Benin- First Impressions

Benin is one country you must visit if you ever want to do a tour of Africa. It has definitely got to be one of the most interesting place I’ve ever been to. It is so diverse within itself where you have Christianity, Islam and Voodism as well as it being one of the ports used for the transatlantic slave trade. Currently, they even have a floating village (basically everything is on water from church to markets and you need a small boat to travel across) which I took a boat to go and see for myself.

The floating village

Standing in front of the monument which represents the 'door of no return'

If I’m honest I didn’t pay it much attention before arriving. I have a friend who suggested I meet up with a friend of hers who lives in Togo/Benin and my aim was only to go there to party (I was told the parties there are lit!)  for the weekend then move on. However, I ended up staying there longer than planned!

I really have quite a lot to say about Benin and I don’t think it will do it any justice by having it only on one blog post so I will try to break it down into a few posts so please stay with me!

After some difficulty of trying to get past  border control (again!), I went from lazing along palm fringed beaches to a more organised and structured country that had a yellow colour code for all the motorbike taxi drivers to wear. In Benin,  taking a motorbike as a form of public transport is so common (and can I say really safe)  that they had a whole lane for taxi drivers just like in London we have bus lanes. I was a little bit scared at first to use them but as I got used to it, I began to even  bargain with drivers about the cost of the trip!

Benin is actually the birthplace of voodoo and is also home to the Dahomey Kingdom ( a fascinating history which I shall talk about in another blog ) which still sits a  king at present. It has a tremendous amount of history and it is one of the few African countries I found that had maintained well physical evidence of their history.

The food was amazing (Francophone African countries I must say has the best food I’ve had in Africa) and what was even more special to me was that besides their own music, they actually loved Congolese music! After spending six weeks in Ghana it was quite refreshing to hear Congolese music which I am an absolute fan of, and not just on the radio or TV but they had certain bars which would have nights live music Congolese nights.

Something I also didn’t know much about (and I must study more on) was that many Brazilian slaves actually came from Benin who then later returned and brought the Brazilian culture back to Benin just as they had taken Benin to Brazil. I was always under the impression that the African slaves taken to Brazil were actually from Angola and parts of the Congo. You can find most of this history in the city of Porto Novo where there are guides and museums to guide you through and they have an extensive amount of knowledge.

Benin or rather Cotonou was the only place in Africa which felt like I was back home in Kinshasa, Congo. The food, vibe, ambience, music, nightlife and of course the fact that they spoke French made me feel closer to Congolese soil. It’s a country definitely worth visiting and I even found I have family there!

My new found family in Benin

Togo- Africa's Hidden Gem

                                                     

What can I say about this beautiful gem of a country? It is a tiny country right between Ghana and Benin that carries an extensive history. In Lome, where I began my journey in Togo, I was surprised to see beautifully laid palm fringed white beaches that decorate the city as I drove along it upon my arrival  which made me almost forget I was in Africa!

In Togo, women in their traditional wear rode motorbikes which I found to be one of the most fascinating things I’ve ever seen. Just imagine seeing an aunty in her attire with a helmet on and her shopping behind her. In Togo, everything seems compact and it only takes a few hours from one city to the next so I pretty much visited the whole of Togo in 4 days. People prefer to use the motos for transport as it’s quicker and cheaper.

Some interesting places to visit in Togo is in Anehu which is where a local lake meets the Atlantic Ocean.
                                     

Anehu- The water on the left side is Lake Togo and the right is the Atlantic Ocean

                                            

It’s a beautiful sight  and you can actually see the difference in the waters. I spent about an hour in this spot jusrt admiring the beauty of creation.


Another interesting place to go and see is the Fetish Market where you can have a browse of all the different objects, animal skulls, dolls and many other things used in fetish ceremonies. 

On my tour of the market, the guide took my driver and I  past an array of animal skulls and skinned birds (the smell was unbearable) and led us into a tiny room where we found the son of a voodoo priest. He said his father was in the woods consulting the gods so he was in charge. My guide took out all these different types of objects and described its uses, to make a man love you, to make a man you’re with do what you say ( I was tempted to buy this one), to take revenge on your enemy and to protect your home, I kindly declined all as I was a little freaked out to which I saw the look of disappointment on their face and the son of the voodoo priest then proceeded to stare at me with a look of dismissal. He didn’t have to tell me twice as I was more than eager to leave!

However my favourite place to visit in Togo was Kpalime.

View of Togo Mountain

If you are a nature lover like me you will love Kpalime (pronounced Pa-li-may). I learneed of a mountain called Togo Mountain which stretches into Ghana and Benin with both countries also calling it something different (Akwapim Hills in Ghana and Atakora Mountains in Benin). It just also really shows how united we Africans really are because the mountain was probably used any times by our ancestors to cross into each land and now borders have separated us.

The waterfalls and scenary were  also  just breath taking.  I had a guide take me around a forested area with a lot of history. We had to drive up high into the mountains where we reached a village that was surrounded by so much natural beauty.

Different trees told a story,

certain plants were for medicinal purposes, others for cosmetics, some for food.

I was even able to pick guavas fresh from the tree and eat (the food in Togo was the best) it whilst listening to the colonial history of Kpalime.

I even felt  like a Queen for a day as I visited the remains of a castle. 

What Togo lacks in infrastructure, it defintely makes up for in nature.

A Trip To Cape Coast

Cape Coast is just one of those places you have to visit when visiting Ghana. It has a different feel than Accra, probably because it contains of some of the country’s most historical sites including Cape Coast Castle and Elmina Castle. It’s about a three hour drive from Accra and isn’t as crowded but it is just as busy. I arrived in Cape Coast by bus (can I also say that the coach service to get across Ghana is pretty good) really late on a Friday evening. After being stranded for a few hours because all the hotels were fully booked, feeling tired and hungry, I asked the taxi driver just to take me to any hotel because at that point I was even ready to go back to his place and crash for the night. Luckily,he ended up finding a reasonably priced hotel not too far from town.

View from my hotel

Family of three and their 'home' across the hotel

The next day, I happened to meet someone in my hotel and as we got chatting he asked if I wanted to use his friend who was a personal chauffeur to show me around Cape Coast which I was really chuffed by. I know I shouldn’t trust strangers, but judging by half the things I got up to in Ghana, this was calm. The driver/friend first took me to Kakum National Park where the guide told us about the history of the park and I was able to do the famous canopy walk.

En route to Kakum National Park

Doing the Canopy Walk

It was seven bridges and each one took you higher and higher giving you amazing treetop views of the forest which was brilliant!

The driver then took me to Cape Coast Castle.

Parts of the castle

Male slave dungeon

Female slave dungeon

To see what was left of the castle that served as a port for millions of Africans leaving Africa through the ‘door of no return’ was really emotional.

Once the prisoners left walked out of 'the door of no return' the ships would be waiting for them this side

Our tour guide himself got teary as he explained the conditions the slaves were kept in as we went into their cells including the one believed to belong to the Queen Mother Yaa Asantewaa.

Some of the shackles used recovered from the castle

It was a bit of an eerie moment but he was very informative. I was really impressed with also how well the Ghanaians had kept this part of their history alive and maintained it enough to have a regular stream of tourists to not just the castle, but the city.

Oh yea, and the driver took me all the way back to Accra J and even bought me the sweetest pineapple I've ever tasted along the side of the road.

Ghana by Night

Ghanaians love to party. Or maybe it was just the people I hung around with. Either way, they love to party. A couple of cool places worth checking out in Accra that I went to were:

Twist Night Club

Located in Labone. Twist has a very laid back vibe to it, however they don’t let you wear trainers inside unless you are some sort of VIP. What I like about it is that they have several booths along the sides which could fit about 10 people in each. Booths are reserved for VIP or if you are buying a large amount of bottles. The music like most other clubs in Ghana is the usual Afrobeats, Hip Hop and RnB and Dancehall. The first time I went there, I was with a group in one of the booths and the DJ made the whole club do the mannequin challenge! This was my favourite club in Accra if I’m honest.

                       

Another Friday night in Twist Nightclub

Mint Night Club

Located by Marina Mall. I must say this place is popping! You have to go up the elevator to get to the club and it looks very plush inside. The DJ is also really good and gets everyone crazy. The only problem I had with this place was that it was ram packed! It felt like a sweatbox to me and I couldn’t stay long because I felt as if my makeup was melting after just 10 minutes of being there. However, what I realised was that Ghanaians mainly partied on Friday and Saturday so everyone is trying to get in to the same place.

Plot 7 Night Club

 Another cool venue. I went on a Thursday night so it wasn’t that busy because as mentioned Ghanaians party mostly on Fridays and Saturdays. However, it still had a good amount of people that you can still have a good time with. I like this club because of the amount of space it has inside. I’m not sure how busy it gets on the weekend but it was still pretty good on a weekday.

Skybar25

Located on the 25^th Floor (hence the name) on Villiago by the airport residential.  This is a rooftop bar where you get a very beautiful view of the city whilst you sip on a wide selection of drinks. I was told that it was the highest rooftop bar in the city. If you feel like being bougie and don’t mind spending some money, then this a nice place to spend a chilled Friday night.

View of Skybar25 in the evening

We run this city!

After last week’s emotional breakdown I was able to come out of myself and have a bit of fun.  I had an interesting weekend. Like ending up in the biggest celebrity in Ghana’ house interesting. A friend of mine from London had given me the details of her friend who lives in Accra and said to me ‘If you want to have a good time, call him’. And I did.  The first thing he said to me was ‘You’ve been in Ghana for this long and you’re only now calling me?’ like we were school mates.

Me with my new friend who took me under his wing

                                               

We arranged to meet the following day as his friend was having a show and he wanted me to come. I took a taxi ride for about 30 cedis from where I was staying in Abokobi to where he wanted to meet at a place called Vienna City in inner Accra. All throughout the taxi ride I was thinking I’m in a foreign country being driven by a random taxi driver to meet a random guy I’ve never met going to a random location I’ve never been to. But when I tell you Ghanaians are probably some of the friendliest people I’ve ever come across, it’s no joke.

The guy picked me up in his swanky white Mercedes and the first thing he said to me was ‘Are you hungry?’ I replied sheepishly ‘I am’. We went to meet another of his friend who also wanted to eat and they asked me if I’ve ever tried a dish called ‘Wajke’  (rice and peas, with spaghetti and meat on the side, with some cheese on top). I told them I had it that morning and I liked it but not sure if I wanted to eat it again. They assured me ‘Once you eat this wajke you will not like all the others you’ve tasted’ and they were right! It was the best meal I had since I landed.

I forgot to take a picture of my waache but this is how it looks source:google

We then went to a hotel and believe me I freaked out when they told me where we were going but not knowing the company I was with, I played it cool like I wasn’t scared. We were encountered by 4 more guys who were their friends. As if reading my mind, the main one said to me ‘Don’t worry, these are your brothers, be cool with us’. I asked them why we were in the hotel room and they replied they were waiting for their friend the artist to get ready so they can go and get him to perform. I asked who he was and they responded ‘Shatta Wale’ but the name did not mean a thing to me. One of them said to me ‘ You will know who he is once we get to the show’ and indeed I did! Before we got to the show we went to a modest sized house,   again I was greeted with more men, weed and loud music. By this time, I began panicking, and as if reading my mind another of the guys said to me ‘Since you are the only girl we will treat you like a queen because you are our sister’. I ended up sitting in a studio with my new friends and a few men dressed in army gear and dark sunglasses who looked rather intimidating. I later found they were Shatta Wale’s bodyguards and entourage. When they spoke however, I found it didn’t quite match their image. They were actually quite funny. So I did what most people do, I took snaps J.  Random much?? Shatta Wale came inside and greeted me with nothing on but a pair of shorts.  I didn’t recognise who he was until he left and I asked who he was and one of the guy responded that’s the artist and you are in his house  before they all laughed. I felt like quite the fool.

On our way to the Accra stadium at around 3am where Shatta Wale would perform, there was about 8 cars all tailing each other with hazard lights on to escort him. I was in the first car. The guy who’s car I was in shouted to me over the loud music he was playing ‘Are you starting to realise how big he is? We run this city!’ Well if going past traffic lights, stopping cars and creating a nuisance on the road was running a city then they surely did.

At the Shatta Wale concert in Accra Stadium

                             

The stadium was filled with people! On our way in I caught a glimpse of Sarkodie coming out escorted by soldiers. I was able to go back stage on the show to watch the performances because like my new friend said ‘we run this city’!

NB: I've been struggling to upload the rest of my pictures and videos on here I'm not sure why. This is the few I can manage

Choosing Joy Over Happiness

I’m not going to lie, I’m starting to feel a certain way.  Somewhere between I miss home and why am I here? I made up my mind to come to Africa because I wanted to take myself out of my comfort zone and try do something different. I no longer wanted to live up to the expectations of other people.  I wanted to write this blog to document my journey but it seems now I just want to document my heart.
                
            

I’m the sort of person who is usually quite open to others, however, trying to be open with myself and really uncovering all my layers is proving difficult. Do I really know who I am? I know what others think I am and I’m usually quite good with living up to that because I know how to say and do all the right things, but somehow I can’t live up to my inner woman. I like to give the impression that I do but I don’t feel that I’ve really connected to her and brought her out for the world to see. People see different parts of me. I see different parts of me because I’ve compartmentalised parts I’m too ashamed off, too embarrassed of or to shy of but these shortcomings are what makes me me.

Embracing my inner woman

When we went to the village on the outskirts of Accra to sign some kids up who were unable to go to school due to lack of resources, I got distracted and began playing with some of them. We had so much fun and that’s when I realised joy and happiness are two different things.

Having a song and dance with the village children

You can’t feign joy but you can pretend to be happy. These kids in the village had nothing to pretend about. What they had when we played and sang songs and they ran about in tattered clothes or semi naked whilst laughing their head off wasn’t happiness, it was joy. Something that I desperately wanted. Joy comes from within despite your situations but still choosing to be positive. Happiness only depends on when your situation is going well. These children taught me this.  I realised in order to connect with my inner woman I had to be joyful despite my circumstances.  Life is not going to be a bed of roses, there are plenty of thorns in it. I believe my inner woman already knows that but each time hardship happens I tend to stay away from connecting with her, being real with my emotions or real with myself like ‘Mel it’s not ok now but it’s going to be ok. It’s ok to cry’. I’m determined to make a change.

Just look at those smiles

                            

What I found was when I looked at some of these faces here in Ghana, I found the parts of me that I didn’t want people to see. I found the scared little girl who didn’t understand why her mother had left her so young, I found the flight attendant who lived most of her life in the clouds and I found myself in the face of the children who were performing their school play and dance but still braved a smile on their face despite going back to the hardship of their situation. I watched these children sing, dance and act with their faded school uniform but for some reason they looked more free than I felt within myself.

Choosing joy over happiness

                    

I’ve tried religion, I’ve tried to be this afro wearing knowledge of self black queen but I’ve realised I actually haven’t really tried myself and that’s just Mel. First I must love and accept myself.  What I haven’t tried is to live a life filled with joy. 

                                    

xxx

I Am Amazing

I sold my self esteem workshop idea to the director of the NGO I’m working for and guess what? he completely loved it! I was really excited because I got to deliver it to both schools I  was working with. I also devised a creative writing and poetry workshop to encourage creativity from the children since I’m a poet and I wanted to use any opportunity to share what I know with others. Turns out both of the headteachers also loved the idea and were willing to give me a whole day to do each of the workshops with different classes. One loved it so much that he wanted us to talk about the possibility of me moving to Ghana!  I didn’t expect this much responsibility so I was blown away but still really psyched by the whole thing. I spent all day (and practically all night) planning and perfecting my workshops.

A few of my posers and a very flushed me after Day 1

I was nervous to deliver the workshop. I stayed one week in each school to deliver and work with them. I spent the first day just going from classroom to classroom and introducing myself so they can familiarise with me then the next day I began the workshops. As I looked around the classrooms all I got back were intrigued faces that stared at me with open curiosity. They didn’t know what I was there to do, they were interested in my accent and I was told that I was the first black volunteer to attend both schools so they didn’t know what to make of me.

During the warm up exercise

Although we had great fun delivering all the workshops, the one that really stuck to me from both schools was an activity we did which I called ‘I am Amazing’ where they designed  flowers and wrote their reasons in each of the four petal why they were amazing. Even the teachers got involved! I realised that in life we don’t often sit back and think that we are amazing because we don’t want to appear cocky or obnoxious but why can’t we praise or boast of ourselves? Why must we always wait for others to say it? Listening to the children say why they were amazing ( ‘I am amazing because I am a great friend) really encouraged me because I saw how it gave them a sense of confidence and pride and that’s all we really need, a little  self encouragement to enable us to believe in ourselves. When we do, we can go on to achieve great things, something that the children then began to say to me ‘madam I’m going to be a pilot’ ‘madam I’m going to be doctor’ . I told them there was no limitations to what they can do except what was in their mind as we are often our own biggest setback. I also asked them to share with the class what they wanted to be when they got older and some of the responses were brilliant! I told the kids to remember their dreams, remember why they are amazing and every time they feel down, to read the amazing things they said about themselves and to use it also as their positive affirmation.

Some of the students presenting their 'I Am Amazing Flowers'

A few students posing with their flowers

Speaking to the children I was also speaking to myself. I too needed to remind myself I was amazing and I was the best at being me. In my late teens and early twenties depression got to me really bad and I suffered silently which eventually led to me attempting suicide twice. Why I never succeeded in them I don’t know, but here I was at the age of 27 getting a revelation from school children that I am amazing. Working with them really helped connect me to the little girl in me who never felt good enough. I went home at the week and cried tears of happiness. Sometimes we feel like our lives is so bad until you meet other people who remind you that the fact that you are breathing, your life is good because we only have our times here on earth to be the amazing people that we are.

Myself with Rejoice and her flower