Coast: Part 2

I stole these all from Sarah´s camera

In Peace

Today on my way from work, one of my coworkers got a call that John Atta Mills - President of Ghana - had died. We didn´t believe it at first, because a recent rumor of his passing had turned out to be completely false. This time is was very real though, and it soon turned out that Prof. Atta Mills had passed away after being rushed to the hospital for an emergency. 


His death affects everybody in Ghana, and walking through the streets and driving along the roads it becomes all too apparent that the usual colourful and loud spirit of the people has been temporarily veiled by a somber gloom. Hours after the announcement, the former Vice President was sworn in, and will wake up tomorrow as the new President of Ghana. I can´t believe Atta Mills is dead 

Coast: Day 1

Long bus ride in the early morning calls for a long-lasting supply of snack provisions

Okay, the bus ride was only two hours. This time around we stayed at Sammo´s Guesthouse. This was our room:

I got this new dress

I think it´s great

Breakfast at a Baobab´s - an NGO/hostel/craft store/vegetarian restaurant 

A romantic stroll around the town

Back to the beach!

Fish market

Sand castles

View from the rooftop of our guesthouse 

The ocean at the back

Some election goodies

The NDC is the party of the current President, John Evans Atta Mills - the picture on the scarf is him. He´s up for reelection this December

Auf dem Weg zurück zu unserem Hotel  - ein Mann&Hummel Herzblatt ;)

Baggy

This is tea in a bag

It´s black tea with sugar and condensed milk. You can get it down the street in Kotobabi, and if you walk fast enough it´s still warm when you get home. I spilled some

Alvaro

Today was a good day. Everybody at the Commission was called to an emergency meeting in the conference room. We shuffled into the long room and filled the space around the large tables. The Commissioner was sitting at the head facing us

So in the Constitution where it provisions for the establishment of the Commission, it states that there shall be one Commissioner and two Deputy Commissioners. After the resignation of the previous Deputy Commissioner, her position had not been filled and remained empty - until now! This morning, President Atta Mills swore in Deputy Commissioner Number 2. 

The Commissioner stood up at the head of the table and welcomed the staff. Her accent is almost American. Then she introduced Mr. Joe Whittal - although instead of introducing him as the Deputy Director of the Legal and Investigative Department, she introduced him as the new Deputy Commissioner of the CHRAJ. Mr. Whittal gave a speech. He seems like a really good guy. On the way out, all three Commissioners walked by me and shook my hand. No big deal. 

Then the staff got Alvaros to celebrate (sparkling Passion Fruit juice)

Kotobabi Down

We live in a neighborhood of Accra called Kotobabi Down. This is what is looks like

Freitag der 13.

Ich bin jetzt schon seit 9 Wochen in Ghana - die Zeit vergeht schon ziemlich schnell, auch wenn mir Ghana-Time manchmal viel zu langsam vorkommt. Heute war es für einen Freitag im Büro etwas hektisch, da wir zur Zeit immer mehrere Daten von den anderen Bundesstaaten geschickt bekommen, und die Antworten jetzt alle analysiert werden müssen. Alle bereiten sich auch gerade auf ein Human Rights Camp vor, dass CHRAJ für Schüler organisiert. Das Programm ist eine ganze Woche lang - und fängt an dem Tag nach dem ich nach Deutschland fliege an : (

Heute gab´s einen tollen Sonnenuntergang. Wir waren im Fitnessstudio und haben uns auf der hinteren Terrasse in den letzten orangen Sonnenstrahlen gebadet. Ich glaube wir haben uns alle ziemlich wohl gefühlt