Hi everyone! Here is my very last update to give you a bit more detailed information about my internship in Ghana. In order to do this I’ll answer some general questions about my experiences.

What did you have to get used to the most?

That was the heat for sure. It was about 37°C every day, but it felt even hotter. Besides this I really had to get used to the fact that everyone at every moment asked you how you were doing and if they could help you.

Were the people nice? And how did they react to the fact that you are a white redhead?

The people were absolutely amazing! They were very kind and genuinely wanted to help you. The moment you looked a little lost in the middle of a huge market someone would come and run up to you asking if they could help you. I was very aware of the fact that I am white as everyone would greet me by saying jevu (pronounced as ‘jofo’, meaning: white person) or obruni (meaning: the one from behind the horizon (also a white person)) depending on which language they spoke. The fact that my hair is red didn’t even seem to be something they noticed. The fact that I am white already got their attention. Some of the little kids did respond very surprised as sometimes I was the first white person they ever saw. The kids at the children’s home also enjoyed touching my skin and pressing their finger into it in order to create an even whiter spot. They thought this was very interesting and couldn’t stop trying it, especially after I got a bit of a sunburn.

One thing that happened to me all the time, because I was white, was the fact that a lot of people asked me to marry them. Telling them that I was 17 was not a proper answer. Saying that I’m married (which I’m not) was still not a proper answer, especially if they asked me if I have any kids and I responded negatively.

What was the food like in Ghana?

The food was very different. I usually ate rice or noodles for lunch and dinner. In the morning we got bread, but the kids ate something I still can’t identify, but it seemed to resemble porridge. My favourite dishes were jollof, fried yam and rice with a sauce of which I still don’t know the name. I will include pictures of all three (in the picture file). The only problem with the rice and sauce was that sometimes they hid peppers in it, this was not a very pleasant surprise…

Ghana is a very religious country, did you notice this a lot?

Yes, I did and not just a little bit. Every sack of water (from which you drank), every taxi and every advertisement referred to God in some way. Even the names of shops were religious, for example: God’s will, God’s presence, Jesus is Lord hair saloon etc. The little kids at the nursery were also taught religious songs, they even turned ‘head, shoulders, knees and toes’ into something religious (see below). The kids at the children’s home also sang ‘You Are Great’ by Steve Crown (EVERY SINGLE MOMENT OF THE DAY) causing me to have that song stuck in my head for days.

Besides these mostly innocent things, religion also influences their opinions on certain debatable topics. I accidently got involved in a conversation about gay rights. The kids asked me if gay people are allowed to marry in the Netherlands to which I happily responded that they are indeed allowed to marry. In Ghana instead of being able to marry, people can get in jail for 25 years if they are gay. Eventually they instructed me to befriend every gay person I ever come across. After this I should inform them on the fact that they will certainly go to hell if they continue ‘participating in being gay’. I decided not to comment as they didn’t want to listen to any other possible opinion.

Head, shoulders, knees and toes:

My head, my shoulders, my knees, my toes

My head, my shoulders, my knees, my toes

My head, my shoulders, my knees, my toes

They all belong to Jesus!

Did you ever feel unsafe?

No, never. Even when we had to wait for the ‘trotro’ (public transport) and it was getting dark I felt safe. Someone even offered to wait with us to make us feel a little more comfortable, although we were already pretty comfortable.

Did anything bother you?

There was only one thing that actually bothered me a lot. This was the fact that no one arrived on time, even when we had to bring the sick volunteer to a hospital in the capital city. The organisation who came to pick her up knew what was going on, but they still arrived three hours late.

What will you remember the best?

I think that’s going to be the overall atmosphere of the country and the friendliness of the people. This is also one of the main differences with the Netherlands where everyone minds his/her own business. This is also something that I can’t properly describe, so I suggest you should go and find out about it yourself by visiting the country!

What do you long for the most now that you’re back?

I long for a more laid-back attitude. Now that I’m back everyone continuously focuses on your accomplishments rather than your personality and attitude. I think a lot of people in the Netherlands, including me, can learn from the fact that at times it is okay to sit down, relax and enjoy.

I hope you enjoyed all my long updates as this was the very last one! I hope that one day I'll travel somewhere awesome once more so I can inform all of you again!