Sunday, June 17, 2007

In short.

I'm running out of my internet time, and didn't get many of the things that I wanted to do done, so I have to keep this week's blog entry short. While normally I write my entries during the week and post them on the weekend when I have internet service, this week I was without my computer.

Why? I just completed a week in a rural village in Ghana, about 14 km away from the main road. How do I know the distance? Because I rode my bicycle there. Keep in mind, this isn't any ordinary bicycle. It's a one speed girl style bike (most of them are here, it's really practical for when I'm wearing a skirt!) that is supposed to be shiny and red, but instead is more of a subdued orangy-maroon because of all the red dust and dirt that gets into everything. It has a bell that is used for alerting goats and sheep to get out of my way, a basket on the front, and a light that I can turn on and off that is powered by my peddling. The best (read: worst) part though, is that isn't balanced. While in Winnipeg I can take my hands off the handlebars and am still able to continue, and even turn corners, when I tried this on the Savelugu roads it banked sharply to the left. It makes steering quite difficult!

So I took my bicycle (with a week's worth of clothing, medicines, my journal, and my first aid kit) to Zoggu on a semi hard red dirt road. As long as I was really watching where I was going, I could make the ride very easy. I learned to distinguish very quickily the colours of the harder road to the softer, and weaved between them... at least, when my bike allowed me to with it's faulty steering.

It was quite a bit easier, even, than I thought it would be. I found myself thinking that I could return to Zoggu for day trips, to visit the friends that I was going to make. The ride was easy!

And I thought this for the week, until I started to return to Savelugu. Then I looked at the road I was to return on, and I realized why it was so easy. From Savelugu to Zoggu it is almost entirely downhill, which means that my 14 kms back would be entirely uphill. It took me twice as long to return, and I was travelling after a full week of labour. If I go again, I'm going to try to arrange a ride there on the back of motorbike!

I have many things to write about my village stay, I learned more about the way rural communities run and the people live in that one week than I have since I got here. I'll have pictures too, but unfortunately, you'll have to wait until Friday, which is when I'll have internet next.

I hope you're all enjoying your perfectly balanced bicycles. I know I will when I return!

1 comment:

Unknown said...

That is too funny! I shouldn't say this, but I'm picking my bike up from a tune-up tomorrow... sorry, but it was coincidence that you were just writing about your faulty steering! Sheesh, just take it for a tune-up at the local bike store! :o)

You must be in some great shape! We're gonna see some muscles on that bod in a few months I think!!

I look forward to your next entry and all the goodies you've written about. (By the way, what's the work like?)

Take care girl, and keep on biking!