Ghana or Laos?

[Melinda]

Phil, did you go in the end?

 

[phildwyer]

Phil, did you go in the end?

Yeah, I went for two weeks, loved it. Accra (stayed in Adabraka, my favorite dsitrict there), Cape Coast (including Kakum), Elmira, Kumasi (visited Owabi Park, Lake Bosumtwe and various villages), then Takoradi (probably the nicest place of all). Fascinating culture, or set of cultures rather, lovely people. I want to go back, but should probably give East Africa a chance next time.

 

[Melinda]

No way! And I didnt get so much as a frickin post card?!

Sounds wonderful! Moar details! Photos?!

Did you get to Togo as well?

 

[brix]

Yeah, I went for two weeks, loved it. Accra (stayed in Adabraka, my favorite dsitrict there), Cape Coast (including Kakum), Elmira, Kumasi (visited Owabi Park, Lake Bosumtwe and various villages), then Takoradi (probably the nicest place of all). Fascinating culture, or set of cultures rather, lovely people. I want to go back, but should probably give East Africa a chance next time.

So what did you make of Cape Coast Castle?

And did you buy any Takoradi Bricks?

 

[phildwyer]

No way! And I didnt get so much as a frickin post card?!

Sounds wonderful! Moar details! Photos?!

Did you get to Togo as well?

No, I only had a single-entry visa and didn't fancy negotiating bribes. Most pleasantly surprising thing was the nightlife, those little "spot" places--my favorite was "The Pantry" in Cape Coast, on the crossroads just by that crab thing.

 

[phildwyer]

So what did you make of Cape Coast Castle?

Spooky innit. Makes you realize how badly the slave trade messed Africa up, and how close its legacy remains.

And did you buy any Takoradi Bricks?

Is it a kind of drug?

 

[brix]

Spooky innit. Makes you realize how badly the slave trade messed Africa up, and how close its legacy remains.



Is it a kind of drug?

Like I said before, Cape Coast Castle is the nearest thing I've come to haunted. And I don't believe in ghosts. But that place resonates sadness

No, Takoradi Bricks is much more innocent than that! It's a game (quote from this website) http://www.theplaymakers.com/welcome/archives/000020.html:

Excerpt: Bringing Down the House
If ever there was proof that no one can predict what will be successful in the toy industry, this runaway hit of 54 wooden blocks is it. A single Jenga block holds no immediate allure. It measures approximately 3 inches by 1 inch by 1/2 inch, each humble hunk of wood from the game unrecognizable from any other. But stack 54 of them up, 3 to a row, 18 rows high, and they�re transformed into a surprisingly suspenseful and addictive game. Since Jenga�s breakout year in 1986, it�s become one of the most popular games in the world, at times second only to Monopoly in global sales. With such an amazing following, you might think Jenga was launched with a multimillion dollar TV campaign by a major U.S. toy company. But in fact, this stacking game had a much quieter debut over 30 years ago in Africa.

*The Game from Ghana* Leslie Scott was born in Tanganyika and raised in Kenya, East Africa, before moving with her family to Ghana in 1972. In 1974, just before the 18-year-old was about to graduate from high school, her parents brought home a set of children�s building bricks they had purchased from a wood craftsman in the nearby city of Takoradi. Wood was plentiful and inexpensive there and the bricks, a simple gift meant for Scott�s little brother, changed her life. �I don�t remember when we first started playing with the bricks as a game,� she says. �The bricks were slimmer back then and we stacked them three across, spaced apart from each other.� The rules were fairly basic at first. Everyone simply took turns removing bricks from somewhere in the middle of the tower until a player made it collapse. The Scott family named their game Takoradi Bricks after the city in which it was made. �

 

[phildwyer]

Like I said before, Cape Coast Castle is the nearest thing I've come to haunted. And I don't believe in ghosts. But that place resonates sadness

No, Takoradi Bricks is much more innocent than that! It's a game (quote from this website) http://www.theplaymakers.com/welcome/archives/000020.html:

I'm glad I didn't get any of them, the trip was stressful enough as it was.

It was the modernity of the slave castles that troubled me, you got the feeling that this was very recent history indeed.

 

[brix]

It was the modernity of the slave castles that troubled me, you got the feeling that this was very recent history indeed.

I know exactly what you mean. Very troubling.

Be good to see pics of your trip, if you have any.