Honeymoon

Honeymoon

Ahhhhhhhh, what a relaxing weekend. Finally, we were able to go on our honeymoon - 4 days, 3 nights. We went to a town called Axim along the coast in the western region. Our hotel was very secluded. Nothing else around. It was a beautiful place. We enjoyed ourselves very much. We relaxed on the beach, went swimming, and took a nice long walk along the beach. We also went into town to see the fort, the second oldest in Ghana, dating back to 1514. And we ate. We tried as much different food as possible on the menu. The menu was great - I had lobster and barracuda. On our final night, we ate on the beach and there was a bonfire.
I am now in my final week before heading home. Lots of mixed emotions. I will enjoy as much as I can with Sony and his family. To everyone in Vancouver, I can't wait to see you. To everyone else, I hope you enjoyed my adventure.

Our Wedding Day!!

Our Wedding Day

March 7th, a beautiful sunny day. Family has been up before dawn getting things ready - cooking the food, cleaning up the yard, setting up canopies, etc. I rise up at 7am and have a bath. I await for my hairdresser who arrives 45 mins. late. As I get my hair done, I ate an apple, nibbled on some bread and had some water. I get a call from my MC that there is no power at the church and we need to delay the service since only a few people have arrived. The service was suppose to start at
11am, but we got going around 12:45pm. That is Ghana for you. When the girls and I finally were ready, we got pictures taken and then were on our way. Our videographer was in the car in front of us sitting out the window capturing my journey from the house to the church. Finally, it was time for me to walk down the aisle to the music "Here comes the Bride". Seeing Sony waiting for me helped me focus to get down the aisle. And he was so handsome. The ceremony lasted 1 1/2 hours. I know, who wants that. Not my choice. We had to do the pastor's way. The order of service was as follows: welcome address, song to praise God, declaration of purpose, collected offering and singing, exchanging vows and rings, kneeling down and being blessed by pastor and elders, signing of the marriage certificate, sermon, presentation of certificate, recessional. After that was all done, we walked down the aisle to "O Happy Day" and went outside for pictures. The ushers served the guests minerals (pop) and pastries. We had to go back into the church for the closing prayer and allow people to come and congratulate us. By now, it is almost
3pm, time to go to the house and begin the reception. And what a reception it was! People were telling Sony it was the best party they have been to. We estimated that were close to 200 people there. Not my choice. In Ghana, you invite the people you want. If one of those people mention it to a friend, that person will want to come too. We had african performers start the reception before we entered. Then we boogied our way to the head table to the song "Angelina", a local favorite. Drinks were served first as the african performers performed a local ewe dance, the tribe where Sony's family comes from. Afterwards, it was time to eat. While that was happening, Sony's step sister did a solo dance performance. Everything just seemed to go by so quickly. People were having a good time. One of Sony's aunt needed to leave, but wanted to see the cutting of the cake. So we did that and then went straight to our first dance, "From this Moment On" by Shania Twain. It was beautiful and romantic. Sony's friends were all crazy and were surrounding us taking pictures with their cell phones and shouting. I was able to block most of that out and focus on Sony. Then it was time to dance and have fun. It was an exhausting day, but worth it. Everything turned out well. We wish the reception was still going on. We will be going on our honeymoon next weekend. I wish you were all there to enjoy our celebration, but your turn will come. Thank you for all your well wishes!

I am married!!!

I am married!!!

Ring, Ring! The alarm goes off at 6:30am on Feb. 17th. It is a big day - Sony and I are getting married. We get ready and head over to the family house and meet the other family members. Two witnesses for each of us and a few other people came. When we arrived at the registrar, there were many people there. We took a number - 11. I saw two other white ladies getting married that day as well. We had to wait just over an hour before it was our turn. It was held inside a small room. The two of us sat down at the table in front of a lawyer. It was a quick process. He talked to us and made sure we understood what was happening. We each took turns repeating what the lawyer said to each other. Then we signed the marriage certificate and so did our witnesses. The lawyer said a few words and then pronounced us husband and wife. We took lots of pictures outside on the premises before heading to a chinese restaurant for lunch. Afterwards, we went home and rested. The ceremony and reception will be held on March 7th. The reason for two different dates is that the church is not licensed yet give out marriage certificates.

Safari

Safari

Finally we did our safari trip. It was a long journey to get there, but it was worth it. We left last Thursday and headed to Kumasi, a 5 hour bus ride and we spent the night there. Then we were off to Tamale, a 7 hour bus ride. We stayed the night there as well. We got up at 3am so we could be at the bus station for 4am to get our ticket to get to the park. It was interesting. The tourbook said tickets could not be purchased in advance. So we were there and there were so many people already there. We also found out from a couple of the locals that you need to buy the tickets in advance. Go figure. I saw a group of 4 white people and they were from Canada. They didn't have tickets either. We were all trying to figure out how to get on the bus, even if we had to stand. A young man helped us out and we all got on. We managed to sit on our backpacks so that the ride would not be so bad. And the journey was about 3 1/2 hours. We arrived in Larabanga, a small town just outside the park entrance. The people were so friendly there. We also met a couple, she from Holland, he from England. We shared a taxi ride together to the park. We chatted with them quite a bit throughout the day. A nice couple and they also met on the internet. After we checked in, we had breakfast and then went to the viewing platform. We sat there for a couple of hours looking out for animals. We saw monkeys, bushbucks, and 2 elephants emerged from the trees and had fun in the waterhole. It was so exciting, but I wanted to see one up close. It was time for lunch and then we had a quick nap. We went for a guided walk and was disappointed that I did not see an elephant or a baboon, the two animals I really wanted to see. However, it was nice to see some wildlife. To go on a true safari, you must go to the other african countries. Overall, it was a nice trip. The weather is cooler here now, especially in the north where we were. My lips got chapped and my skin got quite dry, just like I would get during winter. Another adventure complete.

Birthday Surprises!!

Birthday Surprises

When I awoke Saturday morning on my birthday, there was my first surprise. Three wrapped roses laying on the pillow beside me. I knew this was going to be a good day. I got out of bed and gave Sony a good morning and thank you kiss. It was so sweet. I cooked myself an all american breakfast. My little treat. We relaxed and did a few things throughout the day. The next surprise was not until the evening. We went to the family house at 7pm. I opened the door and to my surprise the family started singing happy birthday and there was a cake. I could not believe it!! I was so happy and felt special - of course I gave Sony a hug and kiss. For dinner we had fried chicken and fried rice. Afterwards, we were shaking our booties to good african tunes. Then I blew out the candles. Before I could cut the cake, Sony had another surprise for me. I had to close my eyes and when I opened them, he was down on one knee. I covered my mouth and he asked, "Will you marry me?" I said, "Yes" and put the ring on my finger. I gave him a few kisses. My body felt weak, I was so happy. And now I had to cut the cake. I got through that and then went back to him to cuddle and kiss. I had a huge smile on my face. I have to say being in your 30s is not so bad. I have had two great birthdays, this one being better than the last. What is in store for me next year?

Museum visit

From Museum

Our first outing was back in November and we went to the museum of the first president of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah. I learned a lot. A couple of things the president accomplished was gaining independency from Britain and creating the Aksombo Dam where we currently get our electricity. He passed away at an early age back in the 1960s I believe. His wife, who was from Egypt, passed away last year and wanted to be buried next to him. As you will see in the pictures, the grounds are amazing. There was a lot of thought put into this to honour the president. Everything is a symbol for something. The water, the statues, the tower are all significant. Afterwards, we walked to Independence Square, an open stadium area built near the ocean to host various events. Not far from there, the country built an arch tower to remind Ghanians the day they gained independence.

Halfway

Another beautiful hot day in Ghana and I realize my trip is half over. Where has the time gone? I wish I could stay here forever, but unfortunately for the moment I cannot. I reflect back on the last 3 months and I wonder how much more I could have done and experienced, but I have to remember it was a time of adjustment and being comfortable with things. I know the next 3 months will go by even faster and there is still so much to explore. During this time, I will visit an orphanage as much as possible, travel to the northern region for a safari, and go turtle watching at night. Whatever else I can squeeze in will be a bonus.
I would like to wish everyone a belated merry christmas and a happy new year!!! New years here did not go as planned. There was suppose to be a street carnival in town, but was cancelled due to the elections because of no result. The elections put a damper on the holidays and people were not in the spirit to celebrate or do anything. The results are finally in and people are happy and business is good for many. I hope everyone rang in the new year with lots of excitement and I am looking forward to see what 2009 brings.