Ghana

May 2–5, 2012

Sometimes—like in the joke where prison inmates have heard the same jokes so many times that they recite them by referring to them by number—it’s enough to just write “Psalm 23” on your bus.

Ghana is an incredibly Christianized nation. In this respect, it stands out not only among other West African countries, but among all the countries of the world in general. Practically every shop, vendor and establishment has some kind of religious name. God With Us Rubber Stamps, Nothing But Christ Trading Enterprise, God is Able Café, and everything else along the same lines.

Kiosks are painted the colors of the Ghanaian flag.

By law, all cars must have two retroreflective stickers on the front and two on the back. (Some car manufacturers make cars with retroflectors already built into the bumper, by the way.)

Trucks and buses often also have strips of retroreflective tape along their sides. This drastically increases the vehicle’s visibility at night.

License plates can be compact or elongated here.

Windshields are adorned with stickers for insurance, vehicle inspections and so on.

A bus stop sign.

The bus stop itself.

A Toyota-sponsored sign that states how many people died on this stretch of road.

A gas station sign.

The Ghanaian digger is one of the best ones in the world.

In Russia, drivers are expected to know that if the name of a locality is written on a white background, the speed limit is 60 km/h, and if the background is blue, it’s 90. In Ghana, there’s a speed limit sign immediately as you drive into any town or village. It’s simple and straightforward.

A policewoman.

When there’s road work in progress, traffic controllers stand by the side of the road with red and green flags, waving them at drivers.

You can find these dark-green traffic lights of indeterminate age and origin in every single city.

Almost all the advertising billboards are vertical. I guess width is more expensive here.

There are directional signs for various businesses and establishments at every turn of the road.

Water bottle caps have an additional protective plastic seal.

Traditional meals are followed with traditional hand washing. There’s a bottle of liquid soap, a pitcher of water and a little washbasin on every table in every restaurant.

A Ghanaian taxi can be any color. The important thing is that it have orange stickers on all four fenders.

The mandatory indication of passenger and weight capacity, taxi owner’s name and city is always located on the front fender, always on a black background, and always endlessly varied in shape and form.

PSAs are always structured as a side-by-side comparison of two images: bad (with an x) and good (with a checkmark).

Accra

By African standards, Ghana is extremely stable politically. It’s now on its fourth constitutionally elected president, while its neighbors have constant civil wars and one lifelong dictator after another. There are even a few modern buildings in Accra now.

Public trash cans have been set up.

And a public urinal.

There’s a post box that was left behind by the British, but it’s being used as an advertising pillar.

Street vendors selling flip-flops.

A woman sitting in a washbasin sells smoked fish.

Hand-pulled carts are used all over the country to transport loads over short distances. Once at their destination, they’re often also used as makeshift vending stalls.

There are even specific “no carts” signs in the capital’s downtown area.

Traffic lights.

A public bath house near the fishing village area. Girls to the left, boys to the right.

The capital’s residents try to avoid this neighborhood. Just in case—people live by their own rules here, who knows what might happen.

In the evening, the villagers gather by the TV.

Early in the morning, they get in their boats and set out to sea to fish.

Cape Coast

Palm trees along the seashore are painted yellow on the bottom to make them prettier.

A Portuguese fort, once used to prepare slaves for sale, still stands here. The slaves-to-be were crammed into unventilated basements and spent many months living in inhumane conditions. Those who survived must have considered their fate of subsequent slavery a gift from the gods.

Bats hang out in one of the rooms in the fort.

Since the slave trade is defunct, the city now makes its money from the fish trade.

Hundreds of boats dock at the market with their catch.

And sell fish all day long.

The fish market can take care of all your other needs, too: you can grab a snack, take a nap in the shade, or listen to a missionary’s sermon.

On the other end of the market, new boats are built and sold.

* * *

A typical rural Ghanaian town.

Kumasi

A mother.

Mannequins.

Movies being sold off a cart.

Girls sleep on the base of a sculpture of a female drummer.

Street signs.

There’s a “do not litter” sign on every advertising post.

A street trash can.

Wires fastened to a building wall.

A post office with different post boxes for various regions of the country and other destinations.

* * *

The rice mashed up with beans which is eaten in Ghana looks like buckwheat.

They also eat snails here.