More Togo!!!

While in Togo, we took a cross-country trip on motorbikes along the coastline. The motorbike ride itself was one of the most amazing and exhilarating rides I have ever been on. In the picture below, we are crossing Lake Togo and entering into Togoville, the main place of voodoo practice in Togo. The only way to get to Togoville is by taking a boat ride cross Lake Togo.



In Togoville, this is a statue of an elder teaching one of the children in the community.



A picture of the Catholic Church in Togoville. The two major religious/spiritual groups in Togoville include the Catholics living in harmony with the practitioners of Voodoo.



Inside the Catholic church.



This is a voodoo statue people pay respect to when going to the market in Togoville. People sell in the market on Tuesdays, and before they go to sell their items, they must first pay respect to this statue by giving an offering of a small portion of their items to the statue.



Outside many of the homes in Togoville, people place these voodoo structures, which serve as protection and offer security from harm.

Togoland!!!!!

Also in March, myself along with four other international students ventured off to the country next door to the east of Ghana, Togo. We stayed in Togo five days in the capital city, Lome (pronounced Lo-May). Togo is a beautiful country with a very thin coastline (only takes about an hour to travel from the west of Togo to the eastern border with Benin) known for having great food, a ton of motorbikes (everyone rides around in them and they even offer rides for people like taxis for very cheap), beautiful beaches, lots of french, a port hub, and along with Benin the original home of Voodoo. During our stay there we explored the capital Lome, ate great food including one of the best cheeseburgers I have ever eaten, soaked on the beach, and took a cross-country trip on motorbikes to the legendary Togoland and Lake Togo, the major practice spot of Voodoo in the country. Enjoy the pics!

Picture below of motorbikes riding through the capital city, Lome.



Lake Togo and Togoland in the distance.

Bead making village

In March we went to a bead making village in the eastern region of Ghana. Below is a picture of the materials used in this village to make the beads.



Beads are made out of all sorts of materials, but some of the most common materials used to make the beads include recycled glass. This recycled glass can be grinded into a powdered-like substance of various colors. The first step in making the beads include determining whether you want to use recycled glass or the powdered glass. In this picture below, the demonstrator decided to use powdered glass. He chooses various colors that he wants and makes a design inside the tiny cup. Once he fills the cup up with the powder, he then pours it into the white circular cups.



The white circular cups are then placed inside a very hot fire (several hundred degrees celsius) where they bake for about 40 minutes in order to hardened into beads. The beads are then cooled and placed in water for about 15 minutes in order to be refined. And presto!!!! Beads are made.





Yeah that's the kid right there below working real hard to try and make some beads. It was a very enjoyable experience and it takes a lot of skill to make really good looking beads. But I am proud of mine anyway.

Kokrobite Beach Resort

These are just a few pics from my birthday weekend at Kokrobite beach resort, just southwest of Accra. Enjoy!

slave castle and el mina

more canopy walks and slave castle tours!

Canopy Walk at Kakum National Park!

Over this past weekend (February 14-15) I ventured to Cape Coast, the original capital of the former Gold Coast (now of course known as Ghana) and went to Kakum National Park. This park is famous as it contains the only canopy walks in West Africa. The canopy walks are at least 50 feet up in the air.



This is the beginning or frontside view of kakum national park.



A forest elephant model head located in the Kakum National Park museum. Forest elephants do live in the park, but they are rarely seen due to their quietness and shyness.



This is the canopy walk. There are a total of six of them that form a circular path. I was scared at first walking on the canopies, but as long as you hold onto the ropes, you won't fall. And also, it definitely does not help to look down, although I did several times and after a while I became very comfortable walking on the canopies.

Will load more pictures of the canopy walks. The website is down right now for loading.