Thursday May 22, 2014

Thursday May 22, 2014

Today was so freaking good.  We were up early to head out to Cape Coast.  The drive was beautiful the whole way there.  It is fun to get outside of Accra and be able to see the smaller towns around. 

We started at Kakum National Forest where they have the rope bridge in the canopy of the forest.  It is really high. Being scared of heights like I am gives me a fright, but it was okay.  I’ve done it once, I could do it again.  The bridges themselves are 100-150 from the forest floor.  The views are exceptional.  It is so much fun.  Then everybody was treated to the cocoa seeds from a cocoa plant.  I think it feels like snot in my mouth, others liked it. 

We headed down to the beachfront and had lunch at the Castle restaurant.  The waves were so loud and had so much force than during my previous visit.  It was odd; the waves would converge from the left and right sides and collide and create the tallest spray.  It was really nice to go down onto the beach, which is relatively clean considered. 

While we waited for our food, 4 local kids entertained us from the beach.  They did gymnastics, flips, climbed on each other, and danced.  They would take a bow here and there while they performed so we through them a few cedi.  

We walked over the Castle which is a slave castle used a few hundred years ago.  I do not remember all of the history they spoke of but it is an amazing place to visit.  I never realized that their own people were selling their neighbors and friend into slavery, helping with the trade, and working with the Europeans.  I didn’t realize that it lasted for over 300 years and how many lives were lost or changed due to it.  At the end the guide talked about how slavery was is finally over and abolished in this sense.  But that slavery continues on every day specifically mentioning children.  I went from thinking “Oh yeah, slavery is over”… to….”oh snap, its still around.”  How do we fix it? I have no idea. 

It was interestingly pointed out that the male dungeon, which holds 1000 men, was located directly under the Church.  So while the church is preaching that they need to love their neighbors, their slaves were crammed together underneath their feet, slowly dying.  I don’t understand that.  I can’t fathom that.