In my last post, I mentioned that I would be attending the launch of the 2018 Miss Ghana beauty pageant with Joy News. Yesterday, three of my coworkers and I arrived at the hotel venue prepared with questions and eager to see how owner Inna Patty would respond. I spent the entire launch still wrapping Read More …
As an advertising major, I wasn’t expecting to be so infatuated with the journalistic environment at Joy News. My first time walking through the many radio and television sets was electric and refreshing – I wanted to be a part of it. Before I knew it, I found myself among journalists, anchors, writers, and producers Read More …
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 Read More …
*BEEP BEEP! *HONK! “ADENTA, ADENTA, ADENTA!” *cricket cricket “AYYYE!!” *croak croak croak croak “MEPAAKYEW, MEPAAKYEW!” *cockadoodledoooo “AH! Daabie, daabie, daabie…” “Sssss!” Americans are very noise-sensitive. Ghanaians are not. I started noticing an array of sounds my first night in Ghana; I went to brush my teeth and heard what I feared might be the toilet Read More …
We’ve all experienced or at least know of the awful pushiness and uncomfortable aggression presented by door-to-door salesmen. The peace of your quiet home is disturbed by the ring of your doorbell which starts a chain reaction of your toy poodle yapping at the door, your cat jumping off your lap and the neighborhood dogs Read More …
Throughout my time at Today, I’ve struggled at points with finding work to do. This is normal in an internship, but at times frustrating. In the beginning they told me they wanted to publish things I’d written and I was really excited. I told them from the start that I wanted to go out on Read More …
Once you arrive in Ghana you automatically have a new name: Obroni. A lot of the times it is directed towards white people but is generally used for foreigners. The term is not necessarily considered derogatory, but in a sense it is a form of othering based on skin color. Despite all of my coworkers Read More …
Today one of my co-workers asked me if I could see Ghana as a place I would want to live… At first I contemplated lying and telling him yes to not be rude but I ended up politely saying no. He understood. Here in Ghana, there is a rich culture and deep foundation that unites Read More …
Ghana is a colorful place. Driving through this country it’s impossible to miss the colorful clothing, the colorful buildings, it’s almost like Ghana itself is full of life. And no part of Ghana is more colorful than the Tro Tros. You can’t miss them. Almost every color is represented by the large vans rumbling around Read More …
If I need to buy something at home– say, for instance, that my phone charger breaks and I need to replace it or I run out of paper towels at home. I have a few different routes that I could take if I need to purchase any of these items: order them online and have Read More …
Around the streets of the world, I’ve heard buskers fill alleyways with music, strumming their guitar and singing well-loved tunes. I’ve walked past hippies selling colorful gemstones laid out on old blankets. I’ve smelled local food cooking in crowded market stands lining the street. There are a variety of ways that cultures make money selling Read More …
I have been living in Accra for three weeks now, and I don’t think I’ll ever get used to Ghanaian driving. So far, my experiences as a passenger on these roads have been anything but mundane. The nearby “highway” that I take almost daily is scattered with traffic lights, reckless motorcyclists, and the occasional pedestrian Read More …
Entering my fourth week at my internship at Citi Fm I am starting to notice that my coworkers are treating me more like they treat each other rather than the new obroni intern. With that comes more honesty regarding the state of Accra, and further, Ghana. At the beginning, of my time at Citi, I Read More …
I have always looked to the concept of time and punctuality when traveling to new places, as I believe it can often be a reflection of the culture as a whole which informs the day to day practices in a given place. As someone who was born and raised in the Northeast, I am used Read More …
During the end of our first week, the Media in Ghana cohort took a trip to Anani Memorial International School, where we were greeted with smiles, song and dance from students and teachers alike. Leslie explained to us that this was one of the more expensive and prestigious schools in the area, but that they Read More …