Today started early... i was waiting at the road for Dela at 7 am ... we went by taxi to the tro tro station.
Here everyone travels in between villages and towns by tro tro, which is a retrofitted mini van... the inside has been redone with rows of benches so that when the van is comfortably full which is quite rare, 15 people can be seated.
You buy a ticket to the town you want to go and then you sit in the tro tro until it is minimumly full ie 15 people. This can take two minutes or as was the case for us this morning 1and a half hours!!!!! Dela had wanted to start even earlier and i understood why... people start earlier when the trip is a long one! Live and learn!
We had time to go to a breakfast joint... which is a tiny shack where breakfast is made... i had a delicious sweet coffee!
Finally we were off... i didn't really notice how long the trip out was because i had a Ghanaian to grill... 'Why do they burn down so much of the green?' 'Acch, this is Africa! No respect for the countryside.' And there were many other questions...
So time flew by... as did the country side... a bit to fast for my liking sometimes...
I was pleased when the villages came as he had to slow down. Especially when all the sellers would swarm us...
Finally we arrived in Kofridua! And a bustling town it is...lots and lot of people shopping... but we got into a taxi again and went further out...
The Bead Market is now in an organized spot with stalls... Since it is not a part of a larger market there were hardly any shoppers..
It was so fantastic to be there... i had dreamt of this moment for ages.. One of those moments i had mocked up since getting back from Ghana five years ago.
It is a wonderful place to find beads.. the sellers are nice and not pushy and actually many of them know a lot about their product. So i had an engrossing several hours perusing all the different stalls...
I had not brought much money.. not really on purpose but it turned out to be a good move... i was able to just tell people it was my first time there and i was getting the lay of the land. Everyone was understanding and explained where the beads came from, what they were made of, etc. It was exactly what i needed.
My head was spinning a bit after the intense concentration.. Dela recommended a fresh coconut... A man on the side of the road hacked open a coconut for me with his machetee... The coconut milk was so refreshing and reviving...
I was ready for the long trip home... and my! it was long! We were all nodding drowsily in the heat... i just hoped the driver had drunk a lot of coffee!! But then he was probably pretty wired on adrenaline maneuvering that van on the hairpin turns up and down the mountains...
During one stop in a village one of the sellers was a young woman with oranges pyramided up on a large round silver tray... She was like an acrobat with those oranges... she would reach up take an orange deftly from the pile , do this fancy thing with her knife which skinned the orange and then place it back in a new pile around the pyramid! It was captivating to watch... i smiled and she was there in a flash outside my window with such a hopeful smile i reached my hand out... up went her hand to the pile snatching an orange and with a flourish and a slice four pieces of orange were in my hand... and it was one of the sweetest oranges i have ever tasted!!
All in all a captivating day! I am going again next week but i will have a Plan before i go!! and a book to read on the way home....
One thing that was a bit strange... i was so living my day today i completely forgot to take a single photo!!
Next time that will be part of the Plan ... take some photos to show you....
