and I am exhausted

Friday I went to Buduburah, a Liberian refugee camp, for their flag day celebration. It isn't that far but with traffic takes about 2 hours. At first I thought that this is like LA, just more honking. But really, you could never go grocery shopping on the 405 or buy ridiculous things or look out the window and see someone with a massive case of elephantitis. The camp wasn't what I was expecting. I honestly wouldn't have known I was in one except for the police checkpoint, but those are everywhere here anyway, especially once it is dark out. There were so many kids too. We waited a while for the "parade" to come by. At first I thought, I always have to play with all these kids that are all over me all the time, but I realized that it is ok to just stand there. You know those cliche pictures of white people with African kids all around them and red dirt in the background. They are unavoidable. You can't help it.
Well the parade turned out to be the top students in each class in different parade uniforms marching in place when it was their turn to go into the circle. The interesting part was the neighborhood watch people in blue jumpsuits who would run around the inside of the circle of spectators (kids) and whip their legs with switches if they were getting too close. I was a little freaked out because I am pretty sure they would have whipped me, but they were laughing and the kids were laughing and it all seemed to be some type of surreal game of chicken. I have noticed that the children here are just generally more hardcore. I was walking with a four year old girl the weekend before at the Homowo festival and she stepped on a wooden plank with a nail sticking out of it. The nail went through her flip flop and into her heel, but she didn't even say anything. She just pulled it out of her foot and kept walking.
The best part of the day was the performance in the community center. All the drummers and dancers were probably ages 4-18. It was the most amazing, passionate, fast, loud dancing I have ever seen. I think I just stared with my mouth open for 2 hours. I really can't describe it, but it definitely put ballet class when I was little into perspective. A few of the performances were about health education which was really interesting because I studied forms of art activism at UCLA and it was exactly what we were talking about...but there I was in a refugee camp actually seeing traditional Liberian dance used to educate about AIDS. so amazing : ) Halie and I were talking about how being here has really made us think about how our bodies have held us back from true expression and that here art and expression are intertwined so closely with dance and music which is such a part of everyday life and we have already noticed that we feel more connected, body and soul here.

The weekends traveling are so different from the days at school. I have never felt freer in my entire life...just to pack everything in a tiny backpack and get on a tro tro and all of a sudden be winding up the hills away from Accra into the dense green jungle and fresh air. Last weekend four of us went about 3 hours north to Boti Falls. It was actually two massive waterfalls that were so powerful you could feel the wind and spray from the standing far away at the edge of the pool. We went swimming there after a crazy hike, mostly vertical, where we passed a cave, a three headed palm tree, a phone unit vendor and his booth in the middle of the forest (well it was on a hill so I think maybe that is where villagers can get reception?), and this awesome rock on top of a rock. We climbed a shady bamboo ladder for 10 cents up to the top for an amazing view of jungle and hills. The waterfalls were so amazing when we got to them. There was a rainbow that went form one side to the other and it was safe to swim in. WE stayed the night there and even went for a swim in the morning.
The next day we went to Aburi to rent bikes. Some friends went the weekend before and recommended it as a crazy adventure. It definitely turned out to be hardcore mountain biking through the jungle. We opted to go without a guide but made it ok with the help of...kids again... through peoples yards and farms and more jungle. It was so much fun. Once I tried to ride my bike over a log bridge but it got suck and I fell off into the water. All of a sudden while all of us were cracking up this women with yams on her head and a baby on her back pulls me out of the water, saying "sorry!" "sorry!" and because the mud was so deep I lost my shoe but she wouldn't let me retrieve it. Instead she got a bucket and my shoe and washed off my shoes, leg and hands for me.
It was really easy getting back to campus. Every time I come back it really feels like a comfortable home with running water and a bed that won't fall apart and I am so happy to be back but so happy to go on another trip too.

This week I have actually had a lot of class. Some things still need to be worked out, like some professors have two classes at the same time or one classroom has 3 classes scheduled to be in it at the same time, but its getting there... I had an African traditional ethics class today that was pretty good. The professor engaged discussion which got really interesting when a few American students raised issues about being "Africans living in America" and just really interesting thoughts were happening. I am taking drumming and dancing too which is so much fun.
Yesterday, today and tomorrow I have/will have mandatory intramural sports training at 4:30 AM. Yes, I got up at 4 yesterday...and today. Yesterday really felt like 2 days. I got in bed and was about to pass out thinking it was 11 but it was only 7:45. o man. Anyway I'm thinking about soccer and cross country. I'm happy that I am finally meeting some people because I was starting to feel so isolated as an international student.
There are a lot of people waiting for the Internet as usual so I have to go. We are leaving for the Cape Coast festival tomorrow morning.