tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-118941782024-03-22T05:28:01.077+00:00Ramblings of a Procrastinator in AccraAbena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.comBlogger235125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-57560462289542098512018-02-03T18:29:00.001+00:002018-02-03T18:29:45.548+00:00After the one year hiatus<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Has it really been over a year? The longest stretch I left my blog in the past was between its creation in 2005 way up until 2008. 2017 certainly left me nothing good to blog about. If I thought 2016 was an <i><a href="https://chardonas.blogspot.nl/2017/01/change-came-to-bad-in-annus-horribilis.html">Annus horribilis</a></i>, it had nothing on 2017 ...but we will not get into that. We just have to be optimistic about 2017 and take everything in our stride. 💓</span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-30388664188283967592017-01-16T11:58:00.000+00:002017-01-21T16:39:24.554+00:00Farewell ode to the "Dead Goat" aka the uber-cool, dabbing President<div style="text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Former President Mahama at the official launch of his re-election campaign in 2016...as seen on TV</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;">On Saturday 7 January 2017 at exactly 12 midnight, the tenure of the 4th President of the 4th Republic of Ghana came to an end. Later on that day, the 5th President of the 4th Republic was sworn in but that's another story for another time.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tAAyi3baHa8/V-ApcRZgqGI/AAAAAAAAEnQ/ElgCm3H1f0cSO3vs8FjiztaR96vNZrzbQCPcB/s1600/Usain%2Bpresident.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tAAyi3baHa8/V-ApcRZgqGI/AAAAAAAAEnQ/ElgCm3H1f0cSO3vs8FjiztaR96vNZrzbQCPcB/s400/Usain%2Bpresident.jpg" width="296" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;">The Dabbing Commander<br />
Source: with the kind permission of @Kwakye_ade3f3 on Twitter</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Former President Mahama will not only be remembered for being the only President of the 4th Republic to be voted out after one term in office but also for being relatively young, vibrant, tech-savvy and having <a href="http://chardonas.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-best-of-bad-commander-in-swag.html">a whole lot of swag</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Another unforgettable trait of President Mahama is his skills in oration and communication. Who can forget the </span><span style="font-size: large;">oratory gem he delivered to Ghanaians living in Botswana in March 2015? :</span><br />
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<i>I have seen more demonstrations and strikes in my first two years. I don't think it can get worse. It is said that when you kill a goat and you frighten it with a knife, it doesn't fear the knife because it is dead already.......I have a dead goat syndrome</i></div>
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-President Mahama</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">Goats may appear to be a strange animal for any analogy but in Ghana, <a href="http://chardonas.blogspot.com/2015/09/one-nation-under-goats.html">we love our goats</a> and what the former president was describing was how he was impervious to attack in what he termed having 'Dead Goat Syndrome'. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Unfortunately for him, this statement seemed to shatter the thin line between being impervious and not caring. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Over the past few years, I have struggled to find the right description for former President Mahama's public demeanour. Finally, in a <a href="http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21710286-country-should-be-beacon-african-democracy-ailing-nkrumahs-heirs">scathing article</a> in November 2016, <i>the Economist</i> provided the word that made the most sense to me: 'insouciance'. </span></div>
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<span style="clear: left; float: left; font-size: large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a96kC9_oMb0/WG4E7bk3ldI/AAAAAAAAEtE/E_G24sPN0sEwO7xt2mrvjoEEKDQYagJNwCLcB/s400/Insouciance.png" width="400" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Sadly, I am sure the former President cared a great deal about governance and Ghana but his public persona over the length of his tenure did not always reflect this. State of the Nation addresses were mixed with laughter, jovial jibes and swipes at the opposition. These were very entertaining but showed a lack of some degree of gravitas. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In the end it appeared that describing himself as having 'Dead Goat Syndrome may have played a part in sounding his own political death knell. He told the people that he did not care about being attacked and he got punished for not caring enough....among other things. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Former President Mahama's legacy is indeed mixed; his tenure will be remembered for impressive infrastructural achievements blended in with a plethora of corruption scandals. Regardless of where one stands, </span><span style="font-size: large;">on January 7th we bade farewell to a well-spoken, warm President with a great sense of wit, charm and perhaps a not-so-presidential demeanour. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In retrospect, any current president adding their image to buses branded with images of former heads of state is probably not the best way to remain in power...especially if the costing of bus branding was a stand-alone political scandal</td></tr>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-36499931065710981152017-01-02T20:21:00.001+00:002017-01-05T08:17:28.255+00:00Change came to the B.A.D in the Annus Horribilis that was 2016<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Queen Elizabeth II called 1992 an <i><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/annus%20horribilis">Annus horribilis</a> </i>which basically means disastrous or unfortunate year. 2016 was pretty much an <i>Annus horribilis</i> on a global scale; a year full of political shocks and celebrity deaths. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">2016 will be remembered by children of the 80s as the year that saw the passing of many adored icons. There was <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Rickman">Alan Rickman</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bowie">David Bowie</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince">Prince</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Ali">Muhammad Ali</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_Wilder">Gene Wilder</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Michael">George Michael</a>....just to name a few. There were other musical icons who passed on such as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glenn_Frey">Glenn Frey of the Eagles</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Cohen">Leonard Cohen</a> and of course the Kwaito legend <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandoza">Mandoza</a>. The political surprises seen worldwide in 2016 were pretty spectacular. The conflict in Syria continued and became even more deadly as the year progressed. In early December, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/02/the-gambia-president-jammeh-concede-defeat-in-election">the Gambian strong man who has been in power since 1994 was beaten at the polls</a>. Earlier in the year, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brexit">the United Kingdom opted to leave the European Union</a> which also coincided with the near-annihilation of the opposition Labour party through self-inflicted implosion. Later in the year, to the surprise of many, the US electoral college system voted to make Russia great again. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Over in the Beacon of African Democracy (the B.A.D), something quite unexpected happened. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghanaian_general_election,_2016">The opposition managed to beat the incumbent government at the polls without the need for a run-off election.</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Some may attribute this electoral feat to the eerie trend in which Ghana has followed the US electoral direction since 1992. The trend is simple; when Democrats win the US Presidential election, the National Democratic Congress wins in Ghana and when Republicans win, the New Patriotic Party wins. There are also supposedly ideological parallels to this. This would make sense if the winner of the 2016 US election was in fact an established Republican as opposed to a Democrat turned Independent turned Republican. However, I digress....</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">One of the best explanation for why (the soon to be erstwhile) Mahama administration lost the presidential election in 2016 came from a stinging article published in T<i>he Economist </i>in November<i> </i>entitled <a href="http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21710286-country-should-be-beacon-african-democracy-ailing-nkrumahs-heirs">Nkrumah's Heirs</a>. The article coincidentally also refers to Ghana as the Beacon of African Democracy and was pretty harsh on both political parties. What they had to say about the ruling party was severe but pretty informative:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="170" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UKNbrdE7Y6w/WGqiAhxgo2I/AAAAAAAAEsk/jcXaetDL-lghmig3Aaav3ehwVvn_cp7XQCLcB/s400/image1%2B%25283%2529.JPG" width="400" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Patronage, uncontrolled expenditure, burgeoning public debt, insouciance on the part of the President, squandering of oil money, pot-holed roads and incessant power cuts were just some of the factors at play that decided the fate of Ghana's National Democratic Congress. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So there it is. Ghana will have Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as President for the next 4 years. The effect of change has been interesting to witness. Many people appear delighted and some traders dropped prices in the market over Christmas. Cynics may view the latter move as a tad disingenuous...but that is just cynics. Throughout the land, there is an undeniable air of optimism, hope and NO space for complacency from Ghana's new leaders. The Ghanaian electorate has proven once again that it is powerful, discerning and unforgiving. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">New billboard up in Accra of the President-elect of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo</span></td></tr>
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<br />Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-63932050214177997612016-11-05T18:30:00.000+00:002016-11-05T18:32:18.432+00:00REPOST: Remembering an African Icon: Brenda Fassie (MaBrr) 3 Nov 1964 - 9 May 2004<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>Thursday 3 November 2016 was the late great South African musical icon Brenda Fassie's birthday. She would have been 52 years old had she not passed on in 2004. In honour of this birthday, the website <a href="http://www.okayafrica.com/">OkayAfrica</a> had a great piece on the <a href="http://www.okayafrica.com/audio/brenda-fassie-songs-listen/">10 best Brenda Fassie songs</a>. Many of my favourites were on the list while others did not make the cut. The wonderful thing about Brenda Fassie was that her large musical repertoire spanned two decades and several genres. Although fans of her music have divided opinions about which song was her best, there was something in there for everyone in her large body of work. For example, like the author of the OkayAfrica article, my brother insists <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2g0hYgsy4Vc">Weekend Special</a> was her best song. I wholeheartedly disagree. Reflecting on her legacy, here's my piece from 2012 on the icon that was Brenda Fassie. </i> </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">The Late Brenda Fassie<br />
Source: Lastfm</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The late great South African musical icon Brenda Fassie may be remembered by some only for her infectious hit <i><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RvfDkzUOos">Vulindlela</a></i> that took the African continent by storm in the late 90s and early '00s. However, for many of us growing up in Southern Africa in the 80s and 90s, Brenda Fassie's music was the soundtrack of our lives. Her early pop hits were the songs we used to sing along to in the playground in primary school while in high school, her kwaito tracks were the stuff of intricately choreographed dance routines. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">In fact from the late 1980s through the 90s there was a transition in Brenda Fassie's music from pop songs mainly in English <a href="http://www.southafrica.info/about/arts/922575.htm">to the dance rhythms of kwaito</a> almost exclusively in local South African languages. As Brenda Fassie reached the height of her career during this period, not only was she known for the music but also for the offstage drama that managed to fill newspapers and tabloids.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Despite all the drama, it came as a complete shock to me when Brenda Fassie tragically passed away at the age of 39 years in 2004 just months after I saw her perform live at the Ghana Music Awards.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">So I was just thinking to myself. Today marks 8 years since the passing of one of my favorite musical icon and out of the plethora of her songs, which would be my ultimate favorite? This is actually a very hard question. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Would it be <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFt85MfXQhs&feature=fvst"><i>Zola Budd</i></a> the hit that celebrated the Johannesburg mini-van taxis nicknamed Zola Budd after the South African long distance runner of the time <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zola_Budd">Zola Budd</a>? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">Would it be <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-h2ADvJmClA"><i>Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu</i></a>. The song that encapsulated the Zulu proverb "umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu" (a person is a person because of people)</span><span style="font-size: large;"> and described Brenda Fassie's gratitude to others? This song had a really glitzy video involving a plane and runway. I am sure we still have it on VHS somewhere.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Would my favorite be <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uoaEg2r9Ak">No No No Senor</a>? A song with an amusing video that replicated an American Western (or more like a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaghetti_western">Spaghetti western</a>) with Brenda as a heroine saved by a cowboy on horseback complete with a stetson. I kid you not.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There are just too many songs to choose from. There's Brenda's ode to Mr. Nelson Mandela in <i><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFZP-D3PAmc&feature=relmfu">Black President</a></i> which was years before he actually became the first black president of South Africa. There is also <i><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arVIka3ML_k">Boipatong </a></i> featuring the powerful vocals of Tsepho Tshola of the band <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sankomota">Sankomota</a> dedicated to those killed in the tragic <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boipatong_massacre"><i>Boipatong Massacre</i></a> of 1992. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Who could also forget <i>Too Late for Mama </i>that tells the story of a mother struck by lightning on the way to fetch water. I am really confused why google keeps linking this track with Alicia Keys. Or did I miss Alicia Keys re-doing a Brenda song completely?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/__bo-yUylLY" width="420"></iframe></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Still among the Brenda anthology there is the ultimate early dance track <i><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6FwaKlKlb0">Istraight Lendaba</a> </i>which along with <i>Higher and Higher</i> were hits around the time that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwaito">kwaito</a> music was just emerging as a genre. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">There are the later kwaito classics like <i>Qula</i>, <i>Ngeke Umconfirm, Nomakanjani, </i><i><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sJx7B3GG34">Amagents</a></i> (an angry response to another South African musician), the very dark <i>Memeza</i> and of course <i>Vulindlela</i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">So I thought about it long and hard. My ultimate favorite Brenda Fassie song would have to be the very first one I ever heard when I was still a child. The video featured a young 19 year old Brenda Fassie belting her heart out in <i>It's nice to be with people </i>when she was still billed as 'Brenda Fassie and The Big Dudes'. This was before the fame, before the drama and before the tragedy.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Sadly, I can't find the original video on the internet:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hZLgxSspj_w" width="420"></iframe></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">When <a href="http://www.time.com/time/">Time Magazine</a> described Brenda Fassie as the <a href="http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1000782,00.html">Madonna of the Townships</a> in a 2001 article, I for one thought they got it completely wrong. Brenda Fassie was not the Madonna of the Townships, Madonna was the Brenda Fassie of America. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Brenda Fassie <b style="text-decoration: underline;">aka MaBrr</b>; fondly remembered and forever cherished.</span></div>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-32794138203114642532016-10-02T18:43:00.000+00:002016-10-02T19:02:24.645+00:00The Best of the B.A.D: The coffee shop ambience arrives in Accra<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Last week (29th September) was <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Coffee_Day">International Coffee Day</a>. Days like that are important to me since I am a completely unrepentant coffee addict. I like my coffee daily, strong and freshly-brewed. One thing I have always appreciated about living in that ominous place called 'The West', was access to a plethora of coffee shops. In New York City, there is literally a Starbucks at every street corner. As a grad student in London, my heart would skip a beat every time I handed over precious pounds at one of the many coffee shop chains that were there solely to feed my addiction.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Coffee shop chains represent a dubious brew of globalization and capitalism with a hint of a country's growing affluence. My appreciation of these places has not only been for</span><span style="font-size: large;"> real coffee brewed to perfection but for their warm ambience. Coffee shops are likely to have comfortable chairs, sometimes couches, places to plug in a laptop and if one is lucky, free WiFi. For me they represent the perfect environment to catch up with friends or work for hours fuelled by caffeine. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Although 'coffee shops' in the Netherlands mean something different and if you ask to be taken to a Dutch coffee shop and expect coffee and cake, you will be sorely disappointed. Instead you will be taken to a seedy, poorly lit place with few windows and people smoking marijuana legally. In the Netherlands, the right word is 'café' and </span><span style="font-size: large;">they usually offer strong black coffee and a heavenly slice of warm Dutch apple tart. So much better than any Dutch coffee shop.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;">Alas, I digress, this was about Ghana not the Netherlands. When I </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9_a2OjDVlsA/V_FNLuXblZI/AAAAAAAAEpQ/K4ca5r_K6bMgvOoJgn3g-Vj1aEOII6JAACLcB/s1600/IMG_1553%255B1%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9_a2OjDVlsA/V_FNLuXblZI/AAAAAAAAEpQ/K4ca5r_K6bMgvOoJgn3g-Vj1aEOII6JAACLcB/s320/IMG_1553%255B1%255D.JPG" width="239" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;">moved to Ghana back in the early 00s, there were very few coffee </span><span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;">shops or cafés and few offered that charming ambience that I craved so much. Things have changed and the inevitable force that is</span><span style="font-size: large;"> globalization has finally led to at least</span><span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;"> two new coffee shop chains offering brewed coffee and comfy seats. </span><span style="font-size: large; text-align: justify;">I managed to go to 2 branches of my particular coffee shop 5 times within 3 weeks. I did wince at the heavy amounts I parted with to get my fix but for me it was also about that charming coffee shop ambience that had finally arrived in town.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The coffee, the music and the cool people</td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">PS: In the past 2 years, I have come to realize that the strongest and most delicious coffee can be found in East Africa. Places like Java House in Nairobi (that allows you choose the strength of your coffee) or Mokka City Café and Lounge in Dar es Salaam serve the most unforgettable cups of coffee on this planet. </span></i><i><span style="font-size: large;">One of the most delightful cups of coffee I have ever had was on a coffee plantation in Mbeya, Southern Tanzania. Their coffee foam patterns were amazing too.</span></i></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Delicious coffee at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MokkaCity/">Mokka City Café and Lounge</a><br />
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coffee at Utengule Coffee Lodge, Mbeya, Tanzania</td></tr>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-67824857311490642692016-09-21T06:00:00.000+00:002016-09-21T16:56:18.254+00:00The Best of the B.A.D: I guess that is what they call 'Inflation'<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">My bestest buddy El, who is not Ghanaian, occasionally sends me articles from high-brow financial journals such as the Financial Times or Wall Street Journal that chronicle the meteoric rise and fall of the African star that was Ghana. Rather than providing a cautionary tale for other developing countries, I am beginning to believe that financial reporters delight in a train-wreck or two. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Back in the early 10s, Ghana was seen as the African 'wunderkind' by many economists. There was much talk about an economic boom which was being lubricated, literally, by the flow of oil. There was even the hasty re-classification of Ghana as a <a href="http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2011/07/18/ghana-looks-to-retool-its-economy-as-it-reaches-middle-income-status">Middle-income </a>country. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Sadly, in a fate reminiscent of the </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celtic_Tiger" style="font-size: x-large;">Celtic Tiger </a><span style="font-size: large;">of the late 90s / early '00s, economic boom was followed by bust. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I should point out that I know nothing about economics. The one econ class I took in college for 'fun' ended up being an albatross around my neck. </span><span style="font-size: large;">I digress, back in the early 10s, Ghana was the golden child that lost its shine very quickly. The nagging question, which is captured in an <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oasis_(band)">Oasis </a>song NOT about Ghana, is '<i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0ghsoNE2Ig">Where did it all go wrong?</a></i>'. The answer to this poignant question I will leave to economics types who know all about falls in commodity prices, huge wage bills, speculating, eurobonds, markets, borrowing, mismanagement, corruption etc. etc. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">However, what I do know is that my recent trip to Ghana provided some practical experiences in one important economic principle: Inflation. I am definitely the wrong person to attempt to explain 'inflation' but according to Google,</span><span style="font-size: large;"> inflation has something to do with a general increase in prices and fall in the purchasing value of money. These sentiments are echoed in the dictionary screen-shot below: </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Back in 2009, I waxed lyrical about the things I loved the most about Ghana living. This was in post entitled <i><a href="http://chardonas.blogspot.com/2009/08/celebrating-best-of-bad.html">Celebrating the best of the B.A.D</a></i>. Included in this list was "Doing your hair for cheap". It was as if Ghana 2016 read my post and decided to teach me a valuable lesson. To cut a long story short, the amount I paid for doing my hair in 2010 or even 2012 was the amount I gave out in tips in 2016. The exact same thing happened when it came to getting my troublesome brows waxed. Full prices in days gone by are now tips in 2016. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Inflation was all around me. Another example was when I took a short mini-bus (trotro) ride and was literally laughed out of the vehicle by the conductor (the mate) after I proffered Ghc 0.20 in his direction to pay for the ride. The mate then explained quite patiently that short rides started at GHC 1.00. Let's not even get into taxi fares. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Next up was the GHc 50.00 note. Back in the day, these notes were hardly used or even seen but now they flow like water through the system. </span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YDpCrT4FI-8/V-F98ZnfvkI/AAAAAAAAEoc/kksKXGap9OQWjN0SNEweAYUkdQu0uSIPACEw/s1600/252px-Ghana_Cedi_banknotes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YDpCrT4FI-8/V-F98ZnfvkI/AAAAAAAAEoc/kksKXGap9OQWjN0SNEweAYUkdQu0uSIPACEw/s1600/252px-Ghana_Cedi_banknotes.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ghana Money<br />
Source: wikipedia</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Whenever a GHC 50.00 note was whipped out circa 2010/2011, it was sure to cause a slight panic at any reasonably-priced restaurant as the staff scrambled to find change for such a huge note. These days, GHC 50.00 can barely cover lunch for two people. I shudder to think what collection bowls in churches look like these days; seas of pink (GHC 1.00) are probably now seas of green (GHC 10.00) and purple (GHC 20.00). </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I probably retained zero knowledge of economics from my brief dalliance with the subject in undergrad but one of the best lessons I got was from my return home to Ghana. I finally got to learn, firsthand, what they mean when they say a country has been hit by inflation. Hmmm do they actually say that?</span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-43562202192807151372016-09-19T19:19:00.001+00:002016-09-21T06:00:33.683+00:00The Best of the B.A.D : The Commander in Swag<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">One thing is for certain in the Beacon of African Democracy, the President seems to have his pulse on the beating heart of the youth. In other words, 'he got swag'. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Defining exactly what 'swag' means can cause one to run into numerous problems but it loosely means displaying a cross between uber-coolness and very hipness. In other words, someone who has swag knows what is hip, fresh and new. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-e66twTfiWpo/V-AyAbkvaVI/AAAAAAAAEnA/iyzBL_ccvp485NLqYxFlBSTjeDDWgRo5QCLcB/s1600/Mahama%2Bdark%2Bglasses.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-e66twTfiWpo/V-AyAbkvaVI/AAAAAAAAEnA/iyzBL_ccvp485NLqYxFlBSTjeDDWgRo5QCLcB/s320/Mahama%2Bdark%2Bglasses.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">President John Dramani Mahama (in dark glasses; uber-cool as usual) <br />
at the launch of his presidential campaign in<br />
the Central Region of Ghana.<br />
Source: Screenshot from a live Joy TV news broadcast</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">President Mahama is relatively young, good-looking and seems to have always been a youth magnet of sorts. Back in the 2012 election, he eloquently and correctly stated that <a href="http://www.modernghana.com/thread/177424/409306/1">he was born in 'Ghana' while his opponent Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo was in fact born in colonial 'Gold Coast</a>'. These are undeniable facts. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">President Mahama proved just how much swag he had when he read his inaugural presidential speech on 7 January 2013 using an electronic tablet. This was around the time where that very election was being challenged in the Supreme Court. The young people on Ghana Twitter and elsewhere went wild: </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j0w8K3CAUwk/V-AvXJ243cI/AAAAAAAAEm4/tzsQeSQv7s4oRuujj_S7EuJOZvB635GLACLcB/s1600/Speech%2Btablet.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="251" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j0w8K3CAUwk/V-AvXJ243cI/AAAAAAAAEm4/tzsQeSQv7s4oRuujj_S7EuJOZvB635GLACLcB/s400/Speech%2Btablet.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Twitter search of 'Mahama, speech, tablet'</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Although programmes under President Mahama specifically targeting Ghanaian youth e<span style="font-family: inherit;">mpowerment and employment such as the Ghana Youth Employm</span>ent and Entrepreneurial Agency <span style="font-family: inherit;">(</span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.newsghana.com.gh/tag/ghana-youth-employment-and-entrepreneurial-agency-gyeeda/" style="font-size: x-large;">GYEEDA</a>)</span><span style="font-size: large;"> have been.....erm......less successful, our president has remained a youth champion throughout his tenure.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-X1pomdFAATY/V-AnDoTDULI/AAAAAAAAEmk/P5V7Eav5Uxsw93fads22u40WNTQQtbJEwCEw/s1600/sons-of-anarchy-season-4-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-X1pomdFAATY/V-AnDoTDULI/AAAAAAAAEmk/P5V7Eav5Uxsw93fads22u40WNTQQtbJEwCEw/s320/sons-of-anarchy-season-4-poster.jpg" width="216" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sons of Anarchy poster<br />
Source: collider.com</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In June 2016, a curious thing happened that I can best describe as a <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sons_of_Anarchy">Sons of Anarchy</a> </i>moment<i>. </i>This happening further proved we were still one nation under the Swag President. Speaking of the series <i>Sons of Anarchy,</i> I watched two episodes and was stumped by the appeal. But alas, I digress. We were talking about Ghana in June 2016. After heavy flooding in Accra, our president, like any super hero would, donned some cool clothes and headed out on a solo motorcycle ride across the city of Accra apparently inspecting torrential flooding. There are number of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtWM5BPBVao">YouTube videos</a> of this tour. </span><span style="font-size: large;">My first thoughts were:</span></div>
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<li><span style="font-size: large;">Who actually does this?!</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">Isn't it better to take a helicopter to inspect flooding?</span></li>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Ghanaian social media on the other hand, was very much impressed. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pBsnre7wdGw/V-A1o8sdEVI/AAAAAAAAEnM/MZci1DpHbL4KN9R4scY5tzXqroJYZzUWwCLcB/s1600/president%2Bmotorbike.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pBsnre7wdGw/V-A1o8sdEVI/AAAAAAAAEnM/MZci1DpHbL4KN9R4scY5tzXqroJYZzUWwCLcB/s320/president%2Bmotorbike.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Screenshot from YouTube of some of the many videos of the <br />
President's <i>Sons of Anarchy </i>moment </td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Then came the Rio Olympics in August 2016. While watching the live broadcast, our President appeared to have been immensely impressed by <a href="https://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome-psyapi2&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8&q=usain%20bolt%20rio&oq=usain%20bolt%20rio&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.4797j0j4">Usain Bolt's amazing feats of greatness on the track</a>. Being the P.R. guru that he is, President Mahama decided to release a photo with his swag credentials on full display. This time, Twitter was not so impressed. The general sentiment on the President's Rio gambit are best summed up in a tweet by a Twitter user named "Bearded Raiden"(<i>tweet reproduced with kind permission of said Bearded Raiden</i>) </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">A rough translation of the tweet: <i>It appears that President John Dramani Mahama is taking the upcoming Ghana 2016 Presidential election as if it were a Senior High School election. His actions seem to suggest that his motto is simply "Vote for me, I am a cool guy and I have swag".</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Other comments on Twitter gently reminded the president that his mandate was in fact to fix the economy and create jobs rather than displays of swag... </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">To borrow from young people lingo, this Bolt gambit appears to have been an 'epic fail'. Could it be that </span><span style="font-size: large;">our President is in fact all swagged out or just a case of swag overload? Stay tuned for more from the Commander in Swag.</span></div>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-47848489403955448762016-09-15T10:00:00.000+00:002016-09-19T19:27:02.946+00:00The Best of the B.A.D: Kotoka International Airport enters the 20th Century<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8McWRKq_aQA/Sp-uPSDtDII/AAAAAAAABI4/_E80aUlcuowu64J9S7jXdRlg-mD53-UXwCPcB/s1600/Kotoka-International-Airport.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8McWRKq_aQA/Sp-uPSDtDII/AAAAAAAABI4/_E80aUlcuowu64J9S7jXdRlg-mD53-UXwCPcB/s320/Kotoka-International-Airport.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kotoka International Airport, Accra</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Some of us are old enough to remember Kotoka International Airport (KIA) back in the 1980s. Although quite young, I have a vivid memory of mid-'80s KIA being akin to a marketplace. My mind's eye tells me there was a lot of confusion, a never-ending stream of officials in plain-clothes opening our bags on arrival and there may have been some goats about. Actually, I think the goats were probably inserted into the memory from my imagination - we do like our goats in Ghana though. But I digress.....we were talking about KIA. Mid-'90s KIA was not very different from mid-'80s KIA. Outside the airport however, it was a different ball game. In the mid-'</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">90s, Ghana was well into its triumphant return to multi-party democracy and that meant there was much more freedom. Freedom meant that outside KIA </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">one was greeted by mobs of well-dressed youth who clutched on to your bags on arrival and offered assistance. I do remember some of them demanding "just a One pound coin" for basically touching your bag. Not sure why these young men assumed that every passenger was arriving from a place where pounds were legal tender. Besides, how does one change a one pound coin anyway? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">It always struck me as surprising that for a country that prides itself as being the 'Gateway to Africa', KIA changed very little over the years. Perhaps I exaggerate but as time went on, KIA to me was starting to look more like the gateway to war-torn Africa. You know, like the airport in a Hollywood production set in a fictional civil war-torn African country where everyone is </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">gathered in a panic? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Speaking of African airports, history and Hollywood, did you know that around 4 July 2016, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/04/binyamin-netanyahu-israel-entebbe-airport-uganda">visited Entebbe International Airport</a> to mark the 40th anniversary of the (in)famous <u><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Entebbe">Operation Entebbe</a></u>? Childhood exposure to some age-inappropriate films meant I learnt all about the raid on Entebbe Airport from the 70s film <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Thunderbolt_(film)">Operation Thunderbolt</a></i>. Quick recap: in June </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">1976, a group of terrorists hijacked a Paris-bound plane that had left Tel Aviv. To cut a long story short, the plane was taken to Entebbe Airport in Uganda where the hostages were to be hosted by one of Africa's most regrettable sons: Field Marshal <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idi_Amin">Idi Amin Dada</a>. This historical plot was literally the stuff of fiction and it culminates in an </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">elite squad of Israeli soldiers storming the airport. The commandos were led by the charismatic, young and good-looking </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BDWp6rxyPFA/V9molFDjfgI/AAAAAAAAEmE/tKjQjNaAF_Qgx_iZYHOlVozUyTJPXm89wCLcB/s1600/OperationThunderbolt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BDWp6rxyPFA/V9molFDjfgI/AAAAAAAAEmE/tKjQjNaAF_Qgx_iZYHOlVozUyTJPXm89wCLcB/s320/OperationThunderbolt.jpg" width="206" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poster for the film Operation Thunderbolt (1977)<br />
Source: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=24955596">Wikipedia</a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Lt. Colonel Yonatan Netanyahu. *Spoiler alert* The end of the film left me bawling as a child since the hero Yonatan dies during the daring rescue. Interestingly, it was only decades later that I found out that Lt Col. Yonatan Netanyahu was the older brother of the current Israeli PM. I did not see that plot twist coming. Apparently, the death of his brother may account for some of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yonatan_Netanyahu">Bibi's hardline views</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">But seriously I digress, this was about KIA and Ghana. Over the years, as the airport hubs in other African countries expanded, Ghana's airport remained the same but somehow went from market-place to sheer embarrassment. So fast-forward to my arrival in Accra on 31 July 2016. I was pleasantly surprised to be welcomed back to a newly-renovated KIA. I swore I heard <i>Osibisa</i>'s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feFgEpKc9uc">Welcome Home</a> playing as the plane landed. Well, maybe that was another one from my imagination but wouldn't that have been great?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Mind you, Kotoka is not Bole International, Jomo Kenyatta International or Oliver Tambo International but it is getting there....slowly. It is finally entering the late 20th Century and somewhere down the line, I see the 21 Century. I was equally impressed by the efficient immigration lines. I would have taken pictures to document the swanky new renovations but alas, one policy remains unchanged: no pictures in the airport. What a shame.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xF771Q7Vv1g/V9mxY0dH5zI/AAAAAAAAEmQ/RUcVNlPxiykcnH1A4Z872MSAV1y84MdBACLcB/s1600/SAA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xF771Q7Vv1g/V9mxY0dH5zI/AAAAAAAAEmQ/RUcVNlPxiykcnH1A4Z872MSAV1y84MdBACLcB/s320/SAA.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great to fly SAA for the first time in over 15 years</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">P.S. Post Number 300! </span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-5599648038514444982016-09-14T19:00:00.000+00:002016-09-14T19:06:26.243+00:00The Best of the B.A.D. 2016 <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-B0khzINMfiY/V9l6wLoRnOI/AAAAAAAAEls/OeaBt3s7y2UXyJNlP4iKlr5-Ui_RG_SGgCLcB/s1600/IMG_0323.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-B0khzINMfiY/V9l6wLoRnOI/AAAAAAAAEls/OeaBt3s7y2UXyJNlP4iKlr5-Ui_RG_SGgCLcB/s320/IMG_0323.JPG" width="272" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A slightly odd but eye-catching<br />
<i>Game of Throne</i>-y looking Ohemaa Mercy <br />
billboard seen on the Spintex Road in Accra</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In August, I was back in the B.A.D - The Beacon of African Democracy. This trip to Ghana was probably the longest visit home I have had since 2010 and it gave me the chance to really appreciate the dramatic transformations that have take place over the past 6 years. In other words, I got to see the Good, the Bad and the Ugly of the B.A.D. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">My initial blog-post about the visit was a long collection of ramblings that was likely to induce sleep in even the most avid reader. So I've decided to break it up into shorter posts in a new series I am calling<i> The Best of the B.A.D 2016</i>. This post is but a mere teaser. Unlike the launch of <a href="http://www.myjoyonline.com/politics/2016/September-13th/2016-ndc-manifesto-highlight-update-veep-introduces-president-mahama.php">political party manifestos</a> in Ghana or the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/wikileaks-conspiracy-theory-hillary-clinton_us_57d6f4b2e4b00642712ebbd0">Wikileaks Clinton files</a>, I promise not to delay releases with pre-teasers, teasers, highlights, spoiler-alerts and trailers. To be honest, I am not sure anyone is reading this but if you are, please do stay tuned. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bDAPSWec72o/V9mP4pB73pI/AAAAAAAAEl4/_2LTXqVqvowVkm4xypE0GO3CytBDQahhACLcB/s1600/IMG_0294.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bDAPSWec72o/V9mP4pB73pI/AAAAAAAAEl4/_2LTXqVqvowVkm4xypE0GO3CytBDQahhACLcB/s320/IMG_0294.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Picture taken just outside my neighbourhood in Accra.<br />
Some things never change:<br />
Ghanaian humour in the face of adversity</td></tr>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-13221555809478679642016-08-13T18:39:00.000+00:002016-08-13T21:39:09.928+00:00A blog return sparked by "Americanah"<div style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4NJ-a533yU0/V69ja2Qx_JI/AAAAAAAAElU/vQRqNVvUEToKsJxbQOqPsXumq-oUOcMFgCLcB/s1600/Americanah.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4NJ-a533yU0/V69ja2Qx_JI/AAAAAAAAElU/vQRqNVvUEToKsJxbQOqPsXumq-oUOcMFgCLcB/s400/Americanah.jpg" width="300" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It was something in Chimamanda Adiche's <i><a href="http://chimamanda.com/books/americanah/"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Americanah</span></a></i> that got me back on my blog. It was not the fact that the main character in that glorious book had a blog. After all, my own blog is but a mere collection of my ramblings while her posts were carefully crafted witty observations about race in America. It was rather something about the storyline and suddenly me feeling the need to share beyond the Twittersphere. I am still reading it but I find <i>Americanah</i> so compelling because it tells a story I can relate to on so many levels. In a nutshell, it tells the story of an African who went to college in the US, stayed for some years and made a return back to the continent. Interestingly, I also embarked on my American adventure roughly around the same time as the main character. I never stayed as long and did not actually return to the country from which I had first embarked on my journey. I digress. I started this blog back in 2005 because I was in need of some form of escape from the stress of my master's programme. I started blogging again in 2008 because I was need of some escape from a stressful real-life situation. As the years rolled by, work and a PhD meant I began to blog less and less. Ironically, there was little time to be a procrastinator and of course I was not even in Accra.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">So here I am back in Accra. Being back in the city I call home and with that initial spark from <i>Americanah</i>, I find myself back rambling....even if it is briefly. </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"> </span></div>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-7412954444656429332016-02-09T15:32:00.001+00:002016-02-21T15:14:29.475+00:002016: New Beginnings <div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Goodbye 2015. My 2015 started with so much hope and potential. This was after the absolutely smashing year that was 2014.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">2014 was a never-ending roller-coaster of success and great surprises professionally. There was the book chapter followed by another book chapter. Earlier in 2014 I attended a wedding in Germany that allowed me to meet up with some of my girls from undergraduate. There we were - all reunited 1000s of miles from college. Truly good times. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">2014 progressed and there was the last minute invitation to give a talk in Copenhagen staying in a 5 star hotel (that was in Danish-Swedish drama <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1733785/?ref_=tt_rec_tt">The Bridge</a></i>) to a room of about 500+ people. <i>The Bridge</i> is amazing by the way. The talk was a success and it was thrilling. 2014 continued on. There was an invitation to a conference in Nairobi, meeting up with my good friends from graduate school. There was another trip to Dublin for a conference and reuniting with my high school BFF and meeting her husband and adorable sons. </span><span style="font-size: large;">2014 could not get better. The pinnacle was surviving my PhD defence surrounded by friends and family. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So it appeared that the only way was up for 2015. It started out well but things crashed and burned quite soon. Things did not work out as expected. The grant that I pinned my hopes on did not materialize and my beloved Ghana continued to derail.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Granted I got to travel to Beijing, intern in Washington DC and make a triumphant return to the city that still has my heart - New York City. There I was in New York City after almost a decade, feeling the warmth of the subway steam and hanging out with my girls again like we did in the 00s. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">It turned out that 2015 was the year of bitter reality checks and reflection. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Then I made a major decision. I quit my job and left the institute I had been affiliated with since I left the US and relocated to Ghana all the way back in 2002. It was a hard decision and one that may cost me in the long run but it was something I had to do.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So now we are in 2016. I started the year treading into completely unfamiliar waters. I have relocated back to the part of Africa I spent my first 18 years - Southern Africa. It feels like coming full circle. This is a quite unfamiliar Southern Africa though.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">It has only been a few weeks but I am starting to adjust to life in Northern Malawi. I am living 5 minutes from Lake Malawi and a glorious beach. The area is quite isolated and sometimes all I hear are chickens and dogs barking. There are the occasional monkeys in trees, cows passing by and of course goats eating grass. It is a great time for reflection and hopefully, a very productive time. It has been a big gamble and if it does not work out, at least I would have had an enriching experience. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zyRIfPg7dlI/VroCFiwdUTI/AAAAAAAAEjA/4sei_3dy9Gw/s1600/TQJP8815.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zyRIfPg7dlI/VroCFiwdUTI/AAAAAAAAEjA/4sei_3dy9Gw/s400/TQJP8815.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The end of the glorious drive to my new (rural) base</td></tr>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-50523317832903809732015-09-26T20:11:00.001+00:002015-12-08T15:12:02.587+00:00One nation under Goats<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ixKKsbo02-w/Vgbv4WHPyOI/AAAAAAAAEdk/yRH5RdjR0Is/s1600/A-well-bred-WAD-billy-goat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ixKKsbo02-w/Vgbv4WHPyOI/AAAAAAAAEdk/yRH5RdjR0Is/s320/A-well-bred-WAD-billy-goat.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A billy goat<br />
Source: Ghana Ministry for Agriculture</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that goats seem to feature quite a bit in our lives in Ghana? They are like the devil in that Rolling Stones' song <i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBecM3CQVD8">Sympathy For the Devil</a> - </i>goats are everywhere! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Not only does goat light soup feature prominently in menus across the country, but there are countless other instances that this popular animal makes meat un-related headlines.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here are just a few examples that come to mind:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">1. <b>The goat serum HIV cure debacle of yore:</b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bMK_6cjOHCM/Vgb3tfFZNtI/AAAAAAAAEd8/o8rZiXc5nOs/s1600/si-HIV.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bMK_6cjOHCM/Vgb3tfFZNtI/AAAAAAAAEd8/o8rZiXc5nOs/s320/si-HIV.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">HIV virus attacking a human cell<br />
Source: Science magazine</td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Back in the mid-00s, a huge storm brewed in Ghana over a supposed HIV cure derived from goat serum. <a href="http://www.modernghana.com/news/85986/1/controversy-over-goat-serum-deepens.html">An eminent local scientist was at the centre of the storm.</a> There was hope, there were headlines, there were press conferences, there were accusations, there was anger and then there was nothing. Sadly, the curative powers of goat serum <a href="http://www.modernghana.com/news/85755/1/officials-debunk-hiv-cure-claims.html">were later put in doubt</a>. This was not after an escalation in the sales of goat light soup at chop bars across the nation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">2. <b>The curious case of presidential Dead Goat Syndrome:</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Fast-forward a decade later to the <a href="http://www.myjoyonline.com/politics/2015/March-11th/i-have-dead-goat-syndrome-mahama-tells-ghanaians.php">"DGS"</a> episode. Talk about an analogy gone awry. President Mahama, our esteemed Commander in Chief, attempted to use a metaphor (?) to describe his imperviousness to strikes and demonstrations across the nation. This analogy was made during an encounter with Ghanaians in Botswana:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"I have seen more demonstrations and strikes in my first two years. I don't think it can get worse. It is said that when you kill a goat and you frighten it with a knife, it doesn't fear the knife because it is dead already.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>"I have a dead goat syndrome"</i></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fNP7ex1h9kI/Vgb2mkUBleI/AAAAAAAAEdw/B3nt3lg9xdk/s1600/John%2BMahama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="179" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fNP7ex1h9kI/Vgb2mkUBleI/AAAAAAAAEdw/B3nt3lg9xdk/s320/John%2BMahama.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">President John Dramani Mahama<br />
Source: Ghana Daily Graphic Newspaper</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">Unfortunately for him, the result was a statement that was largely mis-understood. </span><span style="font-size: large;">One unintended interpretation was that the president was setting himself up as a lame duck president with little concern or interest for his fellow Ghanaians. Clearly a case of goats lost in translation. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">3. <b>A gentleman prefers goats...</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Ghana is currently in the midst of startling revelations related to alleged massive corruption of judges and judicial services workers. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">This is all thanks to the intrepid reporter <a href="http://anasaremeyawanas.org/">Anas Aremeyaw Anas</a> and his fearless team of crusaders. They are like the much-needed heroes in Gotham City. The judicial scandal stories are damning, shocking and in some cases a tad bizarre. Apparently, all sorts of goodies were proffered to sway judges. <a href="http://m.myjoyonline.com/marticles/news/scandal-justice-julors-bribe-package-included--massage-at-9am">These gifts ranged from money, yams, goats and even "a massage"</a>. Perhaps the most curious revelation was that one judge allegedly <a href="http://citifmonline.com/2015/09/15/judicial-scandal-how-dery-exchanged-justice-with-goat-gh%C2%A211000/">rejected the offer of a sheep in favour of [Ghana's most beloved animal] the humble goat</a>. Do you blame him? We love our goats. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">4.<b> The other goat judge before the new goat judge:</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">What is it about judges and goats? Even before the judicial scandal, there was another case involving a judge <a href="http://graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/48467-goat-judge-ordered-to-proceed-on-leave.html">ordering a goat thief to be marched through the streets</a> of Akyem Swedru for his crime. The supposed goat thief was also ordered to hang the stolen animal around his neck with a placard that said <a href="http://www.dailyguideghana.com/goat-thief-flees/">“I am a goat thief”</a>. Unfortunately for the goat judge, the sentence was deemed a tad questionable and he was asked to proceed on leave while a judicial review delved into the case. Looks like someone went too far. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Well, these are just a few examples. Hope you can see that we are a nation entranced by this humble animal. Sounds to me like much ado about goats. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Got goat examples?</span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-36015191729193614322015-09-20T21:00:00.000+00:002015-09-21T07:30:32.795+00:00Back in the B.A.D: Some impressions<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Greetings from the Beacon of African Democracy where the sun is shining and there is a cool breeze blowing. I have been busy telling anyone that would listen that the weather is much cooler than the sweltering heat I experienced in Washington DC and to a lesser extent in New York City just a few weeks ago. Things in the B.A.D seem to be progressing. We just experienced a 36 hour power outage and it is generally</span><span style="font-size: large;"> hard to work out what exactly the loadshedding schedule is as it all appears to be random.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">I've been here for a few weeks now and here are some pictures of my impressions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">1. New structures, new views</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">View from the new Tetteh Quarshie Interchange footbridge. Seems that when it comes to infrastructure, Ghana and Accra are slowly progressing...Shame we can't eat roads, power our houses with them or drink them.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpfCuJa0eaj_N3YUDUter3TdAFk9xi474dW66nx9fWQBqnIFOFk4eIqJsgFoLGiNiJLyg4vcNjn_eIA1rCo6jb4SC2HL7ra7-4cM2tvXZ9HP5kFRFa-f0NzAI2oeOgodEupizf/s1600/20120101_052655.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpfCuJa0eaj_N3YUDUter3TdAFk9xi474dW66nx9fWQBqnIFOFk4eIqJsgFoLGiNiJLyg4vcNjn_eIA1rCo6jb4SC2HL7ra7-4cM2tvXZ9HP5kFRFa-f0NzAI2oeOgodEupizf/s320/20120101_052655.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EFcpou3rRXQ/VeWCE8v0uNI/AAAAAAAAEcg/ZW5iRuO1Ck8/s1600/20120101_052713.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EFcpou3rRXQ/VeWCE8v0uNI/AAAAAAAAEcg/ZW5iRuO1Ck8/s320/20120101_052713.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">2. To bleach or not to bleach.....</span><br />
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<span style="clear: left; float: left; font-size: large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="115" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SvO-krJcrck/VeVhZMr3D8I/AAAAAAAAEbQ/RA-5T53fp0w/s200/20150830_165913-1-1.jpg" width="200" /></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yNr0YyGUOhY/VeVh6-TAXUI/AAAAAAAAEbY/vVNwnI8x-Qc/s1600/20120101_052126.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yNr0YyGUOhY/VeVh6-TAXUI/AAAAAAAAEbY/vVNwnI8x-Qc/s200/20120101_052126.jpg" style="font-size: x-large; text-align: center;" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Beautiful Africa with beautiful people with silky, sun-kissed skin that they are proud of. Well, billboards in Accra will tell you otherwise. On a little walk to Accra Mall, we spied billboards very close to each other advertising tantalizing skin lightening products. Interestingly, one advert uses the irony-soaked hashtag entitled #Loveyourself. Perhaps the irony is lost. Well, unless they are actually saying that us with dark skin cannot possibly love ourselves. Very sad.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">3. Street names are upon us</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-g-t64aSll90/VeVi-l_f9cI/AAAAAAAAEbk/DuS9BOqHmoM/s1600/20120101_044537.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-g-t64aSll90/VeVi-l_f9cI/AAAAAAAAEbk/DuS9BOqHmoM/s320/20120101_044537.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Lovely to see that the Accra Metropolitan Assembly has finally rolled out street names. Only problem is that our street name is not the one we thought we had. Also, our</span><span style="font-size: large;"> street name does not tally with Google Maps. Does that matter?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">4. Election Fever that came and went</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6f9K0Ep6wXg/VeVyNId7axI/AAAAAAAAEb4/R63sUhI2g9E/s1600/man%2Bdistrict%2Bassembly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6f9K0Ep6wXg/VeVyNId7axI/AAAAAAAAEb4/R63sUhI2g9E/s320/man%2Bdistrict%2Bassembly.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The non-partisan partisan District Assembly Elections were upon us a few weeks ago. To be frank, I do not know the issues or candidates in my area. I did check out some nifty posters though. On election day, I was hit by the bitter realization that I was extremely old. This was after I ran into one of the [hanging out-sitting-on-the-curb-with-his-boys back in day] area boys. He wildly called to me from across the street to go and vote. The amazing thing was that he was one of the candidates running for a seat in the Accra Metropolitan Assembly. I guess no one knows the area like an area boy. Alas, I had to signal to him that I am am not on the new voter's register...Sigh.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pbikJFNvJyQ/VeV_6L3qBmI/AAAAAAAAEcM/9KxJ0aQ8Od0/s1600/20150831_094724.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pbikJFNvJyQ/VeV_6L3qBmI/AAAAAAAAEcM/9KxJ0aQ8Od0/s320/20150831_094724.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Still on the elections, I found this intriguing flyer at home. It urged voters to vote for "a woman" in the election. I understand the spirit given that there are very few women represented in politics. I may be taking the intended message out of context but seeing it as it is, I am just wondering whether competence of every female candidate is assumed?</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">5. Of half-wits and idiots</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Sadly, some people are still idiots. A few days after I arrived, some half-wit chained their bike to a tree outside our gate on our property. I left a note threatening to dispose the bike. They took the bike at the end of the day and tossed the note. I am now in possession of a needle to provide a slow, memorable bike puncture next time they decide to use our flower bed as a parking facility. If this is your bike, be warned. </span><br />
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-366171363718055222015-07-19T22:46:00.000+00:002015-07-18T22:47:55.511+00:0019 July 2015: My Father at 70 <div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">No farewell words were spoken,</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">No time to say "Goodbye".</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">You were gone before I knew it,</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">and only God knows why.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">My heart still aches with sadness,</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">and secret tears still flow.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">What it meant to love you -</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">No one can ever know.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If tears could build a stairway, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">and memories a lane.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I would walk right up to Heaven</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">and bring you back again.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Since you'll never be forgotten,</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I pledge to you today~</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">A hollowed place within my heart</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">is where you'll always stay.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> Author: Unknown</span></div>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-21646925226191699272015-04-18T11:40:00.000+00:002015-04-18T21:28:49.457+00:00Of xenophobia, our ignorance and the United States of Africa pipe-dream<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dbfDiNRsV7k/VTI8S9etgGI/AAAAAAAAEUw/FFd48WQvSos/s1600/Time%2B1985.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dbfDiNRsV7k/VTI8S9etgGI/AAAAAAAAEUw/FFd48WQvSos/s1600/Time%2B1985.jpg" height="640" width="484" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Time Magazine from 1985 talks about Black Rage in the context of Apartheid South Africa<br />
Source: Time Magazine</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;">Recent reports of xenophobic attacks in South Africa have left me with a heavy heart. These are not new. After all, violent xenophobic attacks happened back in 2008. The South African government comes across as largely mute except to assure the world that these are not<i> xenophobic </i>attacks but <i>afrophobic</i> in nature. What a relief. </span><span style="font-size: large;">In fact, this is the first time I have heard the term 'afrophobic'. Is that actually a thing? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In the greater scheme of things, xenophobia in South Africa, as it is in other parts of the world and history, is a reflection of harsh economic times, unemployment and growing feelings of marginalization of a given populace. With such resentment comes anger directed against vulnerable groups.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">It is curious though that the xenophobic attacks are afro-centered in nature. Where does this deep-seated hatred for fellow Africans stem from? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I find myself thinking that had I not made the decision to leave the University of Cape Town decades ago for the US, would I still be living in South Africa? Would my "West African" sepia make me vulnerable to these attacks? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">There are abundant comments on Twitter from other Africans outraged that black South Africans have forgotten the sacrifices that other African countries made for their freedom. Such sacrifices seem to have gone sadly undocumented but then a tricky question can be asked; do these past sacrifices warrant an unchecked influx of African immigrants into South Africa? Regardless, the violence and murder are unwarranted.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br />Despite the accounts of civil servants across Africa having their pay cut for contributions to a South Africa liberation fund (though it is hard to say where exactly this money went), no countries </span><span style="font-size: large;">suffered more during apartheid than those living in the shadow of apartheid South Africa. These [so-called] Frontline states were Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and also from 1980, Zimbabwe. Many are too young to remember the cross-border raids from South Africa into these countries or the bombs that rocked places like Lusaka. There was also the nefarious involvement of the South African Defense Force in the Mozambican and Angolan civil wars. Let us not get started on the countless South African refugees in Swaziland and other countries. Is such recent history being forgotten or not imparted to new generations?</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dITHEpxdtIM/VTJBIJWn1NI/AAAAAAAAEVA/dCL9AF_6ixc/s1600/sadf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dITHEpxdtIM/VTJBIJWn1NI/AAAAAAAAEVA/dCL9AF_6ixc/s1600/sadf.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">South African Defense Force of the 1980s on border patrol<br />
Source: http://www.sahistory.org.za/ </td></tr>
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<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">In the dying days of apartheid, one thing I (oddly) remember are the reader comments sent to the popular South African magazine </span><a href="http://you.co.za/" style="font-size: x-large;">You</a><span style="font-size: large;"> magazine. At the time, there was real panic among some White South Africans that if apartheid ended, they would be forced out of South Africa. For some reason, a lot of readers sent letters saying things like "you (the Blacks of South Africa) are better off than other Africans. At least you have shoes to wear". Although largely inaccurate, these</span><span style="font-size: large;"> sentiments underlie, perhaps, the great divide that existed between South Africa and the rest of Africa. The apartheid system had ensured minimal education and that Black South Africans knew as little as possible about the rest of Africa. The system perpetuated a myth that the rest of Africa was an utter shambolic, chaotic wasteland and that somehow black South Africans were much better off as second class citizens in their own country. Did this myth perhaps also ingrain feelings of superiority?</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Apartheid may have planted the seeds of afrophobia but 20 years have passed since the system collapsed so there must be other factors driving this deep-seated hatred. Does ignorance play a role?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Hang on, as other Africans like myself are perched up on our high horses, how much do we know about other parts of Africa ourselves? For example, h</span><span style="font-size: large;">ow much do West Africans know about East Africans beyond stereotypes and vice-versa? </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I often tell the story about living between Ghana and Southern African in the 90s: </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">People in Ghana would say : "In Southern Africa, do they speak Swahili?"</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">I would say: "No...</span><span style="font-size: large;">"</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">People in Southern Africa would say: "In Ghana, do they speak Swahili?"</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">I would say: "No..."</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">We chide others about being ignorant about the African continent but how knowledgeable are we about it anyway? These thoughts plus the xenophobic attacks and lack of appreciation for history have led me to a larger more troubling question:</span><span style="font-size: large;"> i</span><span style="font-size: large;">s the United Africa goal of pan-Africanism no more than a pipe-dream?</span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-6636133070376680712015-01-28T16:45:00.002+00:002015-01-28T16:52:07.093+00:00Ghana 2015<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Just like that it is 2015. I was in Ghana to see the end of the glorious year that was 2014 and the ushering in of 2015. I meant to blog earlier about my experiences since it had been two years since I had been to my beloved homeland. However, I just could not blog. Anything I had to say would sound like a diatribe of what my ex-brother-in-law used to call "complaining music". Let us not even get started on the reliable internet connection issues I had. Also, I am still reeling from the shock at how much things had changed and often not in a good way. On the one hand, Ghana does the appearance of a vibrant, rich, capitalist country that is full of opportunities so well. At the same time, it is also doing an impersonation of a failed state recovering from a long civil war pretty accurately.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here is my list of some of the goods and the bads.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Goods:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">1. The Police: They are young, sleek and visible. Over a two year period, our police force on the streets of Accra turned young, goodlooking, athletic and professional. Not only were they visible but seemed to have access to equally sleek looking vehicles. At first I thought this visible improvement was just by chance but apparently it is a new policy. Police are directing traffic, doing roundblocks at night and for the first time in my experience of Ghana, actually doing their jobs.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">2. Road developments in Accra: Ignoring the abysmal mess that is Kwame Nkrumah circle, there are a number of impressive road developments. Suddenly, the Spintex Road bottle-neck has been eased. The parts of the Madina-Legon road that I saw were also looking good.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">3. Malls, malls, malls: A number of new malls and shopping centres have opened since I've been away. There is the Marina Mall, Osu shoprite mall, Palace shopping centre, Nungua shoprite shopping centre....just to name a few. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">4. Complex housing complexes: Not sure this is a good but there are dozens of new housing complexes that are being completed. Sign of rapid development or perhaps indications of an economic powerhouse bubble?</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RjY_gf5J1OE/VMkNwk08ZHI/AAAAAAAAETs/EjAcIM6HvoI/s1600/IMG_20141213_165236%2B(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RjY_gf5J1OE/VMkNwk08ZHI/AAAAAAAAETs/EjAcIM6HvoI/s1600/IMG_20141213_165236%2B(2).jpg" height="320" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Villagio at Airport Residential Area, Accra</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Bads:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">1. The energy crisis: Probably the most frustrating aspect of my return was the energy situation. The lack of power in Ghana is at dire levels. We have had stringent loadshedding in the middle of the 00s but the present situation is like a cruel punishment the populace is being subjected to. The energy crisis just goes to show what happens when incompetence and mis-management go unchecked. The least said the better.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">2. The water crisis: For the past 20 years, we have had a house in a neighborhood with constant, reliable water that was available daily. That has changed. It seems the way in which the Ghana Water Company optimized water supply to other areas was NOT to come up with ingenious ways of getting additional water supplies but by simply robbing Peter to pay Paul. So my neighborhood has suddenly turned into a dry area with an unknown water schedule. It does however seem to come on around 3am on inconsistent days.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">3. Falling cedi and killer prices: Although I am away from Ghana now, I am still reeling from the effect of the falling cedi on prices across the board. Taxi rides that cost GHC 5.00 two years are now going for GHC 10 minimum. Someone has gone through all the restaurant menus at my favorite places and multiplied all prices by 2.5. To make things worse, salaries did not go up in the same way.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">There are so many bads to list but really do not want to turn this into a huge bitter rant. In all, Ghana is still Ghana. The public's expectations of leaders are still low. Every public school building is still being used as a church venue. Kotoka International Airport's arrival terminal still has not changed (in my eyes) since 1985. </span><span style="font-size: large;">There are still 100s of youth selling mobile phones without boxes at Circle. Some banks are still a hotbed of inefficiency and privileged</span><span style="font-size: large;"> people are still worshiped. </span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In essence, home is still home. </span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-22468657046512769932014-11-28T10:22:00.002+00:002014-11-28T10:22:56.176+00:00The Return <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--NuROGZA_H8/SOMkokS7RYI/AAAAAAAAAUM/hL9EdtRxMbw/s1600/Photo-0034.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--NuROGZA_H8/SOMkokS7RYI/AAAAAAAAAUM/hL9EdtRxMbw/s1600/Photo-0034.jpg" height="264" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Picture taken at the Tetteh Quarshie Roundabout in Accra, circa 2009</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">It has been a while since I blogged. Since August, I have managed to learn a lot about myself, what constitutes family and friendship as well as managed to become a PhD holder. The past few months were harrowing at times, exhilarating, frustrating, joyous and sad. In a few days, I will be in Accra, the place I re-fell in love with in the early '00s. Living in Accra I was able to witness many transformations and changes. Back in '08, I started blogging about these. So much has changed in my life and in Ghana since then. I have not been back to Ghana since January 2013. I am therefore very curious to see the changes. Social media, family and friends talk about a Ghana that is frustrating, burdened with rising costs and a government that seems out of its depth.</span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-43775059015427477952014-08-25T06:29:00.001+00:002014-08-25T17:53:21.690+00:00Death of an Iconic Film Director: Lord Richard Attenborough 1923–2014<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IGpSMn76w6w/U_rSDGfhIDI/AAAAAAAAESM/oW0LlRfAxQs/s1600/Richard%2BAttenborough.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IGpSMn76w6w/U_rSDGfhIDI/AAAAAAAAESM/oW0LlRfAxQs/s1600/Richard%2BAttenborough.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lord Richard Attenborough<br />
Source: The Times UK </td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Back in my late teens in Southern Africa, my classmates and I had a rare opportunity. We had the chance to meet and interact with the director Richard Attenborough and his wife Sheila for at least an hour. He was a patron of our school which had a long history of a strong stance against apartheid South Africa. He was visiting the school for a meeting of the school board. In hindsight, we did not use our time well. Here we were given the opportunity to talk with the director of the iconic masterpieces <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083987/?ref_=nv_sr_1">Gandhi</a> and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092804/?ref_=nv_sr_1">Cry Freedom</a> but all we wanted to talk about were seemingly petty school politics. Lord Attenborough was patient with us. He listened to our concerns and assured us that he would express our concerns to the powers that be. Nearing the end of the interaction he asked humorously "So there are no questions about movies?!!". The whole room erupted with laughter. </span><span style="font-size: large;">If I had not been so shy, I might have had the courage to tell him that 'Gandhi' was the very first VHS tape that went into our freshly purchased VCR way back in the early 1980s. Of course I never did have the guts to say that but I did get an autograph from both him and his wife.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Thinking back, this was my first interaction with anything close to Hollywood movie-making glamour. Both Lord Attenborough and his wife did not fit the Hollywood stereotype. They were both warm, kind, down to earth, patient, wonderful people who seemed very much in love after decades of marriage. It was with a heavy heart therefore that I heard of Baron Attenborough's passing this morning. My thoughts are with his wife Sheila and the rest of his family at this difficult time. In the obituaries and chronicles of his life, may he also be remembered for his brave and strong stance against apartheid. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Lord Attenborough, you touched many more lives than you may have imagined; Rest in Peace. </span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-78349623037746233232014-08-17T16:26:00.001+00:002014-08-17T16:26:26.986+00:00Ghanaian Political Lexicon for the Aspiring Politician: Challenges <div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">'Challenges': The way politicians in power describe the economic meltdown of a country. It is important that if the aspiring politician is part of a ruling party, the economic crisis showed be described only as temporary and just as a series of small challenges. It is also imperative that the people in power </span><span style="font-size: large;">take no responsibility for causing any of these challenges. If the aspiring politician is in opposition, it is vital to play up the economic crisis. Words such as 'hopelessness', 'abyss', 'incompetent' and 'clueless' must be emphasized. The aspiring opposition politician should </span><span style="font-size: large;">continue to incessantly jab the people in power from the sidelines. For both sides, it is imperative to remember that </span><span style="font-size: large;">obtaining political power or remaining in power are key. No need to worry about getting the country out of the economic crisis.</span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-29506497496719586642014-06-15T22:52:00.003+00:002014-06-15T22:52:54.514+00:0016th June1976: 38 years on<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AWdWclChgXE/U54gjE5Ju6I/AAAAAAAAEQk/wfU5kClyJnQ/s1600/Hector_pieterson.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AWdWclChgXE/U54gjE5Ju6I/AAAAAAAAEQk/wfU5kClyJnQ/s1600/Hector_pieterson.jpg" height="400" width="308" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The iconic photograph that symbolizes the Soweto uprising. Hector
Pieterson (13 years old) being carried by Mbuyisa Makhubo after being shot the first person to be shot by a South
African policeman with live bullets. Source: wikipedia</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Today marks 38 years since the Soweto Uprising of 1976 in which ordinary high school students in the <b>So</b>uth <b>We</b>stern <b>To</b>wnships of Johannesburg started a series of protests in response to the forced introduction of Afrikaans as the language of instruction in their schools. Approximately 20,000 young people took to the streets in protest to ensure their rights under the oppressive apartheid regime. The uprising was brutally crushed by the apartheid government and between<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soweto_uprising"> 176 and 700 young people died</a>. Like the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharpeville_massacre">Sharpeville Massacre</a> of 1960, the Soweto Uprising had a poignant impact on the fight against apartheid. It was a defining moment that demonstrated the brutal inhumanity of the apartheid regime. Although the apartheid regime was only completely confined to the dustbin of history 18 years after the events of 16th June, it had a lasting impact on South African history. The sacrifices made by these brave students for the generations of South Africans who have come after can never be forgotten.</span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-7834506712859459692014-05-31T12:04:00.001+00:002014-05-31T12:08:19.542+00:00#BringBackOurGirls: Day 47<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">On 15th April 2014, over 200 school girls were <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_Chibok_kidnapping">kidnapped at night from the Chibok Government Secondary School</a> in Borno State in Northern Nigeria.</span></div>
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</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R_0a8Q-PfXU/U4mjXSySodI/AAAAAAAAEPo/-iZ1gZHnRws/s1600/map+of+chibok.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R_0a8Q-PfXU/U4mjXSySodI/AAAAAAAAEPo/-iZ1gZHnRws/s1600/map+of+chibok.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Map of Nigeria showing Borno state and Chibok<br />
Source: BBC article on the kidnapping on 15 April 2014</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;">Although news of the kidnapping was reported by some international media outlets from the beginning, the<span style="font-size: large;"> story somehow seemed to stay under the radar of mainstream media. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></div>
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</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">A few across the world followed this harrowing event from the beginning. In the early days of the crisis, </span><span style="font-size: large;">the Nigerian government appeared to dither and was even unsure about the numbers of girls kidnapped. For example, the first report from the BBC captures the confusion: <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27037181">"Nigeria unrest: Gunmen abduct 'about 100 schoolgirls'"</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">When some onlookers expressed shock and outrage over the events, the official line</span><span style="font-size: large;"> was that it was a delicate and complex situation that was hard for most outside Nigeria to understand. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">It was only after a few weeks following the kidnapping that the story started to take centre stage in the international media arena. This was </span><span style="font-size: large;">in part thanks to </span><span style="font-size: large;">one of the most vocal voices on the kidnapping; </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obiageli_Ezekwesili"><span style="font-size: large;">Oby Ezekwesili</span></a><span style="font-size: large;">. Ms Ezekwesili has been unflinching and resolute in her efforts to bring the school girls back home. The #BringBackOurGirls hashtag started by <span style="font-size: large;">Nigerians on Twitter was just one of the ways people across the globe learnt about the kidnapping. </span></span><span style="font-size: large;">Suddenly, the world was talking about it and the notorious kidnapping became a <em>cause du jour </em>that was trendy to talk about. There were marches, protests worldwide and the curious pictures of random African girls meant to represent the Chibok girls. World powers started pledging support to the Nigerian government.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">As the kidnapping story moved from the internet to mainstream television media, s</span><span style="font-size: large;">ome of us designated ambassadors for Africa in other parts of the world were expected to explain why the Nigerian government was completely incompetent when it came to dealing with the situation. While the Nigerian president was unable to visit </span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7sjxgf7jBnY/U4mUsbUqZAI/AAAAAAAAEPY/wkjYAuGcG5Y/s1600/Goodluck+thinking.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7sjxgf7jBnY/U4mUsbUqZAI/AAAAAAAAEPY/wkjYAuGcG5Y/s1600/Goodluck+thinking.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A pensive President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria as seen via Twitter photos</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">the area where the girls were kidnapped in his own country, he was able to take a 7 hour flight to Paris to a </span><a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27451966"><span style="font-size: large;">summit</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> where African leaders unanimously declared war on Boko Haram. President Jonathan was equally available for another 7 hour flight to Johannesburg for the all-important inauguration of President Jacob Zuma. </span></div>
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</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">It is now the 47th Day since the girls were kidnapped from their school. No concrete leads. No concrete actions. Sadly, just as quickly as the world gained interest in the kidnapping, interest is waning. In the meantime, families are still missing their girls. </span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gu7Q9JRKA0g/U4mL2svoZlI/AAAAAAAAEPI/rI-xUAdmA0Y/s1600/Martha+Mark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gu7Q9JRKA0g/U4mL2svoZlI/AAAAAAAAEPI/rI-xUAdmA0Y/s1600/Martha+Mark.jpg" height="212" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martha Mark, Mother of Monica Mark. Source: Thinkprogres</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">One of the most poignant pictures for me has been that of <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/world/2014/05/20/3439273/bringbackourgirls/">Martha Mark</a> the mother of one of the girls, Monica Mark.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">This picture captures the fact that the kidnapped girls are real individuals. Real daughters, sisters, cousins and friends. Real next door neighbours, church members and team-mates. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Real girls who like typical girls their age around the world think about school, friends, music, the future and boys. Another powerful representation comes from a New York Times article</span><span style="font-size: large;">: "<a href="http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/05/28/bringing-the-nigerian-girls-into-view/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&smid=fb-nytimes&WT.z_sma=LE_BTN_20140529&bicmp=AD&bicmlukp=WT.mc_id&bicmst=1388552400000&bicmet=1420088400000&_r=3&">Bringing the Nigerian Schoolgirls Into View</a>" . The article is accompanied by a photo-story showing the items left behind by the school girls. School uniforms, notebooks, slippers, dresses, photos, earrings, doodles in notebooks. Little things that show that they are not a faceless collective but real girls. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><em>"Hauwa Mutah wants to be a biochemist. Monica Enoch loves to sing. Dourcas Yakubu is a shy girl who exchanged hand-written notes with a boy who called her “the remote control of my life.”"</em></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><em>- </em><a href="http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/05/28/bringing-the-nigerian-girls-into-view/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&smid=fb-nytimes&WT.z_sma=LE_BTN_20140529&bicmp=AD&bicmlukp=WT.mc_id&bicmst=1388552400000&bicmet=1420088400000&_r=3&">Bringing the Nigerian Schoolgirls Into View</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">As the girls remain in captivity one cannot help but ask questions. Why should self-appointed purveyors of morality be deciding the direction the lives of these girls should take? Why should someone else force any religion on them? Why should the girls aspire to be no more than dutiful wives? This all makes little sense to me. As little sense as the inactions of the government that was elected to protect the rights of these girls, their friends and families. </span></div>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-2331023614690797712014-05-10T08:59:00.001+00:002014-05-10T08:59:43.181+00:00The Great Blogging Hiatus of 2014<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-x918MibZIQQ/U23peBz2amI/AAAAAAAAEMc/pFBzGKFIwAQ/s1600/IMG_20140508_124437.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-x918MibZIQQ/U23peBz2amI/AAAAAAAAEMc/pFBzGKFIwAQ/s1600/IMG_20140508_124437.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My thesis and I</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">And there my blog lay fallow. It has been 4 long months and even before that, it has barely been touched. It was not a matter of not being inspired by life to write anything but rather other aspects of life catching up with me. In the time I've been away I've been firmly focused on writing my thesis. Well, aside from the (more than) occasional tweet via Twitter, I've been generally inactive on social media. Finally I have a manuscript in hand that is currently being assessed. So I thought this was a perfect opportunity to write on my walls. </span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-18460658770873316702014-01-18T21:25:00.003+00:002014-01-20T12:10:07.375+00:00Death of an iconic African journalist: Komla Dumor, 3 October 1972 - 18 January 2014<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijg0KBgi8tvtS9o5qbKz83tcPQMlvNNMBcappdCJJN9GRFLQ7BWWegDXU_cMB2rYcsC1_aLmnitlCoMvi9R62GojrtWG4xm0CMHIQFqQegQ36uxyyXIkfxnwgO-QL8GyyIQgq9/s1600/komla.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijg0KBgi8tvtS9o5qbKz83tcPQMlvNNMBcappdCJJN9GRFLQ7BWWegDXU_cMB2rYcsC1_aLmnitlCoMvi9R62GojrtWG4xm0CMHIQFqQegQ36uxyyXIkfxnwgO-QL8GyyIQgq9/s1600/komla.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Komla Dumor: One of Ghana's brightest stars<br />
Source: bbc.co.uk</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I moved to Ghana for a year in 2002. That year was one of the best of my life as I discovered things about the country that I was from but knew very little about. One of my favorite sources for Ghanaian current affairs ranging from politics to social issues was JoyFM's Super morning show. At the helm of the show was the indomitable and formidable Komla Dumor. He stood out for his intelligence, professionalism, knowing how to ask the right questions and of course his eloquence. It was apparent to all at the time that Komla Dumor was a rising star who was going places. He did indeed go places. In 2006 he joined the BBC's <i>Network Africa</i> show and even I was astonished to find him that he made a very rapid transition to the BBC World Service breakfast show <i>The World Today</i>. In 2011, my brother sent me an email or text with a picture of Komla Dumor saying something like "Guess who is presenting world news on TV??!." From there he went on to host the television version of BBC's <i>Focus on Africa</i>. I was therefore overcome with overwhelming sadness when I heard the news that he had passed away from cardiac arrest at his home in London. A light had gone out for the whole of Africa.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Komla Dumor trends on Twitter</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Komla Dumor was one of Ghana's brightest stars. Whenever you heard him on the BBC, you were proud to be Ghanaian. Proud to be African. He was a rising star who was still accelerating to even greater heights. Komla was a great representative of what it means to be Ghanaian. He was indeed a contemporary African icon and cherished role-model. My heart goes out to his entire family. May Komla Dumor Rest in Peace. Komla, we will miss your smile, your calming voice, your charm and your intellect. You may be gone but will never be forgotten. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The most read story on BBC News website at the moment</td></tr>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-9560670876328314182014-01-03T15:07:00.000+00:002014-01-03T15:07:25.332+00:002014<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Who would thought the hardest blog post would be one observing the start of a brand new year. To me blogging has always come naturally. That is why I under perform when asked to blog on a particular topic. For me blogging has always been an important outlet for self-expression. Well, since 2005 and actively since 2008. Although in recent times the stream of consciousness that has characterized my blogging has been ebbed. However, I digress. It is a new year and as I enjoy some <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aloe_Blacc">Aloe Blacc</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudimental">Rudimental</a> in a somewhat sorry attempt to keep up with what is hip and happening, I am reflecting on the fact that 2014 means a new year, new hope, new possibilities and of course getting older! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">HAPPY NEW YEAR!</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">"When you look back on your life, you'll regret the things you didn't do more than the ones you did." -</span></i><span style="font-size: large;">H. Jackson Brown, Jr.</span></div>
Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11894178.post-79181504599357527162013-12-28T11:58:00.000+00:002013-12-28T12:01:49.673+00:00I heart Berlin<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Berlin. For me it was like a journey through the books of my secondary school history curriculum. It was all there: The Weimar Republic, the Reichstag fire, the rise of fascism, World War II, the Holocaust, the complete destruction and decimation of Berlin, the division of Berlin by the allies, the Cold War, the now seemingly-odd somewhat senseless Berlin Wall, the separation of families, the GDR/DDR, the collapse of the Berlin Wall, the fall of the USSR, the re-unification of Germany in 1990 and the reinstatement of Berlin as the capital of Germany. The sometimes sad and intense history of Berlin is still very evident everywhere. Alongside this history are all the signs of a modern, vibrant, cosmopolitan, rich and gritty international city. I truly heart Berlin. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gaWylLRh60k/UrysqyQcunI/AAAAAAAADtQ/XdRcFCK-R4E/s1600/078.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gaWylLRh60k/UrysqyQcunI/AAAAAAAADtQ/XdRcFCK-R4E/s320/078.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the top of the German parliament Reichstag/Bundestag building</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q2URpa5o0fU/UrytPwi6eBI/AAAAAAAADuI/eLxfqFkG0Wc/s1600/085.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q2URpa5o0fU/UrytPwi6eBI/AAAAAAAADuI/eLxfqFkG0Wc/s320/085.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Memorial outside the Bundestag to those who attempted to cross the Berlin Wall at that point and were killed </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEittVF9aX9HfH7fnfQtaK3iJE5CGePjwlJp-s5LdH6uaiZNkqA8AcDeCV73AaO2pWHr9cGwLgpcTD_RkQLRcJV8WRgMmbTQPTMXTm51Jlp3Rq43x3ZSkZoc_z_fbmx5Y1__Uj9G/s1600/2013-12-25+15.18.00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEittVF9aX9HfH7fnfQtaK3iJE5CGePjwlJp-s5LdH6uaiZNkqA8AcDeCV73AaO2pWHr9cGwLgpcTD_RkQLRcJV8WRgMmbTQPTMXTm51Jlp3Rq43x3ZSkZoc_z_fbmx5Y1__Uj9G/s320/2013-12-25+15.18.00.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Memorial to the approximately 6 million Jews killed in Europe under National Socialism</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BXccw_I2pV8/UryuNt6f5jI/AAAAAAAADvg/F09foklG4SY/s1600/096.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BXccw_I2pV8/UryuNt6f5jI/AAAAAAAADvg/F09foklG4SY/s320/096.JPG" width="320" /> </a></td><td style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The glorious Brandenburg gate: Symbol of Berlin and symbol of a re-united Germany</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WkXp0nTjLN8/UryuhHrA3YI/AAAAAAAADwA/c8l82JkL2Lc/s1600/100.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WkXp0nTjLN8/UryuhHrA3YI/AAAAAAAADwA/c8l82JkL2Lc/s320/100.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thoughts on the wall in an underground station</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ujwkwjUofOs/UryvcMgnicI/AAAAAAAADw4/t8gJ1y7kR4A/s1600/107.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ujwkwjUofOs/UryvcMgnicI/AAAAAAAADw4/t8gJ1y7kR4A/s320/107.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Berlin Hauptbahnhof: the central railway station and one of the biggest in Europe<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--da5nGGeC-c/Ury26eEuheI/AAAAAAAAD9Y/wgLghUJ0gNM/s1600/202.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--da5nGGeC-c/Ury26eEuheI/AAAAAAAAD9Y/wgLghUJ0gNM/s320/202.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rosa Luxemburg-Platz: Station named after the marxist theorist and socialist revolutionary Rosa Luxemburg. She was executed in 1919 </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cdxk6MyMITA/UryyY7JHQ1I/AAAAAAAAD14/0mjwMcWJ-lM/s1600/143.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cdxk6MyMITA/UryyY7JHQ1I/AAAAAAAAD14/0mjwMcWJ-lM/s320/143.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Absolutely delicious Italian food at a small cafe near Nollendorf Platz station that was open on Christmas day</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-22kASzCfs6I/Ury2BnCwmwI/AAAAAAAAD7Q/rkb_yq86xrQ/s1600/184.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-22kASzCfs6I/Ury2BnCwmwI/AAAAAAAAD7Q/rkb_yq86xrQ/s320/184.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The massive KaDeWe Shopping Center: vibrant and modern</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-APQlLJmXJ9A/Ury42ZjmseI/AAAAAAAAECI/AkAIAMH4BOM/s1600/240.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-APQlLJmXJ9A/Ury42ZjmseI/AAAAAAAAECI/AkAIAMH4BOM/s320/240.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Checkpoint Charlie: Name for best-known crossing point between the wall dividing East and West Berlin. The sign still stands to this day </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Dj8haKFmUqY/Ury4PrREW5I/AAAAAAAAEAw/_hPwc92ISGs/s1600/229.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Dj8haKFmUqY/Ury4PrREW5I/AAAAAAAAEAw/_hPwc92ISGs/s320/229.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Piece of the wall and iconic photo of the soldier and the little boy at the Checkpoint Charlie Museum</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MK1eKExB4Ng/Ury5DfnA2pI/AAAAAAAAECo/fgpH7CJZj8c/s1600/244.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MK1eKExB4Ng/Ury5DfnA2pI/AAAAAAAAECo/fgpH7CJZj8c/s320/244.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Probably the strangest thing I learned: a divided Berlin meant that trains from west Berlin could not stop in the East. Soldiers waited on the subway platform with guns to ensure they did not stop</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-raLX-zAwWRU/Ury5aQmES3I/AAAAAAAAEDo/9eGUrAnDLiM/s1600/252.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-raLX-zAwWRU/Ury5aQmES3I/AAAAAAAAEDo/9eGUrAnDLiM/s320/252.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Standing on either side of where the wall stood. The remnants of the wall are all over Berlin</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--KjbUXY5VC0/Ury5y2BdO-I/AAAAAAAAEKA/syzyT1O7V0U/s1600/259.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--KjbUXY5VC0/Ury5y2BdO-I/AAAAAAAAEKA/syzyT1O7V0U/s320/259.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The photo of US President Kennedy in his historical visit to a divided Berlin during the Cold War. The mayor of Berlin Willy Brandt who worked tirelessly towards peace and a united Berlin / Germany is the 2nd person to his right</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-enjAImsdeIo/Ury6J56woDI/AAAAAAAAEFY/cYH6u5SVTfU/s1600/266.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-enjAImsdeIo/Ury6J56woDI/AAAAAAAAEFY/cYH6u5SVTfU/s320/266.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Possibly the picture that sums it up the most. Pieces of the wall where it stood in Potsdamer Platz in the centre of Berlin. In the background, a towering iPhone ad. At the end of the Cold War, the winner it appears was capitalism</td></tr>
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Abena Serwaahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888021677219851484noreply@blogger.com3