Ghana program field trips

From CCE wiki archived
Jump to: navigation, search

Field trips - typical schedule:

Some of the long weekend trips may be optional in any particular year. Long weekend trips comprise Friday through Sunday.

(Where are all these places anyway?)

  • On the first long weekend, we hold an orientation to acquaint you with the Legon campus as well as greater Accra (including visits to the national museum, the WEB Dubois Center, the beach, the Arts Center, Osu) and the surrounding area (perhaps including a funeral in Ashaiman).
  • Second long weekend: To the beach at Kokrobite, a small fishing villagejust outside Accra, for some r&r, combined with study of Ga music, dance, culture with master musicians and dancers of the Kokrobite Dance Ensemble, and (if he's around) with Ghanaian master drummer Mustapha Tettey Addy as well. We may stay at the funky Big Milly's Backyard (http://www.bigmilly.com/) or at Moustapha's compound, depending on preferences and feasibility. The evenings feature wonderful performances by the Kokrobite ensemble, as well as a reggae band.
  • Third long weekend: Cape Coast and Elmina (historical sites, where we will tour the dreaded slave castles, key nodes in the infamous slave trade) and Kakum forest (one of the few well-protected tropical rainforests of West Africa, featuring a 350 meter canopy walk, the only such tree-bridge in Africa and lots of wildlife). Our base for this trip is Han's Cottage (http://www.hansbotel.com/) with its amazing crocodile pond.
  • Ghana tour: Kumasi and environs. Kumasi is the center of the Asante nation where the Asantehene (ruler of the Asante people) resides in his palace. We'll tour the palace, as well as the largest outdoor market in West Africa and the Kumasi Arts Center, and try to arrange to study or watch performances of traditional Asante music and palmwine guitar by acclaimed master musician, Koo Nimo. If time allows we may also visit one or more of the famous craft villages on the outskirts of town, including the famed kente weaving center at Bonwire. From Kumasi we continue north to Tamale, homeland of the Dagomba people, in a contrastive Muslim environment. We study traditional music and dance, tour the city, and visit a women's shea butter collective. The Ghana tour is not optional; transportation costs are included in your fees, while hotel and food are extra.
  • Dagbamete stay: immersive field experiences for research and music/dance training in Ghana's Volta Region. The Dagbamete stay is not optional; all costs (transport, lodging, and food) are included in your fee, except for water (which you'll purchase on your own - it's not expensive!).

It is very hard to predict the exact cost of these trips, particularly as inflation is high, but I estimate long weekend trips at around $150, all expenses (except souvenirs) included. We've not included all of them in your basic fees to make the trip more affordable. However they will broaden your experience tremendously, and I hope you will all choose to participate in all of them. In the past, everyone always does.