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So for the next few blogs I plan to travel at breakneck speed to try and catch up with where I am now. I have been in Ghana for almost a month and have only covered the first week so far! (Although, admittedly in 3000 words. It's not surprising it's taken me so long!) And so to Wa.
On the Friday, while in the VSO office in Accra, I was called in for a meeting with the head of VSO in Ghana and the head of Education. They asked me if I would like to go spend a week shadowing other TSOs (Teacher Support Officers, the job I am doing in Tumu. I am not entirely sure what this entails at the moment but will fill you in when I have settled in a bit!). I happily accepted and I was off to Wa on a bus for 17 hours with a few other volunteers.
After the long but uneventful journey, I finally arrived in my first northern town and had my first experience of staying in a volunteer's house. One of the best things about VSO is that in each country you have this incredible support network. Whenever you are travelling you know you will always have a bed in any major city and even if you have never met them you just give them a call and they will help out. It's like being in a secret society! (I am definitely going to spend some time coming up with an amazing handshake and some complex codes).
In the house in Wa were three volunteers. Pegi, Miryam and Bob. During the week I shadowed Pegi and Miryam as they went to different schools where they taught demonstration lessons, observed, gave feedback, gave INSETS, took small groups of girls to do some focused learning as well as a variety of other things. It was brilliant way to start my time in Ghana as it gave me the chance to get used to the way of life, make a fool of myself with local customs so that I would not make the same mistakes in Tumu and see some of the things that TSOs get up to. I won't take you through a blow by blow account of what I got up to as we have all read those blogs/Christmas cards which go, 'and then little Billy picked up his first pen, Then he drew a picture of his family, then he ate some food.. On Tuesday he did it all over again but I am going to write it again over 200 agonising words about it just so you understand just how wonderful he is, until you lose the will to live.' So to avoid that sort of fallout I have just picked out a smattering of highlights from the week;
1. The relationship questions get asked completely the wrong way around. The first question is, 'do you have children?' followed by, 'do you have a wife?' etc until we get right back to the beginning of this line of questioning which ends with sympathetic head shaking and wondering how I could have got to this stage of my life having failed so badly and whether I am hiding a physical deformity of some sort.
2. When it rains.....it pours! The schools all have corrugated iron roofs and so it sounds like your getting shot at. As soon as it starts to rain, all teaching stops and you just sit around waiting for it to stop. That is unless you are the one kid in the class who has Ombrophobia and as soon as it starts to rain, gives a little gasp, dives under the table to grab a scrum hat and puts it on for protection! (See photos!)
3. You only get water every 4 days and so you all gather round the tap at 6 in the morning and stare at it trying to make water come out of it with the power of your mind (and in my case failing as it did not appear until 9!)
4. You stop and eat all the time. You have breakfast and then go to a school. After teaching one lesson you have a break and go grabs some nibbles. After the second lesson you have a malt drink and few biscuits. Teach a bit more and have some lunch...you get the idea
5. In some of the schools you are only enrol in the school if you bring your own desk, leading to some seriously shoddy carpentry. There are desks that have to be put together and held while the children sit down and then collapse as soon as they stand up! (There is a picture of a wonky one in the photo section)
6. Every Friday a mix of local volunteers get together in a small outside spot for drinks and some of the best food in Wa. A great way for me to meet a big group of likeminded people.
And then on Friday, the highlight of the week! Pegi was going to explore the teacher training college round the corner from us and when asked if I wanted to join her I jumped at the chance. We went for a wonder and before long we were in a van with 6 staff going to different schools to observe third-year students teach! I was sitting there giving feedback to teachers who were older than me! Slightly disconcerting but fun. The first lesson we watched was a bit of disaster but no worries, off to the training school for the next set. Each teacher training collage has a school 'onsite' to give demonstration lessons in and for the cream of the crop to go work in their third year. I decided to watch an English lesson this time, so up bounds this very enthusiastic man who introduced himself as 'Adolf'.... I thought I must have heard him wrong so I asked for his name again and this beaming face repeats Adolf again. Now I realise that there are some unfashionable names out there due to some negative connotations (Stalin, Mugabe, Jordan, the names of the entire cast of 'Made in Chelsea') but I was under the impression that calling your son Adolf is like naming your boat Titanic, you do not have history on your side.
Well it turns out that Adolf was just brilliant in classroom! Taught a blinding lesson on positional vocabulary and he committed no humanitarian atrocities during the 45 minutes that I was aware of either. So apparently Adolf as a name is back! Spread the word. He was so good that Pegi has now taken on Adolf as language tutor.
As I was slowly realising in Ghana, nothing ever really goes to plan. As the end of the week was approaching my arrival date in Tumu was pushed back until Tuesday. Not to worry though as Sarah had just moved in to her house in Lawra an hour and a half north of Wa and invited me up for the weekend to help her explore! So I put off my Tumu plans and continued with my new plan of seeing almost every part of Ghana before heading to where I was actually be living. So off I popped to the tro tro station, paid my three cedis and I was off......
Homework: See if you can find the following items in the picture labelled 'spot the item'
Motorcycle helmet
Belt
Mosquito net
Suntan lotion
Mosquito spray
Pack of extra safe durex condoms (Hint: Think of the colour)
Motorcycle boots
Motorcycle jacket
Pictures of the Heales
Guide to Ghana (Bradt)
Clippers
Torch
Malaria pills
Deodorant
There will be a prize for anyone who gets all of them!
- comments
Big Daddy Si and Captain Cat James, Captain Cat and I have done our homework and spotted everything! Our homework for you is to pick it all off the floor and put it neatly away! Love the blogs. Please keep them coming. Much love
Big Daddy Si and Captain Cat James, Captain Cat and I have done our homework and spotted everything! Our homework for you is to pick it all off the floor and put it neatly away! Love the blogs. Please keep them coming. Much love
DinaG Great blog, James! Spotted all the items. Do I get an extra prize for noticing (and being seriously impressed by) the iron and ironing board?!!