Ghana

We are at Hotel Shangri La in Accra Ghana. It's not the fanciest hotel I've ever been in, but it is nice! A lovely place with a sweet pool (although I fell asleep and never swam!) and a very courteous staff.
We arrived around 10 this morning and they had an open room availalbe. So, we got all situated and went out for lunch and shopping. There is a little arts and crafts fair right outside the hotel. Yep, I bought my first necklace from Africa (PS: I can't show it, b/c I'm sure it is somone's Christmas present!) and a sweet skirt. . .Sorry, I didn't do the work to change my picture, so just turn your head and look at my Ghanian skirt! After that, lunch at the hotel. I had a club sandwich which wasn't really a club sandwhich b/c it had unidentified meat with some amazing sauce, bacon and egg. It was actually quite good. We were super tired, so we went back to our rooms for a nice long nap. I slept so hard that when Greg woke me up, I thought it was morning! We then walked across the street to the African Regent Hotel where we had wanted to stay, but it was booked. It is a gorgeous hotel. Then, following the desk clerk's advice, we grabbed a cab to the OSU (Oh-Sue) district. This was basically some strip stores (kind of like NYC) and outside vendors. I bought more jewelry on the street and chatted up a lot of Ghanians! We then headed to a Chinese restaurant for dinner. . .(I know, I know. . .I do NOT support the Chinese' involvement in 3rd world countries!). Dinner was amazing and we took the leftovers with us. I wish I had a picture of the probably 9 year old boy who walked up to me and signed "bite" while saying, "meal, meal, please". I was SO happy to have that food to hand him!
All in all, it was an amazing first day in Africa. I think this was a good gateway for us before Liberia. It is 3rd world, but most definitely a city. I don't think it is probably anything like Liberia but was a very nice layover. We actually had a very relaxing day. One of the things that other people have told me is how you feel when you look around and realize you are the only white face in a huge crowd. Truthfully, I didn't even notice until halfway through the day. Not surprising to the people who know me well, but my heart swelled! I LOVED it! The people are SO friendly. ,

Seriously, I love Africa. I love the people, the bright colors, the culture and the children. I can't wait to go visit Rock Hill and different orphanages!

Tomorrow, we leave for Liberia at 12:40 our time (7:40 est) so pray for a great flight that may even come in earlier! We haven't heard about our passports, so that will be first on our agenda. Keep praying, my friends. I am so encouraged by our other friends journeys, especially with Alma (read Katy, Jamie Z or Robin's blogs on the right). Tomorrow night, I'll post our week's plans to be praying. Greg wants me to go back to the room and go to bed now. It is 11:30 here. . .we were in our room and the toilet overflowed, so we had to switch rooms and the new room doesn't have internet so I'm in the lobby alone! Love you guys!

PS: Greg promises to blog some too, while we are here!