NEWS FLASH

Please go to www.offexploring.com/anarichardworld for all future updates, WITH PHOTOS!!

After 5 weeks - an update!

After the storm on Thursday 18th Jan., a broken and mended garage door and a roofer to sort out, we finally landed in Accra. It's the 20th Jan. and at 11pm in Accra Ghana the temp. is 28 C; but where is Ana's bag? It arrived three days later.

Ghana is very dusty and hot. The Harmattan wind is still blowing south from the Sahara. Its only saving grace - a cooler breeze.

The family we're living with are extremely welcoming and hospitable. Modern Ghana is 50 years old on 6th March and we're learning a lot about the recent and colonial history.

We've been to James Town an old colonial \ fishing district of Accra. The beach is still crammed with fishing boats - simple dug-out vessels mostly, fishermen and all the other aspects of their trade. Women washing and scaling fish in small bowls, little shacks selling and fish being smoked - a very popular food here.

The Kakum National Park is great for walking in the air through a tropical rain forest canopy. Simple rope and plank "bridges" help to keep you up there!

Elmina Castle on the coast is a very painful place to go as slaves were transported from here to America. The violence and brutality seem to reverberate around its walls. Many Colonials and some Ghanaians were guilty of heinous crimes here.

Six hours each way in a coach took us to Kumasi and back [after two nights in a Catering Rest Hotel - basic B & B.] We hired a driver for a day and visited the military museum, Kente weavers and the cultural centre.

We spent two Sundays in Accra so we went with our hosts to their church - Accra Ridge Church. They often have a congregation of 900 and guess what? The first Sunday they had a group visiting from Tottenham, London! So we'd travelled all the way to Ghana and we listen to a Londoner preach! Good message though.

A very important event happened whilst we were in Accra. Kofi Annan arrived back in his homeland. It was like watching royalty and was covered live from the approach of the aeroplane to the car driving out of the airport.

And then another important event took place. This time it was actually in the UK but, Ghana were playing Nigeria in a friendly football match! Who should we support out of the first two countries we are visiting in Africa? Well it had to be Ghana. They hadn't beaten Nigeria for 15 years and we were watching it live in Ghana. So what do you say on a plane leaving Ghana for Nigeria? The Nigerian Papers on the plane weren't saying much - in fact, it wasn't obvious that Ghana had been playing let alone winning by a handsome margin. In Accra the night before, you could hear the shrieks echo around the city as every goal went in - 4 : 1 !

Living in the house of a candidate for the govenorship of a state in Nigeria is quite an experience. We enjoyed our weeks stay with our friends Hannah and Jimmy. We stayed in Abuja, Jos and Langtang -a village in Plateau State. All the houses we stayed in are walled compounds with other smaller dwellings for realatives and visitors. The gates are always locked and manned by security guards 24/7. In Jos 2 armed guards and 5 dogs were present at night, hired to guard the politician in his compound.

In Ghana and Nigeria our hosts were worried how they would manage cooking English food-well their cooks were! They need not have worried we both got stuck into the local food - sometimes literally if it was fufu, a dough made from Yam and eaten with stew with the fingers.

Last couple of weeks in the UK

Paddington enjoys his send-off meal, and will hopefully finally end up in Lima - his home town.