"Afishia Pa" - Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

We at HITA wish you a blessed holiday season and a happy new year. On behalf of all members, we would like to thank you for your support and hope that you will continue to do so in the years to come (with a Membership or a DonationWe do this by helpfully spreading the word in the community, informing others about our association and our projects, through participation on our Internet platforms, or through direct involvement.

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Advent calendars and wreaths, mulled wine and Christmas markets, Christmas tree and Christmas cookies.... Yes, you can find that in our country, but you can't imagine it like that in Ghana - also hard to imagine with an average temperature of almost 30 degrees! Nevertheless, even there you can see Christmas decorations already in November, especially in Accra and the other big cities! Shopping" also gets Christmassy. Hard to believe, the big supermarkets and even the many street vendors offer Christmas decorations: Plastic trees, plastic Christmas balls and tinsel can now be purchased everywhere. Flashy colors and lots of plastic goods (Made in China) are available! On the streets you can see the occasional flying merchant with red pointed hats and the drivers of the Trottos decorate their minibuses with Christmas motifs, mostly from the Anglo-Saxon language area. Santa Claus has also arrived in Ghana.

Christmas in Ghana is celebrated with the family. However, few can afford to decorate their cottages or houses. If, then you see it only with wealthy families. The same applies to gifts. While the children of the upper class are happy about electrical appliances, books and toys similar to us, most children in Ghana get no or only small gifts. Interestingly, most gifts are not wrapped in wrapping paper. Most often, the gifts are packed in cardboard boxes, shoe boxes or the like. Almost everywhere, people are still working on December 24 - it's not until the evening that things really get going. Many Ghanaians then still travel home to their relatives. Ghanaians also traditionally spend the holidays with their families. "Driving home for Christmas" is also common practice in Ghana! However, it should be noted that driving from the capital to the far north, for example, can hardly be done in a day. Most go to their hometowns and villages to celebrate with extended family, grandparents, uncles and aunts. In many places there are Christmas fireworks, after which many Ghanaians go to church. Like us, at Christmas there are the most delicious dishes. Depending on the region, mothers cook fufu (mashed cassava root in dumpling form) the national dish of Ghana.

Elsewhere, there is the famous Joloff rice. This is a rice dish made of rice and tomato paste, usually also with cassava, as well as sweet potatoes (batata). You can eat this with chicken, meat or fish. Usually the rice is quite spicy. It is usually eaten by all family members together from a pot or platter traditionally with the right hand. Often there are also fried plantains (plantains) with chicken, others treat themselves to beef for this feast.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2017!