The beginning of the adventure...

Hey everyone!

I hope that you are well and that you're enjoying the UK weather - whatever it may be!

I've had a great first week in Ghana and I've already been lucky enough to make some really good friends who I know I'm really going to enjoy spending the next two years with. Anyway, we've been in Accra (the capital) since we arrived for in country training. Tomorrow, just over half of our group head up north to our various placements, it's going to be a long day - we're leaving here at 6am and goodness knows when we'll get there - possibly 11:30/midnight... Anyone want to come visit me?! Well that's tomorrow - best not to think about it too much.
Instead what's happened so far?

So we arrived on Sunday evening, and were immediatley whisked off to a posh hotel somewhere in the outskirts of Accra - air conditioning, nice food, huge double bed... As I went to sleep I really wasn't sure if I'd actually made it to Ghana or had been diverted to some other country! We had dinner and then just crashed - it's amazing how tiring travelling is! However, the next day when we opened the curtains Africa was right there looking back at us. What the night had hidden we could now see in all it's glory - the mud roads, the people going about their daily lives, the little stalls and the great big brewery straight across the road! (Funnily enough the actual address for our hotel is 'Beauty Hotel, Opposite Kasapreko Company Ltd, Spintex Road, Accra') As we then drove to the VSO office that morning I just spent the journey starring - there was/is so much to take in - bed frames and sofas are being sold at the sides of the road, people are selling goods in the middle of the road and purchases occur through the vehicle window - mad!

We've spent the week being trained all about VSO Ghana and then various medical, security essentials. Then to finish off we've had market challenges to find a list of goods and cookery lessons! Great fun, and like I mentioned earlier all the volunteers who have come out are lovely and I really feel like I've made some good friends already. Although, seriously - the market is a sight to behold, or possibly a better way to phrase it might be a smell to behold! No, it was great and the Ghanaian people proved themselves to be incredibly friendly and helpful - it gave me confidence to think that I'd be able to cope in a big, scary market by myself!

So, tomorrow I head up north and then actually get to Navrongo on Monday. I've found out that the students don't actually arrive until October so the first week will just be settling in and meeting the other staff and then the students will arrive at some point... not actually sure when - TIA! I'm really looking forward to it - although I've had a great week in Accra and made some good friends, I have felt like a bit of a tourist (yes we managed to fit in a trip to the beach!) and I'm looking forward to actually living somewhere and building relationships with the people in the communities.

Right, I'll stop waffling - just 2 more things to say:

- Facebook is a nightmare out here (too many photos on each page) - e-mail is far easier for me to access, so if you want a quick response...

- Parcels - Please don't feel like you have to send anything it's just basically if you do and you don't follow these guidelines it probably won't get to me! It needs to be recorded post, a list of the contents needs to be on the outside and don't put anything too exciting in it, because it'll most probably 'disappear' enroute! But seriously that's not a plug - I've actually done quite well on my packing and haven't thought of anything I've forgotten, yet....

Much love to all, Sam x