Yippee! we had a shower last night, clear sky today but it seems a little gentler and a slight breeze.
I can't tell you how hot it has been... well I probably have mentioned it a few times....as it gets closer to the time the rains should/ might/ gosh we really hope they do come you start to go a little crazy.
We have AC- most everyone around where would be lucky to have a ceiling fan- it is set to 24'C but our house- 18" thick walls and stone roof has heated up to boiling and so the AC just can't get the air to feel cool.
Anyway seems we are finally starting to get through the season and onto being hopeful for a shower and some green coming up.
I find it hard at the moment to concentrate...too much office work of the boring variety or heat exhaustion? been spending a bit of time in the afternoons collecting info, researching is how I justify it, really daydreaming tours.
It is easier to daydream rather than sit and stitch samples- everything has its season I guess.
I found this book Cloth Girl by Marilyn Heward Mills in my Ghana daydreams and I really enjoyed it. Lived with the characters all week, they gave me a smile and appreciated so many of the details woven into the story set in Accra... things I have noticed, foods I have tried, things I have thought about.
I feel like I have learnt a lot to add to our work hosting to tours, details of culture and ways.
Think what it must have been like in the lead up to Independence? Ghana was the first West African nation to gain independence, because of the set up in colonial times many countries had a vacuum in experienced government when they gained freedom and were open to the power hungry grabbing control and being despots...it has happened all over the world post colonial times....Ghana suffered too but has been on a good path for nearly 20 years now, is certainly a poster child of stability in West Africa.
I can't wait to read my next story by this new and charming author :)
I have been so excited with my researching this week and that I thought others might enjoy some of my leads as well- so I am working on adding links and lists to our next Creative Arts Safaris Newsletter.
Here is my list so far for Ghana
It has been rather a lovely distraction to work on this list through the week, I have been on Abebooks and have a whole heap more books coming, novels written in Ghana, bit of history.
I saw a thing on FB this week I also enjoyed
I am not a book worm
I am a book dragon!!
it makes me happy to think of myself that way and the look on Praveen's face as yet more books arrive suggests he thinks I am devouring books!!
Haha, happy Sunday.
I can't tell you how hot it has been... well I probably have mentioned it a few times....as it gets closer to the time the rains should/ might/ gosh we really hope they do come you start to go a little crazy.
We have AC- most everyone around where would be lucky to have a ceiling fan- it is set to 24'C but our house- 18" thick walls and stone roof has heated up to boiling and so the AC just can't get the air to feel cool.
Anyway seems we are finally starting to get through the season and onto being hopeful for a shower and some green coming up.
I find it hard at the moment to concentrate...too much office work of the boring variety or heat exhaustion? been spending a bit of time in the afternoons collecting info, researching is how I justify it, really daydreaming tours.
It is easier to daydream rather than sit and stitch samples- everything has its season I guess.
I found this book Cloth Girl by Marilyn Heward Mills in my Ghana daydreams and I really enjoyed it. Lived with the characters all week, they gave me a smile and appreciated so many of the details woven into the story set in Accra... things I have noticed, foods I have tried, things I have thought about.
I feel like I have learnt a lot to add to our work hosting to tours, details of culture and ways.
Think what it must have been like in the lead up to Independence? Ghana was the first West African nation to gain independence, because of the set up in colonial times many countries had a vacuum in experienced government when they gained freedom and were open to the power hungry grabbing control and being despots...it has happened all over the world post colonial times....Ghana suffered too but has been on a good path for nearly 20 years now, is certainly a poster child of stability in West Africa.
I can't wait to read my next story by this new and charming author :)
I have been so excited with my researching this week and that I thought others might enjoy some of my leads as well- so I am working on adding links and lists to our next Creative Arts Safaris Newsletter.
Here is my list so far for Ghana
Getting in the mood…Ghana
A little bit of
preparation will not only enhance your anticipation for the coming journey, it
will also enrich your experience.
The locations we choose to visit we choose because they are great, of course, but also because they are not like back home so a bit of preparation can go a long way.
May we suggest raiding the local library and video store for whatever you can find covering our locations- travel guides, histories, cook books, movies all will start to develop some insight into the counties we are visiting.
The locations we choose to visit we choose because they are great, of course, but also because they are not like back home so a bit of preparation can go a long way.
May we suggest raiding the local library and video store for whatever you can find covering our locations- travel guides, histories, cook books, movies all will start to develop some insight into the counties we are visiting.
There are a lot of
academic books around post-colonial theory, African studies….google and you
will find a lot, mostly a bit heady.
Most travel guides have a
potted history in the front
·
Basic
History: Ghana on kindle gives a very quick over view…. Better off to use
wikipedia
Fiction can be a great way to pick up details and
insight.
I particularly enjoyed
· Cloth Girl- by Marilyn Heward Mills- lovely
story set in the period of transition from colonial times to independence … I
enjoyed the insights into Ga culture [the dominant group along the coast around
Accra] and was reminded of lovely home cook food I had experienced during
visits. Notice the name, when you are in
Ghana you will start to see the importance of cloth to the culture
· Ama – A story of the
Atlantic Slave Trade -Manu Herrnstein a much sadder story
· Roots is the mini series is being re-made, interesting to look
out for.
Google or Goodreads
will point you towards quite of list of interesting works. I used West
Africa, novels as search topics.
|
Book
shops.
|
www.abebooks.com – great world wide resource to find second hand
books- deliver successfully to me in remote India
www.bookdepsoitory.com new books, free delivery and reliable
www.amazon.com good book section
|
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John
Gillows
African
Textiles
Good
reference,
Great
images
-
Danger, danger,
desire to travel will be tripped!
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Asafo-
African
Flags of the Fanti
-so quirky, might be inspiration for a little
hand stitched piece made on the trip.
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African
Wax Print
-Magie
Relph and Robert Irwin.
Good insight into a remarkable vibrant fabric
design genre
-lovingly
researched, each detail discovered a precious morsel.
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Africa
John
Gillow
Nice
pictures
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World
Textiles
John
Gillows
-excellent reference and inspiration
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Web links I have found interesting
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I like
this foodie blog
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Taste Ghana: My Quick Take on Jollof- Simple and Easy steps
http://tastegh.blogspot.in/2015/08/my-quick-take-on-jollof-simple-and-easy.html?m=1 |
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African
Beads
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Accra
is famous for its remarkable coffins.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantasy_coffin
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Links
to novels
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Category:Novels set in Africa - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Novels_set_in_Africa 10 best novels about Africa - Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/10631274/10-best-novels-about-Africa.html Our Top 25 Books about Africa
http://blog.rhinoafrica.com/2012/02/07/our-top-25-books-about-africa/ |
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Bolgatanga
is in the extreme north….dusty hot and somehow the place you want to return
to
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home to
the Bolga grass basket
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Fair
Trade Cocoa
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2nd
biggest export of Ghana, much is produced fair trade
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Shea
Butter
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Shea
grows in the north produced on small farms which are increasingly organizing
into Fair Trade Co-ops.
Freshly
made shea butter is available in the markets.
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