One of my favorite parts of this trip has been the fact that we are not on vacation going to tourist-only spots; we are sitting in rush-hour traffic, waiting in checkout lines at the grocery store, and working in cubicles alongside people that have lived here their whole lives. Experiencing the sometimes seemingly mundane everyday actions can often be the best way to truly understand how life operates in a given place, rather than just seeing the spots found via Instagram geotags.

This past weekend, a few members of the group were able to go to a pick-up football (soccer) game that Jeff’s coworker was playing in. We ubered to the address we were given and greeted by Jeff’s coworker and some of his teammates. They led us through a maze of thin alley ways in what felt like a much more calm suburbia compared to the energy of East Legon I was used to. As the game began, a small crowd of locals began to gather, cheering on their respective players and teams. Smoke filled the air from the burning trash pile nearby and music could be heard from the restaurant across the street. The football field being used to play the game wasn’t like the turf fields I had played on at home– it was mostly dust and dirt left with patchy spots of grass scattered throughout. There were also no out of bounds lines, which meant that depending on where you were sitting, you could be in the way of the game at some points. And don’t be surprised if the field is covered in goats trying to pass through, either.

I love going to sports games, especially when traveling to different places, as they often share a great deal about the culture of the place. But oftentimes, our minds go straight to professional-league sporting events, where so much about how people live cannot be seen within the walls of a stadium. Finding those attractions more difficult to get to that are hidden away have been some of the most worthwhile spots that I’ve visited not just in Ghana, but anywhere because they can often far greater insight into how locals live there.