[Note: Okay, I know we still haven't posted about last shabbos, when we visited the Jewish community of Ghana in Sefwi Wiawso. But it's incredibly long- both the transportation and the actual shabbos experience, so I haven't gotten around to it yet. So I know it's out of order, but first, this shabbos:]
[Oh and it's Rivky!]
We went to the Jewish community in Sefwi Wiawso last shabbos, and we stayed with a really big family who had two extra bedrooms for us. They were so sweet and good to us, and we invited them to come to us for shabbos, not actually expecting it to happen. They took us up on it, which was awesome, and three of the children- Anthony (22 years old), Patrick (20 years old) and Sarah (17 years old) came for the weekend. This was HUGE for them. I think Patrick had been to Accra once before, but Anthony and Sarah had never been. Sarah had never even been to Kumasi, the closest "big" city to their village- three hours away. She had never spent a night away from her house before! Though she didn't say it, it was clear that being in Accra was a huge step for her, and for the rest of them.
For shabbos, we made a lot of food- on Friday night, we had stew, boiled plantains and salad and 3 challot, on Shabbos day, we had fish, yam balls and sauce, salad and 3 more challot, and then we also had a sizable seudat shlishit, including two sweet challahs, one with chocolate chips (fancy, I know).
It was just so interesting having them for shabbos. When we went to Sefwi Wiawso last weekend, sitting in shul and talking to them in the house, we were visitors in their world, and having them in our dorm with us, they got to experience a taste of what Orthodox American Jewry is like. We sang kabbalat shabbat and zmirot on shabbos. Patrick and Anthony sang along, and Sarah read along in the Artscroll English. During seudat shlishit, we all sang some of the songs they've been taught by American visitors through the years.
One thing that was really interesting- on Friday night, during dinner, a girl on our program came in and talked to us for a couple of minutes. She told Anthony, Patrick and Sarah that she was Jewish also. When she left, they asked us about her, and we explained that even though she identified as Jewish, she didn't feel compelled to have Shabbos dinner. They didn't understand how someone could be Jewish and not do shabbos. We tried to explain that in America, plenty of people identify as culturally religious, but not observant, but it was pretty alien to them.
On motzei shabbos, Cornelius and Richard (and Richard's cousin) picked us up and we all went to the beach. The beach is always cooler at night, but it was especially awesome because Anthony, Patrick and Sarah had never been to the beach before. They had never seen the ocean! At first, they were slightly nervous, but one by one, they all came with me and we put our feet in the water. I felt privileged to be there with them for something that I don't think any of them will ever forget. Sarah is really shy, and she has such a sweet smile. At one point, the wave came in a little high and our skirts got wet- she grinned and squealed, and it was really awesome.
Today was a chilled out day. Pretty much our entire dorm went out, but I spent the day at the apartment- took a long shower (we had running water, while Teaneck was out; a fitting way to end Adar, no?), read a lot. Hadn't been by myself in a while, it was nice.
Patrick definitely had the best English, and last night, he wrote us a really sweet note- for posterity, I want to write it over. He drew a picture of himself, Anthony and Sarah, and then he wrote:
"We really do not know how much to thank you all for hosting us all among you, and taking us, as your brothers and sister, that is really mice you have show to us that we are all one as a whole to be Jewish.
We are going back home to tell our community and parent about what you have done. May the Lord Almighty bless you all and grant you peace.
Ladies, do you know what we like most about your hostel? All your friends are friendly and share everything with us all. May God bless them too.
We are very sorry we have to leave on Sunday but we hope everything is well with you all.
We also thank Yamit mother for paying for our transportation. May God grant her long life and prosperity we are hoping to see her sometime.
We say that you all: meda wo fe; Todarabah.
May God send you back home safely and best in your exams when you come back to Ghana!!
We also enjoyed your food! You are all best in cooking and making sauce. We tell you all the food we eat is among the best food we have ever had. Bye to you all!"
HOW FREAKING CUTE IS HE???
It was just great because we were able to give back to them a little bit of what they gave to us. They told us that every couple of weeks, they host American Jews who are visiting for shabbos. But that means they are always hosting; they've never before been the guests, they've never seen how other people make shabbos. I think they had a good time. Hopefully they'll come again before we leave, but who knows. We'll definitely be in touch with them, though.
Showing posts with label jewish. Show all posts
Showing posts with label jewish. Show all posts
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Thursday, January 21, 2010
A Noticeably High Proportion of Our Posts Have Been About Food, Haven't They?
**I switched to numbers, as a way of footnoting. So everyone can stop yelling at me, kthanks.**
Hi, it's Rivky! I'm sitting in the common room at 1 in the morning, watching Zahava fry potato balls.(1) CIEE has a trip tomorrow, so we're not going to have time to cook for shabbos, so we made everything today. Yesterday, we made beer bread- yeah, I meant to say that. Since there's no kosher yeast and we haven't been able to make challah yet, we improvised. Yamit likes to share little tidbits of wisdom with us, and she's informed us that beer bread was very popular in the 70s (often eaten with Jello!). Today, while Yamit and I were at Shoprite (more on that later), Zahava made fried plantains, and now, we're finishing up the potato balls.(2)
To buy all these ingredients, we took our first trip to Medina Market today.(3) We went with Ann, our first Ghanaian friend! It was ridiculous- like the shuk in Yerushalayim, but on crack. It was packed, and we were the only oborunis (white people) in the entire place. We stood out like a sore thumb(4). We bought mangoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, plantains and a yam.(5) We also bought bananas, and ate them on the spot. They were delicious; the bananas here are amazing, plentiful and incredibly cheap. They're also about half the size of American bananas.
Anyway, back to the current activity, frying 'yam' balls. When we tried the batter, we realized that we had bought a potato, and not a yam. In this country, apparently, there is actually no way to tell them apart. Hehe. We panicked a little bit, but we figured we'd just make them anyway. Turns out they're delicous- Zahava and I keep snacking on them. The first couple are actually ball shaped, but then we got bored because WOW they were taking a long time to cook, so the rest of them look more like latkes.(6) They're amazing. Can't wait until shabbos- we have a feast! Bread, fried plantains, yam balls(7), and salad?
Okay, we're almost done. Normally, we would wash the dishes now, but the water is out. Duh. We had to do bucket showers tonight- we took the buckets to the spigot across the street, where we filled them up(8) and lugged them back to the building, up the two flights of stairs, and into the showers, trying not to spill too much along the way. It was a thrill.
Tomorrow, we're going to Abonsi, a village about 90 minutes away from Legon. Apparently, while at Abonsi, "we will get the opportunity to meet with some of the local leaders of the town and also and also a traditional ruler to see how local governance takes place in communities in Ghana." Should be interesting. Maybe I'll even get to be made queen of a village!(9)
Oh, almost forgot! At Shoprite, we ran into Moshe and Uri, two of the Israelis living in Accra! We talked to them for a while, then Uri drove us back to campus and we met Sarah, the frum girl living in ISH (International Students Hostel). It was great, and we're planning on doing a lot of shabbatot together, but the best part is that Moshe's apartment has a WASHING MACHINE and he is letting us use it!!! Our hand-washing was a miserable failure last week, so this is a big step for us. Very thrilling.(10) Okay, time for bed! We have to be on the bus tomorrow morning in under 6 hours. Fun.
(1) They were supposed to be yam balls, an authentic Ghanian food. But they're not. More on that later.
(2) A real team effort. Yamit made the mashed potatoes, I shaped the balls, and Zahava is doing the bulk of the frying.
(3) Presumably named after the city in Saudi Arabia, not the Hebrew word for country. But who knows?
(4) But how much do sore thumbs even stand out? I, for one, never even look at thumbs.
(5) Or not a yam. Whatever. Still more on that later, promise bli neder!!!
(6) And these are literally potato pancakes. For future reference, even though I don't usually like latkes, apparently, when the potatoes are mashed, I do!
(7) GO AWAY we're still calling them yam balls, even if they're not.
(8) Good question on Yamit's part- if there is water across the street, is there really no way to make it get up to our suite?
(9) Shout-out to Elana! Or really her friend, who was made queen of a Ghanaian village she visited last year. How awesome.
(10) Also, at Shoprite, we bought Magnum. Amazing. A shabbos treat!
Hi, it's Rivky! I'm sitting in the common room at 1 in the morning, watching Zahava fry potato balls.(1) CIEE has a trip tomorrow, so we're not going to have time to cook for shabbos, so we made everything today. Yesterday, we made beer bread- yeah, I meant to say that. Since there's no kosher yeast and we haven't been able to make challah yet, we improvised. Yamit likes to share little tidbits of wisdom with us, and she's informed us that beer bread was very popular in the 70s (often eaten with Jello!). Today, while Yamit and I were at Shoprite (more on that later), Zahava made fried plantains, and now, we're finishing up the potato balls.(2)
To buy all these ingredients, we took our first trip to Medina Market today.(3) We went with Ann, our first Ghanaian friend! It was ridiculous- like the shuk in Yerushalayim, but on crack. It was packed, and we were the only oborunis (white people) in the entire place. We stood out like a sore thumb(4). We bought mangoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, plantains and a yam.(5) We also bought bananas, and ate them on the spot. They were delicious; the bananas here are amazing, plentiful and incredibly cheap. They're also about half the size of American bananas.
Anyway, back to the current activity, frying 'yam' balls. When we tried the batter, we realized that we had bought a potato, and not a yam. In this country, apparently, there is actually no way to tell them apart. Hehe. We panicked a little bit, but we figured we'd just make them anyway. Turns out they're delicous- Zahava and I keep snacking on them. The first couple are actually ball shaped, but then we got bored because WOW they were taking a long time to cook, so the rest of them look more like latkes.(6) They're amazing. Can't wait until shabbos- we have a feast! Bread, fried plantains, yam balls(7), and salad?
Okay, we're almost done. Normally, we would wash the dishes now, but the water is out. Duh. We had to do bucket showers tonight- we took the buckets to the spigot across the street, where we filled them up(8) and lugged them back to the building, up the two flights of stairs, and into the showers, trying not to spill too much along the way. It was a thrill.
Tomorrow, we're going to Abonsi, a village about 90 minutes away from Legon. Apparently, while at Abonsi, "we will get the opportunity to meet with some of the local leaders of the town and also and also a traditional ruler to see how local governance takes place in communities in Ghana." Should be interesting. Maybe I'll even get to be made queen of a village!(9)
Oh, almost forgot! At Shoprite, we ran into Moshe and Uri, two of the Israelis living in Accra! We talked to them for a while, then Uri drove us back to campus and we met Sarah, the frum girl living in ISH (International Students Hostel). It was great, and we're planning on doing a lot of shabbatot together, but the best part is that Moshe's apartment has a WASHING MACHINE and he is letting us use it!!! Our hand-washing was a miserable failure last week, so this is a big step for us. Very thrilling.(10) Okay, time for bed! We have to be on the bus tomorrow morning in under 6 hours. Fun.
(1) They were supposed to be yam balls, an authentic Ghanian food. But they're not. More on that later.
(2) A real team effort. Yamit made the mashed potatoes, I shaped the balls, and Zahava is doing the bulk of the frying.
(3) Presumably named after the city in Saudi Arabia, not the Hebrew word for country. But who knows?
(4) But how much do sore thumbs even stand out? I, for one, never even look at thumbs.
(5) Or not a yam. Whatever. Still more on that later, promise bli neder!!!
(6) And these are literally potato pancakes. For future reference, even though I don't usually like latkes, apparently, when the potatoes are mashed, I do!
(7) GO AWAY we're still calling them yam balls, even if they're not.
(8) Good question on Yamit's part- if there is water across the street, is there really no way to make it get up to our suite?
(9) Shout-out to Elana! Or really her friend, who was made queen of a Ghanaian village she visited last year. How awesome.
(10) Also, at Shoprite, we bought Magnum. Amazing. A shabbos treat!
Friday, January 15, 2010
First erev shabbos
(EDIT: Forgot to say, though it's probably obvious by the post, this is Rivky!)
Today- our first erev shabbos* was a completely hectic day, and I think it will give a feel for what life here is like, at least some interesting aspects.
We woke up at about 8:30 and were out the door 10 minutes later. I always wake up gross and sticky, there's absolutely no such thing as a cool night. The ceiling fan makes no difference.** We (me, Zahava, Yamit) trekked around the campus with a map*** and arrows detailing the order of the departments we wanted to look at. We went to Poli Sci, History, English, Dance, Music, and a couple more. To look at the classes, you literally have to walk up to the front door of the department, where you find a bulletin board with a piece of paper detailing the different classes available in that department. Some of the departments had times listed also, and some didn't, which is bizarre seeing as classes start on Monday. I saw a bunch of classes I was interested in, so I think I'm just going to go to all of them and then see from there which I want to officially register for.
At 11, we were done walking around campus looking at departments and we headed outside of campus to catch the tro-tro, this semi-shuttle service that brings you everywhere. We took one that brought us to the Accra Mall, where they have Shop Rite, which has a lot more kosher food than any of us were expecting. They import from South Africa, saved our lives. We bought food for shabbos- fruit, vegetables, even canned spaghetti in sauce!**** We also bought YOGURT to eat on the spot- I'm not exaggerating when I say it's the first cold food we've eaten since Sunday.***** It was delicious. Seriously, amazing. One of the main reasons I stopped eating most meat is because I thought I wanted to be aware of what I was consuming- and in Ghana, that is all too constant.
When you are driving in the tro-tro, by the way, there is no sense of personal space. Everyone is on top of everyone, and everyone's sweat is mingling (charming, no?), and all you can do is daven to be lucky enough that you will be able to sit near a window so you can stick your head out and feel some air. But the plus side is that the ride is only 25 Ghanaian cents (peshwar, or something like that?), which is only about 18 cents American, ridiculously amazing.
We left the air conditioned Shop Rite and headed back to campus- waiting by the side of the road in the blazing sun and sweltering humidity for 10 minutes****** and then taking a tro-tro back to campus, and then walking the 10 minutes from the main gate back to our dorm and then we deposited everything and actually melted.******* It's so sweltering all the time. It constantly exhausts us.
Now we're cooking and cleaning and trying to get everything ready and nice before shabbos at 5:50 and before classes start next week. I didn't go to the lecture that we have right now even though it looked really interesting******** because I am seriously exhausted and I don't think I can move another muscle. Seriously- I can't stand for more than 10 minutes without needing to sit down, that's how tired my legs are from walking around this huge campus.
Meeting Ghanaians everywhere, the culture contrast is stark. They are all in incredible shape, men and women, from doing physical labor all day, as opposed to Americans who sit in offices. They are ridiculously friendly- they always ask if I'm lost and need directions, or offer to help with other things- and they expect the same in return. A Ghanaian woman on our flight had no compunction about asking me to take care of her baby both before the flight and after it. It's so different, and it's really something I can respect.
The lack of formality is also something different, but I can't tell how I feel about that. On the one hand, I think it's important how friendly everyone is with each other, and how chilled out everyone is- professors don't dress up, they have full-day office hours to speak to students, and everyone we pass says hi with a smile. On the other hand, I am too compulsive to appreciate that they don't know the times of some classes yet, and classes start on Monday! It really flusters me*********. But I just need to step back and relax and just go with the system- that's how they do it, and it works for them, so it will work for me.
K, time to shower. Again. It's all I do here. I know- big contrast to home. Some changes had to made to accommodate the unbearable heat.
*Friday, technically the day before shabbos. Although let's call a spade a spade- is there actually anyone reading this who doesn't know the jargon?
**Although obviously, until yesterday, that barely worked either. But baruch Hashem we got it fixed.
***That I had drawn! Impressed? Me too.
****Yes, I'm aware how gross that sounds. What's your point? Beggars can't be choosers.
*****We don't have a fridge yet. It's broken, duh. We're getting it soon, I think. I really wanted it for shabbos to have cold grape juice, but again, I guess beggars can't be choosers.
******Felt like an hour.
*******Not literally, for those who get confused about what that word means. Hint: it does NOT mean figuratively. In fact, it's meant to be used as a contrast to figuratively. More people should know this, I think.
********Politics in Ghana Post-Colonialism
*********Hey, Laur!
Today- our first erev shabbos* was a completely hectic day, and I think it will give a feel for what life here is like, at least some interesting aspects.
We woke up at about 8:30 and were out the door 10 minutes later. I always wake up gross and sticky, there's absolutely no such thing as a cool night. The ceiling fan makes no difference.** We (me, Zahava, Yamit) trekked around the campus with a map*** and arrows detailing the order of the departments we wanted to look at. We went to Poli Sci, History, English, Dance, Music, and a couple more. To look at the classes, you literally have to walk up to the front door of the department, where you find a bulletin board with a piece of paper detailing the different classes available in that department. Some of the departments had times listed also, and some didn't, which is bizarre seeing as classes start on Monday. I saw a bunch of classes I was interested in, so I think I'm just going to go to all of them and then see from there which I want to officially register for.
At 11, we were done walking around campus looking at departments and we headed outside of campus to catch the tro-tro, this semi-shuttle service that brings you everywhere. We took one that brought us to the Accra Mall, where they have Shop Rite, which has a lot more kosher food than any of us were expecting. They import from South Africa, saved our lives. We bought food for shabbos- fruit, vegetables, even canned spaghetti in sauce!**** We also bought YOGURT to eat on the spot- I'm not exaggerating when I say it's the first cold food we've eaten since Sunday.***** It was delicious. Seriously, amazing. One of the main reasons I stopped eating most meat is because I thought I wanted to be aware of what I was consuming- and in Ghana, that is all too constant.
When you are driving in the tro-tro, by the way, there is no sense of personal space. Everyone is on top of everyone, and everyone's sweat is mingling (charming, no?), and all you can do is daven to be lucky enough that you will be able to sit near a window so you can stick your head out and feel some air. But the plus side is that the ride is only 25 Ghanaian cents (peshwar, or something like that?), which is only about 18 cents American, ridiculously amazing.
We left the air conditioned Shop Rite and headed back to campus- waiting by the side of the road in the blazing sun and sweltering humidity for 10 minutes****** and then taking a tro-tro back to campus, and then walking the 10 minutes from the main gate back to our dorm and then we deposited everything and actually melted.******* It's so sweltering all the time. It constantly exhausts us.
Now we're cooking and cleaning and trying to get everything ready and nice before shabbos at 5:50 and before classes start next week. I didn't go to the lecture that we have right now even though it looked really interesting******** because I am seriously exhausted and I don't think I can move another muscle. Seriously- I can't stand for more than 10 minutes without needing to sit down, that's how tired my legs are from walking around this huge campus.
Meeting Ghanaians everywhere, the culture contrast is stark. They are all in incredible shape, men and women, from doing physical labor all day, as opposed to Americans who sit in offices. They are ridiculously friendly- they always ask if I'm lost and need directions, or offer to help with other things- and they expect the same in return. A Ghanaian woman on our flight had no compunction about asking me to take care of her baby both before the flight and after it. It's so different, and it's really something I can respect.
The lack of formality is also something different, but I can't tell how I feel about that. On the one hand, I think it's important how friendly everyone is with each other, and how chilled out everyone is- professors don't dress up, they have full-day office hours to speak to students, and everyone we pass says hi with a smile. On the other hand, I am too compulsive to appreciate that they don't know the times of some classes yet, and classes start on Monday! It really flusters me*********. But I just need to step back and relax and just go with the system- that's how they do it, and it works for them, so it will work for me.
K, time to shower. Again. It's all I do here. I know- big contrast to home. Some changes had to made to accommodate the unbearable heat.
*Friday, technically the day before shabbos. Although let's call a spade a spade- is there actually anyone reading this who doesn't know the jargon?
**Although obviously, until yesterday, that barely worked either. But baruch Hashem we got it fixed.
***That I had drawn! Impressed? Me too.
****Yes, I'm aware how gross that sounds. What's your point? Beggars can't be choosers.
*****We don't have a fridge yet. It's broken, duh. We're getting it soon, I think. I really wanted it for shabbos to have cold grape juice, but again, I guess beggars can't be choosers.
******Felt like an hour.
*******Not literally, for those who get confused about what that word means. Hint: it does NOT mean figuratively. In fact, it's meant to be used as a contrast to figuratively. More people should know this, I think.
********Politics in Ghana Post-Colonialism
*********Hey, Laur!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Our first day...
Hey everyone! We're finally here! Zahava is out (she's the social one? Who saw that coming) and I'm actually beat, but I wanted to just write a quick post that we're here. We have our luggage, baruch Hashem, but we still don't have phones or internet. I'm borrowing Micky's (Micky? Mikey? who knows.) computer* now just because I've been starved for internet.
Zahava and I are sharing a room. The room, and the campus itself, is very Israeli. Flat mattresses, gross floors, dust and dirt everywhere...it feels like Dvir all over again.** We have two Israeli flags up, one map of Israel, our myzmanim monthly calendar...we could not look more psycho. We even have a post-it on the east wall that says mizrach.*** Oh, also the door to the suite doesn't lock, and apparently there are people in and out all the time. Oh, awesome.
Okay, time to crash. We have to be at the CIEE office tomorrow at 9 AM to register for classes. And because it's a half hour walk, we have to be out the door by 8:30. Lovely. Either Zahava or I will post more actual updates in the next couple of days. Expect to hear about the weather, showers, (lack of) food, and maybe even a video! Maybe. No promises.
*What a mensch, no? He's basically our madrich. Nicest guy ever. Loves our Israeli flags.
**My apartment in shana aleph. It was incredibly disgusting and gross- ask me sometime about the open ceiling in the living room- but we didn't notice because we had so much fun.
***You could argue that considering we don't face east from Ghana, it's a bit silly, but work with me here.
Zahava and I are sharing a room. The room, and the campus itself, is very Israeli. Flat mattresses, gross floors, dust and dirt everywhere...it feels like Dvir all over again.** We have two Israeli flags up, one map of Israel, our myzmanim monthly calendar...we could not look more psycho. We even have a post-it on the east wall that says mizrach.*** Oh, also the door to the suite doesn't lock, and apparently there are people in and out all the time. Oh, awesome.
Okay, time to crash. We have to be at the CIEE office tomorrow at 9 AM to register for classes. And because it's a half hour walk, we have to be out the door by 8:30. Lovely. Either Zahava or I will post more actual updates in the next couple of days. Expect to hear about the weather, showers, (lack of) food, and maybe even a video! Maybe. No promises.
*What a mensch, no? He's basically our madrich. Nicest guy ever. Loves our Israeli flags.
**My apartment in shana aleph. It was incredibly disgusting and gross- ask me sometime about the open ceiling in the living room- but we didn't notice because we had so much fun.
***You could argue that considering we don't face east from Ghana, it's a bit silly, but work with me here.
Monday, January 11, 2010
From Heathrow
Remember when you thought the only last-minute craziness was a surprise trip to DC to get our visas? Well think again, dummy! When Zahava checked the site a couple hours before the flight, turns out it was canceled. Huh. “Due to weather conditions in Heathrow, blah blah blah.” Apparently, Heathrow can't handle a little snow.* Zahava found another British Airways flight leaving Newark a couple of hours before ours, so we ran (figuratively) to the airport to see if we could get on that flight and then still make our connecting from Heathrow to Accra.** Baruch Hashem, we got on standby and then were allowed onto the earlier flight.***
The flight was fine- uneventful. Zahava mothered a young charedi boy (who only spoke yiddish and a bissel english with a strong accent) from London whose parents were ignoring him, teaching him how to go off the derech- use his headphones and watch the TV stations and whatnot. We're now in Heathrow until 2:50 England time. It's just like American airports, except the escalators are longer and the bathrooms are nicer. Oh, also they totally lied about the snow thing. There is zero snow outside. Maybe one centimeter.****
*well, technically 9 inches. Whatever, England.
**We were also especially worried because the school already hates us, seeing as we're coming to the school a couple of days late, which is apparently Not Allowed. Great way to start off the semester, eh?
***We even got kosher meals. And we even had time to buy oreos and rolos before the flight. Best dinner ever.
****Impressed by the metric usage? We're basically British now.
The flight was fine- uneventful. Zahava mothered a young charedi boy (who only spoke yiddish and a bissel english with a strong accent) from London whose parents were ignoring him, teaching him how to go off the derech- use his headphones and watch the TV stations and whatnot. We're now in Heathrow until 2:50 England time. It's just like American airports, except the escalators are longer and the bathrooms are nicer. Oh, also they totally lied about the snow thing. There is zero snow outside. Maybe one centimeter.****
*well, technically 9 inches. Whatever, England.
**We were also especially worried because the school already hates us, seeing as we're coming to the school a couple of days late, which is apparently Not Allowed. Great way to start off the semester, eh?
***We even got kosher meals. And we even had time to buy oreos and rolos before the flight. Best dinner ever.
****Impressed by the metric usage? We're basically British now.
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