I'm in Ghana!

After months of excitement, weeks of packing and an 11 hour plane ride- I have made it to Accra, Ghana! I was glued to my window like a 5-year-old as we descended and although extremely jet lagged, I couldn't help but notice the infrastructure. Other than a few very large, paved roads, all of the streets are red dirt roads. From the aerial view, I could see patches of farm land and noticed that there was a lot of farm land but it seemed to be small patches and a variety of crops planted next to one another- I'm interested in learning more.

At the airport, I was greeted by the driver for ACDI/VOCA and met up with another volunteer, Scott. Scott is a rancher from New Mexico that focuses on ag economics and has been on several volunteer assignments with ACDI/VOCA over the past year- he briefly mentioned the assignment he was on last month in another African country. It sounds like this guy is very active in the Farmer-to-Farmer program! It was really nice to ride with him from the airport to our hotel because he has been here before and knows the ropes, which never hurts when I only managed 3-4 hours of sleep on the plane!

The drive to the hotel was really interesting. Scott let my ride up front and there tons of vendors on the side of the street and one of the first vendors I saw was selling cocoanuts like in Thailand and Costa Rica where they machete the top and you can drink the cocoanut milk with a straw :) I'm excited!!!

I also saw this large building that was all glass windows and a really interesting architecture style being built. I was told by Scott and many in the U.S. that Ghanians are extremely nice- I can't wait to actually start meeting some people.

While this isn't my first time abroad, I am still interested by so many things that I see. Even something as small as seeing some chickens running around the street outside our hotel, a place you wouldn't normally expect them. It's funny because I feel sometimes I come off as green or naive because of the little things that I still find interesting; while I know my stuff, I don't think I really come off as an 'experienced world traveler.' :)

Uniquely though, I can already sense that this is the most underdeveloped country I've been to. The roads from the plane were a giveaway yes, but traveling around and seeing more vendors than actual stores was a cue as well. I know the next few weeks will bring a lot of great experiences- culturally, professionally and personally.

This evening I am meeting with Scott for dinner since he seems to have a good grasp on the hotel area and I can ask him some more questions as long as the jet lag waits to kick in too bad :) The hotel has wireless internet (music to my ears :) and my room is really nice- with a personal air conditioner, refridgerator with freezer and a small electric stove. I'm really pleased with the hotel so far. Sorry if this post is a little scattered, or more all-over-the-place than usual, blame it on the jet lag :)