Forget the Accra Road Signs...

...at Ridge.

Just check out that heavy sky!

If Ghanaian Trees at Ridge Could Talk...?

Ah, Ringway Estates: a leafy, verdant place located very close to the apogee of Ghanaian (and colonial pre-colonial) suburbia: Ridge. I have always wondered whether this part of Accra ever gets hot, because the trees just seem to grow and grow...and grow!

















So huge they grow that I could not help but wonder--when I was in that part of town for a public service--whether if these trees could talk they would offer us a glimpse into the days pre-independence?

These must surely be a boon for historians seeking to understand variations in climate of the country. This particular tree stretches so high up--perhaps some 20-30 metres!!

I cannot but wonder what it has seen!

Anyone for Accra Coconuts?

Whether it's on the path leading up to the Accra Mall or...



















...it's in front of a gargantuan Zain Ghana billboard -- also in front of the Accra Mall, coconut-eating in Accra is not just cheap, but so de rigeur you cannot miss it should you ever make it to this city.


Even as recently as last Saturday, there was a certain lack of vivacity to the picture on account of the rather-dull weather post-rain.

There's only Word on my Lips: "Rain" (in Accra)

Not to belabour the point of the rainy season, but this picture I took from East Legon shows really shot-up corn...





















...and some more corn!.................





















Today, the word was not that much different. The weather was cool, averaging around 22 degrees celsius. Certainly, there have been signs that the rain might fall. This can only mean more corn. By extension, more food for Ghanaian farmers?

Welcome to Gulf House, Accra

Actually, not quite. The building you see in the background is that of what is known as Gulf House. Located just off the Tetteh-Quarshie interchange, it houses Ghana Commercial Bank; Agricultural Development Bank. Opposite it is the sleek-looking Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, which I will do well to bring you a proper picture of one of these days!

A quick google search shows you the exact position, which you can see for yourself here: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=opera&rls=en&hs=PDG&q=%22gulf+house%22+Accra&aq=f&oq=&aqi=.

One thing I don't quite understand is if Accra Mall and Silver Star Towers can have websites, why not Gulf House, which has been around for at least a decade?

Return of the Mass Metro Buses on Accra Roads?

A question like that might go some way to do a great disservice to those buses that actually have been plying on the Ghanaian roads, but it was important to ask! Especially because last time the regularity was indisputable, I was posting entries like this here: http://accradailyphoto.blogspot.com/2007/02/inside-ghanas-mass-metro-buses.html and http://accradailyphoto.blogspot.com/2006/10/heres-almost-how-packed-i-was-in.html

Yesterday morning, I needed to go downtown as part of my habitual service to the nation that I am rendering (all will be revealed soon!) alongside my regular work.

Running late, I decided I was going to have to charter a taxi, which would have been rather expensive (around 6-8 ghc, or roughly 4/5 US$). Rather fortuitously, a bus (as referred to above) pulls up, with a sticker by the window "SAKUMONO / [Accra] CIRCLE" [Sakumono is on the Spintex Road, and Circle is really downtown!!], with a young personable lady shouting for customers.

I boarded the bus to a sight of neat buses--very atypical to the tro-tro. I thought these buses had gone out of service this part of Accra!


I would rather coincidentally board this same bus on my way home from work, just across the Accra Mall. The young lady of the morning--looking rather tired--and I would exchange smiles for the very small world I am reminded daily of being a part of!

Whichever transport you take today, keep it safe, and have a great weekend!

Despite Loud Silence, Obama's Words Float with Hope in Ghana...

I've been absent on this blog in a manner that was not my own doing. While I believe that hope and candour floats in Ghana after his visit, seeing as this is primarily a picture blog, I will leave you with "pictures" I took and uploaded on my Facebook blog, which you can visit here:



http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=124243&id=603880406

Guess Who's Coming to [a Ghanaian] Dinner from 10-11th July (Hint: the US Prez!)?

Today's edition of the nation's flagship newspaper Daily Graphic offered a rather hefty edition, starting with key articles like these, offering reasons for Obama's desire to come to Ghana. It was based on an All Africa interview of Obama at the White House...












Other pieces like these were from companies offering their "akwaaba" or "welcome" to Ghana. This one from Kosmos is perhaps ironic, as there's been tremendous speculation from the more-discerning bunch of Ghanaians that Obama's motivation coincides with Ghana's discovery of commercial quantities of oil last year. Kosmos is a foreign company that has bought stakes in the oil that Ghana has uncovered. Recent stories indicate that Ghana's National Petroleum Company is keen to buy the 30% stake that Kosmos has.
Finally, the cover of today's paper. It was evident the production team would have come up with something that included the word "historic"!

I guess the secret's out for the dinner surprise, then?

Aloft the top of an Accra Quasi-Skyscraper: Where's my Accra Super-Hero?

A very cryptic title for a strange post. I cannot help but imagine Obama the super-hero standing on the corner of this building, which is no less than the "VAT House" of one of the popular suburbs of Accra--Adabraka, reputed to be in the heart of the city.

Truth be told, I can just see the sun in the corner of that building coming down to reveal an Obama, cloaked in Superman's garb, cloak fluttering in the wind as he reminds you and I to pay our taxes...

This side of the afternoon, you cannot really blame me for going on that flight of fancy;-) Especially given how the tale is one veritably steeped in bathos, where the sublime makes way for the ridiculous!

Seriously speaking--should that be writing?--I'm glad you now are familiar with the VAT House. Judging by the impressive height of the building, they must be raking in quite a bit! They're a stone's throw away from busyinternet, located on the Ring Road of Accra.

Is it that Obvious that Obama's Coming to Ghana?

I spoke to a friend in the States this morning who knew nothing of the visit of Obama to Ghana, but knew of the one to Russia!

Whatever the case may be, as this VOA article maintains, "Ghana's government is running a series of radio ads in anticipation of President Obama's visit".

One ad that has been on the airwaves goes like this:

"First black president of the United States of America, you have become a shining star, and despite the height of your achievement you are still proud to be called a black man. Barack Obama is coming home. He is coming to Ghana, Gold Coast, the center of the world,"

Ghanaians wait with baited breath for his visit!

This rather blurry picture, compounded by the fact that it had rained, was taken last weekend near the famed Kwame Nkrumah Circle.

Accra by Night

We get so used to the pictures around us that we oftentimes forget that the night brings a beautiful collection of sounds and sights--like this one--that cannot be emulated during the day.

Despite the reflection of the lights, one can still make out the cars and the streetlights. This was taken some fifteen minutes before 7pm on the '37' road.

A Day after Ghana's Celebration of Republic Day (1 July)...

...sees still more traffic, and plenty of rain!

For the past seven years, many of these bus "shoulders" have appeared throughout Accra and the country. It's only recently that I have been seeing that the "bus" signs are appearing alongside.

Honestly speaking, I can foresee a more sanitised transport sector with more distinctive shoulders for public transport, and a greater intervention by the regulators, including the National Road Safety Commission, who are getting tougher, as exemplified by this article here: where such-like regulators get tough on those vehicles that overload.