Hot, Hot, Hot!!

Tuesday afternoon after work, Sherie attempted to teach me to play soccer. I lack a little in the coordination department, so it was a rather humorous experience! Wednesday morning we showed up for work at 8:30, but none of the staff arrived at the hospital until 9:00. I am quickly learning that the Ghanaians have an even bigger problem with showing up on time than I do! I spent the day working with Dr. Akosawu, a young doctor from here in Ghana. She is such a pleasure to be around! I saw several interesting cases today. Namely an unusual presentation of endometriosis, a guy with schistomiasis and nocturnal hematuria, and a lady who had a TIA while in the office. Of course I saw multiple more cases of malaria and a few cases of food poisoning. I’ve been told a million times not to eat food from the street vendors, but the locals apparently don’t always heed their own advice.
Sherie, Andrew, and I went to lunch at a local place just down the road with Prosper, one of the lab technicians. I was so hungry, and I was hoping that I would be able to find something good to eat. I ordered rice balls with chicken, which sounded more appetizing than fish or goat. It was pretty gross, I’m not going to lie. The Ghanaians don’t use silverware; they eat with their hands. However, the lady serving us was nice enough to bring me a spoon!
After work we decided to take a trip to Accra Mall. We had the cab driver drop us off about half a mile from the mall, so that we could stop by some of the street vendors. I immediately spotted a little, dirty Ghanaian girl sitting under one of the make-shift tents. I made my way over to the tent and asked the vendor there if it was his daughter. He introduced me to Princess, who was a little over a year old, and Prince, who was about two and a half. They were the most adorable children and were so sweet and tolerant to let me hug and hold them! I took pictures with them and then I bought a little trinket from their father. As we walked down the road, we can upon a group of Ghanaian men and women singing and dancing. It was a really cool experience, and watching them definitely brightened my day!
We made our way to Accra Mall, and found ourselves some delicious ice cream! I stopped by the grocery store at the mall, and had my first experience with fending off a Ghanaian guy. Apparently, my fake wedding band had been working pretty well up to that point!
I have Thursday off from work, so we are going to go into town to visit the cultural center. After work on Friday, we are leaving for a weekend trip to the Cape Coast, which is about two hours away. I am looking forward to it!
I am still super homesick. I won’t even try to deny that one. I miss everyone so much. It has been pretty hard. I love hearing from you guys, so keep the comments, emails, texts, and calls coming!

Much love,Leah