It is the rainy season. So, I shouldn’t have been surprised when it poured all day yesterday. Normally (and especially in Accra), it just drizzles for twenty minutes then stops. Not yesterday. And of course, I was on a trotro winding my way up into the hills when the bulk of the storm hit. Trotros are notorious for breakdowns (irritating) and crashes (frightening). And as I stare out my window watching the web the rain forms in front of my eyes, I watch the median, which I’m separated from by a thin sheet of metal. Given my recent adventures with transportation, I don’t expect this to go well. But, in fact, it was uneventful, thankfully. The driver slowed down, after seeing a smattering of cars lining the ditch, and maintained that speed the remainder of the trip.

The first time it rained, I thought it would be a good thing. It would clear the dust, and cool the air. Not quite. The rain here is warm, but not in a tropical way, more like, in a sticky way. It’s hot despite the rain, and with rain comes steam, turning the streets into something of a sauna. And the dust simply turns to mud. I’m told, this is better than in the spring when temperature reach over 100, plus, humidity, and rarely AC. Perhaps this is better, but thanks to the moisture in the air, clothes almost never dry-which can make laundry difficult.  But, it’s not raining today. And so quickly we forget yesterday, and are thankful for other things-running water, electricity, which are both functioning today. Of course, there’s also that feeling of self-satisfaction that comes with “roughing-it,” even if we aren’t, really. Travelers constantly tell stories of adventures in squatters and that week they didn’t have running water, slowly, we are building our story bank.  And above all else, The bugs haven’t made an appearance-yet. I have three bites from two weeks, that must be a miracle.

Today, we’re headed (in theory) to Aburi botanical gardens 35km from Accra, again, if the weather holds. And tomorrow to HoHoe (“Ho-Hoye”) and the Wli (“vlee”) falls-the largest in the country. An update on Monday!

Send all your dry weather vibes this way!

Aburi Gardens