Volta Weekend August 14-15: Part 1

Volta is a place I was told I had to go ... and they were right. I feel that every time I leave Accra, I think this new area is the best part of Ghana. The optimist would say it shows how much Ghana has to offer, while the pessimist would say how important it is to get out of Accra! Luckily, Accra is so expensive it's cheaper for me to travel on the weekends than to stay in the city.



Above: me in Ho, capital of the Volta region. This Black Star arch invites Ghanaians to the voting center. Maybe if we did this in the States more people would vote ... hmm...

Volta is famous for many artistic talents: Kente, pottery, batiks. I saw the kente cloth being made. Most people go to Kpotoe, a famous weaving village 30 km out of Ho, but due to time limitations, I went to a weaver in Ho. Isn't it beautiful? I bought this exact kente. Its a new style and color, all my Ghanaian friends love it.

Kente adds color to any village or town. The string which feeds the loom is usually located 3 meters away, marking sidewalks with bright colors and a reminder of connection. On the tro-tro ride home, it was evident many of the Volta villages weave kente, the streaks of red, blue, and orange adding to the beautiful view.

Right: Typical Ghanaian shop (outside of Accra). The shop to the right is the tailor, and the shop to the left holds pre-made clothes by the tailor.

 Notice the red paint with the Vodafone label? MTN and Vodafone, the two major phone services are in a race to brand all of Ghana's villages. Ho is so beautiful because it's near the rainforest, you can see the banana trees edging close to the shops.

After shopping for Kente in Ho, my travel buddy Yolanda and I went to the Monkey Sanctuary in Tafi Atome. This smart village is an eco-tourism spot. The Mona monkeys know if they hear a 'tsk tsk' to come down and they will be fed bananas. My travel buddy took a million and one pictures of these little critters. I'll admit they are cute and intelligent, but in my mind, they are mostly pests. I think one too many vervet monkeys and baboons annoyed me in my childhood!


The internet is super slow right now, so this will be finished at another date
I leave Ghana in 11 days ... uggghhh. I'm already a little nostalgic.