10 days left...

Hello again! We are back in Accra today for some lunch at Frankies and a visit to the market. The tro tro ride here was pretty uneventful, I was hoping I would have something exciting to share. Life in Ghana is wonderful as always. I cant believe we only have 10 days left. That cant be true! Ive been dreaming almost everynight that I leave to go back home and forget to say goodbye to everybody. It is the worst feeling in the world then I open my eyes and see my mosquito net over my bed and thank my lucky stars it was just a dream. Oh boy I dont think ill ever be ready to leave.

Dora is wonderful. I wish I could post some pictures but all the computers here have viruses and I really dont want that sort of thing so I guess it will have to wait until we get home.....but dont worry we have tons! Dora is the happiest baby I have ever known. We walked all the way to the post office and back the other day which is about an hour total and she didnt make a peep. She just hung out watched the cars and the people then fell asleep as we were walking up our driveway. Im convinced we have the only driveway in the whole village. Everybody else lives in huts on the side of the street. Its insane the way life works here.

Ghanaians dont sleep. I usually dont sleep either so in theory Ghana would be the perfect place for me right?? Well since we started our trip I have been in bed almost every night by 9:00 I am so tired! People here go to bed around 1:00am and wake up at 4:00am. No joke. I asked Dennis who is a teacher when she sleeps and thats what he said. Not to mention on their cell phones they get free minutes after 3:00am so thats when they make all their calls. Yes our neighbors that talk on the phone right outside our window talk at that time too.

The food here is different. I dont know how else to explain it. The majority of everymeal is a huge portion of carbs. Breakfast is always bread with maybe egg or oatmeal, lunch and dinner consist of either plantains and beans, fried rice, rice balls, fried yam, cooked yam, pasta noodles, and fufu. Thats it. Fufu is such a treat for people here but I dont get whats so great about it. Its cooked plantain and yam mashed together with a pounding stick and turns into a big gooey almost dough like ball which you then pour soup over and eat with your fingers on your right hand. Its not easy to make, its takes almost all afternoon and a lot of hard work but they seem to have a system down somehow to make it work. I could never do it.

The craziest thing is kids taking care of kids. Not a day or even an hour goes by where you dont see a baby on a young girls back. The girls are not any older than 8 years old and play with the other kids or do chores with a baby on their back! Its amazing. Whenever we have to leave and we have a baby in our hands the young kids come up and take them and feed them and change them. Its so different than anything ive seen.

Last night we had Lucky all night. He did pretty well and around 6:30 this morning I woke up with him so Melissa could get some sleep. I went to change his poopy diaper and in the second it took me to grab a new diaper he had pooped all over the table! This may be too much information but the kids here dont have solid poop in the slightest manner because of their diets. I moved him to a different table and while I was moving him he pooped again! This time all over my feet, the floor and my clothes. I dont know what it is about me and these children but something about me makes their bodily fluids pour out! This doesnt happen to anyone else but me! The joke is now oh Ali who pooped on you today? Or who puked on you this time? Its horrible!!! I honestly dont mind too much. What can you do?

My time is again short and we are off to have lunch! Dora and I love you all!