to those around us, even if we aren’t wealthy at home.

This is why I find it funny when Ghanaians ask me to take them back to America with me. When we got there, they would find that I’m not living in a fancy house, just a small apartment in an old apartment complex. I don’t have a car and the clothes that I wear are bought on sale from less expensive stores. I am in debt thousands of dollars because of tuition, which is about 10,500 dollars a year now, and paying for rent. It makes me laugh when people think I’m rich because it is only for the short time that I’m here.

Even still, being in Ghana one week has taught me that there are things I can be happy living without. I miss air conditioning and hot showers, but those are things I’ve learned to live without like many Ghanaians do. I thought things would be bad when our house lost electricity and we couldn’t access the internet, but it ended up being one my favorite nights in the house because we got to know each other and played games and interacted. One of my friends even put on a ten minute Michael Jackson routine for us. At school, it wasn’t uncommon for me to have coffee everyday or even twice a day, but I haven’t had a cup of coffee since I’ve been in Ghana and I’m fine with it. The only things I miss badly besides my family are my kitten and the variety of food in my hometown.

One of our day trips was to Anani Memorial International School. To get to the school, we had to venture through the streets and alleyways of Nima where I saw people who have much less than I do at home, but were happier than I was. At home I am always worried about money, how I will afford things like my wedding, finding more work, what I need to do to get a job in the competitive journalism field. I was not happy with where I was in life and I think that is the case for many Americans. That is not to say I never had moments of joy, because there were many, or that the people in Nima never feel pain or sadness, because I’m sure they face hardships just as we all do. But you could see in their smiles and the way they interacted with each other that they do not spend their days dwelling on worries and the things they don’t have and choose instead to enjoy their lives. I think Americans could learn a lot about being happy from Ghanaians.

I have not been here long so I cannot pretend to know everything about Ghanaian culture, but I speak from what I have experienced so far. I very much look forward to learning more about this beautiful country and the people who live here in my next few weeks in Ghana."