Glow Up in Ghana
Dear Ghana,
I was my best when I was with you. You owe me absolutely nothing. You gave me the good, the bad, and the ugly and I have no regrets. If anything, I could have given you more. Until next time (because I AM coming back)
Lets start by telling you how this trip came to be….
Backpacking through Greece and Italy has always been on my bucket list for as long as I could remember. When I found out that the Hampton University Marching FORCE would be marching in the Pope’s New Year’s Day Parade in Rome, I thought it would be a great time to plan out this infamous Greece and Italy trip. And then my employer announced the destination for our winter holiday retreat; Ghana. This was great because there would be so much to do as my work trip would fall during the culmination of the “Year of the Return” A campaign from the government of Ghana to encourage descendants of enslaved Africans to re-connect with the land of their ancestors. I even saw a popular black travel group would be doing a trip there. I was interested in finally joining with the trip. There was only one problem. I would already be in Ghana a few weeks earlier for work and I didn’t want to miss seeing my Beloved Alma Mater represented in Italy. Whats a girl to do? Call a friend. After talking through this conundrum, we came to a solution. We would forgo joining the travel group and create our own itinerary that included both Ghana AND Italy. And thats exactly what I did. We created our own custom travel experience that no one else had. This also included the Afrochella Music Festival (now known as Afro Future Fest).
The Itinerary:
My work trip was at the beginning of December and the Afrochella Music Festival was at the end of December so I teleworked in between and I spent a total of four week in Ghana. It felt like a short-term study abroad experience. My time in Ghana was a combination of work, vacation, solo travel and traveling with the bestie. Here is a breakdown of each week and the attractions, accomodations to make this trip a complete success
Week 1: East Legon, Accra
Accommodations: Monarch Hotel
Attractions:
Bojo Beach
Soronko Academy
Week 2: Osu, Accra
Accommodations: Airbnb
Attractions
Oxford Street: Just walk up and down this boulevard popping into various shops and stopping by any one the the restaurants that interest you. During this holiday season, they blocked off a portion of the street. Not sure if that happens every December
Firefly Nightclub
Cardi B Concert
Week 3: Dzorwulu, Accra
Accommodations: Omanye Lodge
Attractions:
Bloom Bar
Black Star/Independence Square: Great photo op
Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park
Papaye
Woodin
Jamrock
Firefly (again lol)
Stages Restaurant
hair braiding
Day Trip to Kumasi
Week 4: Accra/Cape Coast
Lodging: Omanye Lodge and Orange Beach Guest Houst
Attractions
oxford street market
portiond
cape coast
Vegan place in Cape Coast
Republic
Frankie’s
Afrochella
Royal House Chapel (we went to church with a local family)
Other places to visit:
Azmera Resturant to try local cuisine
Kakum National Park
Kejiti Market in Kumasi
WEB Dubois Center
Volta Region
Takoradi
The Good, the bad, the Ugly:
The good:
The people: Everyone was so nice and welcoming. Compared to other interactions, I was greeted with open arms and without hesitation. People take time out of their day to help you. They are genuinely concerned about your wellbeing without seeking anything in return. I always say this is the real life Wakanda. Or as close to it as we are going to get.
Shopping:
The Bad:
I got sick; I had some stomach bug or food poisioning that took me out for a few days. I didn’t know if we would make it to our next destiations around Ghana. I found a local pharmacy and explained the symptoms and they gave me medicine and then a shift happened. My sypmptoms from the stomach illness had subsided but new symptoms appeared. I had red itching welts up and down my legs. Nothing I had ever seen before and they were exhasterbated by the sun so I was miserable for a few more days.
The Ugly:
Transportation to and from Accra. In addition to the loads of Ghanians traveling around the country for the holidays to visit family, we now have hundreds of thousands of tourist pouring into Accra to experience “The Year of the Return” We didn’t properly plan and in the future, I would make sure I have a driver or some tour group lined up to ensure transportation to cities outside of Accra. It is amazing that we were able to get anywhere with the amount of lines. It took time and alot of patience but we persevered and managed to see the sites we had intended to. But seriously…. never again.
AFROCHELLA:
Afrochella Festival is the official closing event for Ghana’s 2019 Year of Return. The theme for this year was Diaspora Calling. The aim was to highlight various African cultures that have transcended borders while maintaining its heritage through food, music, and art.
Even though it was a music festival. The musical performances was not my main draw. It’s crazy to reflect back and know that big time afrobeats artisis like Sarkodi and Tiwa Savage were headliners and I really didn’t know who they were at the time.
For me, the main attraction was the celebration and expression of ……. Take a look.
HAIR:
ART INSTALLATIONS:
OUTFITS:
