We departed from Accra by tro-tro at about 10am on Friday morning with Niv and Jason, two of the volunteers from the October group. Ann-Kristin met us there on Friday night. We stayed at the Grand Hotel in town which proved to be quite nice contrary to the impression I received from the Bradt Guide that we consulted. Stephen, the local Credit Union Manager had booked us a room when he visited CUA House after comparing prices. We had some lunch, met with Stephen, and then retreated to our room since it had begun to poor rain. A bunch of rounds of Texas Hold Em and Euchre later, we were ready for dinner and were afterwards joined by Ann-Kristin. Because of weather, we went back to our rooms, played some cards, and just chatted until bed.
Mount Afadjato
The following day after breakfast, we took off for Mt. Afadjato which is supposedly the highest point in Ghana at 885m above sea level (we were later told at another site that it is the highest measured point). We began the hike and I quickly realized that breathing was going to be an issue between the humid weather and the quick steep ascend that the guide was leading. Niv & I decided that we did not want to hold the our three, much more fit, friends back and so ushered them to continue on and we would go at our own pace. When it started to rain, we turned back slightly grateful. I need to get in shape! We walked back in the pouring rain to the visitor’s centre and I went to the bathhouse and wrung out my clothing during a lull in the rain. The other three returned about an hour later absolutely drenched and muddy after trudging back down.
Village Celebrations
We had planned to proceed from there to Wli Waterfalls, the largest waterfalls in Ghana, but due to the weather, we decided to simply return to Hohoe and to push our visit to the Falls back. En route to our hotel, we saw a large gathering in town where chiefs were all dressed up and adorned in gold and beautiful cloth and there was much chanting and singing. After grabbing lunch at a small chop bar (the Ghanaian equivalent of a fast food joint), we went to join in the festivities. It was incredible to see the singing, dancing, and overall joyous festivities. From the square, people began to clear out into the streets leading to two separate celebrations: one for Hohoe and one for Peky. Not sure what was going on, we followed one of the processions and inquired as to if it was appropriate for us to partake in the festivities and were warmly invited into Peky’s celebrations. In amidst the houses in part of the village, there was a group of men playing instruments and watching as solos took place to the music in the middle. These solos included dancing and acting out scenes with machetes and knives which they sometime used on their own skins. It was terrifying and intriguing to watch. They did not cut themselves but used quite firm cutting motions. I am still unsure as to how they managed to do it. We were seated behind the women who are married to the Chiefs of the village. Across the ‘street’ were the Chiefs. All of the Chiefs and their families were adorned in flashy jewellery and expensive cloth. One of the women sitting in the front row was an American and we were quite curious as to how she obtained her status. Turns out she just happened to be friends of one of the Chiefs and visiting.
Wli Waterfall and Likpe Todome Caves
Sunday morning we departed for the Waterfall. We took a taxi to Wli and then it was a 45 minute walk through the jungle with 9 footbridges. It was a beautiful walk that we shared with a couple from Denmark and their two young children, their driver, the guide, and our taxi driver. We learned this weekend that it is quite customary for the taxi driver to accompany you on your travel at no cost to them or you. Once at the waterfall, there was a changing room where we changed into shorts and tank tops. We headed to the pool and the base of the falls and had a nice, refreshing swim. It was incredible. The pool was surprisingly not deep. We even swam through the falls and touched the wall behind it! Just an exhilarating experience.
Left: Wli Waterfall
Right: Me standing in the pool at the base of the Falls after our swim
From there we took off to Likpe Todome where there is a network of 6 caves and a nearby waterfall. Little did we know that it was going to be at the top of a ‘mountain’ higher than Afadjato. After arguing over the price with the visitor centre guy (we read at both previously visited site that it was 3.50 Ghana cedis and he tried to charge us 4.50 with a big. goofy grin on his face that gave him away), and then over the taxi ride price for the day, which had already been agreed upon, we departed for the caves in somewhat of a bitter mood. That is also something that is common in Ghana. The Ghanaians see our white skin and assume that we have no idea how much things are and try to gauge you. This is extremely frustrating when you find yourself in a situation where you don’t have many other options. But may I note that I, with a very calm speech and by biting my tongue, managed to get them back to the real price. Niv told me she was impressed. Back to the caves, at the speed which they were going, I was feeling pretty tired but nothing unmanageable, but poor Niv was having a tough time. Not wanting her to get sick and knowing from the previous day how she must feel, I urged the others to continue on and Niv and I agreed that we would continue at a slower pace. Frank, the second guide, remained with us and carried her backpack. About half way up, she couldn’t do it anymore, so we decided to start back down and to go see the waterfall nearby. I was somewhat disappointed, but after talking to the others and realizing that the caves were essentially rock climbing without a harness, I was relieved that we got to see the waterfall instead. Also a beautiful sight , it was more secluded reached by a small footpath through a stream and the thick, luscious foliage of the jungle. It was neat to still be able to hear about the caves and see pictures without having to be in the “one wrong move and you’re dead” situation. We went home that night, Ann-Kristin (A.K.) went to grab the tro-tro back to Accra, and the rest of us ate dinner and went to bed pretty early so that we could get up early the next morning for the last adventure of our trip.
Tafi Atome Monkey Sanctuary
Although I was the one adamant on getting up at 5am to ensure we did not miss the cute, furry little creatures that we were going to visit at the Monkey Sanctuary, that dreadful hour in the morning came way to early. Niv opted out of attending having convinced herself that she would definitely be seeing monkeys at some other point in her remaining two months in Ghana or during her following camping escapades through South Africa. So the Maya, Jason, and I headed out to grab a tro-tro. Since you have to wait for the tro-tros to fill up before they will leave, we were not on the road until 6:30am. We still arrived at the junction (turn off) for Tafi Atome before 7am and sat on the back of a flatbed truck down the 5km road to the village. Our guide took us to get bananas and made a kissing noise in the direction of the bush and we were off. Two minutes into our walk into the jungle, we could hear the Chief of the Monkeys - Commando - answering the kissing noises made by our guide. When we turned deeper in it was a short time until he showed himself. From his size, it is no wonder that he is the chief of the monkeys. Mona monkeys are pretty small and he was about twice the size of most of them. They were swinging in the trees like crazy coming closer in the hopes of getting some of the bananas we brought. We each had the chance to feed them. It was absolutely incredible. I have a new goal to go see monkeys as much as I can while I am here!
Left: Me feeding Monkeys
Right: Monkey up in a tree hoping for a banana
All in all it was a wonderful weekend. We had a rather uneventful trip home aside from having to get out at a Customs Checkpoint and explain why none of us had our passports on us. It was no big deal and they let us go pretty quickly but it became pretty clear that the only reason we were stopped was because they saw us on the tro-tro.
No comments:
Post a Comment