Bits 'n' pieces

I have been a little busy but only with knitting cushion covers for my home in wintry South Africa. 

                                  

Ghana has done its thing again because Jose` has been off for nearly a week in hospital with suspected kidney stones and Neil hurt his back.  He has had to lie on my inversion bed (thank you, Brian) and I also gave him my "kidney belt" to wear until it is healed. 

 

 

He is besotted though, as anyone with a soul would be, with my little chap!

We three took a drive to Kwame Danso to buy some eggs and bread and saw this delivery van along the way.

 

On the way home, we stopped at the shop to have a look.

Kingsford and Elizabeth came round in the afternoon to greet us and to thank us for attending the wedding and for the monetary gift.  We were told that they stay indoors for a week after the marriage and come out into the open after 7 days. (Reminding me of the new groom who developed a suntan-stripe down the front of his chest as he peeped through the gap in the curtains each morning and announced to his new bride...."Yip, its still raining!")
                                                                                 
                                                   

                                   

                                      (Giggling) He has now got a tiny smirk on his face!

                                                         (But I didn't see the suntan.)

The wedding

I made a gingerbread loaf for Porks and Neil and was told by my husband that "this is better than my mother's" - me lying on the floor, kicking my legs, flailing my arms in the throws of a mock heart attack.  I was always lead to believe that his mother was perfect! 
Thank you Ghana!

(Whispering.... it wasn't even that nice!)

 

Gunds normally curls up next to the pillows on the bed.... 

 

We were officially invited to Kingsford and Elizabeth's wedding on Saturday in Kwame Danso! What to wear? What to wear?

The invitation was for 9am but true to "Africa time", we were advised to only arrive after 11am. 

     

So Pokey and I got dressed into our Saturday best, picked Neil up and off we went to Kwame Danso.

 

I wore my silver high heels....

 

my expensive pearls........

 

and my Porks.

 

 

 

We arrived still with plenty of time at 11.30am. There was much festivity and a happy atmosphere.  The band was playing, the congregation were singing and walking around, dancing on the dance floor and around the chairs and chatting to each other. 

 

  

Kingsford was sitting in his seat when we arrived and didn't move at all. We wondered if he and his best man had been sitting there since 9am!  His facial expression didn't change once throughout all the festivities.

 

 

The bridal canopy was surrounded by guests with the dance floor and band in front of them. 

 

The six chairs behind the canopy were for the families of the bridal couple all having arrived before the bride.
                                 


                            This little guy was loving dancing on his own before the ceremony.

 

He was probably less than 2 years old but managed to find me later in the congregation! I was surprised because they don't see many "abronys" and I thought he'd be too scared.

 

 

This smart little chap was entertaining himself outside with a bicycle that was far too big for him.

 

                                                  I told Porks that he was under-dressed.

The lavender and white theme continued with the balloons and the plastic flowers. 

                                   The bride arrived to much fanfare and hooting.
                            

                                The colour-co-ordinated bridesmaid got out, posed and waited.

 

                                                   Then she opened the door for the bride.

 

In time to the music, Kingsford walked slowly up the isle to meet Elizabeth at the entrance and then he turned around and they walked back down the red carpet to the canopy together, he still with the same facial expression.  We were convinced he was terrified!

 

 

They sat down together and the wedding ceremony began.

During the ceremony, the bridesmaid and best man randomly got up to mop the bride and groom's perspiration from their faces and they just sat there as still as statues! (Oh, so that's the bridesmaid's job, Kelly.)  It was so laid back that there was chattering from the congregation all the way through the function.  Even during the minister's deliverance, there was heckling from the crowd.  People were so relaxed, getting up and walking out and then coming back during the whole service.  Even the bride's father as well as the bridesmaid stood up and walked out during the "declaration of couple." No-one was offended and didn't even seem to notice.

 

The minister gave the whole service in one of the Ghanaian dialects interspersed with very little English, to lots of  "woop woops" and "ai ais".  I even heard a short, sharp "yaw!". The words I did hear the minister say in English were "fertiliser for a happy marriage" (Do you sell that, Roger?) and sometime later "no excuse" to much loud laughter.  He also mentioned something extremely important because he said "in capital letters" but I have no idea what that was.   The heckling got louder and I'm sure I even heard some guy shout "Prooooviiiiince!"

Her father gave her away and they said their vows, well we think they did, we couldn't hear above the noise.  Kingsford removed Elizabeth's veil, put a ring on her finger and they were husband and wife.  We know this because everyone clapped and shouted.

                                                    They sat down again but swapped places.

See what I mean about Kingsford's expression?

The couple danced and the guests walked up to them and stuck money on their foreheads.  It didn't stick (the perspiration had been wiped off, duh!) and they tried again, picking it up off the floor as it fell.  The congregation joined in with the dancing hardly moving their arms at all, just shuffling, which seems to be the Ghanaian way.  Neil suggested that it is too hot in Ghana to move any more than that!
After having learned unique Ghanaian wedding customs and with light and happy hearts, we left for home.

 

  

Great news!

Poor Porkles!  In retrospect I think I would have rather been in Ghana than having to do what he had to do while in Johannesburg.  He eventually managed to get his visa and passport and was booked on a flight on the Thursday evening at about 5pm South African time.  While he was waiting, he had to buy some sunglasses for me as I had left mine behind and they are essential here.  The poor chap had very little cash on him, so in the beginning, had to buy a cup of tea with his credit card!  He also didn't have a charger, so had to switch his phone on and off intermittently to save his battery.  He was told to urgently get his Police Clearance while waiting. He managed to draw money from his credit card and pay the R300 each way to Kempton Park in the taxi.  Our doctor, who we could only see on the Monday before we left, had emailed a new prescription to me for him, so after many phone calls backwards and forwards correlating with the battery "on" period, I managed to email it to a chemist when Porks had already gone through passport control.  So he received this new medication at the last minute.

On my side, the television wasn't working when I got here, so poor Jose` rushed back from the office to help me!  I fiddled with my computer for three hours trying to get it connected to the internet and eventually managed! (Well done ME, Kell.) The toilet in our bathroom was blocked and I had to phone Porks during one of his "switched on" periods (phone wise, not brain wise!) to get permission to get someone from here to come and fix it as I couldn't raise Jose` on his phone.  I didn't get him either, but we managed to fix it without help.  There were no tomatoes, onions and fresh eggs in the house, so Theresa went into Bantama to find some for me as the guys were having supper here that night and I was cooking, not Sarah this time.

I wanted to bake some kind of pudding for the chaps that evening and when I opened the cupboard, hundreds of weevils rushed out to greet me.  They were in the flour, the bicarb, the cereal as well as the icing sugar.  Fortunately, I had brought two and a half kgs of flour from home, so the guys didn't have noonoos in their buns (raisin buns that is!) I have now placed all vulnerable and precious commodities in the refrigerator.

The electricity went off  while we were chatting and luckily Porks has taught me how to change over from VRA (Volta River Authority) (our ESC) to the generator.  The generator is at the back of the house and we had to go out in bucketing rain to start it.  Deon followed me to help me and we both got sopping wet but the rain here is always warm and not at all unpleasant.

Porks arrived back on the Friday afternoon but it took me quite a while to pick myself up from the setback and find my equilibrium again.

We have had wonderfully cool weather since I have been back, with either rain or cloud cover almost every day. Such a difference from the heat in the first months I was here. The mosquitoes are rife though because of the rain, so we have to be extra careful with repellent.

Genie is still battling to walk on our slippery floor but we take her outside as often as we can.  Its difficult though as being nocturnal, she is virtually blind in the sunshine and prefers the darkness of the house.  She and I connected the day after I arrived and when I am sitting on the couch knitting and watching TV, they both want to sit with me on my lap.

I couldn't find Genie the other night but saw a largish bump in the bed.  I got my camera ready and in the dark took a "blind" picture of my children. Sweet, hey?

 

 

We bought these "ayesu" in Atebubu the other day.  Made from ground mealies, ungrounded/unground/ungrinded ground nuts then deep fried and rolled in sugar.  Porks said it reminded him of home as it tasted of phutu.

                                        

Porks had been been back for a day when we invited the two new South Africans for rugby and breakfast on the Saturday morning. We also had them around for supper one night.  We had a roast pork that we had bought in Accra which cost GHC 21.46 for 1.3kgs - cheaper than the broccoli I wanted to buy!!

Wayne Beswick (Pietermaritzburg) was here to supervise the building of prefabricated houses but completed his work and went home after two weeks.

Neil Halshausen (Now Scottburgh but Highflats originally) is here to support Porks in the clearing and planting. You won't believe this!  Neil and I were at Stirling Primary School together in East London.  We were in the same class in Sub A, Sub B and the first term of Std One in 1965, when my family moved to Pietermaritzburg!  He is a softly spoken, gentle, amiable, considerate and empathetic man and was born in April of 1957, so we are very similar! (Hahaha!)  What a small world! (More importantly, how did he remember me?)

 

Neil is new to Ghana but not to Porks. They have known each other for years being in the timber industry together. He arrived the day before Porks flew home to South Africa, so has been here three and a half weeks.  John the driver, Neil, Porks and I went to Kumasi yesterday to buy some much needed groceries. 
                                                                                   
                                                                             Not this!

                                                                              

 

                                                                   Look - I'm famous!!

                             
Yes, (elbow pumping) I'm not genetically modified, am internationally No.1 but have only been of any quality since I got married in 1981! Thanks Porks.
                                        


When I want to know how Porks is really doing, I ask him what number he is emotionally out of ten.  He has been fluctuating between one and one and a half since I have been here, and was in the minuses before I arrived.  With the emotional support of Neil who also understands how braaivleis, rugby, sunny skies and Chevrolet work, he is now up to a seven! 
                                                                   The best news!
                                                   Shan is smiling louder than ever!