Goodbye Ghana!

In an attempt to procrastinate for my final, I have decided to write one last blog post while I am in Ghana. I will be on an airplane on my way to the USA in 6 days 3 hours and 45 minutes (not that I’m counting down). Am I excited? Yes. I have never been away from home for this long, and in a place where day to day living is so difficult. Am I terribly sad to be leaving Ghana? Of course. Ghana is officially my other home, I suppose. I have never spent so much time in a country that was not my own, and I feel that I truly do understand the culture and the people. Has my time in Ghana changed me? Yes, I have seen things that I never expected to see – both good and bad. I think I am most scared about leaving Ghana because I don’t know what is next. Since high school I have been looking forward to studying abroad in Africa – what do I have to look forward to now! I do know that my desire to travel has not been satisfied, I am probably not going to settle down for good in America any time soon.

I am excited to do so many things in America – see my family and friends, eat all the food I have missed, and even lay on a couch and watch TV (something I didn’t think I would miss). However, I am going to miss all of the things that make Ghana what it is to me, the things I can’t find in America – markets, being able to buy anything I want from the window of my tro-tro (seriously, I’ve seen people selling birds), Fanice (delicious ice cream in a bag), the music, the colors, and the very rare thunderstorm. I am not looking forward to this Friday, when I will say goodbye to my kids at Hope Community, I am absolutely sure that I will be crying when I walk out of the gates. I know that I will have to come back to Ghana at some point in the future, and no matter how many countries I travel to, Ghana will always be special to me. I hope that when I come back I retain some of the great things about Ghanaian culture – the language, the general friendliness, and maybe I’ll even break out with the slight accent I use when I talk to Ghanaians (it’s funny, I swear).

I have to say that this has been the best semester of my college career – I wish I could live it over and over again. However, it is time to go home and get on with life!