Katie - Mexican, Poppadoms, Copella apple juice, bacon sandwich, Doritos, chinese, crumpets, innocent smoothie.
Alie - chinese (crispy-fried beef), gooey chocolate brownies with smarties and marshmallows (made by Jess), chocolate ice cream.
Lydia - chicken and bacon caesar salad, yoghurts, ice cream, cranberry juice.
Ben R - tuna steak and chips, bacon sandwich, quesdillias, grapes.
Peter - chinese, dairy milk, fajitas, toffee and marshamallow rice krispies squares.
Grace - fajitas, mum's apple pie, strawberry milkshake, bacon sandwich, peking duck, noo noo.
Ellie - cheese and marmite sandwich, apple and raspberry juice, take away, grapes, nectarines.
Amy - roast dinner, bacon sandwich, cheese, chinese, prawn stir-fry.
Ollie - burger and chips, dominoes, meat of any description, roast dinner, steak and chips.
Ben P - chicken and chorizo rice.
Also - Peter wants his dogs at the airport (not to eat though!)
Friday, 30 July 2010
Day 13
Thursday, and the Giant Rats have arrived - Timone and Pumba!! They took a lot of effort to catch, biting Isaac and generally playing hard to get. In the meantime, everybody took their material to be made into garments - unbelievably cheap! All the girls plan to wear their dresses to a party on saturday night. Certain members of the group also volunteered (somewhat unwisely) to dance with the Ghanains in a 'cultural performance'. It involves the chicken move, which Ben finds amusingly difficult, and a kind of shuffle along the floor... Wish us luck for Sunday's show!
If there's no blog before the 2nd all the co-eds (especially Alie) want to wish a very happy birthday to (her twin sister) Jess. :)
If there's no blog before the 2nd all the co-eds (especially Alie) want to wish a very happy birthday to (her twin sister) Jess. :)
Day 12
Then Wednesday brought the Sports Day... it was a beautiful mess of kids: 120 of these running in random directions, dancing, singing, and jumping up and down. The music was so good - African style Hip-Hop blasted out of huge speakers all day. Once we'd handed out all of our sweets and biscuits and prizes (and the cheeky things had stopped asking for more) we set off for more shopping in Cape Coast. Material for dresses, shirts and trousers, jewellery and tonnes of biscuits were piled into our bags and eventually 11 of us were able to cram ourselves into 2 taxis. One emergency stop for a flat tyre later and we were back home for freshly made chips, pasta and our staple tomatoe sauce. Thanks Bernice!
Day 11
On Tuesday we had an amazing experience with the the KG Kids - we were swarmed and mauled by hundreds of little ones screaming "Bruni, Bruni!" and "Bruni, what is your name?" Lydia became the group's Madonna, all the children wanted to be carried or have their hands held. Back to work and finally the fence and almost all the cages were finished! We bought 3 sheep, 6 chickens, a rooster and 3 rabbits (Grace temporarily lost a shoe in a puddle and all got peed on by enthusiastic rabbits.) There's Steve, Bernie, Gracie, Peter, Lily, Rocky, Babs, Georgie, Shaun, Roast, Fried and KFC!
Day 10
Monday was the day of the 9 hour shopping trip; Grace, Amy and Neelam stuck in the Sabre Office and in Cape Coast for the majority of the day while the rest of us wasted away back at Brenu! We had to eat pasta, sugar and milk powder (yes, together) which is apparently a typical meal... !
Monday, 26 July 2010
Day 9
All of us slept outside last night underneath the Palm trees. It was lovely and soothing to be able to hear the ocean whilst we slept. After a slight lie-in, we dragged ourselves out of bed to hit the buffet table for breakfast! Scrambled eggs, baked beans, toast, pancakes, peanut butter and pineapple jam certainly went down well! After breakfast, we set off to Elmina to visit St. George's Castle. The guided tour was really interesting,quite upsetting also as we learned about the slave trade and how 40 million captives died within the walls of the fort.
We walked back from the town to Stumble Inn along the shoreline. It was highly amusing when walking through the slums, watching little children gasp and point, shouting “Bruni”, which means White in Fanti. Never before have we felt like such a minority!
We returned to Stumble Inn for a lunch consisting of sandwiches and soup. Seeing as we had time to spare, some of us headed again to the beach, paddling in the water and collecting shells. The bus was late, as per usual(Ghana Time!), so we sat around drinking Coke for a bit. We set off around half past five, returning home during dusk hour, so setting up our camp beds and cots in the dark was a challenge! We were all fairly sleepy, so a final nibble on some bread and fruit was followed by much needed sleep.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
Ps.
Ben Paine has found great delight in hacking large bits of bamboo in half with a machete- this is part of our project as we are building the animal fence out of this. Ben Rogers has been entertaining us all with his crude sense of humour. He is certainly becoming a handy man with saws and nails. Ellie has taken the roll of finance controller, helped by her enthusiasm for maths and systematic organisation. Alie is slowly coming to terms with her misfortune when playing cards; she just can't beat Ben Rogers! Lydia is brown and looking beautiful, as ever. She has great skill with a hack saw-maybe a future career in development? Amy's culinary skills have been well appreciated on camp. She is also a proud mother to a beautiful baby-a conch shell! Grace is the mother to all; keeping the others on track with bedtimes and teeth brushing, treating us all with bedtime stories. Katie has been incredibly supportive towards the group; she is also a wonder with a scrubbing brush and has regularly kept the camp clean and tidy. Ollie has shown great leadership skills out on the field, also producing scientific theories to almost everything. Last, but not least, our dear animal man Peter has kept us all in line with regards to the main project. How he finds time to charge through so many novels, we just do not know!
Day 8
STUMBLE INN! We got up, had fried bread, packed our stuff away and headed off. From half past 11 onwards all we have done is sunbathed and swam on the beach. There was nothing more that we could have wanted. It was a nice treat not having to cook or clean. This day wasn't very eventful due to the fact we were all lazy as hell. We were entertained in the evening by an African dance and drumming troop, who were fantastic. The food is wonderful and the sun is even better. We are all tanning/cooking well.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
Day 8
STUMBLE INN! We got up, had fried bread, packed our stuff away and headed off. From half past 11 onwards all we have done is sunbathed and swam on the beach. There was nothing more that we could have wanted. It was a nice treat not having to cook or clean. This day wasn't very eventful due to the fact we were all lazy as hell. We were entertained in the evening by an African dance and drumming troop, who were fantastic. The food is wonderful and the sun is even better. We are all tanning/cooking well.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
Day 7
Today was a really long day. We finished building the skeletons of the chicken coop, the rabbit hutch and the grass cutter cage. Work started at 8am and didn't finish until 6 in the evening. Our bamboo poles FINALLY arrived after days of waiting They were all dumped at the bottom of the hill where, in pairs, we had to lug them up to the site. There were over a hundred poles, each approx 18ft long. Our shoulders were sure to ache in the morning! Gloria braided Ellie's hair, which looked amazing.
As far as food is concerned we had egg fried rice for lunch, and for dinner Neelam was clever enough to fashion up some garlic bread. We are all looking forward to our weekend at stumble inn, a much needed rest.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
As far as food is concerned we had egg fried rice for lunch, and for dinner Neelam was clever enough to fashion up some garlic bread. We are all looking forward to our weekend at stumble inn, a much needed rest.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
Day 6
We had pancakes for breakfast!
We made great progress on the project site today. We were split into groups again, organised by Ollie. Some set to work building the giant grass cutter cage. Others began work on the chicken coop and the the rest started painting the remaining beams with creosote; a highly toxic and illegal (in the UK) wood treatment. We had to take extra precaution to make sure none of the substance got on our skin; it was unfortunate that there was no other alternative that we could have used.
Some of the girls helped Gloria and Bernice with dinner again and we settled down for an early night.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
We made great progress on the project site today. We were split into groups again, organised by Ollie. Some set to work building the giant grass cutter cage. Others began work on the chicken coop and the the rest started painting the remaining beams with creosote; a highly toxic and illegal (in the UK) wood treatment. We had to take extra precaution to make sure none of the substance got on our skin; it was unfortunate that there was no other alternative that we could have used.
Some of the girls helped Gloria and Bernice with dinner again and we settled down for an early night.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
Day 5
Most of the group ventured outside to sleep last night, which was exciting, but rather cold. We were treated to eggy bread this morning for breakfast, which was a nice change. After feeding time we were split into 3 groups to start work on the animal project. Some of us were assigned to collect buckets of sand from the bottom of the hill, which was bloody heavy, to be used to make concerete. Others collected small stones, and if they were not satisfactory we found great delight in smashing the rocks up with a mallet. The rest of us waited for the carpenters to arrive with the wood needed for our structure. Part of the team headed off to cape coast to shop, accompanied by Bernice who volunteered to help us find good ingredients.
The community came up to the school to greet us, producing a large basket of fruit as a gift, which we were all grateful for! After lunch we continued with our project, and so far we have secured the main posts of the structure with concrete bases. Seeing as we finished early we were able to head down to the beach for some chill time. The hotel has allowed us to use their outdoor showers for free, which is a godsend, as running water is such a luxury. Gloria and Bernice cooked us a traditional Ghanian dish – 'Red Red' (which is fried plantain- a savoury form of the banana) and beans in tomato sauce.
We had a chilled out evening giving/receiving massages with Robert in such a hype, urging us to give Isaac a back rub.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
The community came up to the school to greet us, producing a large basket of fruit as a gift, which we were all grateful for! After lunch we continued with our project, and so far we have secured the main posts of the structure with concrete bases. Seeing as we finished early we were able to head down to the beach for some chill time. The hotel has allowed us to use their outdoor showers for free, which is a godsend, as running water is such a luxury. Gloria and Bernice cooked us a traditional Ghanian dish – 'Red Red' (which is fried plantain- a savoury form of the banana) and beans in tomato sauce.
We had a chilled out evening giving/receiving massages with Robert in such a hype, urging us to give Isaac a back rub.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
Day 4
Today we were introduced to groups of kids to begin our anti-malarial campaign. It seemed that the girls were certainly more chatty than the boys! We asked them what they already knew about malaria and if they knew how to prevent themselves, they knew a broad range of symptoms but were a little shaky on the causes or preventions. We devised a short acronym to help the kids remember– ABC. A standing for awareness, B for bite prevention and C for care. Hopefully this will have some effect on the community because they are such hard working children and its not fair that malaria is such a risk. They even carry up buckets of water for us before they begin school, about 6am; its the least that we can do. Some of the children returned to lessons, and others had exams. Some of us, such as Ben Rogers, got involved with the kids by reading stories – helping them with their English. Some of the girls entered the library and were challenged by the students to a few rounds of checkers and oware, which we sorely lost to! The younger school children were fascinated by bubbles and colouring pencils, and seemed to use us as climbing frames.
The group is bonding well, we've all begun to shine in our own aspects. Grace and Amy have set up a massaging parlour which is the highlight of some of our evenings. Heated rounds of card games are keeping the troops entertained along with long melody ballads of Disney songs.
No further medical issues, we are all perfectly happy being filthy and no one is sick.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
The group is bonding well, we've all begun to shine in our own aspects. Grace and Amy have set up a massaging parlour which is the highlight of some of our evenings. Heated rounds of card games are keeping the troops entertained along with long melody ballads of Disney songs.
No further medical issues, we are all perfectly happy being filthy and no one is sick.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
Tuesday, 20 July 2010
Day 3
Hi everybody,
This morning we had an early rise and shineto be ready for the school children at eight, where we were welcomed and sang to. Our national anthem was required from us which was...errr...interesting. After this, we went to meet the elders and the chief who reitterated our warm welcome and gave us 'magical' fizzy drinks. following our meeting, we split, with 3 of us accompanied by robert went on a wild taxi ride to Cape coast to do some shopping and the rest started the project, levelling the farmland and removing unwanted stumps. The rest of the day was spent beaching. Coming back to a lovely Ghanaian curry prepared by Gloria and Bernise which was a great surprise.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
ps. On a medical note, all happy campers are well. Ellie has been chosen as the local delicacy for the mosquito population, and has been bitten many a time around the ankles, but she is coping; still with a smile on her face! Grace's chronic hayfever has followed her overseas, but ample doses of loratidin are doing wonders! Mighty Ben Paine has survived a machete attack- or should i say a minor encounter with a wood chip, lucky to escape with only a wounded finger! Lydia wins the award for quote of the week, 'Guys, I think we should take all our clothes off" (referring to the washing may she just add) Amy has perfected her hair washing skills- jamming her head in a bucket! Ben Rogers really needs to tie his shorts a bit tighter- the water baby is becoming a little too exposed for our liking. Peter has mastered the art of crafting fans out of palm leaves and shimmying up a coconut tree! Ollie was victim to sand burying and ended up looking like a pregnant paraplegic. Katie and Alie have now confirmed they were separated at birth, both sporting the french plaits and CHS t-shirts. All in all, the team are very happy and are settling in well :)
Warning, some of our points may have been over exaggerated for comical effect!
This morning we had an early rise and shineto be ready for the school children at eight, where we were welcomed and sang to. Our national anthem was required from us which was...errr...interesting. After this, we went to meet the elders and the chief who reitterated our warm welcome and gave us 'magical' fizzy drinks. following our meeting, we split, with 3 of us accompanied by robert went on a wild taxi ride to Cape coast to do some shopping and the rest started the project, levelling the farmland and removing unwanted stumps. The rest of the day was spent beaching. Coming back to a lovely Ghanaian curry prepared by Gloria and Bernise which was a great surprise.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of exploration!' xxx
ps. On a medical note, all happy campers are well. Ellie has been chosen as the local delicacy for the mosquito population, and has been bitten many a time around the ankles, but she is coping; still with a smile on her face! Grace's chronic hayfever has followed her overseas, but ample doses of loratidin are doing wonders! Mighty Ben Paine has survived a machete attack- or should i say a minor encounter with a wood chip, lucky to escape with only a wounded finger! Lydia wins the award for quote of the week, 'Guys, I think we should take all our clothes off" (referring to the washing may she just add) Amy has perfected her hair washing skills- jamming her head in a bucket! Ben Rogers really needs to tie his shorts a bit tighter- the water baby is becoming a little too exposed for our liking. Peter has mastered the art of crafting fans out of palm leaves and shimmying up a coconut tree! Ollie was victim to sand burying and ended up looking like a pregnant paraplegic. Katie and Alie have now confirmed they were separated at birth, both sporting the french plaits and CHS t-shirts. All in all, the team are very happy and are settling in well :)
Warning, some of our points may have been over exaggerated for comical effect!
day 2
Hi everone,
Today we went to the church which was very interesting; although we didnt understand much until we had our own english sermon. We then spent the rest of our very productive day at the beach...it is beautiful. In the evening, we had a nice sing song around the camp fireuntil later when we got into our cots to avoid the mosquitos.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of Exploration!' xxx
Today we went to the church which was very interesting; although we didnt understand much until we had our own english sermon. We then spent the rest of our very productive day at the beach...it is beautiful. In the evening, we had a nice sing song around the camp fireuntil later when we got into our cots to avoid the mosquitos.
Love to all,
'The co-eds of Exploration!' xxx
day 1
Akwaaba everybody,
We are having a great time! We have met all the people in the village, they are very friendly saying 'hello, what is your name?' Arriving this morning, we proceeded to drive around in an aeroplane-seated ex-army truck for the day, running our various arrons on the way to Brenu. When we arrived, we set up camp with the help of the school children who found our general incompetance amusing. Prior to this, we met our guides for the trip, Isaac and Robert who are both singing, dancing, friendly people. We also met Gloria and Bernice, who are amazing cooks!
Love to everyone,
'The co-eds of exlporation!' xxx
We are having a great time! We have met all the people in the village, they are very friendly saying 'hello, what is your name?' Arriving this morning, we proceeded to drive around in an aeroplane-seated ex-army truck for the day, running our various arrons on the way to Brenu. When we arrived, we set up camp with the help of the school children who found our general incompetance amusing. Prior to this, we met our guides for the trip, Isaac and Robert who are both singing, dancing, friendly people. We also met Gloria and Bernice, who are amazing cooks!
Love to everyone,
'The co-eds of exlporation!' xxx
Thursday, 15 July 2010
Welcome to the blog...
This is the team blog for the Chesham Grammar School summer expedition to Ghana. The team will be updating their diary as frequently as the internet connection allows, and friends and family will be able to follow their progress as they work to complete their three projects at Brenu Akyinim School.
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