I am currently at the London Heathrow airport with a 6-hour layover before I fly back to Phoenix. It is 6:30 AM and I am drinking a delicious latte – something that is hard to find in Ghana. After living in Accra for six weeks and adjusting to a new society and lifestyle, I feel a definite sense of comfort in my current environment. While I live in Arizona, I have been to England multiple times and lived in London one summer. It’s not home, but it is familiar.
I definitely chose this program to push myself and Ghana did just that. I feel more comfortable right now than I have felt in weeks, and all I did was sleep on an airplane for seven hours. Perhaps it’s because I felt like a spectacle everywhere I went in Ghana. It was usually innocent stares, but having everyone’s eyes on you just doesn’t feel good – especially when it’s because of your skin color. It’s actually refreshing to feel invisible in an airport filled with people from around the world. I’m less on-edge.
Another part of my reentry to the United States I’m looking forward to is the food. Being sick for the last week and a half has made meals very difficult for me. I’ve tried my best to enjoy Ghanaian dishes at work and on my own, but I rarely felt satisfied and well-nourished after eating. However, I am afraid that I will never again have a mango or pineapple as delicious as the ones in Ghana. They are so sweet and juicy that I fear I’ll be disappointed by ones I eat elsewhere for the rest of my life. I am wishing that I packed an entire suitcase of Ghanaian mangos to take home with me.
My time in Ghana has been an amazing and transformative experience. I have learned more than I thought was possible and am so glad that I randomly decided to apply to the program on a rainy day last winter. Ghana has made me develop a love for travelling that I haven’t always possessed, and I am already hungry to visit other parts of the world. It has been less than 24 hours and I miss the little kids freaking out (from excitement) when our bus would drive by them, the beautiful nature, and the friends that I’ve made. That being said, I’m looking forward to being home and back in my comfort zone and reflecting on such a wild adventure.
