Friday afternoon I headed out to catch a bus for Elmina, about three hours west of Accra along the Ghanaian coast. The most memorable thing about the bus ride was the air-conditioning and the soap operas they showed. The plot involved a wife-girlfriend-man triangle-- the stuff of good modern African drama. I arrived in Elmina around 9 p.m. and checked into my hotel, the Bridge House. Arriving anywhere at night can be a bit disorienting, I went out for a bit and bought some cookies and candy but realized morning would be a much better time for exploration.I awoke bright and early Saturday. There was some great morning light for taking pictures of Elmina Castle and the fishing boats. During breakfast I had a nice chat with some farmers from Bristol, England. They were here as volunteers, repairing buildings in the area.
I headed straight out to find a group taxi to Cape Coast, a larger city about 15 minutes away. Cape Coast Castle may be the biggest tourist attraction in Ghana. It is famous because of its history as one of the headquarters for the slave trade in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. I took a guided tour and really enjoyed watching and listening to our tour guide, Erik. He really knew how to tell a story. I was in camera heaven, so many great shots of the Castle and the boats on the coast. BUT I must be careful to never point the camera directly at a person without permission. Ghanaians will be very quick to tell you to NOT take the picture. One woman made it clear I could not take pictures of her fish... live and learn.
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