We left our place in Accra around 5 and headed to Kaneshi station in Accra. I threw up a couple times on the way because I got zero sleep the night before. The neighbors had an all night wedding or funeral, I'm not sure. The music was blasting and they had a microphone they were yelling into. Kenny slept through it all. Ha ha Kaneshi station is as insane as it was 2 years ago. Thankfully this time I didn't need to look for a bathroom with Liz. Eventually we found the tro headed to cape and got our baggage loaded after fighting with the price a bit. Finally we were on our way to cape. The road was familiar especially the last hour of the drive as I pointed out places I had visited. I can't believe I forgot how insane my hair gets after a long windy tro ride. I love it. It was Kenny's first tro ride, and unfortunately nothing momentous happened. The car worked the entire time, it turned on when you turned the key etc. I'm sure we'll get him on a story telling tro soon enough. On my parents and Madis first tro ride the mate had to get out and push the car to get it to start.
I traveled often while in ghana and every time the tro drove under the bridge leading into cape the calming feeling of being home would sink in. Over the past two years as I've dreamt of returning, my dream always started with me sitting in a tro squished among Ghanaians crossing under the bridge/arch. Thankfully my experience was exactly that plus butterflies mingled with disbelief that I was actually back in cape.
We elighted/dropped at petro, and grabbed a quick drop taxi to Doris's house. on our way we passed my old apartment, and the street I walked daily...still pinching myself. We carried the luggage up a million stairs, and I opened the gate to find jude. He screamed a little as he ran towards me arms open wide. Afterwords he followed us around staring so intently at my face....so I was not the only one in a little bit of shock. Rosemond was upstairs, and it was so good to see her again. Both her and Jude have grown while we were away...mainly their faces are older.
Doris was in town, but instructed Rosemond to cook for us, and as I had my first Ghanaian food since being here I wanted to cry... Oh how I've missed their rich colorful flavors. We were only their for about 10 minutes and already Kenny was climbing up the walls to hide from Jude while they played tag. Jude asked me twice "where is grandpa I miss him. Why wouldn't grandma and grandpa come (aka my mom and dad)". Doris recently painted the entire house, and honestly it looked so different. The entire upstairs was spotless and of course Doris is having us sleep in her bedroom. That is just who she is. I could fight or protest but I know she would do anything for me, just like I knew it while I lived here 2 years ago. There are so many things she does for me/ did for me, but that reason alone is why she was instantly my Ghanaian mom.
We waited so long to see her that I actually fell asleep before she made it back from town. I woke up and strained my ears...I could hear here voice over all the other noises on the street. I went downstairs, but she was showering so as I waited I kept hearing her say "ahhhh Meekell"! She came out of the shower in a towel and gave her little grin as she stood there wrapped in a towel...I jumped up to hug her and she did her little dancing excited hug, and then ran to hug Kenny as well. "ahhh you are welcome"! She went and changed and came back down and we started the reunion all over again. She kept telling kenny how happy she was to meet her in-law. Over the next couple of hours she would stop and touch my hair"ahh Meekell I have missed you", she would nuzzle her head in my neck with another "ahh Meeekell". I don't know how I lived 2 years without her. She is just one of those people you want to put in your pocket and take everywhere with you. Oh how I wish that was plausible.
Kenny and I went to market with Doris, and it felt like my nose was having a reunion with those familiar smells that only exist in Ghanas markets. I even felt happy to smell the awful smell of dried fish. At one of the stops a little boy grabbed Kenny's hand and stood their staring at him...I melted a little bit, mainly because I've been holding back the urge to ask everyone I see to hold their baby. I think Ghana makes me baby hungry. Doris has told us twice that when we return in 2 years, we must bring her grandchild. (apparently she would like to make the two year thing a tradition...I really can't object can I?) She told us twins would be best, a girl and a boy, and she will love them so much. She thinks Kenny and I are the perfect heights together so automatically our children will be beautiful...like how Rosemond was, but Jude was fat and not as cute. How I've missed the honesty of Ghanaians.
After market Kenny helped carry the groceries, Doris was so impressed. In the taxi I told her that he even cooks dinner for me. She was shocked and explained it in Fante to everyone in our taxi and one of the ladies said our marriage was strange. They can't imagine their husband cooking.
For dinner doris prepared jollof and I was in heaven. I can still eat an entire plate of jollof. Kenny ate everything and even tried eating the bone of the chicken. Jude kept staring and saying how much he liked him for eating like him and not americans... I still refuse to eat the bone of a chicken. I told doris how awful my jollof was when I tried making it back home, and she thought that was hilarious. She said before I leave I will prepare it for her that way I can make it back in America...we will see!
We played games all night many of which made absolutely no sense because Jude made them up. He has already started secret handshakes again, and we spent 30 minutes seeing who could go up the most stairs with a water bottle on your ad without dropping it...I was the champion, and jude was a close second followed by Rosemond, and lastly Kenny. As I was approaching the top stair Doris was cheering and yelling at Kenny to snap a picture, and I was just trying not to laugh so I could make it to the top. I also relearned the Fante words I had forgotten, and practiced saying them with Jude. I love Ghana nights with them.
I finished the night with a bucket shower with Kenny... Doris said we were married so we could shower together. I wanted to laugh the entire time we were in their having our "romantic" moment freezing as we voluntarily dumped buckets of cold rain water on ourselves. Once you get over the initial shock of the water it sometimes feels refreshing. Afterwords she told metro go up to bed and converse with my husband before we fall asleep...I wish I stayed awake long enough for him to brush his teeth, but the jetlag got the best of me. He had to wake me back up so I could take out my contacts. Sadly Doris doesn't have a fan or anything so Kenny and I tried to utilize the entire space of the bed to stretch out and not touch so we could get cool enough to fall asleep!
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