2011 Mission to Ghana
from Sarahann Callaway
What an exciting day full of new experiences!! We woke up bright and early to take a Tro-Tro ride provided by Nana Yaw (our driver for the week) to Kakum National Forest. It took about 4 hours to get there because of traffic but we safely arrived shortly before lunch. We took a guided tour up to the top of the rainforest. Our guide told us that there are over 300 species of identified animals in Kakum including insect, birds, bongos, not the drums, and a small herd of elephants. Kakum is famous for their wildlife and their suspension bridge canopy walk over the top of the rainforest!
The suspension system consists of 7 bridges connected by platforms at the top of the rainforest. The tallest bridge was 130 ft above the floor of the forest!!! We all survived!
After leaving Kakum, we decided we needed a little more adventure in our day so headed to Hans Cottage Botel famous for their 40 crocodiles. For the small fee of about a buck fifty, we got to touch and stand over a crocodile. Don’t worry none of us became amputees although if we did we know how to make the prosthesis now!
We ate lunch there and then headed toward the coast. Because it was a little later in the afternoon, we opted to go to Elmina Slave Castle because it was closer than Cape Coast Slave Castle. Elmina Castle is the oldest European building in Sub-Saharan Africa. It was a Portuguese fort for about 150 years then it was taken over by the Dutch and then 100 years later the British had rule over it.
We toured the castle and listened to the horrific and humbling stories the tour guide had to tell. It started off as a place to ship goods to Europe and soon it became a place to ship Africans to Europe and the new world. The Africans would march for weeks from surrounding countries before they would get to Elmina or Cape Coast. Upon arrival to Elmina they would be kept for 1-2 months before they passed through the “door of no return.” Many would die before they left the castle and many more would die on the ships as they were transported to the various countries. It was an eye opening experience that words cannot describe.
We got back late from Elmina so we decided to sleep in on our last day in Ghana. We did a little bit of shopping in the morning and then met up with Anna (the PT from the university) in the afternoon to take a tour of the art gallery in Accra. Right now we are sitting in the Accra airport waiting about one more hour before we board our flight. We can’t wait to share with you the amazing trip we have had. Thank you so much for your love and support!