To Market, To Market

 Saturday 6/16/2012  Africa:  Day 6

          Today we took off to explore Makala Market and the Arts Centre.  I got excited when we happened to drive right past the Accra LDS Temple.  I wish we could have taken pictures as we walked through this chaotic market filled with shoppers and vendors selling just about anything you can think of.  We were able to snap a few pictures from the cab before we got out. I am amazed at what people can carry on their heads here.  We have seen people carrying baskets, trays, boxes, coolers, stacks of plastic lawn chairs, and even some with an entire kitchen table and chairs.  Some of the baskets and bowls are filled at least a few feet high with various things from fruit to pieces of Tupperware. 

  Kelsey tried to take a picture of one of the first fish stands that we saw.  As soon as she snapped the picture, the man looked angry and a woman behind us immediately jumped up and started yelling, “why do you take a picture of my brother!?!”.  The next thing I see is Kelsey getting swarmed by a mob of angry vendors and Liyam and Liz quickly disappearing into the crowds in front of us, unaware of what was going on behind them.  I decided to yell for the girls in case I needed backup to go and rescue Kelsey.  Luckily Kelsey was able to push her way out of the crowd, but not without being slapped by the angry vendors on her way out.  We decided to keep our cameras safely tucked away for the rest of the trip.

          

  The market was amazing.  Thousands of people filled the crowded streets shopping for food, clothes, toiletries, and other household items.  The colors and smells were so vibrant everywhere we turned.  You could buy dried fish, cuts of beef, pork, and chicken (all complete with their own swarm of flies), live crabs, live 6” snails in their shells.  There were bowls of beans and grains in about every shape and color.  The smell of spices filled the narrow streets and covered stalls we walked through.  You could find about a million different patterns of cloth in about as many rich colors.  It was an amazing place to be, but I think we were all a bit overwhelmed by the time we worked our way out of the labyrinth of market stalls listening to strains of "Sista, come see".  "Madame, stop and look".

            We  then walked up the road toward the Arts Centre.  We passed a group of goats just grazing on the side of a very busy road across from the Ghanaian Supreme Court.  

           (Just a little nervous the goats were going to start nibbling on my pants)

We met a man from Togo selling little hand-painted greeting cards.  We all enjoyed talking to him and ended up buying some of his wares.  He even asked to take a picture with us and gave each of us a free card as we left. 

            The Arts Centre was a lot less crowded, but just as chaotic.  There were rows and rows of people selling jewelry, art, clothes, bags, fabric, wooden bowls, instruments, and other wood carvings.  You couldn’t stop for more than three seconds at any given stall before someone was pulling you into their booth trying to get you to sit down and look at the earrings, shirts, and bracelets.  Some men who play and sell their drums kept finding us in the market asking us to come with them to listen to their music.  We managed to avoid this sales tactic, but it took each of us telling them “no” about a thousand times.  My favorite way was when I spotted two Mormon missionaries and told the drum salesmen that I needed to go and talk to my friends.  I quickly left and went and said hello to the elders.

            We had lunch at a little restaurant in the centre.  We feasted on more Ghanaian food.  I had a fabulous lunch of groundnut soup which is a spicy peanut soup with a type of starchy dough made from corn. 

                                           (Waiting for our food)

                    (Banku and groundnut soup with chicken)

 Tonight we went out to the little tiki bar in the courtyard of our hostel and ate kabobs and I had more pineapple juice.  Some other students that live in these dorms joined us at our table, and then we eventually left so the girls could go out clubbing with Helel and I could go to bed because I’m going to venture off tomorrow morning to go to church.  I just hope I can find it.  It would really be nice if Accra used addresses.