Me & My Own

9-12 march. green turtle lodge (pt 2)

I’ve decided I would really like to spend my birthday at Green Turtle Lodge and have invited Claire, Jamie, James, Angela, Tom and Jo to join us for the evening. Mark is conspiring with Jo and planning some little surprises for the evening and I’m happy to lie around with a book all day and do absolutely zilch!

Mark asked me a few days ago what I wanted for my birthday. My first answer is nothing, as I have pretty much what I need, but after thinking about it, I’ve decided that what I really could do with is a small bowl to call my own and wash my face in the morning. After months of camping, my (very) high standards of personal hygiene have slipped somewhat and I’ve learned to live with it. But what I really miss is my own face bowl, not the laundry bowl and not the washing-up bowl, just my own. So, on the way back from Axim, after having the Landy cleaned and spotting our first tse-tse fly (they’re unmistakably huge!), we head into Agona market and go looking for ‘my own’. I settle on the perfect sized ‘my own’ and Mark heads off to buy himself a (Crocodile Matchet) machete; James and Jamie have theirs, he’s wanted one for ages, must be a boy-thing. I’m afraid I can’t watch him practice opening coconuts and hope the novelty will soon wear off...

My birthday is perfect: idyllic location, brilliant sunshine and loads of R&R! Mark surprises me with a bottle of Moet & Chandon, the Canadian flag (okay, it’s my birthday, not Canada’s!) and Jo has asked her her cooks to bake two cakes for the occasion, which are a real treat! We spend the evening tasting wines and playing poker. Jamie and Claire have combed ‘their’ beach and have come up with the perfect present: sand, driftwood and a wood stand for My Own! Really perfect; thank you Poupinou!

13-15 march. James & Angela’s (next door)

James and Angela have agreed to let us camp on their property and though work on the lodge is progressing, the only finished structure on site is a well, as self-composting toilets, and huts are still going up. The rainy season has come early this year and the mud and cement are taking a little longer to dry. We’re woken early by the workers who arrive on site to start their day. They sing, talk loudly and take part in at least one argument a day.

We’ve decided to rent somewhere to stay in Takoradi and Jamie introduces us to his friends, Phil and Sheela, who run an industrial supply business in town. Lucky for us, Sheela also deals with short/long term rentals and shows us a flat with seaview. Perfect! Unfortunately, the rates are quite steep in these parts as these flats are mostly rented by drilling companies for their employees. But hey, we decided a few months ago that we’d take a break from the road in Ghana and Takoradi is the place we want to be, so we decide to take the plunge.

16-26 march. Takoradi flat living

(Mark writes) It takes a few goes in the shower to scrub away the dirt that’s accumulated over the months. Unfortunately, it also seems our tans have faded somewhat under the attention of hot water and cotton towels. The biggest shock of returning to the luxuries of a fully equiped flat is the return of time. Suddenly, we have loads of it! Everything is on hand - water, drains, toilets and shower, lights, power, a cooker, clean space, our own cleaning lady. Our days used to be full of cooking, washing, travelling. Now, everything can be done so much quicker. Hot water is on tap. We have a sink. Washing is taken away and returned the next day clean and ironed. Electricity means we stay up later. It takes a while to adapt.

The first few days are taken up with cleaning. We take everything off and out of the Landy. The roof tent, fridge, shower, clothes, food, utensils, storage boxes. It all needs cleaning. The Land Rover now sits a good inch higher and the ride is totally transformed. We have more power and a ride that is more skittish now the springs have less weight on them. A couple of running repairs also take up some time. The radiator I’d bought in Kumasi was a dud. It might look a lot nicer and have less rust, but it also leaks. I take it out and put another one in. The “old” one will be returned to Kumasi the next time we are up there visiting Elvis. Our Optima starter battery has also burst one of its cells and will no longer hold charge for longer for a few hours. Not good. Worse is the fact that I discover the electricians in the UK have earthed the split charge system to the battery compartment itself. Retightening the battery leads to the battery one day, I touch the battery compartment metal with the wrench. Result - one dead split charge system. While we are not travelling, it’s not an issue, but something to deal with at a later date.

Phil and Sheela spoil us. They take us out to introduce us to the ‘expat’ community of Takoradi. It’s not large. 14 Brits we think, and that’s including Marie-Jo and I and Claire and Jamie! 26 French. A couple of Canadians and Swedes. The Dutch have the biggest community here, but even so their get-togethers only rustle up 15-20 at one time. The last time the British High Commissioner was here, they were rounding up Aussies off the ships to make up a reasonable number of “Brits” for his reception. Most of the Europeans here work in the mining or timber industries. The price of gold is high and now’s a good time to be in gold mining in Ghana. There’s also oil off the coast and it is starting to be exploited. Finally, Takoradi is a deep sea port. Once neglected, it is now once again expanding as Ghana’s main deep sea port as Tema - near Accra - overfills. All in all, Takoradi is a nice little town that is going places. (Takoradi is linked to the town of Sekondi, located a few kilometres away; the first is more commercial and vibrant and the second is mainly administrative.) Most importantly, there’s also a fair amount of Ghanaian money here. The “posh” supermarket in the town, the opticians selling Gucci and Prada, the restaurants and the small casino have a reasonably sized market.

We go to the house-warming of the manager of a Dutch NGO, the sports (golf) club’s terrace overlooking the sea for G&Ts, Captain Hook’s for late night Irish coffees and whiskies on St. Pats, Planter’s Lodge for a curry beside the pool under the stars, Twin City’s for a chinese. We puff up and down hills with the Takoradi Hashers and get soaked in beer afterwards during the BBQ as we’re first-timers, or “virgins” as they prefer to call us. We manage to get by.

Work of art: My Own
on stand

Perfect birthday

Overlanders at rest: in ‘our’ flat with Claire & Jamie