NEWSFLASH!

So much has happened since I wrote last!!!

First things first: I now have my official COS (Close of Service) date; August 25th, 2008. After that I plan to travel around West Africa for about 1 1/2 months before I fly home. Don't worry, I've got a travel partner!

A couple of weeks ago I had my COS conference with the other 45 or so volunteers that I swore in with. Peace Corps put us up in a really awesome hotel where we ate buffet-style for 3 meals a day!!! It was really nice, actually... it was the exact getaway I needed! Unfortunately I didn't get to hang out with the other volunteers as much as I had hoped. I had to study for the GMAT in just about all my spare time.

So, I had to schedule to take the GMAT in Ghana (2 countries over) because it's not offered in Benin or Togo. The visa's just to get over to Ghana cost about $50 USD, so I decided to take advantage of them and spend the last of my vacation days in Ghana as well. I'm actually still in Ghana right now!

Ghana is an incredible place. People are so friendly here! Also, they are on the American/British system instead of the French system, which means they speak English, eat toast instead of baguettes, work during those 3 hours in the middle of the day, and they even have fast food! I feel like I could really live here. Even though it is English speaking here, it is still surrounded on every side by French speaking West Africa... surely I could find a job here, right? We'll see. Right now I want to finish my service and my travels, then touch American soil for a while.

Since being here I've really played tourist the whole time. Ghana and Benin were the two largest exporters of slaves during the slave trade, so I spent quite a bit of time visiting the Gold Coast. The Gold Coast is, obviously, the coast of Ghana. It was named this because of all the gold found there. The Gold was actually the first thing that attracted Europeans to Africa. Gold would be traded over the Sahara from one tribe to another in the forms of traditional carvings and gold dust. Back then the people here saw it as something beautiful that could be used as decorations, so when the Europeans came in search of gold, they found they could buy it off of the locals very cheaply. Because of this, they built huge fortresses along the coast line. The Portuguese were the first to arrive, but over time they left the coast. This left the British and the Dutch as the main powers in Ghana, and after time they found that trading humans was much more profitable than trading gold. Over 250 years 65 million slaves were traded from Ghana's coast.

There are over 20 castles and forts that still stand on the coast of Ghana today, and touring them was incredible. In the Cape Coast Castle human waste would be left in the cells to the point where in one room it had solidified to a highth of 4 feet. Most castles held up to 1,000 people at a time for 2 to 3 months before being shipped off like animals... and that's not counting the 2 to 3 months WALK in shackles to get to the coast. As many as half of the people involved died before reaching the new world.

Playing tourist and seeing these forts was incredible. I visited Cape Coast Castle, Fort Victoria, and St. George's Castle. I also went to the towns of Cape Coast, Elmina, Takoradi, Kumasi, and of course Accra, the huge and wonderful capital.

Other news: I gave birth for the first time Wednesday, May 28th. I had had this swollen spot on my stomach for about a week, and after taking the GMAT I finally decided that it might be time to squeeze out all the liquids that seemed to be inside. I squeezed and squeezed, and then this line of white stuff about 1 centimeter long comes out all at once... and then it starts wiggling!!!!! I flipped out!!!! And started calling the Peace Corps doctors and explaining what happened to everyone who passed my way. I soon settled down though. It turns out it's just a common thing here, and you squeeze out the bug and it's over. They never have twins. It's actually a fly that lays larva on wet clothes, and if you don't let your clothes dry completely before putting them on then the larva will hatch on your skin and start forming a fly. Apparently, if I had left it much longer I would have started to see the fly moving under my skin!!! Crazy, right?! Anyway, I killed it right away, and ever since I've been drying my clothes to the point of obsession.

That's about all of my news though. I know this blog is a little eclectic and not well organized, but I've just been writing as things come to me. I hope all of you are doing well, and I hope to see you all when I get back in early October!!!

Sarah