We’re told “bring shoes you don’t really care about, pack clothes you don’t mind getting dirty and ladies don’t even bother bringing makeup…” etc. We all started off in an outdoor store like REI or something similar, nervously filling carts with bug spray, hand sanitizer, mosquito nets and so forth. We had that terrifying travel clinic that consisted of words we never thought we would have to associate with our lives such as “Malaria, Yellow Fever, Typhoid Fever, Zika, snakebites, HIV…etc.” We were painted this image of a major undeveloped country. Yeah mosquitos have had me for breakfast, lunch and dinner for about 5 weeks now, the pollution isn’t great and I miss my Hot Cheetos and favorite dishes but is it really so bad? No, not at all. As much as I hate to admit this, I was ready to witness a whole new world filled with poverty and that is such false image. Before leaving America people would ask “Where are you studying abroad?” and I’d reply “Africa.” 9.9 times out of 10 I got a response along the lines of “WOW that is amazing be safe!!” And the “be safe” always emphasized.

We’ve been taught through stereotypes to see Africa as a land full of disease and poverty but Ghana is so much more than all of that. It is vibrant, bold, beautiful, friendly, warm and most of all rich. Rich with culture and pride. The people here don’t walk around dodging mosquitos and wearing Teva sandals, Birkenstocks or trashy, old shoes they don’t care about. Sure it is definitely a different vibe and some of the Adidas sandals may have 4 stripes instead of 3 but who are we to judge? To be honest, I feel that Ghanaians are teaching us more than we think we are teaching them. We came out here to study abroad and that is exactly what we are doing. We are studying the culture and realizing how false our preparations and perceptions have been.