Easter with Elephants

I remember when I was little, and when I say little I mean all the way up to last year, I would rise at dawn to survey the house in attempt to find the Easter eggs my parents hid before my brothers. Of course once we found them, we would gorge ourselves on chocolate, fight over who had the biggest chocolate bunny, and then be dragged off to church for more celebration followed by a grand Easter brunch. This was the Easter that is familiar to me, the Easter that gives me the fuzzy feelings inside of home. This Easter was one for the record books, and adventure to say the least. To give you a short snap shot, for comparison of course, this Easter I spent my nights in a Muslim village in Northern Ghana, sleeping on the roof under the stars, going on safari's during the day, and hanging out with ELEPHANTS!

So, I believe I should accept the fact, whether it is here or back home in the US, no matter what trip I may take, it always HAS TO get off to a rocky start. I don't know what it is about traveling, but there is no such thing as a smooth start. Oh well, every experience here has turned out to be amazing, so I guess I should not complain. BUT, is it to much to ask for everything to just work out??
The seven of us who were to make the trek up to Mole National Park, which is some 16 to 20 hours from Accra, agreed to depart at 5:45 am. I set three alarms, my phone, my watch and my travel alarm and somehow I still managed to sleep through them. I got a knock on the door at 6:20 from Katie telling my that my group was waiting for me at the bottom of campus (like a mile away). So I jump up, have a panic attack, throw on some clothes, grab my stuff, and RUN out the door. I literally sprinted all the way down to the bottom of campus! As I was running, I had concerned Ghanaians shouting at me "Slow down," "Relax!" One thing to remember, is that Ghanaians are slow, they take there time wherever they are going! In fact, I have been told that the way they can tell we are American, is because we walk so fast wherever we go. Anyways, so I made it down in record time, met my very patient friends, made our way via taxi to the STC bus station, and of course waited for our DELAYED bus. All that rushing for nothing. AND on top of everything, (deep breath, let me write this without tears) my camera broke on my run down! Of course my camera would break before my trip to the North, where I would be going on safaris and seeing all kinds of animals! Eh, life goes on, but pictures from the weekend may take a while to reach you because I have to collect them from all the people I bugged to take pictures of me all weekend.
The bus ride from Accra to Tamale was LONG, but the relentless picture taking of people sleeping kept us entertained for some parts, as well as my I-pod (thanks again Mom and Dad for not listening to me when I said I didn't want one.) We departed at around 9 am and did not arrive until after 10pm. Because we would have to catch the bus to Larabunga (again can't spell without the guide book!) at 4am, we decided it was pointless to get a hotel for just a few hours. Now, Julie, I know I am going to get a scary email from you lecturing me on how to be safe because I am in Africa and doing something stupid is just going to get me killed. I'll save you the trouble because yes, sleeping in a bus station in Africa is probably on that list, but I survived, and will kick my own butt for doing it. So yeah, we slept on benches in the open air bus station. I remember thinking I would not fall asleep considering the blasting music and people drinking in the station, but somehow I dosed off, clenching my purse and back pack. I woke up once in the night to a man just standing in front of me watching me sleep, and others laughing at us because we were sleeping in a freaking bus station like the homeless. Needless to say, we did not get much sleep, but were up looking for the other bus station by 4am. Our next bus was to take us to Larabunga, about four hours aways from Tamale. This bus was much less "luxurious," and my butt is still recovering from that bumpy ride. While scrambling in the morning, looking for tickets to Larabunga and getting totally conflicting information, we ran into a fellow traveler, Dylan, who helped lead us in the right direction. Another theme I have recognized traveling in Ghana, is somehow, magically, you figure your way around, or find someone to do it for you. We got to Larabunga around 10 am, where we were greeted by Al Hassan, from the Salia's Brothers Guest House, whom I had called about 10 times the previous few days. I feel like I could write a book about Larabunga and the Salia Brothers, because the village and the twin brothers were fascinating.The village, which is only 6km from Mole National Park, has the oldest mosque in Ghana. I found it quite ironic that I was spending Easter weekend in one of the most Muslim villages in Ghana. Larabunga was just full of life. From the second we got off the bus, we were surrounded by tuns of children. Al Hassan personally came and got us from the bus stop and lead us back to his house, a little compound with extra rooms for travelers. He took the time to welcome us, introduce us to the town, and make arrangements from transportation to Mole, which was a bit of a rip off, but we quickly forgave him once we realized how much he and his brother help their community. We dropped our stuff off in a room, however, we had no intention of sleeping in this room. Our aim was to sleep on the roofs, because the heat would have been suffocating with the seven of us in one room with one bed. Let me remind you, that we had been up since 3:30 am and had slept in a bus station, so needless to say we were a little tired. But we pushed through it and spent the day at Mole, just a car ride away. I was so taken back by the vastness of Mole. I guess I am used to the crowded streets of Accra, so when I saw trees for miles and miles I was thrown off. Not to mention real, live animals! The greatest surprise that greeted us that morning were waiting for us at the base of the Mole Motel. Elephants! They were bathing in the watering hole that is conveniently beneath the Motel, escaping the hot sun. Similarly we went to our watering hole, spending time in the pool, waiting for three in the afternoon to role around so that we could take our first safari. I opted not for the pool, because I still have no bathing suit, but spent my time watching the elephants splash about and stuffing myself with omo tuo (totally spelled that wrong), which is rice balls in ground-nut soup. When we were ready to depart for our afternoon safari, the man who was "helping" us arrange the trip showed his true colors, and attempted to royally rip is off, trying to charge our group that morphed into nine, with the addition of the fellow traveler Allison and Dylan we met along the way, a ridiculous rate. However, such practices have become common in such tourist locations, and there was no chance we were going to miss out on our safari. So after long arguments, we were off, and guess where I was sitting. Yeah, the roof! And not just on the roof of the car, but on the wheel on top of the roof of the car, making every little bump we passed over, a possibly life-ending possibility. Because I was so elevated, every time the driver turned or went over a bump, I would be launched forward, over the edge, if it were not for my death grip on the side of the car. Although I had many moments of doubt questioning whether or not I was to die, I quickly realized there is just no other way to do it, I saw everything. I had the best views, and the wind rushing in my face was so liberating. I had one of those moments up there, where it just randomly dawned on me that I was in Africa. You would think I would recognize that more often, but those little moments bring such waves of emotions, joy in particular that a dream was coming true. So we're driving along, seeing baboons and antelope roaming about, and then the car comes to a halt (almost launching me of course). ELEPHANT! It was right next to the car, feeding from the tree tops, paying no real attention to us. We all scrambled down to the bottom, with the guide with a gun of course, and inched our way closer to have a little photo shoot (minus me, broken camera). I literally remember squealing I was so excited, and so in aww. They are such massive, majestic animals, they seem otherworldly almost. In case you have not already realized, I love elephants, they are by far my favorite animal, and among my friends (llama, Emu, Camel, Vulture, Baboon, Koala) it is my animal name. So yes, I was pretty much on cloud nine, getting to see elephants in their natural environment, especially because most people at Mole only spot them in the morning near the watering hole, so we were extremely fortunate. And our luck didn't end there, we spotted three other elephants, warthogs (yes Pumba), many kinds of antelope, crocodile and BABOONS! They were crazy and not to happy to see us. At one point we ran into a family of baboons, and I was half-expecting the car to be charged and torn to shreds judging by the way they greeted us. So yes, car safari, major plus. Of course following, we were exhausted and hungry, and excited for our second safari scheduled the next morning for 7:30 am, this one on foot.
We returned in the evening to Larabunga and the Salia's Brother's Guest House. We spent time in the court yard of the house with Al Hassan and his crazy children, who were running around us, screaming and playing. All the while we were watching the sky, because the most spectacular lightning storm had engulfed us all. The sky seemed alive, and massive purple bolts danced all around us. Of course, we were still determined to sleep on the roof. We laid there for a few hours, under the crazy sky. Al came up to check on us, he was so worried that our time would be ruined because of the rain that may come. He sat next to me and proclaimed, "This just is to remind us that no man can control nature." Of course in reply is stated "neither can woman." He then proceeded to laugh uncontrollably, slap me on the back shouting "I like you," and then very seriously came to the conclusion that "Okay, no HUMAN can control nature." I recount this little convo for you, because just that moment, sitting on the roof, under the violent sky, in a Muslim village in the north with AL was so special, and I will truly cherish our little understanding forever. Just for a moment we seemed deeply connected, and the differences of our lives faded away as we came to a common understanding and appreciation of the world around us. Wow, I am getting a little carried away, but that's just me, so deal. Needless to say, right after I dosed off, I was awoken by something wet covering my body, and in a split second, I realized that the sky was falling! No, just rain, pouring rain. We rushed down with our mattresses, down to the little room, where we huddled together, four on this little bed, the rest in another room. The rain was so loud under the tin roof, but luckily we did not have the leak that the other room of sleepers got to enjoy.
So another adventurous, yet sleepless night. First a bus station, then a rainy rooftop. But I was awoken around 4:30am by the call to prayer from the mosque just a hop-skip and a jump down the road and departed by 6:30.....on BIKE! I was so excited to be on a bike again, it reminded me of Davis and the favored mode of transportation. I was totally in my element, free as a bird on my bike, and then %#$%@&! My peddle came flying off, and the next thing I know, bitter and angry me was walking the 6km to Mole. Well, my friends had to deal with "bad mood" Ali for a while, but I snapped out of it, ready for our foot safari at 7:30am. BUT, once again, as predictable as predictable can be, the guides had not been arranged, and we were stuck safari-less until 10am. It would not be such a big deal, however, we feared that the elephants may have already evacuated the watering hole, which they often do. Well, thing ended well for we convinced our guide to take us straight to the watering hole, skipping the two hour walk to it, where we may have seen some other wildlife. Now this experience was just as mind blowing! We were just feet away from about six elephants, relaxing in the water, splashing about. Again, they are just such beautiful animals, and seeing them in their natural environment rather than behind the walls at the San Diego Zoo was just spectacular. So we spent time there, taking pictures and exchanging little squeals of joy every time they would even move. AND then as we circled to the other side, our favorite elephant, whom I named Frank Sinatra, departed from the watering hole to the shore, within like 20 feet of us. He proceeded to shower himself with mud, only noticing us once, causing the guide to clench his gun in anticipation of a charge. I got some amazing photos, well I mean Jessica got some amazing photos. The elephant almost looks fake in the pictures because he is so close to us in the background. So, eventually we had to be dragged away, and I left with such a content feeling. See the thing is, before I left here to Ghana, I found this list I must have written when I was like ten. It was a list of things I wanted to do in my life time, yes the original bucket list thank you very much Jack Nicholson. What is so crazy is that so many things from that list have been accomplished on this trip, like "go to Africa, touch a crocodile, go on a safari and see elephants." So, walking away, I was content, content that another goal has been accomplished, only a couple thousand to go, no biggy.
We spent more time in the pool, where I gave in and just went in in my undergarments, how lady like, right? Well don't judge, it was probably one of the hottest days of my life, so I would have gone in naked if it had come to that. Before dusk, we all returned to Larabunga, me with Al Hassan, and the others on bike, or foot because more bikes broke down. In Larabunga, we walked around the town and were swarmed by people, curious what we were doing, where we were from and if we would be their friends. As I lay on the roof this night, in dreadful anticipation of being up at 3 in the morning again to catch the bus home, it set in that it was Easter Sunday, and I had spent it in Ghana, on a safari and now under the star in this lovely little village. What a trip!
Well, that's pretty much it, minus the insane morning we had. Al Hassan insisted that he help us get transportation the next day, so that we could be saved the trip all the way back to Tamale, and go straight to Kumasi. He ended up having to brawl with the bus driver because it was full, leaving us stranded in Larabunga. I felt very guilty because he basically got us on, cutting dozens other Ghanaians that were waiting for a ticket. The trip was amazing, and then I had to depart with such a feeling of shame. However, when I voiced this to Al Hassan, he simply reassured me that if they had the opportunity, they would have done the same to me. This didn't really make me feel better, but at least it was something. We ended up taking a tro-tro to Kumasi, which was a whole experience in and of itself, leaving Alicia with horrible bruises because we were being so tossed about. From Kumasi we caught a STC bus, where none of us slept, all alert and talkative after our whirlwind weekend. It was hard coming back from such an experience, and jumping back into school the next day at 8am, but hey, that's life.