Today we went to a funeral. Morbid, much? Except not. Funerals in Ghana are like a giant party. Well, okay maybe I should start this differently...
Ghana's view on death is quite different from the American view. I'm somewhat reminded of El Dia de los Muertos in Latin American culture. The idea that the person has gone to a better place is celebrated. One thing that I think is really funny and don't quite understand yet is the "fantasy coffin". This is a coffin shaped like anything your heart desires... a shark, a bus, a rocketship, a uterus. I have only seen these fantasy coffins from afar and therefore do not have all the info on what they are about. But they look way fun. The Bradt Guidebook discusses them and one of the examples they use is a uterus shaped coffin. I have to see this coffin.
Anyway, so we went to a funeral today in Madina with Francis and Kwame. Francis teaches drumming in the music department and Kwame is a guy around our age that lives with Francis. We get there and (as with our experience at the skinning of the chief) were treated as guests of honor and seated up front and center. We got there during the sad, religious part. So people were crying and pastors where preaching loudly in (I think) Twi and Ewe. We couldn't understand most of the religious service but it was nice, I guess. I've never been to a funeral in the States so it's hard to compare.
Then the drummers came in. 6-8 drummers came bursting in and surround the coffin and played a song. They left and a bunch of guys surrounded the coffin and promptly took it out. Then the real party started. A drum ensemble set up shop and everyone began to dance. And by everyone I mean a handful of Ghanaians who forced all six of us Oborunis to dance with them in front of everyone. Which, of course, is embarrasing with all of us flapping our arms like chickens and trying to moonwalk in a sorry imitation of the actual dance they are trying to teach us. This first round of dancing was mercifully short as some real dancers came out in fully costume to perform a dance/drama for us.
This dance/drama was the coolest performance I've seen in Ghana so far. It was half mime, half dance. (Hype! should come do some research here...) It was about how both men and women play hard to get and it was three men and three women toying with each other. The guys would play flirty pranks on the girls and the girls would pretend to scorn them... It was awesome.
But after this performance was when we were REALLY forced to dance. We had a 45 minute dance lesson in front of EVERYONE at the funeral where we learned to shuffle and flap better than our sad, previous attempts. It was somewhat fun but extremely difficult. And you know that everyone watching you is thinking that you look ridiculous. Which is exactly what you are thinking when you do it. A positive outcome of this dance session is the realization that I have Ghanaian hips. Yes, that's right, these honest hips of mine can shake and wiggle like a regular old Ghanaian woman's. Exciting, right? This skill of mine impresses the ladies who try to teach us to dance and softens the terribleness of my footwork.
When we were finally done dancing we were promptly fed, of course. Then a drunk man wouldn't leave us alone and proposed to us several times... (Mostly to Denise... The crazies love her.) After assuring him that we were all married he proceeded to shake all of our hands and leave. Only to come back five minutes later to reintroduce himself again and propose, again. Oy vey.
All in all it's been a fun day. Other highlights of this week include:
+ Getting a roommate
+ Getting a roommate who feeds me
+ Finishing Anna Karenina
+ Finishing Brave New World
+ Running. Yes, that's right. R-U-N-N-I-N-G. Annie and Jenny will whip me into shape before this semester is over.
+ Cooking delicious Italian food in our dorm kitchen
+ Making chocolate chip banana pancakes in our dorm kitchen
Okay, this has been a long post.
As always I like email. But I also like real mail, hinthint.
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