Today is our very last day well at least for the study abroad. I don’t even know where to begin on how sad I am that it is all coming to an end but I appreciate this trip so much so I would like to use my last post to reflect something I learned First I have to say Ghana is the most beautiful place I have seen. The beauty runs so so deep from the richness in culture to the kindness of people I have now after 19 years of being alive know where I come from. I am Enyonam AMA Mensah I always carried my name and would say I’m from Ghana but now after getting to experience it as an Aleut I can say this is me. Enyonam Ama Mensah of the Volta region. I am proud of that as I always have been but now more than every. I’ve seen the beauty of my people and it feels like I’ve seen the light One of the first things I do quickly realized while in Ghana that my parents have always told me is the way America portrays the whole continent is simply unrealistic and not true!  Africa was filled with and is still to this day has natural and raw materials that are taken as of today! Just straight exploited for so many years so of course there is poverty but there’s poverty literally everywhere! They make it seem like everyone just sits in huts miserable poor and sad. But it is the opposite African people are rich in ways that run deeper than just money. They are rich in the African personality. People who could have nothing but would give their last half of Anything! Without a second thought just so the person next to them would not have to be without.

Today we had our last class of the study abroad which was very bitter sweet. The topic ended up being very interesting which is why we ended up talking over an hour past our class time. It was about African feminism. We do live in a changing time worldwide where women are rising up and saying they want more for themselves and opportunity for education and building a career for themselves. Similarly in Ghana because of the way men have always been on top , not in all cases but the majority. One who calls all the shots, someone who could have multiple wives and basically tell them to deal with it while it would not be acceptable for a woman to have multiple husbands. Basically this was an ongoing talk about many different angles of women stepping out of the norm of being a housewife and only being around to take care of someone. An Interesting point we discussed was a strong willed women who then mets a man and wants him to be a Prince Charming. In my opinion you can be a strong women for everyone else while trying to make things better and up lift everyone but then in the end still want that fairy tale love story. It is frustrating that sometimes people cannot see it that way because at the end of the day no matter how strong one person is we are human.

So today I woke up at the Akosombo resort and I thought about how this study abroad experience is really coming to an end. It does not feel real because time has flown by. We at breakfast with a beautiful view of the mountains and the lake in front of us and I am reflecting on how great this experience has been so far. I talked to my mom on the phone about coming back as soon as possible. I just felt a certain type of inner peace while being in Ghana that is hard to explain in simple words. Of course it is hitting me because we will be back at Legon tomorrow getting ready to go. I would love to have go to take that boat trip on lake Volta. But anyways we headed to the Dam after eating today and it was actually a very cool experience. Learning about how much energy they have created in this one area and they are able to light up the whole of Ghana and even export power to other places. The way in which it is built also interested me too because because if there was to be an earthquake it is made so everything would not just be ruined. The sad thing about it all was when they talked about the thousands of people who were displaced when the dam came to the area. Even they were to be housed not everyone got the accommodations they deserved because of corruption and money getting into the wrong hands

This morning in Cape Coast before leaving to Akosombo we visited the Elmina Castle. That was one of the most powerful moments in life for me. Standing in the cells were my ancestors stood, slept, and many died was painful something about the tour guide as well and his way of explaining things just made it really hit me. Everyone always says why do we still talk about slavery but that moment was why. The pain is all still around and ever present because my people have never been given the apologies or real recognition for the evil tragedy of salvery. When we stood where the governor would stand when he choose the black body he wanted to violate my stomach sank to the of my stomach.  Everything felt so real, too real .After all nothing made this women different from me and had it been that time period I could have been standing right there and chose to be touched by a digusting and hateful human being to see the same shackles used during slavery in the museum really just hurt. Looking out the door of no return made me get goose bumps I could just imagine all the pain, tears and hurt in those moments being ripped away from all you have ever know just to be brutalized for centuries to come in America

At night we decided to go into the pool and it was literally the perfect temperature and the height only went to 6 feet so we all just chilled talked and reflected on the day it was great!

So at this point of the day we are on our way back from the Canopy Walk. What a great experience that I feel like I faced a fear! In the beginning I said there was no way I’d take the long way. I feared the unknown and maybe falling but I made the conscious choice to just do it. It was so worth it you know I spent time up there very happily thinking about Marcus Garvey and the reasons why he really started the back to Africa movement. Like something about that moment update made me feel like I was exactly where I needed to be. Ghana is so beautiful and black people in America who have had their cultures stolen from them deserve to feel the welcoming arms of the motherland and be able to connect to being more than an American because at the end of the day everyone is an immigrant in America
We ran into some grade school children on the out of the walk and boy let me tell you they were the cutest and so sweet to use. It is amazing to see such positive energy from the youth in Ghana. No matter what they carry this beautiful smile on their face

June 7th

Waking up this morning my stomach hurt me so bad but I tried to power through. So I went downstairs in our beautiful hotel and had some Ghanaian coco, scrambled eggs 

  Can you believe I asked the man in the front to change our light bulb because our room was very dark and once Jasmiri left me the man literally asked me to marry him! He asked how long I would be here I said just his month and he was like damn that’s soon to go but I’m ready.. as if I was just going to be like yes! come home with me when I leave. I found it to be so funny because he would not even help us fix the light again I find it so crazy how people see America here and just want to come here so bad 

Another day of thinking I am in the hotel now taking in this experience and the main thing to examine is there is a strength in culture… something tying  people together, making many into one. In many ways America does not heavily rely on any type of culture instead a more egocentric approach brought about by Europeans. America never really addressed all the atrocities of the past that place is where we are today with racial tensions high and unity seeming like something  that may never come. As a whole we do not take the time to think of how the past affects the future. Just as the history of stolen wealth directly affects Ghana political and economic growth, the unaddressed atorices against the slaves brought stunt America’s growth. We have learned many new things that we must spread and teach onto others

In the morning we headed to the Erata Hotel in East Legon to meet for breakfast before heading on the road to Kumasi. It was nice to see everyone feeling some what better… so we are in the car and I had sometime to think…Afterall they represent diaspora the lost but know Africa is your home, take the challenge as hard as it may seems to connect back to your roots. Another thing this study abroad me truly connect is the strength of black American whose ancestors were taken away from Africa It’s something they were not able to fully take away you see it in hip hop culture which is the #1 on this planet. Even after stealing us away they could not take away the beautiful creativity and uniqueness of African people this beautiful ongoing personality often unbreakable. Colorism is not real but just a way we could stay divided image people of the same race just fighting each other so they don’t even have to themselves. In America we have new forms of slavery which is why we cannot turn a blind eye to any longer, our ancestors taken away from the Cape Coast and Elmina Castles in Ghana we not able to see

This morning we had our last class before we were suppose to get on the road to travel this professor interested me and talked about the future of Ghana and what leaders want to do to make things better. A way to create a stable and strong future with the help of ending some bad corruption and working together including the people of the diaspora 

Today quickly took a turn though when Jasmiri and Martha were not feeling then onto Jessica also not feeling well the whole night before. I felt that uh oh moment. As time went on we knew we’d have to go to the hospital so we went. Turns out there were things wrong with everyone but we ended up spending the whole day in the hospital. But it was quite the experience. Ivan and I actually found the time to meditate 

  We went to this Turkish place and it was pretty good by then my stomach was bothering me and I knew it would last for a while but thankfully I had stomach medicine that i brought along with me and it helps for the most part. Tonight we all stayed nearby since no one was feeling well and made plans for morning breakfast.

Yup today is Monday which means back to class but I’m actually excited. For me so far this has been such a great learning experience and I feel like each time in the classroom by having such a small number of students to one professor we get to discuss things on a deeper level and in the way for all to understand. Me and today’s professor had good conversation I appreciated the knowledge he shared with us. Talking about colonialism is important when talking about Ghana and aspects that have stunt development and proper progress 

  Today we also decided to go to the beach and I found it to be a very cool experience because there were so many people everyone. Doing their thing whether trying to sell sunglasses or doing different gymnastics. I had a little allergic reaction but everything was taken care of which just showed me that sometimes bad things may happen but it is not the end of the day. After we enjoyed the water and walked to the beach shore for some time. Admiring Ghana and seeing the beauty of being in the moment. Not just thinking you are but feeling it a way of wow, how lucky I am to be in the place I am right now, having an experience I could have imagined being so beautiful. One person we met on campus was with us and I asked him about his view on America because I saw a common trend of people liking America and thinking very highly of it. HIs answer surprised me because he said everyone has some sort of dream to go to America when they don’t even know what is there to offer them just what they view on TV or maybe social media. He said but he has a dream of what he could do to help Ghana itself the place he comes from and it made me so happy