My village, my experience...

So Sega it is. When the sun rose my first day here it was very exciting. We were nine volunteers in one household in a village called Sega, which I'm very happy to say is my home for the next 3 months. The children were very excited, children were everywhere! Games were being played outside, football and cards mostly. Music was loud in the village, we found out later there was an engagement party across the way and engagements are a huge thing here. I'll admit by the end of day one I was tired but the good news was the culture shock was fading.

My Village...
Sega is a beautiful spot. The land is difficult to describe in words, red soil like PEI but sand, shells, pom trees and "lion king trees" also scattered throughout. There are little roads that go throughtout the village. These roads don't really seem planned out like our roads but rather convenient. There are also many paths through the village. I find theses paths say a lot about the movement of the village because they show you to each spot your looking to go(I hope that makes sense). The village is also scattered with animals, turkeys, goats, chickens and ducks being the most popular. These animals are very domesticated, the people often not even noticing they are walking right along side of you. The lizards are probably my favourite part. You see them scaling the houses, scurrying about. I even have one inside of my room which I've come to actually think is quite cute!
The people of Sega are also quite beautiful. Each person in passing acknowledging the fact that you exist, "Good Morning, Good Afternoon, Good Evening..." Others asking how you are, how was school, congratulating you on a hard days work, it's all quite nice. I am finding the children quite helpful as well, asking you if you'd like to see the village, teaching you small bits of the language and helping you understand what the elders are saying. This is very nice and helpful since I choose to live at the Head Masters house rather than with a host family within the village.
Living at the Head Masters house has made me take on different challenges. It has forced me to make the extra effort to get out there and meet the people, do the things the villagers do and challenge myself to learning the language and lifestyle of the village. As I said this is a challenge but one I am trying to take a hold of. The language is VERY different from english, different letters, different sounds and different tones. The lifestyle is also very different as well. Ghanaians are very laid back. When I say laid back I don't mean lazy because in this village they are NOT lazy. The people I have met are some of the most hard working people I have ever seen. The work here many not be structured intensely or punctual, starting at 8am ending at 4pm, but the days are long. The work begins for some at 4am and does not end until after 8pm at night. One lady I'd really like to mention is Bwalky (the spelling may not be correct right now and I apologize if so) she works in the kitchen at our household. Her day starts so early, I don't even know exactly what time because I have yet to have a day where I am up before her. She does all the cooking and cleaning for this house and when I say this house I mean for us, the volunteers, and the children at the boarding house as well. She is constantly working, constantly. If she's not cooking she is cleaning, shopping for food at the market, gardening, washing, getting the young boys ready, getting the children fed and even one day I seen her helping the children with their homework. It's really quite amazing, she is a beautiful person. But I kind of wandered off topic but the people here are so hard working. The laid back lifestyle I talked about is just how the village is, slow, never very rushed but things always get done, it's really nice.

But I have many stories to tell, some really funny actually but I've been writing for a while now and have to make it to the market before it's over. I hope you enjoyed the catch up!