Geoff's finally here!
After taking all the malaria medication I've realized that I probably didn't have malaria at all. Some of my symptoms persisted so I started taking cipro instead. And now I feel great! Maybe it's also just because Geoff's here that I feel great!
It was a painful couple of days to get to Accra to pick up Geoff. Everything I ate turned instantly into shit so that would have made my tro-tro/bus rides very interesting to say the least. I didn't want to take Immodium since that stuff's evil so I took to starving myself for most of the day. I basically wouldn't eat or drink anything until I got to the next hotel. Probably not the best idea since I was already weak and dehydrated, but it made it possible for me to travel. Then I would stuff my face full of food and then pay for it all night and never get any sleep. This went on for about 3 nights until I started taking cipro. Anyways, I'm healthier now and much happier too. I was starting to get very grumpy, anxious, and irritable from the lack of sleep, food, etc.
I made it to Accra and waited in the arrival lounge at the Kotoka International Airport (i.e. the steps outside the airport) for Geoff. Luckily for him, his plane arrived late at night so the airport wasn't this crowded, loud, and stressful place he had to negotiate. Nevertheless, I stood right by the exit so he couldn't have missed me! I was so anxious to see him and nearly cried when he finally got off the plane. We ended up talking and talking and talking until 3 am!
The next day we packed and left all my samples at the hotel in Accra. I'm putting a lot of faith into this hotel. They have 3 months of blood, sweat, and tears, and all my souvenirs for everyone so I hope it's all still there in Accra when I get back. We managed to pack everything into Heather's backpack and the 2 daypacks! It's still so heavy! I'm glad that Geoff's here to carry the big backpack for me! haha I've lost so much weight this summer that I'm not physically strong enough to carry things for long distances. I think I need to learn how to carry stuff on my head like all African people. It must be the best way to carry things because things that would be heavy to lift and carry appear to be weightless when carried on the head. Must be something to do with the way weight and tension/compression forces are distributed along the spine.
We got the STC bus to Kumasi and met Scott at the hotel. We got in pretty late but managed to go to the famed Indian restaurant Moti Mahal. Scott didn't want to come with us so Geoff and I had our first date in 3 months! The food was soooooo good! We had a biryani rice, some cripsy bread with mint and sweet chutney, tandoori chicken, and butter nan bread. It was divine!
The next day was a crazy long day. Forced Geoff to try an egg sandwich for breakfast, changed money, and got a tro-tro to Nkoranza. We got to BFMS eventually but it was already quite late in the afternoon so we had to rush to greet everyone. We saw everyone at the guesthouse, walked through the forest to Boabeng (and oddly enough we didn't see any colobus), saw all the important people in Boabeng, walked to Fiema and visited a few people there. By the time we got back to the guesthouse it was dark and Geoff and I had an encounter with large ants. I think Geoff posted more about this on his blog. It was sort of surreal to be leaving BFMS for the last time. I don't think it will hit me until later that I may never come back to BFMS.
Had the shortest tro-tro wait ever, like 2 seconds, and got back to Nkoranza so we could stay at Hand-in-Hand. I felt sorry for my friend Charity who had to cook dinner for us at 8 pm. We're supposed to get to Tamale today to visit my friend Fausti and then head onto Mole National Park to see some elephants and buffalo! I'm also going to get some much needed and well deserved R&R for a few days in Mole. We're a little behind schedule... like 3 hours. I can't believe we've managed to stick so well to the itinerary since we're travelling in Africa. Of course, now that I say that, I've jinxed myself and we probably won't get a tro-tro to Tamale!
It was a painful couple of days to get to Accra to pick up Geoff. Everything I ate turned instantly into shit so that would have made my tro-tro/bus rides very interesting to say the least. I didn't want to take Immodium since that stuff's evil so I took to starving myself for most of the day. I basically wouldn't eat or drink anything until I got to the next hotel. Probably not the best idea since I was already weak and dehydrated, but it made it possible for me to travel. Then I would stuff my face full of food and then pay for it all night and never get any sleep. This went on for about 3 nights until I started taking cipro. Anyways, I'm healthier now and much happier too. I was starting to get very grumpy, anxious, and irritable from the lack of sleep, food, etc.
I made it to Accra and waited in the arrival lounge at the Kotoka International Airport (i.e. the steps outside the airport) for Geoff. Luckily for him, his plane arrived late at night so the airport wasn't this crowded, loud, and stressful place he had to negotiate. Nevertheless, I stood right by the exit so he couldn't have missed me! I was so anxious to see him and nearly cried when he finally got off the plane. We ended up talking and talking and talking until 3 am!
The next day we packed and left all my samples at the hotel in Accra. I'm putting a lot of faith into this hotel. They have 3 months of blood, sweat, and tears, and all my souvenirs for everyone so I hope it's all still there in Accra when I get back. We managed to pack everything into Heather's backpack and the 2 daypacks! It's still so heavy! I'm glad that Geoff's here to carry the big backpack for me! haha I've lost so much weight this summer that I'm not physically strong enough to carry things for long distances. I think I need to learn how to carry stuff on my head like all African people. It must be the best way to carry things because things that would be heavy to lift and carry appear to be weightless when carried on the head. Must be something to do with the way weight and tension/compression forces are distributed along the spine.
We got the STC bus to Kumasi and met Scott at the hotel. We got in pretty late but managed to go to the famed Indian restaurant Moti Mahal. Scott didn't want to come with us so Geoff and I had our first date in 3 months! The food was soooooo good! We had a biryani rice, some cripsy bread with mint and sweet chutney, tandoori chicken, and butter nan bread. It was divine!
The next day was a crazy long day. Forced Geoff to try an egg sandwich for breakfast, changed money, and got a tro-tro to Nkoranza. We got to BFMS eventually but it was already quite late in the afternoon so we had to rush to greet everyone. We saw everyone at the guesthouse, walked through the forest to Boabeng (and oddly enough we didn't see any colobus), saw all the important people in Boabeng, walked to Fiema and visited a few people there. By the time we got back to the guesthouse it was dark and Geoff and I had an encounter with large ants. I think Geoff posted more about this on his blog. It was sort of surreal to be leaving BFMS for the last time. I don't think it will hit me until later that I may never come back to BFMS.
Had the shortest tro-tro wait ever, like 2 seconds, and got back to Nkoranza so we could stay at Hand-in-Hand. I felt sorry for my friend Charity who had to cook dinner for us at 8 pm. We're supposed to get to Tamale today to visit my friend Fausti and then head onto Mole National Park to see some elephants and buffalo! I'm also going to get some much needed and well deserved R&R for a few days in Mole. We're a little behind schedule... like 3 hours. I can't believe we've managed to stick so well to the itinerary since we're travelling in Africa. Of course, now that I say that, I've jinxed myself and we probably won't get a tro-tro to Tamale!
posted by Avatamsaka Monastery Choir at 7:02 AM
1 Comments:
and now for some non-random comment...
yeah, the Moti Mahal was where I had my first Indian meal, and I've loved it ever since! you know, I could never find that "crispy bread with mint and sweet chutney" in Calgary...
anyway, I hope you have a great trip with Geoff! meanwhile, my classes start tomorrow...
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