Saturday May 24, 2014

Friday May 23, 2014

Friday May 23, 2014

So this is probably my last post while here in Africa.  We leave tomorrow evening and there will be a lot going on and not a whole lot to write about.  Today was an easy and relaxing one. First thing this morning we headed over to where the container was because Ghana’s FDA had to inspect some of the containers and make sure we didn’t send drugs over.  We didn’t, and we passed the inspection. 

Then we went to La Palm.  It is one of the nicest resorts in all of Ghana.  The basic rooms start at $350/night.  We came to swim.  The weather was not overly hot and it was overcast most of the day.  It was the perfect day to lie by the pool.  We were there for a good 4 hours, and I have not idea what I did in that time.  It went by so fast.  There is something perfect about letting time fly by and enjoying the moment.  That was today for me. 

The clouds became thicker and the wind kicked up so we got ready a little bit earlier than expected and headed over to the soccer stadium.  We were able to watch the Ghana Black Stars play during their farewell game before they head out to play for the World Cup.  They played against the dream team, or the people’s team.  The players were picked from all of the club sports around Ghana.  These players are incredible.  I have only been to two real soccer games in my life but they were just awesome.  I just sat there in awe at how quick they can move their fit and how easy they take the ball to the head.  Man.  Tough people.  It was so fun to cheer with the Ghanaian crowd.  We sat in the VVIP section (yes, two V’s), which happened to be located right next to the presidential section.  No worries, we saw the former president of Ghana, and the current VP.  We mingle with the big wigs here in Ghana. 

When we left the score was 5-1 Black Stars.  We left a bit early because we were afraid of all the traffic.  Walking to our bus we had to pass through tons and tons of people.  For whatever reason there was a lot of commotion and tons of police.  The area where our bus was parked was barricaded off by police.  Standing there, I felt a tugging on my pocket and looked down to see a hand trying to jack my iPhone.  Luckily the case sticks to the inside of my pockets.  I would’ve been so ticked. 

We were eventually let in to our bus and it turned out that we parked in the players lot and our bus was boxed in.  So much for leaving early.  We had to wait for about an hour while the players filed out and peeled out in their Porsches, hummers, jeeps, bullet bikes, and range rovers.  To be a soccer player in Ghana…while waiting the fans came and stood behind the barricade to glimpse their favorite players.  There were hundreds of people.  We were able to meet a bunch of the players as they walked to their cars and a bunch of the girls from the group got autographs on their jerseys.  The news even interviewed our group.  Unfortunately none of us knew anything about America’s team…and then USA started getting chanted in the middle of thousands of Ghanaians.  Probably not our smartest group moment, but definitely memorable. 

We had our final debriefing tonight and we all shared some of our feelings about the whole trip.  Someone said “As human beings we have a duty…”  They really stuck with me.  We all have a duty to each other.  To love each other; help each other; be there; smile at; everything.  It is something we all must do, and this trip really helps you to grasp that duty.  I hope we all take that home from this trip and can pass it on to others.