After arriving in Ghana and getting unpacked, the group went out for a traditional Ghanaian dinner at a restaurant a few minutes from our house. We arrived home with full bellies, ready to make our beds, set up our mosquito nets, and finally get some decent sleep.

Because I am writing this post at 3:45 AM, it is safe to assume my first sleep in Ghana has not gone according to plan. The reason for my misery? Mosquito nets, which have officially become the bane of my existence.

Below is a timeline of my series of mosquito net mishaps.

8:45 pm: Me and my roommates, Azia and Casey, arrive back at the house to make our beds. Sounds easy enough. I start to put the fitted sheet on my bed only to realize that African twin beds are for some reason wider than American twin beds. I spend 15 minutes stretching my sheet until I finally get it to cover my mattress. I’m covered in sweat, my biceps are sore, and never in my life have I been more ready for bed.

9:00 pm: My bed is finally made and it’s time to set up my mosquito net. I grab some duct tape and stand up on the top bunk, only to hit my head against the concrete ceiling. I tape up the mosquito net, realize it is set up the wrong way, then rip it down. I do this about ten times, and each new tape job is a bigger failure than the one that came before it. I am now sweating in places I didn’t even know existed.

9:25 pm: My roommates and I can’t stop laughing. I decide to recruit the help of Jess, one of the boys on the trip. He tapes up my mosquito met in about 5 minutes, making me feel like a complete idiot. Azia, who sleeps below me, is still figuring out her net.  Casey, who has a large canopy net, drapes hers over the empty top bunk so it covers the bottom bed.

9:30 pm: I look at my bed and try to determine how I will possibly sleep in this thing. My net sits about three inches away from my face when I lie down, and I am claustrophobic just looking at it. I peek over at Casey’s bed, becoming more jealous of her canopy net by the second. I decide to switch beds and move to the bunk above Casey’s. I tape her net to the ceiling and it is long enough to cover both of us. Finally, I can get some sleep.

10 pm: I fall asleep under my spacious new canopy net.

11 pm: I wake up to the canopy falling on top of my face. I look over at Azia and her net has fallen on top of her too. Apparently, duct tape doesn’t work well in humidity. The three of us hysterically laugh for about five minutes. All of us are unsure of what to do next, and are in utter disbelief that this is actually happening. I move my sheets and get back into my original bed, bracing myself for the claustrophobic experience. I almost hit my head on the spinning ceiling fan as I climb down the bunk bed ladder. To top it all off, I stub my toe walking to the other side of the room. I lie down and close my eyes, trying to overcome the claustrophobia.

11:10 pm: I realize half of my toenail came off when I stubbed it, and I have to get back up to get a band-aid. My roommates and I start laughing again. Could anything else possibly go wrong?

3:00 am: The answer to my last question is yes. I feel something hit me in the face, and realize yet another mosquito net has fallen from the ceiling. I tape it back up. It falls again. I start to wonder if the net is really necessary. I decide to use the it as a blanket for now, and unable to sleep, I type out this blog post.

Night one in Ghana has definitely tested my patience. Nonetheless, I can’t help but laugh at the mosquito net mishap, remembering challenges like these are all part of the experience. It may be a sleepless night, but I’m ready to see what day two has in store!