Dancing & Drumming! 9/25/10

Today was our last morning in Senase. We had breakfast in Freds mothers house which they prepared for us and after our goodbyes, lots of hugs and pictures we were on our way. We stopped in town for our welcoming ceremony which had been put off since the first night. There wasn’t as many people in town then there was the first morning we went in but as the drumming and dancers began the crowds formed. The dancing was amazing! I do not understand how they move like that! There are some videos on my page of it that I’m tagged in .. and I’ll be posting some once I get to free internet. Hopefully in South Africa.

They danced a few different dances, all with different meanings – and the drummers were so talented. After the dancing stopped someone came over to us to let us know that culturally – after they dance we have to dance for them. OH MY GOD!!! I was so nervous at first. The crowd had grown so big and there was not one open space in the crowd surrounding us. But once we got up there and started to boogie & make fools out of ourselves it was so much fun.. we were all laughing, dancing and jumping around. The crowd (including the Chief, Queen Mother & Elders) loved it and I’m sure they got a laugh out of it!

After our little dance it was time for us to leave.. I did not want to leave.. these few days were not enough time at all! We said our goodbyes to the little ones who ended up sitting on our laps & surrounded us during the ceremony and made our way to the van. The swarm of people waving, shaking hands & hugging us grew so big! There were just too many to say bye too but I wish I could have said goodbye and thank you to each person for welcoming me into their village and being so kind and loving. The children poked their heads into the van and waved until we started to drive off. Driving away was very overwhelming and I started to tear up. Just thinking about how much I’ll miss the children and how I bonded with them so quickly, made me think of how much I wanted to come back there.

Seventh Day Adventist Church & School

On our way home we stopped at another school called the Seventh Day Adventist Church. We visited it to see the difference between a school that was well off compared to the one we visited in Akatim village. Before we even entered the school you could see the difference in uniforms, how they didn’t have holes and weren’t worn out. Entering the school was a big shock. It was huge compared to the Akatim school. This school had cement walls and a water system. There were classrooms outside as well but they were built sturdy with no holes in the roof. The children were much more welcoming and right away wanted to play with us and take pictures and were very eager to greet us. They had drawings on the walls and windows with shutters to keep the rain out. It was like two different worlds!

We didn’t get to spend much time at the school but we got to play with the kids and they were given a few school supplies and a soccer ball. They kids loved the soccer ball and right away they were running and playing with it. The children were wonderful there and I wish we could have spent more time there.

The rest of the ride home went by so fast we all chatted and got to know each other more. Fred told some of us a story about the egg and what it symbolizes in Ghana. He told us that the people dear to him he calls his egg because you have to support them and be there for them. If you don’t support them they will drop and break and like an egg they will be gone forever. I think this is such a strong message. I ended up spotting a wooden egg carving and bought it to remind me of my time in Ghana. :)

That night a small group of us decided to get dinner with Fred and his sister Olivia. Olivia is such a sweet lady. We had dinner at a nearby restaurant and enjoyed eachothers company. I loved spending time with them!