Day 40: Mary's Courtyard

Accra - We went to Mary's Courtyard with some young missionaries from Scotts Hill Baptist Church in North Carolina. It is located in the neighborhood of Abossey Okai on the West side of Accra - an unplanned neighborhood characterized by poor road networks, poor drainage systems, and insufficient water and electricity services. The courtyard (backyard, open air kitchen) had several fires going constructed by mounded earth topped with modified tire rims that could accommodate pots. There was also a charcoal cooker.  Miriam and her sister worked assisted by two other young workers.  Her yard was provisioned with three months worth or firewood, bags of rice and other dry goods, produce she purchased from Abgobloshie market, and giant barrels of water she obtained from some spigot nearby.

Miriam took this business over from her mother who is now 65 when she began ailing a few years ago.  Her menu consists of watcheye, fried fish, shito, beef stew, and millet porridge, all of which is difficult and time consuming to prepare. She also prepares boiled eggs for those who cannot afford the fish. Thirty-two dozen were delivered while we were there. If there is a funeral, since mourners are not allowed to cook, she will cook for them.  Also she is hired out to do weddings.  Watcheye is usually what she prepares as well as her gari as people like the way she seasons it. She sells to the families in her neighborhood as well as to people in the market. Her day begins at 6 AM and ends at 10 or 11 PM when the market closes. She takes Sundays off.

Miriam's hospitality was unparallelled as she was entertaining several obroni's in her place of business quite graciously. She answered questions readily and seemed genuinely willing to share her work with us and to explain procedure and supply items. I am in her debt, as well as in the debt of the lovely young ladies of Scotts Hill who invited us along. Thank you.

Fish are soaked in lime and salt and fried, heads and all!

Down by the sea, under a tree.

Miriam has a dazzling smile!

The courageous young ladies of Scott's Hill Baptist

Scotch Bonnet peppers used to make Shito.

Mary showed us her neighbor's bread oven.  It was still warm!

Day 39: Piety and Pizza

Accra - Today we attended the Christiansborg Baptist Church in Osu as the rain fell from the cloudy sky. This church was established in 1953 by missionaries from the U.S.  It's built in a traditional style with the old style unpadded wooden pews.  High ceiling.  Open windows and fans for cool ventilation.  Sunday School began at 9:00 am and worship was scheduled to begin at 10:30.  They rang the bell to conclude Sunday School at 10:15 so, with the customary transition, worship actually began at 10:35.  A Cape Coast University student named Naomi sat with us and helped to guide us through the service.  Like all Ghanaian churches we've been to, first time visitors are required to stand and introduce themselves.  The Christianborg Church was particularly pleased that we were from the Atlanta, GA area because they are currently using a set of hymnals donated by former members who now live in Atlanta.  The hymns were very traditional.  We sang, "Blessed Assurance", "O Happy Day", and "The Precious Name of Jesus".  The choir was phenomenally good, especially having only eight voices.  The harmony was pitch perfect.  The pastor preached Psalm 91:4 in English with translation into Ga.  After the service, all of the visitors were taken to the pastor's office to get better acquainted.  We also met the former pastor, Rev. Kennedy, and his wife.

After church we ate at the highly recommended Mamma Mia Restaurant.  Another well disguised gem, we have been looking for it for a couple of days and we finally located it.  This restaurant serves casual Italian fare, unlike its cousin Michelangelo's which is decidedly upscale.  However, between two beverages a piece, two pizzas, and an ice cream, we still spent over 100 Ghana cedis.  Wood fired brick oven pizza, pasta, and an extensive beverage list make this place very popular.  They do a brisk take out business, judging from the number of customers carrying boxes out from the main counter.  Most of the seating is outdoors on a tile floor with a thatched roof.  The manager, Lyn is from the Philippines.  She estimated that upwards of eighty percent of the clientele is composed of expats from Italy, Lebanon, the United States, and other countries. The owner, who greeted us when we entered, is half Lebanese and half Italian.  When I asked her about Ghanaian customers, Lynn stated that the popularity of pizza in Ghana over all is increasing, but most of her customers remain solidly non Ghanaian.  

The well hidden entrance to Mama Mia's.

REAL pepperoni pizza.  Many restaurants say they have pepperoni but they do not. 

Parmesano Pizza with olives, eggplant, and garlic.

Dessert.  Ice cream from the chest freezer.

Cappacino

Sam the cook gave us permission to take his picture but did not have time to pause and smile.  Mama Mia's is doing a brisk business.

Rare Ghanaian brick ovens at Mama Mia's.

Mama Mia's Staff

Staff members with Lyn, the Filipino manager of Mama Mia's.

Day 38: Jamestown and Ushertown

Accra - Today Brandi and I went to the Old Parliament building in downtown Accra.  This is the building where the Ghanaian parliament met before completion of the new State House in 1965.  The building was previously used by the British and was abandoned nine years after independence as a survival of the colonial era.  Today the building is in ruins having suffered a fire in December of 2013.  Next door is the supreme court building, still in use by the government of Ghana even though it too was built by the British prior to 1957.  This property was closed today, it being Saturday, but we were invited to come back during the week.  In my opinion this is one of the most impressive buildings in Ghana.  You can take a look at my picture and decide for yourself.

Brandi and I walked around the block which includes the Old Parliament and Supreme Court and we found the Central Accra Public Library.  Brandi found several books here on the food of Ghana including "The Best of our Foods" and "Life Skills" by Christine Joyce Boahene, a former deputy minister of education in Ghana.  We also found the country's oldest Presbyterian church which was receiving a new bright blue metal roof.  This church faces the Makola Market, one of the largest in the country, and a statue of King Tackie Tawiah I (1862-1902).  I bought Brandi a passport cover for only ¢2.  The man was also selling Bibles in all of the native languages including Accan Twi, Ga, and Ewe.  Even further around toward the front of the Old Parliament again Brandi found a woman selling deep fried cassava balls with onion and a side of coconut.  These tasted a lot like hush puppies to me.

On the way to the Jamestown lighthouse, I was trying to take a short cut in the Mission's Izusu truck.  The street grew smaller and smaller even though I was going the right direction until we began to pass through an Ushertown market.  When there was barely enough room for our mini truck to pass we met a tro-tro coming toward us.  He refused to back up and then another tro-tro came up behind him.  I probably should have just backed out but I turned around in this narrow market lane with the help of 500 supportive Ghanaians who probably laughed about my Obroni driving for the rest of the day.  No harm, no foul we drove on past the Accra central post office to the lighthouse without the need for police assistance.

Jamestown is the oldest part of Accra.  At the lighthouse, we were met by a volunteer tour guide even before we parked the truck.  He guided us to a safe parking space and then called for the lady who opened the lighthouse.  This lighthouse is a 1930s replacement of an earlier 1871 building.  The current lighthouse is 93 feet high and has a visibility of 16 nautical miles.  Eighty-two steps led us up to one of the best views of Accra and the shoreline.  Back down, the volunteer tour guide, who we did not choose to hire but who turned out to be a big help at a reasonable price, took me down into the nearby Jamestown fishing village.  Brandi was too freaked out by the close quarters of the small houses so she stayed behind with the truck at the lighthouse.  The guide took me to see where and how fishermen and their families live.  I saw children playing football/soccer and I met some of the fishermen on the beach who were mending nets and repairing boats.  Most of the boats are left out in the water and the fishermen swim to shore.  At 1:00 am they swim out to their boats and fish out at sea until 7:00 am at which time they sell their fish to the market.  I'm guessing they sleep in the day before waking to work on their boats again.  I met the secretary to the chief of the village and made a customary donation to the chief for the privilege of visiting the fishing village.  The guide showed me the remains of the tunnel which used to lead from the British Fort James to the dock for British ships out from the beach.  This tunnel is flooded today and we were actually walking on the top of the old tunnel.  Even here the waves were splashing up on me as they hit the walls of the tunnel.

Back to Brandi and the truck, the guide took us to British Fort James which was closed.  "Come back Monday," he said.  Then he walked us down High Street to Fort Ussher which was also closed but somehow he talked the night watchman into allowing us a private tour.  This fort was built by the Dutch as Fort Crèvecœur in 1649, making it the second oldest European fort in Ghana, behind only Elmina.  It was captured by the British in 1781.  In all the Europeans built 27 forts on the coast of Ghana.  The Dutch captured two forts from the Portuguese and then built nine more.  The British captured these and built ten more.  There are plans to restore Fort Ussher and make it a museum.  We saw no evidence today that this work has begun.  What we did see was a fort that was used by Ghana as a prison until 2007, according to our guide, two identical wings, the west side for men, the east side for women . . . just like in the days of the slave trade.

Having left the forts, Brandi and I took the Ring Road to Osu where we decided to grab a quick dinner (having had no lunch) at Frankie's.  This is a hotel, bakery, and restaurant on Oxford Street.  We enjoyed a second floor window seat where we had a great view of the people walking and driving between the shops in Osu.  This restaurant has an American fast food feel to it even though it's a sit down restaurant with waiters.  They were showing the world cup game on a big screen tv.  The restaurant serves breakfast all day, sandwiches, hamburgers, hot dogs, and pizza.  Brandi had an omlet and I had a double cheeseburger.  The bill was ¢65 and I left a ¢10 tip.  Ghanaians don't expect tips so when we give what we feel is appropriate by our American standards, they are usually well pleased.

Back at the guest house we have about 18 days to go.

Old Parliament House in downtown Accra built by the British and discontinued in 1965.

Supreme Court Building in Accra

Accra Central Public Library

Presbyterian Church of Ghana.  The Presbyterian church in Ghana was started by Basel missionaries in 1828.  

King Tackie Tawiah I, 20th King of GA 1862-1902

Brandi buying "hush puppies" on the street.  They were five for ¢1.

View looking east from the top of the Jamestown lighthouse.  Fort James is the near white building on the right side of the road and Fort Ussher is the white building in the distance behind the blue customs house.  The house of the king once sat on the dirt spot you see here on the left side of the road.

Tim and Brandi at the Jamestown Lighthouse.

Jamestown fishermen mending nets and repairing boats.  The man in the blue shirt is our volunteer guide.

Our guide on the road leading up from the fishing village toward the lighthouse in Jamestown.

The locked door to Fort James.

The "open" door of Fort Ussher.

The open doors of prison cells in Fort Ussher.  Used as a Ghanaian prison until 2007.

The grave of one British governor located next to Fort James.  The guide was unclear on who is buried here and we were not able to walk over there due to utility construction which you can see in the photo.

Jamestown Lighthouse

Potato, Peas, and Carrots Omlet with toast at Frankie's Restaurant in Osu, Accra.

Frankie's double cheeseburger with fries.

Day 37 A New Number One: Make Fufu, Not War

Accra - Today Tim and I got much done despite a very late start due to rain.  We headed straight over to highly recommended Buka Restaurant in Osu.  It was very difficult to find owing to the fact that it was virtually unmarked and located on an unpaved side street.  Despite all this, the food was well prepared and presented, and the service was attentive and very familiar with vegetarian customers (for which I give brownie points!).  The restaurant was located on an upstairs outdoor terrace with latticework ceiling, bamboo walls, and ironwork furniture.  This was the busiest restaurant we have been to yet.  And yet, despite its popularity the price was very reasonable.  The Buka is now our number one restaurant in Ghana for authentic Ghanaian food, finally bumping down the Country Kitchen, our long-time favorite.

Afterwards we went to two different grocery stores.  On the way to the stores we saw a Baptist church, the first I have seen with such a traditional design, built before independence in 1953.  The first grocery store was called Saagar Impex.  It caters to Indian customers and has an area with housewares and shrines.  The second store called Lara Mart, caters to Lebanese customers.  There was no alcohol or pork for purchase as in every other store, they did have an extensive meat department with sheep delivered directly to the store for butchering on the premises.  A young lady working at the Lara Mart had on a "Made In Ghana" Tshirt.

Lara Mart Employee

On the way back to the car we stopped by a local store run by an entrepreneur named Auntie Martha.  We heard them pounding fufu in the yard and decided to stop by to document it.  I actually got a chance to try it!

When we reached home, a young lady from an Oklahoma group had on the most appropriate Tshirt for the day: "Make Fufu, Not War - You Are Invited".    

The well hidden entrance to Buka Restaurant

Quarter chicken with Jollof rice, steamed vegetables, and shito on the side

Whatcheye (beans and rice), palava sauce (spinach and ground melon seeds), gari and spaghetti

Hand washing station for after your fufu eating

Gorgeous Baptist church in Osu 

Lara Mart

The Butcher was a ginormous man

Auntie Martha showed me how to pound fufu and then let me try it.

Day 36: Balme Library and Woolworth's

Accra: Tim and I had an ambitious day, but as we spent over $70 USD on books, we had to cut our plans short and return home since they were too heavy to carry.  We started off working our way through the Ghana Expats list of grocery stores.  South African chain Woolworth was like an upscale Target, but with barely any food.  The freezers were even empty.  Just a paltry selection of dry goods augmented with an equally scant selection of alcohol. Tim was able to score a package of  underwear and a belt for around $59 USD.  He said he really needed them.  Ironically, books here are very cheap.  We later purchased several books for a dollar or less.  The most expensive book was about $30 USD and it was a textbook I needed for my research.

We proceeded to the Melcom store next.  It was a warehouse set up with electronics, household goods and furniture.  The entry way was lined with small stores such as a forex, shoe store, and book store.  There was a better selection of food, but more expensive than the other stores we have been to. The place reminded me of the stores in Brooklyn with the same cheesy plywood high gloss laminate furniture with 1970's styling. The electronics department did have some legitimate brands though.    

We wrapped things up with another trip to the University of Accra at Legon so I could do some research on food.  I was hoping to find some cookbooks in the library, but no luck.  Of the ten or so books on food history we did manage to find, not one of them was authored by a West African, and other than the reference books, none were actually available.  This is partially because the African Studies Library was in the process of being renovated. We did get a couple of cookbooks written by Ghanaians from the campus bookstore, however.  :)

No food for us today.  Instead we got by on soft drinks and Digestive Biscuits.  I do believe this is how most Ghanaians get along most days.  It is very inexpensive to purchase some street food as we did yesterday.  I have also observed workers consuming packets of cookies washed down with water.  

An inner courtyard of the Balme Library

The Balme library is beautifully designed with the tropical climate in mind

The library's namesake

A corner of the U of Ghana Bookstore

Wheat Digestive Biscuits do a lot to kill hunger pangs!