#wlifalls

1/26/2018

Close of Service conference was bittersweet. It was such a hoot to see all of the folks in my cohort together again after such a long time, but there was a disheartening pang that I couldn't shake knowing that this was probably the last time I was going to see most of them. I'll run into the Northerners at least once more before we all go our separate ways on separate days, but the majority of the #selfiescholars (Our group name... a lot of other groups who weren't keen on the names bestowed upon them by their trainers re-branded themselves. Despite a general dislike of our own nomen, we never took that leap and have remained the only non-Ghanaian-theme named troop) south of Dagombaland are probably lost to me, save for the few I'll see in Accra on the day that I COS. On the upside, I'm excited to meet some of the #selfies in America! It'll be great to reminisce with people who understand what I went through; a relief to share a meal with cheese and beer and not break the bank! One of our own is tying the knot in San Diego 2019 to another RPCV (what a lovely “How I Met Your Mother/Father” story)! There will be a PC Ghana reunion then, for sure, so who's joining me for tequila shots on the other side of the border, post-reception?!

COS conference was held on the outskirts of the Volta region. The resort—yes, a resort! PC really treated us as we're on our way out—was on the Volta River and many of us paid a little extra to go on a boat ride. We saw the dam, the summer vacation home of President Nana in the hills (hey-oooo!), and plenty of locals just doing their thing, going about their day. The food was divine and plentiful, and I ate allll... until I got sick (eek). Aaand then I ate some more :) The whole affair was short and sweet and to-the-point. I appreciated its laconic qualities but also regretted how brief of a goodbye (and somehow unceremonious) our's had to be. I guess I'm still processing; it hasn't fully hit me yet that goodbyes are real and there won't be a next time, at least not any time soon.

On the Volta River.

I have separation anxiety. What else can I say?!

My official COS date is March 29th, and I. Am. Stoked!! But there are a plethora of tasks I need to do before I can GTFO. The checklist itself is already giving me anxiety, ugh.

After the conference wrapped, a group of us ventured deeper into the Volta region to climb Wli Falls (pronounced “Vlee” Falls), the highest waterfall in Ghana. I almost died, literally. No, not from the killer views (hey-o! ;) but because I tripped a lot and almost fell off the side of the cliff more than once. It was a six hour hike, but it took us seven because we were seven individuals of varying fitness. Guess where I lay on the muscled spectrum? A strapping, robust, young lass, I am not.

But what a sight to behold! Arriving at the peak was sublime; the views grandiose, the bullets of sweat consistently obscuring my view as they pelted my glasses, the adrenaline a little transcendent. We had clambered to the peak on the 19th of January—the day of the second Women's March. And in our own way, every stomp we made was with solidarity for gender equality, reproductive rights, and access to health care.

The hike led us on a winding, arduous (the descent was twenty times worse than the ascent), and at times, lamentable trail to two separate waterfalls, and at one point, we leaped onto Togo territory when we strayed 30 feet off our path! That last detail is debatable, but we did converge with French-speaking hikers whose passage originated from the neighboring nation. That being said, we also encountered—and for a time, mingled—with plenty of German (so many!) and Danish climbers. The higher waterfall was probably my favorite. It was a little more intimate and less populous as many hikers eschewed a six hour trek in favor of a forty-five minute leisurely stroll to the lower falls that resembled something of a public pool with booze and hollers and many 'suited foreigners (the most white flesh I've seen in Ghana... though I enjoyed seeing many young local Ghanaians just shooting the shit with their friends at the majestic watering hole). It took us three hours of more or less perilous traipsing before we were awarded our reprieve. The taller waterfall was gorgeous, and the pool wasn't deep. I was able to go underneath the waterfall, feeling the impact of millions of water droplets come crashing down on me.

Yes, it is like you imagine: I thought, at one point, I might drown from the shear force. It was literally and figuratively breathtaking.

But hey—I checked “Be underneath a waterfall” off my bucket list. Twice. Holla!!

So. Many. Bats!!

The shitty part was that we were only halfway done. We had to dry ourselves off, put our dirty clothes back on, and climb back into our dust-filled shoes in order to hike a further few hours earthwards to reach the lower falls. I know, I know—was there ever a moment where we considered giving up? Dear readers, that was impossible... because we were on a loop. Quitting was never an option; it was finish or make the Wli Falls trail our new home.

Not that we would ever dessert the mission any way. It was very much a group “GO BIG and then Go Home... and treat ourselves to pizza and chicken and mac n cheese” temperament. And we rewarded ourselves very well that night, in large part because we were ravenous and tired and slid on our butts going downhill too many times to not buy an extra order of fries.

I was truly proud of us. We did it! It took seven hours. We were bone-weary. But we finished!! We climbed 262.5 feet, saw two waterfalls, stood under both cascades despite their mighty force, and then walked all the way back to our place of stay. How amazing is that? I couldn't shake the fiery gratification I felt for all of us; the pleasure to have done it with all of them.

The next day I traveled to Accra, my layover before I retreated to the North. And as usual, I used my stay in the capital to get some medical work done. I succeeded in getting an unsightly mole-growth-thing snipped off and sutured. Unsurprisingly, it became noticeably infected after a couple days (thanks, Ghana), but it mended itself all hunky dory once I extracted the stitches at site. Lesson learned: wear sunscreen, go to your doctor, advocate for yourself and your health, and utilize that free medical care while you have it.

Mah crew.

For our last NYU sponsored trip we traveled to Wli Falls in the Volta Region for a day of swimming/relaxing and a picnic.  Wli Falls is the largest waterfall in West Africa and the view is absolutely breathtaking.  The waterfall is accompanied by thousands of bats along the rock (you can see them if you look closely enough).  The water was cool, and we all made sure to touch the wall behind the waterfall.