When 2019 began, I didn’t think I would be ringing in the New Year in Ghana. Don’t get me wrong; I’ve always wanted to visit the country but didn’t think it would be this soon. However, after a friend told me about Afrochella (think Coachella but with an African twist), my interest was piqued. In addition, I read that 2019 was being coined “The Year of the Return” by the President of Ghana, marking the 400th anniversary of the first enslaved Africans being brought to British colonial North America (which set in motion the transatlantic slave trade). After that, I was obsessed with arriving in my first West African country and knew Ghana would see me in 2019 (albeit the end of 2019!).
Since missing Christmas wasn’t an option, my friend Candra and I booked for the day after Christmas through New Year’s. Not knowing much about everything there is to do in Ghana, I figured 5 full days would be more than sufficient but boy was I wrong! I’m getting ahead of myself though…before I even arrived in the country, there was a ton of “prep” that needed to be done.
First was the yellow fever vaccine. Theoretically, this should’ve been easy peasy but Sanofi Pasteur, the manufacturer of the only yellow fever vaccine (YF-Vax) licensed in the United States, didn’t have anymore (or so they claim). Although they received approval for another one made in France named Stamaril, they were only allowed to distribute it to a handful of clinics throughout the US (I swear it is all a conspiracy!). As a result, we ended up calling at least 25 clinics in the NYC area trying to find ONE that offered the vaccine at a reasonable price. Good news is we found a couple that had the vaccine in stock but the bad news is that it would be about $300!
Since our flight and hotel were already booked, there was no going back so we coughed up the money and got the jab. We received the coveted yellow booklet indicating we were vaccinated (IMPORTANT: make copies of the yellow fever card! It is good for life and if you lose it, you have to go through the entire process – and cough up all of that money – all over again!).
Next on the prep list was the visa! First, you have to fill out an application online https://ghanaconsulatenewyork.org/gcn/VisaForm.aspx. Then you have to make an appointment to drop off your passport with all of the necessary documentation (passport, printed copy of the visa application, passport photo stapled to the application, payment (credit and debit cards are accepted), and proof of travel like hotel and flight confirmation). You’ll then receive an email notification a few days later indicating the day and time your passport will be ready for pick-up (but you can go any time after that as well).
Next up was the malaria pills. Unfortunately, my primary care physician requires that I make an appointment to get a prescription so I made sure to do this well in advance of my departure.
Since I knew it was going to be a busy time in Ghana with 2019 being The Year of the Return and all, I booked a couple of tours with a tour operator named Easy Track Ghana (highly recommended) and one with Tstmkrs Africa.
Our Brussels Airlines flight left in the early evening and arrived in Accra the next day. Thankfully, the flight was pretty uneventful (see Norway post as to why I am thankful for quiet flights now!) and we breezed through immigration, customs, and baggage claim.
We found a currency exchange and ATM right outside of the airport. My preference is to always take out money from the ATM (see Croatia post for the reason why) but since none of them were working for me, we used the currency exchange to get the local currency called cedis. Although I had organized the airport transfer through the hotel, it was going to take another hour to arrive so we got a taxi for 50 cedis (about $10 US). Beware: most taxis in Accra do NOT have air conditioning so prepare to feel hot and sweaty ALL the time.
After we arrived and checked into the Roots Apartments Hotel, we were supposed to go to a party called Detty Rave but we were exhausted (jet lag is the worst!) so we ended up selling our tickets and going to bed. Of course, I only remembered the next day that I wanted to go because one of my long-time favorite soca performers (Machel Montano) was going to be performing there 😩😩. From the videos that I saw, it looked like we missed a good time! Oh well!
For our first full day in Accra, we had a jam-packed itinerary starting at 7am. Even if you are not an early bird, I would recommend leaving at the crack of dawn because it gets HOT (like hotter than the devils balls kinda hot) later in the day. I used Easy Ghana Tours to book our private guide. Although this tour was on the pricier side ($110), I prefer the convenience and flexibility a private tour would offer.
Our first stop was Black Star Square, also known as Independence Square, which is a public square commissioned by Kwame Nkrumah (the first Prime Minister and President of Ghana, and instrumental in helping Ghana gain its independence) to honor the visit of Queen Elizabeth II. Fun fact: Independence Square is the second largest City Square in the world after Tienanmen Square in Beijing, China.
We also had the opportunity to get a bird’s eye view after walking a couple flights to the top of the monument.
The next stop was Jamestown, one of the oldest districts and fishing communities in Accra. Although it is also one of the poorest neighborhoods in Accra, what it lacks financially, it makes up for in history.
Our guide for the Jamestown walking tour recapped a bit of the history and also showed us where the enslaved Africans were held underground until a ship could come and take them overseas.
Our guide then took us to his family house (a complex that includes extended family like grandparents, cousins, aunts/uncles in addition to members of the nuclear family). He mentioned that the entire family stays there until they get married (or in his words “see something shiny”).
After Jamestown, our next stop was Makola Market which is a market in the center of the city that sells everything from fresh produce to fabrics to handmade jewelry and more. Now let me say, this market is not for the faint-hearted or directionally-challenged (like myself). Good thing we had a guide that easily showed us where we can haggle for fabric because it was a maze! Tip: keep your phone and valuables hidden at all times because there is a bevy of people everywhere and someone can easily snatch your valuables and disappear without a trace (hence, why we don’t have any pictures or video once we ventured inside).
Then we headed to Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum and Memorial Park. As I mentioned earlier, Kwame Nkrumah was a Ghanaian politician and revolutionary who led the country to independence more than 60 years ago. Both the bodies of him and his wife, Fathia, are housed in the mausoleum. Inside the building, there were various items that Nkrumah used throughout his life (e.g., his desk, etc.) however, no photos are allowed inside.
On our way back to the car, there was a vendor selling delicious mangoes. The mango was so juicy and sweet, I wish I had bought several! There also was a man selling bracelets. He custom made one into a bookmark that spelled out GHANA for me as a souvenir for my son Avery. I was SO impressed by how quickly he made it (less than 5 minutes!).
We then headed to the Center for National Culture which is filled with vendors selling arts and crafts ranging from Kente cloth, wooden sculptures, and beautiful handcrafted artwork.
Last on the list (but certainly not least) was Osu Castle, also known as Christianborg. In 1661, the then Danish governor of the Cape Coast fort, Fort Fredericksborg, paid 3,200 gold florins to Paramount Chief Okaikoi of the Ga ethnic group. Here, the Danes built a stone fort and named it Christiansborg, meaning ‘Christian’s Fortress’, after the King of Denmark, Christian IV. Over time, the castle contained a courtyard, chapel, storerooms, dungeons, etc. We toured the “castle”, stopping at the church with the dungeons located right underneath and imagined how the owners were praying and worshipping as the slaves were screaming for their lives… From there, over 100,000 enslaved Africans were transported to the Danish West Indies (now the U.S. Virgin Islands).
We wrapped up the tour around 3pm and then walked to Chez Clarisse, a chop bar (which is a traditional, make-shift, “come as you are” eatery that sells an indigenous variety of Ghanaian foods) about three blocks from the hotel. We had a tough time finding it because it was definitely a hole in the wall from the outside but the food was good. We had jollof rice, kelewele plantain, chicken thighs, and banku (which is a soft mushy sour corn, cassava, and flour dumpling thingy which was the only thing that WASN’T good and probably why it was only 1 cedi).
Next up on the schedule was Afrochella! After a quick shower and outfit change (much needed since we were drenched in sweat from our tour earlier in the day), we were ready and on our way to El Wak Stadium.
The line was LONG to enter but the time passed quickly as we were thoroughly entertained by all of the interesting outfits we saw. The process was a bit disorganized but when we finally made it inside, the festival was teeming with tons of unique artwork, exhibits, and vendors.
Much like other festivals, music was a key component. There were two stages featuring musical performances: a main stage with a number of foreign DJs playing and another stage with local artists.
Overall, Afrochella was a cool experience but in all honesty, I expected more vendors selling local crafts and activities to partake in (aside from Instagram-worthy backdrops). It will probably be my first and last time there but a good experience, nonetheless.
The next day was Sunday and we had a day trip to Kumasi planned to observe the Akwasidae Festival. The festival is celebrated by the Ashanti people and chiefs in the Ashanti region, and is celebrated on a Sunday, once every six weeks. The timing happened to coincide with our visit to Ghana so we didn’t want to pass up the opportunity!
Kumasi is about a 5 hour drive or 25 minute flight from Accra, so we opted for the shorter method of transportation since we had to make the most of our short time in Ghana. The airport check in was the fastest I’ve ever gotten through (perhaps because we didn’t have any bags!).
In keeping with the theme of there always being some crazy folks on my flight, when we got off the shuttle bus that we had to take to the plane, a private car rolled up to the plane with a group of people decked out in all white. I have no clue who they were but of course they sat right behind us on the flight and when the food and beverage cart came around with bottled water, one of the people in the party complained that he wasn’t being served tea and snacks! Meanwhile, Candra and I were just grateful for the free bottled water on such a short flight!
When we landed, the private guide we booked through Easy Track Ghana met us at the airport and whisked us off to our first stop at a craft village. There, we were able to shop for Kente cloth, hand-crafted sandals, and try our hand at weaving.
After a bit of browsing (and shopping), we went to the Manhyia Palace Museum. The museum celebrates the Ashanti leaders and the history of the kingdom. The exhibits displayed royal regalia, photographs, medals, furniture, drums and palanquins, some of which are over two hundred years old. My heart was full and teeming with pride to see how rich and powerful Africans were before they were enslaved.
Since the Akwasidae Festival typically starts around 2pm and lasts for a few hours, we had lunch beforehand at a nearby restaurant, Jelof. While the food was nothing to write home about, the spring rolls and chicken I ate were decent. The service was slow, disorganized, and left much to be desired but we got a chance to chat with a couple of local men about the festival and what to expect.
The festival started around 1:30pm but we arrived after 2pm so the king was already seated in the courtyard of the palace. He was surrounded by his protectors and close chiefs, and there was a continuous procession of dignitaries going up to greet him.
We too got a chance to join the procession and go up with the other foreigners and greet the king with a bow but weren’t allowed to go all the way up to the king like the dignitaries or subordinate chiefs. One tourist tried to go all the way up and he was swiftly intercepted…lol.
People were bringing offerings, including cases of alcohol (I wonder what the king is going to do with all that Johnnie Walker?!) and even a live goat!
There also was drumming and dancing in the courtyard.
I was even interviewed by a local station about coming to Ghana for the Year of the Return.
A couple of hours later, the King went in a procession around the courtyard in a palanquin before eventually ending up back at his home.
After the ceremony was finished, we headed to the airport (albeit about 3 hours early) and just relaxed in the air-conditioned waiting area before going across the street to check in (check in was closed when we first got there). Of course, when we were ready to check in, the line was super long and moving slow. When we finally reached the front of the line, we were notified that the flight was cancelled! Since our Africa World Airlines flight was the last one of the night (go figure!), they were scrambling to put people on the flight right before ours since that one had a bunch of empty seats. Since they never gave us a new boarding pass for this earlier flight, we had to keep explaining the situation over and over (to security, to the gate agent, to the person on the tarmac, to the flight attendant) as we ran to the plane. Since we were nervous about the flight taking off without us (we didn’t realize at that point that the flight was going to be there for another 30 minutes), we were running like bats out of hell across the tarmac. Thankfully, it all worked out and after a short flight, our driver picked us up from Accra airport and took us to Lord of the Wings where we had wings and tacos. The shrimp tacos were AMAZING and highly recommended.
The next day we were supposed to do the Cape Coast tour. We arrived at the meeting point at 6am and waited for more than 2 hours!! After having words with the tour operator (Tastemakers Africa), we decided to push the tour to the next day since we didn’t really have many options at that point. Instead, we salvaged the day and made it a shopping day! First, we walked to Studio 189 but to our dismay, it wasn’t open for the day yet (despite the listed hours saying otherwise). Then, we walked to Global Mamas whose mission is to empower African women selling unique, handcrafted products allowing them to achieve financial independence. They had great stuff and we bought tons of souvenirs.
Although both stores were only a few blocks from the hotel, it was extremely hot outside so we had to stop back at the hotel for water. Note: Anything that looks close on the map in Ghana is deceiving. It is so hot outside, you don’t want to walk more than 10 feet without trying to find a place with AC (which hardly exists!).
We went to a couple other clothing boutiques, including Woodin which had really cute clothing. We built up an appetite after all of that walking and shopping so we walked to Burger & Relish where we had delicious cocktails, an appetizer of jollof rice balls, tasty burgers, and a milkshake for dessert. I would highly recommend the Three Little Piggies burger that had a beef and chorizo patty, cheddar cheese, bacon, bacon jam, and crispy onions. IT WAS SO GOOD!
After relaxing a bit at the hotel, it was time for dinner! We had 9pm reservations for Bistro 22 (a highly rated restaurant in Ghana) and took a short taxi ride there. It was a cute, upscale type restaurant with a great ambience. I wanted to try the sobolo julep but they were out of the sobolo juice cocktail so instead I settled for a trusty old-fashioned cocktail instead. To start, we had the shrimp in a lemon butter sauce and it was soooo good…literally melted in my mouth! For our main courses, I had the salmon pasta in a creamy white wine sauce and Candra had the pesto penne with chicken. Neither dish disappointed!
We both thoroughly enjoyed our meals…until it was time to grab a taxi back. It was pretty easy to catch one since they ran with some frequency outside of the restaurant. But of course, the one we jumped into, the driver was about to pull off when an upset previous passenger came to his window and began arguing with him about the price that he paid when he was in there with another passenger. It seemed like the person actually took another taxi from the spot he was dropped to argue with our taxi driver about the 2 cedi he was owed (equivalent to less than 50 cents). I couldn’t really figure out exactly what the argument was about, but this went on for a good 10 minutes. The taxi driver went so far as to tell the man to get in the taxi and he will drop us off first and then take the man to where he needed to go. They argued most of the way and then all of a sudden the man started apologizing for being disrespectful. Candra and I had our hands on the door handles the entire way in case we needed to make a quick exit but interestingly enough, it all remained relatively civil. No guns, no machetes, no getting physical, no cursing. We were thankful we made it back to our hotel and headed to bed. Never a dull day!
The next morning we had to wake up super early (yet again) for the Cape Coast tour (which actually happened this time!). The bus was about 30 minutes late so we ended up pulling off around 6:45am. After the three-hour drive, the first stop was Cape Coast Castle. It was originally built by the Swedes for the trade in timber and gold, but then later used in the trans-Atlantic slave trade as prisons and embarkation points for slaves on their way to the Caribbean, South America, and the U.S. Possession of the castle was stolen back and forth between the Danish, Dutch, and Swedes (competitors in the growing slave economy) as the slave trade grew bigger and more profitable in the 1600s and 1700s.
We walked throughout the “castle” and saw the conditions the enslaved Africans used to live in. There used to be hundreds crammed into “slave holes” with no ventilation nor windows and the floor covered in human waste, causing many to become seriously sick. Up to 1,000 male and 500 female slaves were shackled and crammed in the dungeons, with no space to lie down and little light. There were separate dungeons for the men and women and children, with women regularly being raped. The castle also had confinement cells — small pitch-black spaces for prisoners who revolted or were seen as rebellious. Once the slaves arrived in the castle, they could spend up to three months in these conditions before being shipped off. We saw the infamous “Door of No Return” which led the enslaved Africans out of the castle and onto the ships. Then the boat journey to the Americas could last months, and an estimated 15 percent of slaves died aboard. The castle was the last memory the slaves had of their homeland never to return again.
We then walked to the Oasis Beach Resort for lunch. The buffet offered a range of delectable dishes which were all really delicious.
Next, we drove to Elmina castle, also called St. George’s Castle. It was the first – and for many centuries – the largest, European building constructed in tropical Africa. Between 1482 and 1486, the Portuguese built Elmina Castle. The conditions were similar to that of Cape Coast Castle. Slave traders would cram more than 1,000 slaves into a space that could barely fit around 200 people. There was very little light, air, water, food, or sanitation in the dungeons and outbreaks of malaria and yellow fever were common. Any rebellious act was harshly disciplined: men were starved to death, while women were beaten and chained to cannon balls in the courtyard. Around 30,000 slaves each year passed through Elmina until the Dutch slave trade was abolished in 1814, seven years after the British.
The last stop of the tour was the Kakum National Park, home to Africa’s only rainforest canopy walkway. The canopy walkway consists of seven separate bridges that hang from the trees over 130 feet above the ground and span across over 1,000 feet of walkway.
There is an option of two routes: a shorter route with only 3 bridges and a longer route with all seven bridges. Of course, we chose the longer one which actually wasn’t bad at all (my friend Candra may beg to differ though 😉).
After a long day, it was finally time to make our way back to Accra. Between the bumpy roads, numerous police checkpoints, and bumper to bumper traffic, it took us over FIVE hours to get back to our hotel 😩 Since it was New Year’s Eve, we were supposed to go to the Labadi Beach hotel for a party but we were so exhausted from the long car ride that we went up to the rooftop bar instead, grabbed a couple of watermelon mojitos, and watched the fireworks.
For our last day in Ghana, we booked another private tour with Easy Track Ghana. Our first stop was The Potter’s Village orphanage run by Dr. Mrs. Jane Irina Adu. While we brought suitcases full of clothes, toiletries, and school supplies to help, the orphanage is badly in need of more donations to support the more than one hundred kids that they feed, clothe, and house.
We then went to Aburi Gardens (a botanical garden) where we saw a variety of tropical plants, including the silk cotton tree, sleeping palm tree, and carving tree. We were able to get a guide there to explain a bit about the origin, age, and medicinal properties of the plants that we saw there.
Next up was the W.E.B. DuBois Centre (since we weren’t able to fit it in on our first day). It is a complex of four major buildings, including the home where Dr. DuBois spent his last years and the tomb of Dr. DuBois and his wife Shirley Graham DuBois. It was really interesting to see all of his memorabilia and personal library.
We were starving at this point so we had our driver take us to a restaurant called Frankie’s near our hotel (his recommendation, not ours) but the food was terrible. On a positive note, the seamstress we met earlier in our trip delivered the clothes we ordered after we got back to the hotel and all of the pieces fit like a glove!! I was super impressed they were able to whip out all of those pieces in a couple of days!
Before we knew it, it was time to say good-bye ☹ After a smooth check in at the airport, we went to 2 out of the 3 lounges using our Priority Pass (one had good food, the other didn’t) and then boarded our flight. Of course, in keeping with the theme of seeing something weird on almost every flight I’m on, we saw a woman walking up and down the aisle brushing her teeth with an electric toothbrush without a care in the world. Oh well, it was a great trip and I can’t wait to return to West Africa!
Other restaurants to try:
- Breakfast to breakfast (open 24 hours)
- Buka https://bukarestaurant.com/menu.php
- Café Kwae http://www.lovecafekwae.com/
- Azmera http://azmerarestaurant.com/index.php/menus
- Mamma Mia Pizzeria
Tips:
- Change your money into cedis…no one takes US money
- No one asked or checked for my yellow fever paper (but still get it anyway)!
- Stay hydrated and drink lots of water!
- Since our trip was so short, we weren’t able to do everything I researched about Ghana and nearby countries so here are some other ideas for combo trips:
| Things to do | Logistics | Visa Fee | |
| Mole National Park | · Go on walking or vehicle safari
· Larabanga (ancient mud-and-stick mosque) · Mognori Cultural Village for a canoe safari or a cultural program including drumming and dancing |
· 1 hour flight from Accra (leave at 6:30am and return flight arrives back at Accra the next day either 9am or noon) – $120
· 2 ½ hour drive from Tamale airport |
None (already in Ghana) |
| Togo | · Grand Market
· Fetish Market · Museum and Independence Monuments · Boat ride to Togoville |
· 3 ½ hour drive | Approximately $30
(passport photo required) |
| Nigeria | · Nike art museum
· Longest Canopy Walkway in Africa at Lekki Conservation Center · Badagry Slave Route · Makoko floating village |
· 1 hour flight from Accra (leave at 6:20am and return flight arrives back at Accra same day at 8:40pm) – $253 | $180 |
| Ivory Coast | · Lacasde: waterfall that you can slide down
· Comoe National Park to see wildlife such as lions, waterbuck, hippos |
· 1 hour flight from Accra (leave at 9:20am and return flight arrives back at Accra same day at 8:10pm) – $464 | $84 |
Toya's Travels 