Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Bolgatanga, Upper East Region, Ghana
In the morning we were informed of the bad news. The damage to the other vehicle was so serious that parts had to be shipped in from Accra. So the first thing on the agenda was securing a new vehicle.
Next on the list was determining what to due about a lack of media coverage of the flame. I have no idea of what kind of press releases went out originally, but I bet the change of dates may have had something to do with the lack it.
It was decided that a team of advance people would leave for Tamale. This was good for the flame, bad for us. It meant that we now had 7 people stuffed into our vehicle -- three in the front and four in the back. And that was in addition to all the luggage and torches (there are several) and kerosene. The mixture of fuel and sweat added to the sensory overload of the trip.
There was no time for breakfast, although I was getting somewhat used to eating once a day.
The plan for Bolga was somewhat different that for what we had seen in Wa. The event would open with speeches and then a cross section of citizenry would run with the flame through town. As an added bonus, we had a pick up truck at our disposal to use as a moving camera platform.
The event took on epic proportions in Bolga.
As the flame was carried through the town by a series of runners, thousands and thousands of schoolchildren lined the route or chased after us.
Both Asamoah and I lept in and out of the truck to get better angles of the excitement. Asamoah concentrated on the video while I concentrated on stills. As the camera truck was the lead vehicle, it struck me that a white man (me) was a the head of a procession marking independence and the end of colonial rule.
It was stifling hot, and my ancient bones struggled to keep up. But the excitement we generated in Bolga was incredible. Despite the challenges of the trip, I found the experience to be more than worth it.
There was little time to rest, eat or drink fluids. We had to hit the road again, destination Tamale.
The driving would be less torturous as the remaining regional capitals were a little closer together and connected by decent paved roads.
After about two hours we arrived back in Tamale. I called Kat and Sam, arranging to meet up for dinner at the Gariba Hotel later in the evening.
We sat in the parking lot of the Regional Ministry as the organizers made their arrangements. I killed time by talking to people back home and twiddling my thumbs.
We were shown to our accommodation for the night. I was rewarded with my own bed, but the residence was a bit of a dump. There was no light in the bathroom, the toilet didn't function and in place of an actual shower was a broken tap from which flowed an icy trickle of water at knee height. Perfect!
A lack of lights throughout the residence was likely a blessing as it hid any six- and eight-legged creatures from view.
One of the biggest problems on the trip for me was water. I was unable to drink any of the tap water for fear of getting sick, and I had no way of treating it. Worse, most of the time we slept in locations so far off the beaten path that there wasn't even the possibility of walking to a shop for a bottle. It didn't take long to start planning ahead and buying water and bread when I got the chance.
It was getting late by the time we were settled and the arrangements for the next day were made. Smiley drove me across town to the hotel where Kat and Sam were waiting.
We had another wonderful chat about our experiences. Both of them loved living in Tamale. They found the weather hot but bearable. They both were doing home stays at the same place. And, as mentioned previously, both owned motorcycles.
From my short experience in Tamale, I was quite jealous. Takoradi is ok, but sometimes it feels like a mini-Accra. Too noisy, too busy and too difficult to explore without wheels. Tamale is calm, friendly and comfortable. If I decided to spend a second term here in Ghana, I just may head north to Tamale.
Sam bought my dinner and drinks and we said our goodbyes. It was so nice connecting with people from home going through the same experiences. I can't wait to get back up north again.
Kat and Sam left me in the hotel's business office where I connected my laptop to the outside world. It was only the second chance I have had to go online while on the road. It took some time to read through the hundreds of emails that were waiting for me.
It was close to midnight before I packed up the laptop, exhausted. I asked the hotel security man to fetch me a taxi.
After another long drive across town, I arrived at the gates of the residence. A raspy voiced security man refused to allow the taxi to continue any further. I'm not sure why this is, but it is common to see signs that forbid taxis to enter certain properties.
I paid the cabbie 30,000 cedis, shot raspy-voiced man a foul look, and proceeded to hike what felt like 20 miles through a tangle of dorms in search of the right one. After about 20 minutes and a couple of wrong turns, I discovered my home for the night.
I slid into bed and listened to the six- and eight-legged creatures scuttle around in the darkness. I closed my eyes....
Cheers!
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