24-26 March 2023 Ghana trip / Travel report 1: We are on the journey
Maybe you / you have read our report "Travel preparations for Ghana". Since Friday we are now actually on the road. It is always amazing to arrive in a completely different world after only 7 hours of flying. From 0 to 100 means in our case from 8°C and cloudburst at 7:00 in the morning in Frankfurt am Main to 30°C when landing at 18:00 in Accra, Ghana. We flew with "Brussels" via Brussels for cost reasons. First and foremost, this airline offered us the opportunity to take a second piece of luggage at a reasonable price. space that we urgently needed for our diverse donations.
The main goal of this trip is to advance the 1Bed4all(II) https://hita-ev.org/project/1bed4all-ii/ project. Unfortunately, the containers still could not be sent from the customs port on the long journey to the Brong-Ahafo region. Our goal now must be to "pull out all the stops" to actually have the beds delivered to the 18 selected hospitals. As is so often the case, we once again find that our German "planning mentality" doesn't get us anywhere here; the spoken word and direct personal contacts are so much more important than what feels like 1,000 emails and phone calls or video conferences.
The first night we spent in Accra, because the drive at night to Sunyani is too dangerous. We are totally happy that our driver picks us up (almost) on time at 9:00. We need about 6 - 8 hours for the 370 km drive via Kumasi to the former capital of the Brong Ahafo region - Sunjani. After the 2018 administrative reform, it is the regional capital of the Bono Region. This city is now home to about 136,000 people, mostly younger people. The city's population has more than doubled since 2010.
Traveling with "small luggage"
On the way, however, we first have to make sure that we can communicate in Ghana. For us, this means reactivating our SIM cards. Unfortunately, these are deactivated after a certain time and reassigned again. This - actually seemingly simple - procedure cost us almost 2 hours of daylight, which ultimately meant that we couldn't get to Sunyani before sunset at about 6:00 pm. On the trip we provided ourselves with delicious fried yam and plantains.
Besides the bad road conditions, the many traffic jams were a reason for the long drive. However, the reason for the traffic jams surprised us a lot. There were delays in every smaller and larger town because Saturday is "Funeral Day." Funerals are traditionally held on Saturday because it allows relatives to travel from more distant areas. It was unbelievable how many buses were on the road with beautifully dressed mourners.
Funeral
Travel catering
When we finally arrived safely at our hotel in Sunyani at about 8:00 pm after exactly 208 Christian songs, a representative of our partner, the Catholic University of Ghana in Fiapre, Sunyani, Mark Kofidze, was already waiting to greet us and make the most important arrangements.
After we checked into our rooms, we went with Mark to the Mark to stock up on fresh fruit. Birgit, our fellow traveler, was in Sunyani for 7 weeks last year to do research for her master's thesis. She knows her way around, among other things she led us unerringly to a market stall where you can get the best coconuts in town.
After a wonderful coconut drink and a good dinner we actually arrived in Ghana. From Sunday morning we will take care of our project. More about this in our next travel report.
Coconuts