Will In Africa

2007-03-19T20:57:00.000-07:00

Back from Africa.

As I sit here at UCLA procrastinating yet another term paper I cannot help reminense about my experiences which ended months ago. I miss so many things, but my memories seem so surreal. It's as if i've experienced a dream that I know is real.

This marks the end of the Will in Africa travel blog.
I hope you have learned something.

2006-11-20T13:28:00.000-08:00

Americans want to be the best, not just in the US, but in the world.

2006-11-17T03:45:00.000-08:00

Monkeys!
(this was in Togo at a touristy restraunt)
Since the last post...
-Went to Togo where we visited a voodoo shrine, ate some delicious food, and rode on moto bikes..

-Went to a Christmas celebration at a church named Zeta Hill. Zeta hill is a religion which fuses elements of Christianity and Islam together. They celebrate Christmas on November 14th, which they believe is Jesus's true birthday.
In Ghana, children are not considered alive until a week after their birth which is when they have a naming ceremony. On November 22, Zeta Hill will celebrate Jesus's naming ceremony.

I'm quite excited that my mom is coming to Ghana. She arrives on Wednesday. There is so much for her to see/smell/taste/experience here. Asante Kente Cloth Making, national parks, cultural troupes, etc... I love my mom's adventurous spirit.

I've finally posted up some pictures online, you can check them out by going to:
http://ucla.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2104127&l=b3c36&id=2506959

I'm currently buckling down and working on the Independent project about the life of Ghanaian musician/composer Jerry Hansen. If I'm fortunate enough, I hope to get in one more interview with him in today.

Alrighty, I'm off to write this paper.

Hope all is well
-Will

2006-10-27T18:16:00.001-07:00

A jazz club has been found in Ghana! My life is complete. Okay, not quite. I still need a girl...but we're getting there. This last weekend I went to Kumasi, the cultural capital of Ghana, visited a friend and then went to this awesome lake formed out of a crater. I sat by the water and did not move for close to four hours. It was fantastic. Recently the challenge has been balancing between the ideologies of African and American culture. Both are entirley different, and it severly messes with my head the more I think about it. For instance, in the states it's all about personal gain. Here, the individual is supressed. Anyways, I will write again shortly.
Best,
WIll

2006-10-27T18:16:00.000-07:00

2006-10-11T05:47:00.000-07:00

Independence.

I first must say how nice it has been recieving emails and phone calls from friends and family back home. I'm not sure if I'd be able to handle this voyage in Ghana if it was not for such correspondence. Yesterday I recorded on a Gospel album. While the music is quite frankly pretty bad, I am very excited about the music video they are filming. It will be good comic relief for all of my friends watch such as an embaressing sight as myself in a African Gospel music video. I began my interviews with Jerry Hanson on monday. He is such a wondeful human being although I don't believe I have discussed him in this blog yet. In the early days of Ghana's independence from colonial england Jerry Hanson formed a band named "the Ramblers" which traveled around the world and became a source of pride for Ghana (the first west african country to gain independence). While being featured on numerous television and magizine productions, his life story (as far as I know) has never been documented in a centralized text.
After we discussed his life for a little over an hour, he suggested we share a beer and relax. We drank Star, one of Ghana's the most popular beers.

My friend Duncan who is an Astrophyics/Religious studies major at UC Berkeley is going to have his father bring a Camera for me to Ghana when he travels here next week. This means I WILL HAVE PICTURES SOON! I'm leaving for class now, then to rehearsal. Afterwords I will probably clean my room and get some reading done. (Something which is long overdue)

I learned two new negotiation terms in Twi today!
Tosoi (meaning give me more of that)
Teso (meaning give me that for less money)

Ciao!

2006-10-06T04:28:00.000-07:00

Ghana Beat Japan in Football! After the game all the gaining living in my building were singing triumphantly.

Life right now is good but complex. My natural tendencies have been getting me into trouble here. I've been playing a lot of music but with musicians I am not extremely interested in. I need to learn how to Say no. Somehow I got myself into directing sound/doing some graphic design for a hip hop concert. Woop. The show is on Thursday. I'm also playing trumpet with a rapper there. Check back on Friday for a posting about the event.

Right now my biggest challenge is just not to get completely disillusioned with the ways things are done here. One needs to really be assertive yet appear to be relaxed to get there way. I'm not particularly graceful at this art.
On a brighter note, I just recieved a post card and a letter from my mom and dad. This made me happy. Thanks you. It's really nice to hear what people are up to back home.

Hope everyone is doing well.
Much Love,
Will

2006-09-30T15:40:00.000-07:00

I woke up feeling awful the other day, but I got tested and I don't have Malaria!
On another note- I have been hanging out with a few african traditionalists recently. They claim direct contact with spirits. They are a band that goes by the name Agasor. I'm sure you will here more about them later as I have been jamming and kicking it with them. My biggest problem recently has been time managment. I am not accomplishing as much as I would like but still find myself exhausted at the end of everyday. Perhaps eating strictly rice, not having running water, and being called white man 50 times a day is exhausting in it's own right.

Here is what I have been accomplishing:
-helping put together a grass roots hip hop concert,
-learning how to build drums
-Playing a bit of trumpet with a neo-traditional african group. (trumpet +bell+Gome drum + kpalogo drum+ Flutes+Xylophone)

Anyways, I'm getting kicked off cyber space.
Ciao.

2006-09-18T06:25:00.000-07:00

Will In Africa

Last friday we put on a concert featuring Ghanian and American musicians. It was a huge sucess. So many wonderful people showed up to perform, dance, and relax. I was most amazed by the dance troupe that performed alongside the band. They included some things which reminded me of The Mutaytor (a band my friend Elliot is in back in the States...www.mutaytor.com ) Fire eating, arobics, etc... I spent the weekend relaxing at Kokrobite, a very nice beach resort area. I couldn't believe it. A hotel room right on the beach was $6 U.S, lobster was 80 cents a piece (I had two). There was a reggae party with a live band. I kept on thinking about how much Jaco (my roomate at UCLA) would have loved it. When I got back from the beach trip I felt rejuvinated and ready for another week. Bye for now.
Much Love,
Will

2006-09-11T14:56:00.000-07:00

Where do I begin. In the last week I:
1. Camped in the rainforest
2. Walked in the canopies of rainforest trees. (check out the picture!)
3. Fed crocodiles Chicken (pictures should be up soon)
4. Played a a concert with mabye 1000+ Africans in the audience. I was the only white person. (Pictures should be up soon)
5. Took a few dumps (pictures will not be up)
6. Got my wallet stolen.

I feel pretty good about all these things. After all, a trip to a developing country would not be complete without #4/#6

Until next time.

2006-08-28T13:59:00.000-07:00

I started Class today. My professor began the lecture 20 minutes excusing his tardyness with a story about how he was in the hospital and escaped because their was no toilet paper there. I believe his tardyness was more just an excuse to be Vulgar. It was politcal sociology, the class is going to discuss the reasoning behind why some countries entered the "modern world" with democratic governments while other entered with Dictatorships. Should be interesting from a west african perspective considering the political instability in many of Ghana's neighboring countries.

Liberia just recently got a democratically elected governernment. I know this because I spent saturday at a Liberian refugee camp. It was horrific listening to people's stories about the civil wars in liberia during the last 15 years. The camp houses approx. 50,000 people. Even though liberia is now fairly stable, many of these ex-patriots consider the camp in Ghana their new home. Many of them gave birth and raised kids in the camp, and although their "homeland" is safe, they have a new home...

I went to a Wedding Yesterday. My friend Peter brought me there and we both played in the church band during the service. It was nice, although i definitly felt out of place because I didn't know the people getting married. Peter is a great guy. He is the leader of one of Ghana's most famous bands "The Ramblers". He picked me up from the airport when I got here and has been showing me around a lot. Very well respected musician. This has without a doubt been the longest I've been out of the country. I have to say it's been comforting seeing other children of Silicon Valley such as "Google", "Mozzila", "HP" . Knowing that this Global technology spurred out of my local culture is a fantastic feeling .

2006-08-19T16:36:00.000-07:00

Mahaa (that's good afternoon in Twi)
Things have been changing in the last few days.. I found some musicians that I jam with everyday. They are great.. Half of them are rastas and the other half just laid back people my age. We've all bonded, it's been nice. Music has allowed me to really get inside of their culture. When we play music together we are equals and our protective layers are removed...
they've been teaching me their songs and soon I will teach them some of mine. We have been talking about recording a CD together before I take off in December.
I've also been taking African Xylophone lessons from a man who taught my friend Bryan Hogan a few years ago. He's making me a xylophone by hand and teaching me traditional african music. He's also been taking me out to sample "peto" a ghanian spirit made from fermented millet...
everything is good, however I miss home.. My friends are up to such excitting things and I feel like I am missing out a little bit. But this experience has been priceless, and I am very confident I made the right decision to come. I'm off to sleep. We're going on a cruise tomorrow.

2006-08-09T12:04:00.000-07:00

I gave everyone the wrong number in the last blog entry:
here is the corrected version: 011 233 24 635 0638
I've gotten several requests for my address. I should get this info soon... When I do I'll let everyone know.
I'm going to a club on the beach for my birthday tonight.. woop woop.
hope all is swell.

2006-08-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

UPDATE! To reach me call 011-233-24-6368
The number I gave out before wont work, sorry if you tried!
It's been a few days since my last update. Let's get this out of the way--I'm alive and have had no diarrhea yet. However I have had a lot of rice.. rice pudding, steamed rice, spiced rice, beans with rice, pasta with rice (that one was odd), rice with rice... You get the point. If Bubba, from Forrest gump, lived in a third world country he would have eaten just like me....

The past few days have been pretty intense. I went to a village and played soccer with kids.. Afterwards they asked for money to pay for the ball to be filled up. I put out. Then the kids asked for Pen's for school... I didn't have enough for everyone...Didn't want to start a fight so gave away none. Kids asked "where's my money" as if they were entitled to their guests disposible income.

poverty is a complicated issue. It's really been a shock seeing 8 people living in a small african hut after seeing 4 people in a palo alto mansion so recently....

untill next time,
Willi
Once again! 011-233-24-6368 : call me with Skype

2006-08-02T15:44:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone.
I got to Ghana on Saturday but haven't been able to get on the internet until now. This is not however because of a lack of aces but rather a lack of time. We've all been keeping busy. By "we" I mean myself and the other UC folk here in Ghana. Were going through the process of orientation which is in reality like GHANA BOOT CAMP. No joke. We wake up at 6:30am, have special lectures (special because school hasn't really started..These ones are just for us), learn Twi (the most prominent of Ghana's 50+ local dialects), eat rice (with assorted meat/garnish), learn about the traditions (sometimes by trial and error), and dance the night away. Yes... After dinner it's time to boogy.
It's been an exciting and at times a difficult few days. I've never felt so out of place in my life. When walking around the market with Americans the locals say overnight! (the Ghanaian word for white man)

It's also been difficult balancing time between being with locals(feels: stressful, wonderful, uncertain, warm) an Americans (feels: comfortable) . I've been constantly with people. The only alone time I have is like 2 or three minutes in the morning when my roommate is in the shower. This will change though when school starts in about a week. I also need to play trumpet. It's crazy. Haven't played in like 2 weeks. That's been getting me a little depressed. However, I have played some African percussion and flute.... Pretty sweet. Anyways, this weekend we're traveling a bit around the country. I have a cell phone now and you should call me or use SKYPE! It's super cheap. My number is 011-246368, the number might not work... If it doesn't email me... (just remember I'm 8 hours ahead of you)
much love,
Will

2006-07-28T11:15:00.000-07:00

I'm in Amsterdam right now. Needless to say it's been crazy. I've walked from one end to town to the other. Met lot's of interesting nice people and crazy drug addicts along the way. More about that later. Now to the Heineken factory!

2006-07-26T11:56:00.000-07:00

Why Ghana?

"Why Ghana?" has been a question I've been asked at least 17 times a day.

If someone asked you to rationalize a particuluar food craving, how would you answer?
Unless you really understand chemistry, food, and your body, your answer would probably be vague and whishy washy. My normal answer to “Why Ghana” is just this--vague and whishy washy.

Let me try to clarify my decision with a simple Four-fold answer.

1. In the past few years I have really gotten into the music from West Africa. Afro-Beat, Highlife, I love it all. In the past few years, I’ve been fortunate enough to play with some fantastic West African Musicians living in the states. Playing and speaking with them has led me to believe that going to the “motherland” will not only be a great way to learn about African music, but also a great way to experience the roots of hip hop, jazz, blues, funk, etc…

2. A lot of people have misconceptions about Africa. I’m sure I have some of my own. I want to debunk them.

3. I can get credits towards my major, Ethnomusicology, and my minor Global studies.

Plus. Everyone I know that has been to Ghana has raved about it.

I’m excited. My plane leaves in 3 hours!
On Another Note I have a bit of a dilemma.
I’m spending two days in Amsterdam before I leave for Ghana. This is great. The problem is my malaria drug may be fatal when mixed with Marijuana.. if anyone can think of other things to do in Amsterdam please let me know!

…of course I wouldn’t smoke anyways. I’m just kidding around.

I’ll post my next entry when I get settled into Ghana. Stay tuned.
Much Love,
Will

2006-07-20T16:17:00.000-07:00

Hey Everybody,
This is the first episode of my "Will in Africa" travel Blog. In fact, it's actually the first Blog I've ever made. If you don't know already, I'm going to study in Ghana, it's a small country in West Africa. I'll be there for like five months. Everything is set. My flight is booked with a 3 day lay over in Amsterdam and then, assuming I survive Amsterdam, I'll arrive in Ghana on July 29th . My dad booked my flight (thanks) and I'm sure he'll be thrilled about that "If I survive" comment. I will dad. promise.

Believe it or not, the thing I'm most excited about is not the traveling, but rather all these legal drugs I get to take. I'm starting the immunizations and drugs this week. Let me tell you, we're talking about a lot of drugs. Malaria, Yellow Fever, typhoid, Rabies, Polio, and yes, even diarrhea. I'm especially looking forward to diarrhea. I'm also looking forward to Mefloquine, the Malaria drug. Check this out--according to the National institute of Health, the side effects of Mefloquine include:

stomach pain

vomiting

loss of balance

diarrhea (hey.. atleast I'll have the Diarrhea Pills...)

ringing in ears

sleepiness

difficulty falling asleep

unusual dreams.

Anyways... What could I possibly be doing in Ghana to make the "unusual dreams" and diarrhea worth it?
Stay tuned for the answer and more in the next "Will in Africa" entry.
Peace & Love,
Will