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.