See Ya Mole, Water Shortage, and Heading West

The only bus out of Mole National Park leaves at 4am.  Not thrilled about it but it is what it is.  Five of us walked in the dark to the pick up spot with sleep still in our eyes.  So the story is that the bus leaves at 4am if the driver wakes up at 4am.  We did get lucky and he woke up by 4:15 and we were off. 

It was dark out, raining and cool.  Actually managed to get a wee bit of sleep.  The ride back to town was uneventful and we were lucky to be the first stop.  The bus to Tamale was full and standing room only by the second stop. 

Chill day in Tamale.  We were back in town about 10am; I bought my ticket back to Kumasi for the next day and headed back to our hotel.  It was a catch up on writing and photos kind of day for me.  Sorry no baboon attacks or crazy Swedes to mention.

Did dinner at a chop bar a block from the hotel and our ‘hotel cat’ was there waiting for us.  Met a Ghanaian woman who had been living in DC suburbs for past 11 years.  She was there to introduce her children to the rest of the family.  It was apparent that her 7 and 10 year old were American (well at least Westerners).  They were freaked by the fact they had to jump over a drain ditch to get to the chop bar and they were sick of chicken and rice.  The woman on the other hand was desperate to move back to Ghana after her two-week visit.  She shad that for the past nine years she has been on high blood pressure medicine and within 10 days in Ghana she was off it.  Us Westerners tend to think those in the third world and developing world want to move our way…. not true.

Chicken and Rice at that joint were only 3Cedi and wicked good.

NEXT DAY

Got up early to get my 7 am bus to Kumasi.  STC buses are always nice; ac, big seats and safe.  We did have a blow out but the bus made it to a rest area so everyone could eat and pee while it was getting fixed. 

Got to Kumasi only an hour late and checked back in to Treasureland for one more night before heading back to The Coast. 

The ride back was on a STC again so very comfortable and uneventful.  I check back into The Prospect to find out that the whole of Cape Coast was out of water and had been for days.  No rain so the river was empty and there is no back up plane for things like that in Ghana.  Turns out that the edges of Cape Coast had been out of water for weeks and it had finally hit the city center.

Daily water supply

Thankfully The Prospect brings a bucket and a huge container of water each day, which is enough to bath and flush the toilet once maybe twice a day.  Someone on the staff has to gather all these huge containers and go somewhere for hours each day to get us water.  I have no clue how far or how much they pay to get the water but they are gone a good half day.

I was back in room 116 with the bed bugs again and yes, I was eaten alive again.   This time I spoke up and they sprayed my room and Obehi’s room as they were next door to each other.  I spent the next couple days in comfort without a single bed bug bite…. Nice.

So, Obehi and I took bets on when the last time people had showered.  We based this not only on odor but on the level of scratching people were doing.  Oh, what becomes entertainment when the water drys up in Ghana. 

I am heading further west tomorrow…Far West. 

Mole here we come, Metro Mass Scam, Celine Dion and Kenny G Wanna Kill Me, and Dreams of dancing Wart Hogs

Time to get my safari on!  Leaving Tamale this afternoon for the 3 ½ - 4 ½ hours bus ride to Mole National Park via Mass Metro.  Mass Metro is the cheaper bus that has no ac but are quite efficient (but not this time to be sure). 

We mistakenly got out of the taxi at the STC bus station.   I asked the STC lady who was mean as a snake (bizarre in Ghana) where to get the Metro Mass buses and she pointed us to a teenager running towards us.  “He can help you,” she said with a glare.  I knew instantly this was some sort of a scam but decided to see it play out a bit.  This kid said the bus leaves at 2:30 but was already sold out but of course he knows the driver and can get us on.  Yeah, right.  I knew the bus leaves at 1:30 but looking at the clock realized we would end up missing it anyway.  In my head I figured we get our wonderful hotel room back, eat delicious food and take the 5 am bus the next morning to Mole.

So the scam watch begins.  We went to eat Banku at a bus station chop bar and wait for this kid to return to take us to Metro Mass to get these ‘Golden Tickets’ to Mole.  After a bit I get bored and decided to take off and go to Metro Mass to get a ticket for the morning bus out.  The kid of course sees us leaving and wants to help up with a bus.  We blow him off and go to Mass Metro on our own. 

As it turns out the bus was to leave at 1:30 but it is running very late and we still get tickets and wait with the rest of the hordes in the extra hot Tamale sun.  In the end waiting to see how this scam worked saved us two hours sitting at the hot, cramped Metro Mass station.  My theory is that the kid (who by the way is the brother of the STC attendant who said he would help us) would get us to the station after the bus left and try to get us to pay a big sum to take a ‘friends’ taxi out to Mole.  Just a guess but…if anyone knows the Tamale-Mole Bus Scam please let me know as would love to know what the outcome would have been.

Anywho, we go to a covered area with tons of people waiting under a shaded concrete area for the bus to Mole and areas on the way.  I little girl of about four named Ester befriends us as she cares for her baby brother.  She is a little spitfire and we have a grand time waiting for our very late bus.  To my horror I see a vendor selling Kenny G and Celine Dion Cd's.  Please make them stop!  Seriously. 

After playing with Ester and helping her care for her little brother for close to two hours our bus finally arrives around 4:30 pm.  This will for sure put us in after dark and the road to Mole is known for armed bandits.  For part of our journey, I assume the dodgy part; an armed policeman rides with us.  

 

Our spot on the bus were at the very back of the bus on those crappy elevated back-breaking, ass-beating seats.  The road to Mole is wicked crap and we were bounced around with whiplash force for most of the ride.  Good Fun and yes I do mean it. 

The Road to Mole took about 5-6 hours a year or so ago but major road works have slashed a good hour or two from that.  Like most of Ghana the road construction is at the hands of the Chinese. 

At one point there was a buzz on the bus about the armed bandits that strike buses coming down the road.  Nothing ever came of these whispers and we arrived at the gate to Mole National Park well after 8 pm.  The next step was to get off the bus and pay your park entrance fees (20 Cedi) then re-board the bus and drive another 10 minutes to the Mole Motel in the heart of the park.

The last 30 minutes of the journey the bus is filled with only travelers heading for the park and we met several people that we would spend the next couple days with.  Didn’t make a reservation so we were amongst the last to get a room.  Went all out on our room and got the double with ac that overlooks the watering hole to the park.  The moon was in hiding and we would not see the spectacular view over the Savannah till morning.

Before bed we did have a simple dinner of fried rice and a beer.  What a great room.  Two double beds, a big bathroom and ac that we had to turn down.  Running water at Mole Motel is from 6-8am and 6-8pm but the leave a bucket for each person, which is more than enough. 

Dreams of wart hogs dancing in my head at Mole National Park, Ghana

Tonight will be a restless sleep as I wonder what animals are wandering outside my door.  Looking forward to my safari walk and jeep trip tomorrow.  Sweet dream little warthogs.

Tamale, Bad Biking, Coconuts and Getting Drunk with Crazy Dutch Dudes!

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Laura biking in Tamale, Ghana

Today we got take away breakfast of rice and beans with hard-boiled eggs.  The dry heat of Tamale was actually refreshing and we decided to walk the 5 KM into town.  The last version of Bradts travel guide to Tamale referred to it as a dry backwater not worth going to.  That has all changed.  The roads have been greatly improved and are some of the best I have seen in Ghana.  Most people ride bikes here so there are few cars on the road.  The new roads that have been built here include double bike/walk lanes with a half-foot concrete guard against traffic. 

On our drive in I saw tucks carrying hundreds of bikes.   Every 5^th store seems to be a bike shop too.  It’s like the Amsterdam of Africa.  The folks at the Moon-Light Lodge let us borrow their bikes to ride the neighborhood but said we were not experienced enough to ride into town and navigate the traffic.  I took no offense and they are 110% correct.  My Magic Road Safety Stone doesn’t protect against crappy biking skills. 

Machete Wielding Coconut Dude

Wandered town a bit before moving towards the National Cultural Center, which they say, has some wonderful art stalls around it.  Along the way we stopped to have a coconut from a Machete Wielding Coconut Dude (discussed in a previous post).  So good. 

Not terribly impressed with the art stalls so we start to head out when Mother Nature decides to open up.  With little warning we ran to the closest place we could find…. a Rasta Bar.  The pounding rains lasted for hours.  Many drink with crazy Dutch Dudes later we taxi-ed  home. 

Tamale or Bust via Yutong, Protection Rock, Changing Landscape/Culture and No Police Escort

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Yutong to Tamale, Ghana

Laura and I are off to Tamale then on to Mole National Park to check out some critters.  Once again I am leaving on a Sunday, which means few transportation options.  We end up in a large Yutong without AC for the 5-6 hours to Tamale (20 Cedi).  The Yutong Preacher gets on and does his thing to save us from the evil of the road. I buy a rock from him for 1 Cedi.  I hope this Protection Rock lasts through many rides to come.

 I do know that on the road from Kumasi to Tamale there have been robberies.  In fact they no longer do night buses and, in fact, if yours is running late and still on the road after dark you have to pull off until a police escort is arranged for the bus.  Big time crime is very low in Ghana and I think this police protection thing is to avoid even the chance of an incident.  I have no apprehension about the trip. 

Self Take of Laura and myself on the Yutong

It only took about an hour ½ to see the true changes to the landscape and the culture-scape.  The jungle begins to lose out to the arid savannah like terrain.  Colonial buildings are replaced with mud and thatched huts.  The North of Ghana is mostly Muslin and you can see the change in the cloths wore by the locals reflect this influence.  I am thrilled to be able to cover my face more (for sun protection) without looking out of place.  In fact, we found that women gave us positive looks when they saw us covering our faces with our scarves. 

At the half way-point we pulled into a way station with a couple restaurants, toilets, food vendors and as we where in the North a prayer room.  I noticed a huge professionally made sign with a giant arrow that said ‘Do Not Urinate Here’ (quite to the point).  After Laura came out of the bathroom she was a bit confused as there were people (all men) in this concrete room with mats washing their feet with tea kettles water.  They were washing their feet to enter the prayer room. 

Short break and we were on the road again.  Now the landscape fully embraces the dry savannah terrain covered in beautiful, majestic termite mounds.  The villages are made up of groups of round 3-4 huts with doors pointing to a center area in a circle.  Theses groups of huts are closed in with a thatched fence.  I wonder if these make up the different families within the village.

We arrived in Tamale around 6pm.  The station/market place is hoping especially for a Sunday night.  One of Rashid’s friends met us right off the bus and helped us get to an amazing hotel he had arranged for us.  Very cool to know people I guess. 

The Moon-Light Lodge is about 5 KM heading out of town but that is still very central as Tamale is not that big (even if it is the 3 or 4^th biggest cities in Ghana).  The rooms are large, with en-suite, ac, fan, TV and huge double bed.  We got all this for only 30 Cedi.  

Decided to go to the closest place to eat, which was only five minute by foot.  It is a disco light pizzeria/anything/bar.  Ended up ordering a vegetarian pizza and it was freaking delicious.  My tummy was very happy to be sure.  If you do end up in Tamale one day and are craving pizza, a beer and some serious lighting then go to Tacorammbama Pizza.