Bats, Cockroaches, and Geckos, Oh My!

We have been shown an area in Accra where the trees are filled by thousands of bats!  They simply hang there upside down, and from what we have been told, wait for sundown when they take off en masse.  They love mangoes so there must be some near there, though I did not see any.  One of the missionary couples that have become our good friends report that their "close encounters" are a lot closer than our bat one.  They have 3 to 4 inch cockroaches and geckos in their apartment!  I wonder which is feasting on which.

There are large numbers of beggars at the different intersections around town.  When we stop at the lights they come up to the car looking for help.  Quite a few are suffering from leprosy and will reach out with a hand that is missing all of the fingers beyond the middle joints.  Little children will also approach and make a motion with their hands towards their mouths indicating a need for food.  I do not see people lowering their windows and giving them anything but hope the few who do help them to get through the day.

I am getting pretty good at driving the Ghanaian way.  Lanes and stop signs are considered suggestions.  Stop lights are mandatory unless you are on a bicycle, motorcycle, or you are turning right and no one is coming.  Motorcycles are allowed to drive on the lines between lanes, in the lanes, on the sidewalk, or on the wrong side coming directly at oncoming traffic!  Honking a horn can mean almost anything, but most often means "I'm here" or "I'm coming through so get out of my way!"  Much of the driving is done bumper to bumper - much closer than I ever dared do at home - and people jaywalk everywhere.  At intersections, and far back from them, beggars move between the cars but so do street hawkers selling everything you can imagine: laundry detergent, windshield wipers, tools, fruit, meat pies, Valentine's Day candy, maps, shoes . . . .  Stop lights are extreeeeeemly looooong, probably so the hawkers will have time to sell their wares (which is a good thing because it allows these people to earn a living).  Driving under these conditions poses some interesting challenges and you never want to let your attention wander.  I do not listen to music or anything else in our vehicle.  I drive and nothing else.  One of the things that I have enjoyed about Ghana is how I never see the people arguing.  Well, I did see it once.  We were stopped at a light and there was a very large group of street hawkers who suddenly began to argue among themselves and it went on as long as we were stopped at the light.  To make a long story short, there was apparently a disagreement about who should be selling at this particular intersection.  It appeared to be the old timers against the interlopers.  But there was no violence.  Some loud voices and emphatic gestures, though.  The light changed and I drove away; I wonder who won.

Elder Emfield