Ghana Travels Update!!

Hello,
This is an update of our awesome trip! We're at a 24 hour internet cafe in the middle of Accra. It's almost 8:30 p.m. here. I forgot to tell you that one of the highlights of my flight to Ghana was that Donnie McKurklin was on my flight! I even got a chance to take a photo with him which Iwill cherish! We have had days packed with activities! I'm recounting from memory, so bear with me.

We toured Kwame Nkrumah's masuloeum and museum. We were able to take pictures next to his stature, which is where he declared independence in March 1957. It was awesome. We met another American group while we were there! We toured W.E.B DuBois' House, his work is incredible and the contributions he made "transatlantic" were beyond his time. We saw his entire library and visited his burial site, which is on his property.

Yesterday was probably the most intense, emotionally. We toured the Cape Coast Slave Dungeon- it is not a castle but referred to as a dungeon. I can't even tell you about the emotions that were felt as we toured the male and female dungeons. They were dark and damp. I can't imagine how they survived but our guide said it was their strenghth and I can believe that. We also toured a fantastic museum that began with the transatlantic slavetrade and ended with the civil rights museum. The most profound aspect was going through the door of no return. We could only imagine what our ancestors felt having no idea where they were going. We said a prayer for all of our ancestors that endured the torture and humiliation and for the women that were brutally raped. Outside we sang the Negro National Anthem - where the words "true to our God, true to our native land" had new meaning. Then we were able to make the transition to the door of return. We had a somber ride to our next destination.

Today we went to the West African Aids Foundation and clinic. There we had several mini lectures. We did a service project and helped with the inventory of the items that were donated.
Thanks so much to LaVonda Cheek for the donations, they really appreciated them and we could see how vital they were to the operation. We also visited the Almond Tree, a business for HIV positive men and women, where they make beautiful crafts to help sustain their income. Of course we purchase a lot of stuff and have come up with many ideas of how to help them sustain their business in America. I believe the highlight for the kids was visiting with the students from the Winneba Secondary School. They had lunch with us which was really impressive because they came from far away to dine with us - they are on vaction. We had a fabulous meal, oh, we went to the Winneba University first. After lunch we went to their school and planted trees with them. They are poised, graceful, intelligent and have a thirst for knowledge. It was an awesome experience. We are having a great time!

Dinner with authentic Ghanian food and dancing- every restuarnt has had a live band!I 'm always so tired at the end of the night. We are adjusting to a couple of things like limited toilet paper, cold showers, remembering to take Malaria medicine and to brush your teeth with bottled water- but we decided not to complain after our visit to the dungeon.

I've got to go. Don't worry and if you need to contact me- call my cell 919-260-4555.