The last day of the Ghana PG Festival was a bit of a let down….literally..the wind blew down the mountain with the occasional calm mixed in with the “faker” cycle up the hill!!!  I felt launch conditions were tough enough when the wind blew up the hill so I wasn’t to excited about running off in those conditions.  There were just a few brave souls, the gung ho pilots flew while the rest of hoped and waited for better conditions to launch in. The weather  just didn’t cooperate.  I wish we could have flown all the people that were waiting in line to fly…they were so excited.

The waiting game on launch

Hang waiting....

That evening we had some time so a bunch of us ventured into the town center for a cultural experience.  I loved wondering around the market and checking everything out from clothes, sandals made from car tires, spices being ground up to sell, dead “things” of all shapes and sizes to eat if you dare.  Pretty much anything one would need you found there.

Hungry?

Spice of life...

And then…the sky decided to open up and show who’s boss….it went from a few dark clouds to half the sky turning black. We new what was coming so we ran to flag down a taxi, jumped in and the wall of wind hit.  It blew hard then came the rain as we drove back to the hotel…..wahooo!

A bit windy....

I love watching mother nature let loose!  I was not alone as we ran upstairs of the hotel to get to the outside balcony to watch the storm unfold.  We had a great view of the landing zone across the street…the flag was sticking  straight out!!! J

Home is where the heart is...

The next day, our rest day of course looked perfect for flying!  So after a leisurely morning we ventured up the hill to fly.  A couple of us got off the bus to make a quick stop at the Village of Hope school project, to see what their needs were and check out the “bus that needs some work”.  But first while we waited for our ride we wandered into a little neighborhood off the main street and  we were soon stopped by a family and friends.  They were all so welcoming and happy to try to talk to us.  It was such a sweet time with them of course there was a language barrier…but it just didn’t matter!

Family fun…

Our visit with the school went well….we toured the school and took a look at the bus that needed some work.  After a quick look we decided it would not be a good idea to invest any money in helping with that project but thought building another room to add to the school was a better idea.  I look forward to going back next year to see the progress.

Really you think it will run??

The writing is on the wall...

Village of Hope School

My last flight in Ghana was a tandem flight with Nick Greece since we were up on launch with perfect conditions and no passengers.  It’s not a good idea to  fly our tandem wings alone so we flipped a coin to see “who’s boss”….I could not believe how scared I was to be the passenger J  ha ha ha….What a flight, it was magical we could fly anywhere and we did.  We flew around the valley at cloud base and  enjoyed it completely!!!  That is until Nick said “are you ready for some fun”  I thought I was but…but…I guess I like being in control better!!!

Nick and Kari Flies....

That evening we had a bit of a ride from h***….a bunch of us that had a few extra days to travel and relax chose to head to the beach.  Thanks to Ed, Nick and Frode who organized transportation for us. We were off in two separate vehicles traveling at warp speeds thru these villages and narrow streets while not moving an inch for the people walking along the road.  It was pretty scary!!  We all started asking the driver to slow down right away but he would not listen for some reason. It took NICK to get the point across…I was impressed how well Nick handled the situation!!!  THANK YOU NICK!!!

We arrived at the beach, all thankful to be alive!!  I swear it took me two full days to get over that ride!!!  Busua Beach was a sleepy little tourist destination.  Surfing and relaxing being the main attraction.

Our first nights stay...the rules....

After one night at the huge tourist type hotel I knew I wanted something a bit more organic.  A few of us ventures away and found a place called “Stone Wonderland Lodge” .  It is a sweet little place tucked away at the other end of the beach from the big hotel.  We had to cross the river to get to it, I loved it!!!

Stone Wonderland Lodge

We spent the next three days unwinding, hanging out, walking the beach, eating great meals, listening to good music and of course trying our hand at surfing!!!  We met “Brett” the local transplant from the UK. He owns and runs “Mr Brights Surf School”.   He was an X competitor himself so we were like kindred spirits in a way. He was great with us newbie’s.  We went thru his ground school training then off we went into the surf like good little students.  He gave us very specific things to work on that followed a perfect progression to get us to the point of standing on the board.  It was great fun!!!  Pictures to follow….

Gone fishing....

What a great way to end a great trip!  The night before we left Busua the rain came in with a vengeance.  The start of the monsoon, it was time to leave!  A muddy trip out of there, a long hot Cho Cho bus ride back to Accra  (Cho–chos are the Ghanaian form of public transportation: unmarked vans that go from here to there, picking up passengers whenever flagged) a taxi ride to the Hotel where we were greeting by our master Collins.  Boy was it good to see him again!!!  He took us to the market for last minute souvenirs.

Pack, shower, dinner then off to the airport for me….some 36 hours later I was home….my head spinning with memories along with fighting a wicked cold I caught right at the end….ah the price to pay for having fun!!!  It was all worth it!!!

People have asked what I liked the most.  I have to say it was the children, their beautiful little faces, their smiles and their spirit.  They were so curious and interested in what we were doing and us for that matter.  They would look so serious until you “smile” then they would light up…I just loved this about them!  I made a point while driving by children to wave smile and get their attention…it was so much fun to see them smile , wave and blow kisses back.  I am thrilled to be able to help these kids in any small way!

Thanks to ALL that donated to help some children in Ghana!