OK, so about those pictures...to say I've been having difficulty finding a place from which I can upload them would be a bit of an understatement. I'll probably just suck it up today or tomorrow and pay the ridiculous 12,000 cedis for an hour over at AfroNet just so I can have ready access to a USB port. Sometimes, the simplest things take forever and a day to get done over here...

Of course, that's not to sound either as if I'm complaining or else have just discovered this fact. After closing in on two months here in Ghana, I've gotten used to it taking longer to do everything, and if it doesn't take longer, then it requires some extra effort on my part - best example being finding a restroom. If I'm out and about on campus, it can take 30 minutes to find an unlocked bathroom, and chances are about 9 out of 10 that there won't be toilet paper in it. If I'm back at the hostel, the bathroom IS just a minute walk away from my room, but I still have to remember to take my own toilet paper, and there's no guarantee that the water will be running - I've taken to testing the water any time I go into the bathroom by turning on a sink before I get in the shower or claim a stall.

I think I appreciate certain convenient aspects of life in the U.S. a bit more now. It's so easy to get fed up with the ridiculous commercialization and vapidity of contemporary American culture and society, and there's nothing wrong with that - if you're not outraged by what you see on the news and TV every day, then you're probably not paying attention. However, there's a lot to be said for public utilities that, generally speaking, work all the time. Running water IS your friend, as is electricity - haven't had too many problems with the latter, but the former...we've had to go 3-4 days at a time without running water in the hostel; it got so bad that we all started taking bucket showers with water from the reservoir pump in the courtyard. The amazing thing is that our hostel has the MOST reliable water on campus; apparently, the other residence halls are lucky to have running water once every week or so. Keep THAT in mind the next time you feel the need to gripe about some minor inconvenience with Res. Life. I remember getting mad last semester because our drain kept clogging, but at least we had water. For that matter, we had both hot AND cold water, rather than merely the latter. Of course, you don't really need hot water in this weather, so I haven't missed it much as of yet.

Meanwhile, I'm finding my mind going to immigrant communities quite frequently these days. I can't help but wonder if I'm getting a slight taste of what it must be like to live as an immigrant. As much exploring of Ghanaian society as I've been doing, I still find that, at the end of the day, I like hanging out with other international students, most usually Americans and Canadians. We stick together, and nobody really seems to think anything is off with this - the number of international students who spend equal or greater time with Ghanaians than with other international students is extremely low. There is a certain comfort that comes from sharing your experience in a radically different culture with those who are going through the exact same process; you understand and empathize, and you don't mind listening to somebody gripe for 20 minutes about getting stared at constantly, or having every passing taxi honk, or having a crowd of Ghanaians make fun of you in Twi or Ga while all you can do is just smile as they laugh their heads off at the stupid obruni. I think I understand why, at the end of the day, immigrants tend to seek out other members of their cultural community - there's a sense of belonging there that is lacking in the outside world. I don't feel like I belong, at least for more than a few months, in Ghana when I'm walking through the Madina market, having people yell "obruni! Hey, white man!" while trying to drag me into their shop. I feel a bit more like I belong when I'm with a couple of Americans who just had the same draining experience at the Madina market, listening to Bob Dylan and talking about our families and friends back home.

That said, the game is worth the candle (as my Russian friend would say); my time in Ghana has been, and will continue to be, worth every minute of lousy water supply and sticking out like a sore thumb or, well, a long-haired white guy in Africa.