Observations of some of the Customs

GREETING PEOPLE

While I was in Ghana I felt like I was running for political office because I shook so many hands. It is a common way to greet people. In Bawku I witnessed three different ways to greet. The seemingly most formal way was to bow on one knee and bow your head at the same time as saying a greeting. This was reserved for people that are older and ones that are more respected in the community. There are two forms of handshakes. A shake and a snap which I was surprised when my husband did this. I started to reprimand him about it and he said that the old lady actually did it to him! Then there is a shake and two pats on the chest which I saw the least often.

CHILDREN

I saw a range of children activities from mini adults selling things to mindlessly wandering children just playing all day.


ELDERLY

We did not see a lot of older people out and about. They are mostly cared for by the younger generation so they do not have to leave the house unless necessary. The place we did see them a lot was in the bank!

DINING ETIQUETTE

Most, if not all dishes are eaten by hand. Before eating, a bowl of water and a bottle of soap is placed on the table for washing the right hand. As you probably know the right hand is considered the clean hand and must be used for eating. This custom is fading away as with some of the other customs. I always thought that using the right hand was limited to 'eastern' custom but to my surprise westerners used to buy into this too. 'Gauche' means left in French. In English a gauche person is very clumsy. An adroit person is a skillful person and also means right in French. Concluding from these meanings, a right-handed person would be favored over a left-handed person. But just as this bias faded away in western culture, it is going away in Ghana. I noticed that a couple of my cousins are left-handed but still eat fufu with their right hand.


Rivals, husbands and other semi jokes.

Rivals by definition can be an aunt, daughter, daughter-in-law, sister, etc. For example my sister-in-law is my rival. I must pretend to fight her and not like her because I am competing for my husbands attention. This custom was a little more confusing because my daughters collected a lot of 'husbands.' Anytime we met a new cousin or uncle they wanted to become their 'husband'. Which means that that uncle/cousin is in competition with my husband, their dad, the rival. I call these jokes because I wonder how much of this is pretend and how much is based on reality? Maybe I watch too much Law and Order.... Anyone who is named after a grandmother or grandfather is called just that, grandma or grandpa. The child with the namesake hates it but everyone loves to tease him/her about it. My daughter who is named after one of the great aunts told my aunt, 'You are too big to be my granddaughter!'

Transportation

I like Kumasi and Tamale where most people commute on bikes much better than Accra where there are too many cars and too many people.

Termite Mounds

All along the highway as we travelled North we saw termite hills ranging from a few feet high to over 10 feet high.

Bathrooms

Bathrooms on the road are very interesting in Ghana. At a rest stop there were two options for the woman's restroom. One for the equivalent of about 20 cents and the other for 10 cents. The 10 cent bathroom is the one in the picture.

Scenic View to Castle

Cape Coast/Elmina Castle

After a very lovely coastle drive to Cape Coast, we arrived at Elmina Castle. We had a phenomenal tour guide and I will get his name soon because I have to give him props. If you ever go you should ask for him. I have picture of the "door of no return," the last step the slaves took on the continent and many times of their life. The wreaths were placed as memorials to our ancestors who suffered through the Middle Passage. This is when I got choked up. An Islamic school came in and everyone was taking pictures so I did also.

The Chefs

Cooking some of the dishes in Ghana looks like a very tedious process. I saw a lot of pots and pans, coal and fire. One of the many anachronisms is that there are stoves, but when they are making the particular dish called tizet(sp?) they use a coal fire. Some of the ladies are pounding some peppers. And again they do a lot of pounding even though they have blenders.