Accra day tour

My driver, Solomon, showed up at hostel at 9AM sharp. Today's agenda : National culture museum, Kwame Nkrumah memorial park, University of Ghana and Jamestown (Independence Square AKA Black Star Square is also on the list, but I will discuss about it later).

*Side note, if you are cost conscious, taking Tru-Tru isn't a bad option. It is a common transportation in Ghana, like a mini bus, they have stops. I had pleasure to sit in there few time, super cheap, fast and convenient.

Tro-Tro, cheap way to go around in Accra, it could get hot inside though.

 

National Culture Museum: This place is a must visit for any first time Africa visitors, you will get a sense of the tribal cultures here. The different tribes and different languages for Ghanaians is just puzzling. In Ghana alone, there are (as far as I know) the Ga, Akans, Regalia, Ewes, Anlos and Ashanti, etc, each with different history and language.

Plaster cast of the three Kuba Kings

Wood Stools

Chairs of state, a symbol of prestige. The more you have, the more wealthy you are.

Chair of state used by Dr Kwame Nkrumah during his inauguration on July 1st, 1960

Few fun facts:

1) Seems like the Ga is the least popular tribe, they mainly live near the coast and fish for a living.  Solomon  hates them with a passion, he lectured me how Ga are lazy, they only work for few hours to catch enough food for them to eat and spend the rest of day wondering around or beg for money. When you marry a Ga girl, her family moves in with you and asks you to support them. Solomon was very happy when I promised him that I will never marry a Ga girl.

Kpalogo dancers, a popular danc among the Ga speaking tribe

2) My Ghana friend is an Ewe, good thing or else I have to unfriend him on Facebook.

Agbadza dancers, dances of the Ewes and Anlos of the Volta region

3) Although many consider masks is an African thing, street vendors only sales them to tourists. Ghanianian doesn't display masks at their homes. Masks are mainly from Nigeria or Cameroon. And that is proven true in the museum where none of the masks displayed are from Ghana.

Gelede Mask - Yoruba people - Nigeria

N'kang Mask - Bamileke people - Cameroon

Kwame Nkrumah memorial park: Kwame Nkrumah was the first president of Ghana. FYI - in the museum, there are pictures of him visiting China and pictures of him with the Chinese Prime Minster. (No photograph is allowed in the museum though)

University of Ghana: FYI - Taxis can only drop and pickup people in UG, if you want to tour the University, the Taxi have to wait in the parking lot near the main entrance and you have to walk about 1 or 2 miles to the campus, which I did. If you want to take pictures, you also have to get permission. UG is a great campus, Solomon told me that alot of Nigerians come to UG to get an education because in Nigeria, you can start the University but you can't finish it because the professors would go on strike for extended time or the University just cancels the department and you have to start from scratch. So UG is a very popular place for Nigerian students. My Ghana friend's wife also went to UG. 

The security guard at UG wants to take a picture with me. She asked me later to mail her the picture.

The worker is digging a trench

It is a very nice campus

Jamestown: This is the last stop of the day and it was later during the day so I didn't see the fishermen coming back from their trip. Jamestown is consider bad part of the town, Solomon told me to stay in the Taxi and just drives me around. The whole time in the Taxi, he was going on and on about how bad the Ga are, quite amusing how much hatred he have towards them.

This is the only picture I was able to take in Jamestown since Solomon wouldn't let me get off the Taxi

Domestic dispute, Solomon took this opportunity to lecture me on the Ga people. =)

This is the area that the police wouldn't even go, water and electricity company workers wouldn't go either. People live in there are refugees from the north region.  They fight among themselves. In 2008 election, there were fighting and murders there. Solomon said if the taxi driver drives you there, the people in there will kill you

A common sight in Ghana are the street vendors and women carry items on their head (Those things aren't light either).

Solomon and I have become good friends over the 6 hours drive, we had such  fun conversations talking about things from Ga to our daily life. He use to work as a driver for a  tour company so he was able to be my tour guide, it was great. I hired him for the next day's trip to Kakum national park and the slave castles, but we need to leave at 6AM, so need to get to bed early tonight.