Markets

A large part of life in Ghana is centered around the markets. Entrepreneurs are a big part of Ghana's economy. It was only six months ago the first ever mall was built in Accra. For a moment having a mall seemed like a nice convenience to have, especially to Americans. Yet after only 15 minutes we could see how bland, boring, and impersonal the mall is.At a market you are able to interact with people, you barter, they laugh at you when you make mistakes, they congratulate you when you do a good job bartering.
On campus there are two markets: the Bush Canteen and the Night Market. The Bush Canteen operates during the day and has two sides, shopping and eating. There are about 40 different merchants selling about everything you could ever need, from school supplies to kitchen utensils, from barbershops to beer. Each merchant has a 6x8 ft room that is crammed with as much stuff as possible. The other half of the Bush Canteen is food. Walking up the Bush is long row of women selling bananas, fried plantains, pineapple, mango, and oranges. Then inside a 40x60 ft area are women pounding fufu and selling red-red. You are able to buy a filling meal for about 40 cents and water in a cold sachet for 5 cents.
The Night Market is basically the same as Bush Canteen, except at night and night in Ghana means 6:30. I love the feel of Night Market. Its four rows of little shops either lit by a single electric bulb or a few candles. Food can also be bought, like egg sandwiches or freshly made kabobs. I'm a fan of both.
In the future I'm sure there will alot more posts about adventures in the markets.