Dogs, Drumming & Dancing

Every day in Ghana has been filled with adventure, and today was no exception. As we ate breakfast this morning, Davey favored us with a rich devotion encouraging us to maintain our walk with God throughout the remainder of our time here. We couldn't help but notice that one of our family members was missing this morning. Amanda and Aubree were returning to the guest house from their morning run when out of nowhere a dog appeared. Kujo was super vicious and began to run after them! Aubree froze and Amanda froze behind her but quickly decided to run for it. As she ran, she slid on a mound of dirt and gravel - a slide that any baseball fan would be proud of, and unfortunately scraped her leg pretty badly. Thanks be to God for protection, covering and hospitable members of the Ola community with alcohol pads and a chain for that darn dog here in Cape Coast. With a little Neosporin and an aspirin or two, Amanda is back on her feet literally and should be back to normal very soon.

Today was a writing day as we continued to map out our narratives about the teachers we worked with for the past week at Tuwohofo-Holly International School. We wrote, and wrote, and wrote, and kept writing until finally some of us just looked like we were nearly comatose. Dr. Clerico yelled, "Yenko," (Fante for "Let us all go,") and we all pulled ourselves together for another shopping experience; this time at a local drumming shop. Several of us purchased beautifully handcrafted drums and doormats, while others window shopped and listened to the sounds of members of the Nyame Tsease Drumming Troupe. While we were there, some of us were reacquainted with troupe members that we met on previous trips and decided to venture out on the town tonight to see a live performance in the heart of Cape Coast.

Upon our return to Fair Hill, we enjoyed a nice lunch with grilled cheese sandwiches, vegetable soup and fresh fruit. Who knew Velveeta and bread could taste so good? Then it was back to the writing. Several of us used this time to complete one narrative or even begin the second narrative about a specific child from our classroom. We were even more inclined to write when Amber nourished us with a bag of Oreos. Do you know how long it's been since we've seen Oreos or anything close to it??? Thanks Amber...you definitely earned a gold star for today with that move! After our second writing session for the evening, some decided to do what we do best: shop, and others decided to chill out and rest before going out on the town for the performance.

Tonight's dinner was an authentic British-style meal featuring fish and chips, a.k.a. french fries. The food was wonderful, but the meal itself was enhanced by the beauty that surrounded the table. Most of the ladies gussied up before dinner in their traditional Ghanaian attire designed by a Ghanaian seamstress just days ago. With fancy hair, dresses and even a little makeup, we hopped in the tro-tro for an evening none of us will ever forget. Some of us were nervous, and some of us were super pumped, but it was so much fun because we enjoyed it together. The acrobatic dancing and rhythmic drumming at the Oasis Resort were phenomenal and really pumped us up for our dance class to be held on July 18th with the same dance troupe. We were not the only O'brunyi's in the house, because this was clearly an O'brunyi resort. The drummers from the shop made sure we had VIP seating, invited us to dance on the stage, and ensured that we had a fantastic experience!

We were a little sad to leave the guys behind tonight, but I think the ladies will agree that there's nothing like just hanging out with the girls!