Weekend Adventures!

Friday/Saturday/Sunday, January 16/17, 2010
Bobbi Jo
Woke up to my friend the rooster at the usual 2 am. Did get back to sleep. Went to breakfast excited to head to the clinic. Today we are going to be working with pregnant women, new mothers and their children. Mama Grace was kind enough to show us their way of doing an assessment on the mothers, pregnant and after birth. She checked the first patient, estimated her gestation at 29 weeks and when I checked the ultrasound I found that was exactly right. Sarah and I got to do the next assessments. We listened to the babies in the womb, felt their position, assessed that they were 1 to 6 weeks. I even got to do the interviews for the paperwork.
After an amazing day at the clinic we headed back to the St James Guest House to get ready for our travels to the Cape Coast. We left, bags packed and Miss Ellie wearing her birthday balloon hat from Pam & Ed. It was very hot, but we had been told we would have an air conditioned vehicle. Bonnie asked the driver to turn the air on and said “Oh, there is a small problem.” The look on Bonnies face was priceless. The sudden change from happiness to “that is not a SMALL problem” was quite cute.
So, we began our long, HOT journey. After reaching Accra I was so happy, I thought we were almost there. My dreams of leaving this hot vehicle were crushed when Ed informed us that we had at least another two hours to go. Now the look on Bonnies face was not so cute. I could related, I’m sure I had the same unhappy look.
After a while there were raindrops, which was a very nice relief since it brought the temperatures down a bit.
We arrived at the Coconut Beach Hotel at about 6:30 and many of us got out of the van and just stood enjoying the light rain.
Sarah and I had stayed in a family unit with Ed and Pam. Bonnie & Ellie had a room right next to Jane & Sandy. John & Haley had a room in a different section of the property.
After settling in, we all met for a very enjoyable dinner. We sat in a covered patio area with a small stage and two musicians on one side and the sounds of the surf on the other side. A couple people caught us on video singing happy birthday to Miss Ellie – wow to be turning 70 with this new group of friends. Ellie even put on her dancing shoes to boogie with Ed.
After a lot of fun and good entertainment, we headed back to our rooms for a good night sleep. Except Sarah had a wild night! She woke up during the night and was convinced that she was sharing a room with someone from the village and she was wondering what happened to me! After a couple hours agonizing over this, she shinned a flashlight on me and was very relieved to see that it was me!

We met for breakfast at that same spot overlooking the ocean, then headed to the slave castle – a very moving experience. We stopped at the castle shops to do the American thing, buying a variety of souvenirs.
Then back at the resort we headed our separate ways to the beach or to lawn chairs in the shade. Bonnie and I both gathered more than enough shells to bring home.
Next was horseback riding on the beach. Sarah & I went first, then it was Jane & Sandy, last it was John & Haley. My horse was a bit stubborn. He wanted to trot constantly and take the lead. I switched another horse. This one also wanted to trot, jump, and go into the water. They were just as excited as us to be on the beach. Of course we got many pictures.
Dinner Saturday evening was under a hut, even closer to the water, thanks to Esther (resort employee who also gave me a conch shell). We had calamari for a starter and I had to get the groundnut soup for the second night in a row – it was fabulous.
We went to bed wondering what kind of trip the malaron would take Sarah on tonight. She reported in the morning that this time it was the bead lady in my bed instead of me.
After breakfast we checked out (a very slow process here) and headed for the Canopy Walk. It was very cool, the views were gorgeous, and even Bonnie, Pam & Ellie did the walk despite their fear of the height...
Our drive back to Accra was long and hot. We stopped at a market where we were hassled more than we had been on this trip. When we were leaving, Bonnie stood in the parking lot surrounded by local men trying to get her to buy from them. Finally she looked up and yelled for help. Ed rescued her…
Back in the hot van for another two hours. I didn’t think I’d make. I wanted to ask the driver to pull over and leave me on the side of the road. But, I survived.
After dinner I kept staring at my watch. At 7:40 I just couldn’t last any longer. I headed back to the room and took the most amazing shower ever!
Wow – what a weekend.