Cutting Edge Chiefs

Ghana has next to its modern democracy a system of traditional leaders or chiefs. They are well organized and each "stool" or "skin", that is chieftancy, play an important ceremonial role, but are also involved in solving family disputes, managing land assets and facilitating development collaboration. Sometimes they are also important politically, even though that is forbidden by law.

Passing by a newly constructed commercial building in my area, I was startled to see this banner: Opening Soon Chieftancy Consultancy. It looks like traditional rulers now can be reached through consultancy firms! This might just be the best example so far of tradition meets modern day life.

Getting to Know My Readers

Away from home, I have found that having Swedish friends is crucial for my well-being. To be able to fully express myself, to have fika with everybody involved understanding the concept, for a while coming down on Ghana instead of always siding with things that go on here. Those moments feel like breathing in the chilly air of Swedish autumn, Ahhhh.

Then imagine my sadness when my two Swedish companions A and J left for Sweden last week. A whole year, these two have been my confidents, my close friends and obvious plannning mates for midsummer and xmas (ok, thats not quite true, for xmas they eloped to Mali and I had herring and potato all by myself, but you get what I'm saying?)

And now it is just me and the scolding sun, thousand pairs of curious eyes and noone to share a good cup of coffee with. Until...

...I got a comment on my blog from Maya. A Swede living less than 10 minutes from me here in Tema. Hurray! We are to meet up for the first time this weekend.

And then S called. S is a Swede living in London with her Ghanaian husband and we have been in touch since a couple of months. S found my blog when researching their idea to relocate to Ghana. I invited the Ghanaian-Swedish couple over for dinner on Thursday!

So thanks to this very blog I am getting to know my (Swedish) readers, and I don't have to feel so terribly lonely.

In the pic: Like Gulder and Star, J and I. Will miss you!

Rewarding Retrospective

Intense weeks behind me with some of my best friends, including my three siblings, came to experience my Ghana. We went on a three day trip to see the beautiful east, the vivid capital Accra and the quiet beaches of the west. We prepared for the wedding and smiled through the colorful event it turned into.

The weeks following the wedding and the 20-hour-honeymoon (!) people dropped off, a bit more relaxed and tanned than before, and in the end only my sister and brother remained in Ghana.

When I close my eyes (or enter iPhoto on my computer) images from the past month flicker by of us jumping waves, eating charcoal grilled whole fish, getting into taxis with no seatbelts, buying ripe mangoes at the local market, laughing over a cold Star, singing on my porch, buying West African instruments, sharing moskito repellent and discussing all sorts of life issues.

No, it wasn't perfect (and yeah, a few caught malaria), but it was a-h-amazing.

In the picture my siblings, friend and I pose by Lake Bosomtwi (Lake Holy-Antilope).

Just Married

The last weeks' silence on the blog has a good explanation - I went and got married!
Our wedding was held here in Ghana complete with the early morning Ghanaian traditional engagement. We did the official ceremony at the Tema Municpal Assembly and had the reception in a seaside restaurant close by.

The stylish photographic evidence was taken by Mamarazzi.