by phil | Dec 14, 2011 | Music
Last year, on a bus from Abidjan to Bamako, I fell asleep on the morning of our second travel day. The sun was coming up and coupe-decale was still squeezing its way through tired speakers. I woke up at noon and the coupe decale had been replaced by Coumba Sidibe, a...
by phil | Dec 6, 2011 | Camels, Ghana
This post is a warm-up. I have a lot more to say about what I experienced last week. A more substantial post to come on the How to Draw Camels blog in the near future. Northeast of Accra, close to Lake Volta, the largest man-made lake in the world, there is a town...
by phil | Nov 28, 2011 | Ghana
Mosque minarets of Newtown, Accra at dusk The air of Accra clots around the door. Part salted sea breeze, part sweetened tropical smokiness, part diesel exhaust, burning refuse and dry palm leaves. The dead air of an airplane cabin is gone. I told myself I would study...
by phil | Nov 16, 2011 | thoughts
I’m flying to Ghana today. More regular posting will resume next week. In the meantime, I want to share a few worthwhile projects from others. The Wise Routes Project My friend Claire and her boyfriend, Brandon, just rode their bikes from Vancouver to San...
by phil | Nov 4, 2011 | thoughts
This post is not a rejection of aid or charity or volunteering. It’s a rejection of an attitude about Africa. Last summer, at a chop house in Takoradi, Ghana, an American girl struck up a conversation with me. She was a 3rd year university student volunteering...
