Crossing Bridges

I took this picture on a long hike to Crescent Lake in Alaska.  It was a pretty hike, relatively easy with minimal elevation changes.  We took our dogs.  It was gorgeous.  

It was funny to watch our dog Rowdy try to cross this bridge.  He hated it.  It didn't make it better when Pat would shake the bridge!  Poor dog.  It was a little funny to see him squat down and slither across the bridge.  Bella was just fine.  She trotted across as if nothing were different.

We are crossing our bridge.  Pat has totally run across without any fear, but I feel the shaking and am the one squatting down and carefully placing each step.  

Pat has returned to work with gusto!  He is the Q.C. for his company and will be doing a lot of overseeing and integration of new procedures.  I'm very proud of him!  He will be a great mentor to the younger employees.  He is also hoping to be more involved with the Youth Horizons Boys Ranch.  I am excited to see Pat grow in this environment!

I too am busy.  I have been spending time with family as I can, discovering the joys of a local Asian Market (fabulous mangoes and coffee candy!), and I am currently trying to get back into exercising.  I have completed day 2 and can barely walk.  It seems my hamstrings have atrophied a bit.  A lot.  I am also doing a daily check on properties for sale outside of Wichita.  While I am a bit nervous about the prospect of "settling down," I realize the logic of having at the least a home base.  It might also be nice to watch some of the things that I plant develop into maturity.  

Maybe that's what this bridge is leading us into: a time of maturity.

Yeah, probably not!!

Changes

This has been the scene, with various different players, most evenings around here.  It's quite interesting to see doubles being played on what was formerly called the dining table.  Much fun has been had by having ping pong around!  This and the set of swings tied to the Mango tree in the back yard have provided much fun and laughter.  Though I have to say, the other day when we had to push one of the vehicles (out of gas) back from a trip to buy roadside fruit did provide a healthy dose of laughter!  I may have to steal a picture from Erin that captured that memory!

The last few days have looked different for us.  After much prayer and conversations, we have concluded that God has different plans for us.  We will not be moving back to Ghana this spring with the rest of the team.  While there remains strong mutual respect and encouragement, it seems clear that we are just not the right fit at this time.  We will continue to support the team and who knows, we may be back to visit!  We did get all these shots, after all!

I have loved the warm breezes that waft through the house and lands.  I have loved the beauty of the land that surrounds the city.  I have loved the opportunity to see a place that, though it may look extremely different from anywhere I've been before, is filled with beautiful people.  I have loved the mangoes and pineapples!  I have loved taking cold showers!  I have loved trying new flavors and textures, even if they weren't my favorite.  I have loved having an article of clothing made from gorgeous fabrics and by someone who I have come to admire and respect deeply.  I have loved getting to know people in fairly close quarters and come away believing we are closer friends from it.  I love that we spent our last night laughing together into the night about Monte Python and the Holy Grail!  I am thankful.

As we make our way back to Kansas, we pray that God will continue to lead us into just what He has for us.  Adventures await!

Picture-less Post

You've probably heard of my stellar move of forgetting the camera in the taxi.  We won't speak of it any longer, though it's effect will be felt daily.  I don't sense the feeling that we will be replacing it with any camera we come across here, though it might be easier to keep charged.

Moving on.

The last couple of days have been interesting.  I have had the opportunity to go into town to see the locations of welding supply stores, meet and greet potential suppliers of iron (one of which had a stupendous coffee-flavored hard candy of which I cannot cease praising), and generally see more of the city.

It seems interesting to me that many of the same suppliers of a thing (tires, bread, mangoes) often congregate in one area. We drove down a road that might have been named "Tire Alley" if such names existed here, with stall after stall of tire, wheel, and rim salesmen as well as what I presume are those who will do such installations.  Rare are the "one-stop-shops" of the typical U.S. auto maintenance world.  I am perplexed by the women who man their stands of the exact brand of bread as their neighbor.  I wonder if the hawkers from whom we buy our plantain chips feel superior to the ones we pass by, fortunate only by the happenchance of the traffic congestion.  Which booth of mangoes in the line of 8 is the one to which we will make our purchase?  It seems to me that one chooses the first one indiscriminately, and either stays or switches based on the quality of the product purchased.  Or sometimes whether or not one gets diarrhea after eating.  Things like that can definitely make the decision, especially when buying Waakye (pronounced watchee).  Tires would be a risky investment to guess on, so that may come with a reference.  As will the Waakye in the future (though I have been fine and Pat seemed only mildly affected)!

I have noticed the copious amounts of religious tag lines on anything from a tro-tro to a business name.  On a rare occasion, I will see a fitting slogan with a company such as the Bread of Life Catering Company,  only to see a completely mismatched one; for example a kilometer from the catering company was the Bread of Life motor oil stand.  The feeling I get is that if one puts a religious slogan on their vehicle or business, this must produce good luck or "blessings" and not curses.  I have also noted that the churches are often the nicest buildings, and it seems the heads of such places are extremely well-to-do, though highly distrusted for obvious reasons.

Distrust seems to stem through most positions of power.  We spoke with our taxi driver about how it is very bad for a police officer to take money from someone to avoid court in the U.S. (though not unheard-of).  Our driver thought that was crazy!  This is something he has had to do frequently, and the police here undoubtedly find something with which to fine you if you have been stopped, regardless of the absurdity.  It is certainly an issue of convenience as a trip to the courts here could last eternally, and the police know this.

The other day we took a tro-tro up north to a beautiful area outside of town.  It was about a 45 minute drive to the Mills (what we have dubbed as a cross between mountains and hills).  There were rocky outcroppings on the tops of several single juttings.  It was really beautiful.  This was a trip to a development that is a possible locale for Vytrak.  The Volta River was not far from us, and the air was cooler.  There were mango trees all over the place, though we learned that the pineapple rarely makes it that far north.  We saw families of Baboons along the road as we went, and I'm not sure how I feel about wild Baboons.  It was a fascinating site.

I have been trying to figure out the flora of the landscape and feel pretty sophomoric with my lack of preparation.  A simple Google search reveals at the least several good resources.  I have learned that there are many varieties of Acacia trees.  I think I've seen a few.  Coconuts are fairly easy to recognize!  Bananas and Plantains I haven't differentiated.  I have yet to confirm the identity of a very pretty crapemyrtle-like tree that blooms blue and is now setting orange "fruit."  I am confident when I spot all the bougainvillea vining and blooming all over the place!  I have identified the Mango tree that grows all over the place, including our backyard.  Pat installed a couple of swings from its thick branches.

Of course he did!

I have enjoyed Earnestina's skirt that she made me.  I may have a picture of that from Pat's kindle.  I feel like she could sell these well in the U.S.  They are really beautiful.  And comfortable!  The fabric she chooses is strong but flows perfectly.  It is gorgeous in color and patterns.  She also makes bags (that she sells in the U.S. somewhere - I'll have to find out where), and very smart mens shirts.  The skirts are a whopping $15 or 30 Ghanaian cedis (pronounced see-dees).  I wish I had brought more money.  Maybe she will ship?!

Until another day...

Observations

Following the last few days worth of outings comes the random collection of pictures that may or may not have anything to do with one another!  We have been doing some research on some vehicles that are being made here in Accra.  There are several things we have learned about as we have driven around town, observed the people going about their days, and as we make our first forays into town.

 The lizards are kind-of fun to watch.  They dart around, do push-ups for no apparent reason, and are sometimes pretty.

 Toolboxes are not like what we are used to.  Toolbags seem to be a popular item.  Or maybe that's a part-bag.  I'm not exactly sure.

 Sometimes being a boy means having a less than desirable washroom.  (If you ask for a bathroom, you may be directed to a bath-house.  This is totally not a bathroom!)  And said washroom has no facilities with which to wash anything!

 A workshop may be outside of the actual building.  The very lucky ones have their shop on the northern side of the building to afford a level of shade.

 This is Steven.  He is our interpreter/protector/hero.  "Employee" does not describe all that he does for us.

 There are some really cool farming implements made for 5-row fields.  Made in China looks just a bit less impressive than John Deere, I must say.

 For two days in a row, we took advantage of those selling mango and pineapple along the roads.  They are called Hawkers.  They are actually pretty amazing.  They work extremely hard to bring any number of wares from fruit, nuts, bread, and other foodstuffs, to windshield wipers, phone charger accessories, to "as seen on TV" items!  We have wondered how much we could actually buy without ever leaving a vehicle.   The weight they can balance on their heads is staggering.  It seems they start this process early in youth.  One thing for sure, the fruit vendors are a welcome sight when you are hot and hungry!

 Did I say toolbags?  When those just don't do, it is just way easier to dump the bag and search through the pile.  Actually, I think this is again an example of a parts-pile.

Pat took a moment to pose with one of the workers and Steven.

The last couple of days, I have been able to go out with Pat and Adam to observe some building and even more of the city/community.  We have gotten up early and had our favorite Cab driver, Festus, pick us up at 7:00.  (It seems that most places in the world use the 24 hour clock, not am/pm.  One of the many U.S. independent irritations.)  Festus has been teaching us about all the favorite foods of his.  I'm not sure about Banku (a fermented mash of cassava used as a tool for eating a stew), but this day, his fried fish and roasted yams looked and smelled pretty delicious!  (We had just eaten our mango and pineapple for lunch.  I guess he needed more than just fruit - and he said he didn't eat pineapple!)

 The Africa Cup of Nations Football Tournament is going on right now, and Ghanaians are nothing if they are not fans of their team, the Black Stars.  As they were playing a game, we suddenly heard the eruptions of cheering and horns honking in celebration as they scored a goal against Mali for their 1-0 win!  Fans were somewhat disappointed in the low score, but since they won, they were appeased.  Every television that was powered up had a group of people huddled around it!  Most activity seemed to somewhat pause for those couple of hours!

 I have noticed a difference in traffic patterns.  There is no 2-second rule.  Somehow all the drivers drive up close to each other, within a foot or less at times, and move in a mass similar to the huge flocks of blackbirds that flow like waves.  Unlike birds, we do a lot of stopping and honking.  There is a language of honks that are primarily spoken by the taxi drivers.  Festus told us that learning how to drive is more about experience than being taught!

 This vehicle was one we will be looking at more.  They all thought I was a novelty and several of the men took my picture.  I don't suppose they see a white woman at this shop much.

 We did a little bit of shopping to discover where we could get tools.  I look miserable, but it wasn't that bad!  I was actually in the middle of raising my hands to do a "Vanna White."  What was important was that we did find several places who had some consumable materials that we would need.  The prices are not cheap, but many times, they aren't overly excessive.

Thanks to the cleaning out of the basement, my dad was able to donate the parts of a ping-pong!  The dining room table actually serves as a pretty good table, with the extra difficulty of not having corners.  Pat still brings fun with him wherever he goes!  

We have been here less than a week, and it seems to be going pretty well.  We seem to be adjusting to the heat pretty well, though today was tough as we taxied all day with very heavy traffic (meaning lots of stopping) that kept our breezes to a minimum.  It didn't help that we had 3 of us in the back of a car.  If I could do that one over, I would have stayed home!  It is interesting for me to see what is going on with the vehicles, and to get out and see the city.  We are sleeping very well, which surprises me since we don't have a/c in our room.  We do have a fan, and after a cool shower, we seem to be just fine!  We are really loving the food.  At our guest house, there is a super-woman named Earnestina who keeps us well fed.  We have had a variety of recipes that incorporate rice and beans, but also some Akple and Ocra Stew that was interesting as our first Ghanaian dish.  Akple is a corn mash ball that is impossible to describe.  I watched Earnestina prepare it and I can see why women are strong.  She whipped up corn flour into some water until it made a heavy pasty mass, and then whipped it up some more.  It was somewhat bland, to be honest, but not bad. The ocra stew was interesting; stringy and spicy, but again, not bad!  She made my morning today when she whipped up some toast with a fried egg in the middle!   There is so much that I don't photograph.  I just can't all the time.  Plus, I am trying not to be the tourist.  Rest assured we are doing well, enjoying much of being here, and learning a lot about the culture and potential projects.  

Keep praying for wisdom and direction!

It's hot.

I am now in full regret for not having unlocked my phone when I was in Wichita.  I took a multitude of pictures as we entered Ghana as well as on our first tour yesterday.  Unfortunately, my locked phone will not give up it's holdings.  Fortunately, we have an old school camera that we brought as well, and Pat was on it.  

To start at the beginning, our trip to Africa was long.  As anyone who has done it will understand, the long hours on the plane as well as the inevitable layovers in foreign lands do take its toll.  We were pleasantly surprised at the level of entertainment on board (it's all free on international flights), as well as the food.  Pat was treated to his Gluten Free meal about 20 minutes prior to the rest of us, which only served to alienate him more based on the amount of glares coming our way after the aromas wafted past the hungry passengers!  His food was really delicious.  So was mine, eaten much after his!

One of the things that made it long for me was the lack of sleep, even after taking sleeping pills.  That was disappointing.  It made me groggy, but I just couldn't get past that stage into sleep.  My legs did not like the lack of room on our flight from Minneapolis to Amsterdam.  When we deplaned in Amsterdam, I was out of it enough to leave my kindle and a book in the seat pocket in front of me.  Only after my 4 hour nap in the freezing airport (it was snowing and blowing outside) did I search and discover these missing items.  I was less than happy.  We asked about it, discovered it was not at the top-level lost-and-found, which meant it had been taken to the below level lost-and-found, or it had simply been taken.  I made an inquiry via email (one is not allowed to go to the below levels), and then talked to a very helpful flight attendant who personally made an inquiry to the below levels.  Finally we made our way to the extra security line before we boarded our plane to Accra.  We just passed security when I heard my name called.  I had to go back out of security, but I was told they found my items and were bringing them up to me!  I almost cried.  I was tired and emotional people.  I figured Jesus knew I needed a boost.  

So, we made it to Accra with all our belongings!  We were warned about the potential of aggressive "helpers" at the airport, but we must have looked extremely capable, because not a single person approached us to help us.  Ever.  We were not greeted with what I had read was to be an exuberantly friendly greeting, though there was the impressively humid wall of very warm air as we stepped off the plane.  I was impressed with the speed at which we moved through immigration and customs.  It reminded me a little of how we boarded and disembarked on our cruise.  It was clear, however, that there was no real system of processing people.  I didn't mind, though, as it made our trip through fairly smooth.

We made our way to our guest house with the help of the men of Vytrak and a Ghanaian driver, Abreham, who navigated the ridiculous roadways with ease.  Who needs rules of the road?  There may be rules, but no  one seems to follow them.  I'm not sure if there would be a time when I would be confident enough to drive here.  I was amused to discover that roads are often wherever one chooses to drive.  

Yesterday, after a surprisingly decent night's sleep, we all headed out to see the city.  We took a few stops along the way to check out various sights.  Below is a stand where one can "top off" with cell phone minutes/data.  It's mostly pre-paid, so when you get low or run out, you stop at any number of top-off booths and buy what you need.  

 Erin took an opportunity to sing a hand-slap/chant with a little girl who was super cute!

 We checked out different neighborhoods in areas that we may locate.  It was interesting to see the various stages of building.  We learned that many people build houses as a retirement investment, building a little at a time over decades.

 I'm sure you know there are goats in the area.  They alert us to the time of day with their braying (I have no idea if that is the right term).  They are pretty stinkin' cute out there!  We plan on naming them things like dinner, snack, and the like.

 This is our room!  I actually made the bed.  Sort-of.  It took me a few hours today to settle ourselves, since I put bits and pieces of everything in each piece of luggage.  Now I am organized and it feels much better!!

 Though there are water bottles, we mostly drink from bags of water.  It is an interesting form, but very common here. You have to drink it all in a pretty quick manner (which is not difficult), because you open the bag by biting off a corner.  I think the waste is much less by having small collapsible bags, though these are all over, too.  

 The guest house where we are staying is quite lovely. There are flowering bouganvillia over the entry with all sorts of other tropical trees and plants around.  No grass, which is a positive since that is where bugs nest.

 This is the window just outside our room.  It's really quite lovely to see the palm shadows!  I like the mother-in-law's tongue below the window - it's not a houseplant here!  This is why I won't know much of the plant material here; I did very poorly with houseplants and exotics.

 The water is piped in to these water-towers.  The city supply is opened somewhat randomly.  Today we checked the tanks as our water pressure was low, but it seemed we have enough for a bit.  Having so many in one house will make a difference!

 There are lizards, but I rarely run into them.  They scurry away quickly so we haven't had to come to a head.  We do have to be very careful with crumbs as the ants are quick to discover them.

So, here are a few pictures of what we've been up to for the last couple days.  I wish I had more, but this will have to do for now.  I hope that internet will keep up!  We did experience our first power outage last night, which made for an excessively hot evening (no fans or a.c.), but it came back on at 10pm, so we were spared an excessively sweaty night!  Today Pat is out with the guys checking out an ITV option and I took the day off to catch you up!  I thought I just heard thunder, but I am questioning the refreshment factor that it could bring! I'm thinking it may just make it muddy and more humid!  Oh, well.  The electricity is on, so I'm good!

The Final Countdown

Ba da da dahhhhh

Ba da dat dat dahhhh

Ba da da dahhhhh

Ba da dat dat dat dah dahh, dah dah dah, dah dah dah dat dat dat dah

Dah, Dahhhhhhhhh

Yeah you get it.  I'm singing Europe's classic.  (If you don't know what that is, ask your parents or Google it.)  

I am starting to freak out a little.  My nerves are on edge.  I keep trying different arrangements of the carry-ons, only to pull everything back out and stare at it more.  You know, progress.  

 I've strategically laid out all our packing cases, and I'm keeping a list of all that is included in them.  I don't know if this is all that important, but it makes me feel better.  As I don't have a huge amount of summer clothing, the packing of such has been relatively easy.  Shoes have been a struggle for me since I don't know if I will want to wear tennis shoes (and socks) or go sockless with sandals.  I've seen my share of "Monsters Inside Me", so I'm basically never going to try the barefoot option that was such a pinnacle of my youth.   I have hidden copies of our passports and vaccination records in different places and plan to keep a copy on me at all times.  We have boxes of gluten-free mixes for brownies and cakes and pancakes, so Pat won't starve.  I have our supplements and medications, just in case.  I have a book or two, though I doubt I'll get to them.  Our earplugs and eye masks are ready in the carry-ons as well as some extras in the cases (they have feral roosters, I hear).

I'm excited to go on this trip and have a lot of questions answered!  I will try as much as I can to blog and facebook.  Pray that we will be excited and enjoy all the crazy aspects of this adventure!

Holiday Recap (Mostly Pictures!)

I debated on posting this mass photo album of the past Christmas, but I can pretty much be sure that it would be so wonderful if in another year I can look back and see so much family and the fun we had!  So please allow me to post prolifically with photos (I avoided the word picture to avoid too much alliteration!).  I was able to go and watch one of my little nieces play an angel in "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever."  She was supported by several of her cousins in such a sweet manner!

We took a trip to Botanica to see all the lights.  It was a gorgeous evening and we enjoyed all the displays set to music.  We got into all the fun musical toys they had in the children's garden!  I loved it and wished we could have stayed longer!

 We spent many nights playing a new game, Quelf!  It was a hilarious game that had us smelling people's feet, shouting exclamations with every drink, and random charades to meaningless sentences!  We had lots of laughs!

 We had lots of food, and this was the only picture!  We ate splendidly for about 10 days solid.  It was not so good for the weight management, but I did manage to keep up with some of my exercises, so it wasn't too bad.  We had a dusting of snow around Christmas, but sadly, not during the time our family from California was here.  Little Makenna didn't get to see any snow, but I'm sure she will someday!  I on the other hand, didn't mind the lack of the white stuff!

 We all had fun times together, though Shep was certainly distressed over the lack of expediency at which Christmas dinner was served!  It was so sweet to watch the N&N's do this story of "What God Wants for Christmas."  It made me a little bit teary to sing with the kids that all God wanted for Christmas was me.  So precious.

 We had the sweet opportunity to spend several days with Pat's family, playing games, modeling for pictures, and having our hair done!  I have to admit, when Makenna started to play with my hair, it felt so nice that I didn't care that it went all soft and frizzy!  It was a bit overwhelming to have all 3 girls giving me that much attention, but I think little miss M may have a bright future!

Little Miss Kaylee was not to be outdone - she won her uncle's heart with her enthusiasm for the outdoors and even had a chance to learn to shoot her first cowboygirl rifle!

 I was able to go on a special outing to a super fun chocolate and Italian soda/gelato drink with Pat's sisters.  It was such a treat!

Pat had a chance to show off his hunting skills when we headed out west to Dad's. All the kids got to see the beauty of a pheasant up close and personal.  I think they all got a feather or two as well!  (I don't remember eating it...)

 It was a monumental event to get almost all of the Penner family together for a Penner Christmas!  68 of us met at Grandma and Grandpa's house.  We are sure that this will be the last time we gather together for this, so it was a little bittersweet.  We sang the Doxology together before we ate, and I tried to cherish the perfect moment it was.  The harmonies that I had come to take for granted were sung together and I was moved by the beauty of it all.  I even took the time to really savor the singing of our German Christmas Carol.  Yes, we sing it in German.  I will miss this more than I realized (and we even harmonized this song!).

 I think my grandparents are wonderful.  I wish I had taken more time to know them better.  I have in recent years discovered that they are very witty and often very funny people with great story-telling ability!  I also believe that they are a very handsome couple, even still!  While we celebrated their 90th birthdays (Grandma is actually 91 - like many of us in the Penner clan, we married younger men!), I was reflecting on the fact that they have been married closer to 70 years!  I think this is so special, especially as I see how much they care for each other today.  I love seeing them hold hands and how Grandpa helps Grandma.  I can pray that Pat and I will be as loving to each other.

 It was a lovely way to cap off a special time with family.  I am a very blessed person who has loving family on every side, up and down.  What a gift I was given this Christmas.