This delightful lady was more than happy to cut two lengths of fabric for me. Elle & I are feeling drab & are excited for some skirts & dresses in Ghana fabric. She is laughing because she said it made her nervous that she was cutting while I took her picture. And, just so you know, you all are blamed for this! I say, " I just want to show my family & friends in America how you do this!" She was a good sport. The women just behind her was not so happy with me. :) She is selling wooden paddles, basically a giant wooden spoon, & I think I need one. The folks here use them to made banku. The fermented corn dough that is mixed with water &, while it is cooking, beat with the paddles til it is sticky. I was thinking I could find other uses for it. :)
The fabric shop below was set in a row of seamstress shops tucked under a tin roof and entered by a single file path. I don't consider myself shy or tentative, but my fellow Ghanaian shoppers were passing me by constantly. It was often a tight squeeze, but they rubbed hips if needed, kept walking, never stopping loud chatter with their friends. These ladies would do just fine with a Walmart cart on a Friday night. :)The fabric I bought here can't be scene in the picture, but, never mind, take a look at the little guy at work with momma! She took full advantage of her little salesman & sold me some green print for GHc 4 per yard.
The ladies in the background are fitting on clothes. Sans dressing rooms, shoppers wear bike shorts under their skirts and fit on items wherever there is space. Audrey & I each bought a few items of clothing at a different stand. We opted for the old fashioned hold-it-up-&-ask-your-friend method. It worked out just fine & we were very pleased to find skirts for a few GHc.
A seamstress apprentice at work. Apprentice's work under supervision, paying their teacher for the learning. At the end of the training, they often contract to work for them as a paid employee, but only after about 6 months of unpaid time. She rolled her eyes at me when I asked if I could take her picture. I loved watching her spin the hand wheel while managing the fabric and thread.
Oh, snails. Audrey & I are drawn to them out of disgust & horror. They wiggle, they stink & they belong in the backyard. And yet here they are very much for sale. At GHc 1 or 2 each, they are a treat purchase for the buyer. We watched a sale, as the woman dug out the snail with a skewer and squirted the juice, a crazy blue-white color, & the body into a bag. We soon realized our interest was making a scene and we moved on to more appetizing things. I believe our next purchases at a dry goods store were t-roll (toilet paper), crackers and oatmeal.
Last, but just as interesting, is a new way to flavor the soup. These tasty roll ups are cow & goat hide. Why would you need those tiny squares of boullion when you can get all the flavor you need from those chunks of hide? And have a chewy morsel at the bottom of the pot!
The ladies in the background are fitting on clothes. Sans dressing rooms, shoppers wear bike shorts under their skirts and fit on items wherever there is space. Audrey & I each bought a few items of clothing at a different stand. We opted for the old fashioned hold-it-up-&-ask-your-friend method. It worked out just fine & we were very pleased to find skirts for a few GHc.
A seamstress apprentice at work. Apprentice's work under supervision, paying their teacher for the learning. At the end of the training, they often contract to work for them as a paid employee, but only after about 6 months of unpaid time. She rolled her eyes at me when I asked if I could take her picture. I loved watching her spin the hand wheel while managing the fabric and thread.
Oh, snails. Audrey & I are drawn to them out of disgust & horror. They wiggle, they stink & they belong in the backyard. And yet here they are very much for sale. At GHc 1 or 2 each, they are a treat purchase for the buyer. We watched a sale, as the woman dug out the snail with a skewer and squirted the juice, a crazy blue-white color, & the body into a bag. We soon realized our interest was making a scene and we moved on to more appetizing things. I believe our next purchases at a dry goods store were t-roll (toilet paper), crackers and oatmeal.
Last, but just as interesting, is a new way to flavor the soup. These tasty roll ups are cow & goat hide. Why would you need those tiny squares of boullion when you can get all the flavor you need from those chunks of hide? And have a chewy morsel at the bottom of the pot!
I was so fascinated, the woman was annoyed. Margaret, my teenage friend, says it is very tasty & very healthy. I'll believe it when I read the nutrition details printed on the label. Hah. :) :)
Thanks to Audrey's promptings, I am an adequate barter-er. I rather enjoy it & will have to train " Is that your best price?!" out of my vocabulary someday when I enter America again. Less things here are able to bargained for than I expected. Many prices are set. So, no, I'm not haggling over every banana. :)
It is, honestly, a relief to laugh so much, spend a little on our families, & sweat over our heavy bags & just what alley we parked in. I even drove us home, stopping for yam with pepper sauce & Nsawam's famous ( in Ghana, anyway) sugar bread from a street hawker. Her only disappointment was we didn't buy the mystery meat that went with the yam!
It is, honestly, a relief to laugh so much, spend a little on our families, & sweat over our heavy bags & just what alley we parked in. I even drove us home, stopping for yam with pepper sauce & Nsawam's famous ( in Ghana, anyway) sugar bread from a street hawker. Her only disappointment was we didn't buy the mystery meat that went with the yam!
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