This was a day in 3 very distinct parts.
We began in the morning with a fun canopy walk in Kakum National Park, near the city of Cape Coast. The park is home to many animals but all we saw during the late morning jaunt were a few ants and a spider. However, we did have lots of fun on all the shaky, wooden canopy ladders hung high above the rainforest floor. We finished the trek off with a freshly opened coconut of which Rob was not the biggest fan. On our way back toward the city, we stopped to buy the locally made and quite alcoholic palm wine from a local man. For 1 cedi ($.75) we got a former Sprite bottle reconstituted as a palm wine container. It tastes pretty good but it’s initially tough to get past the fermentation smell as you open it. Ernest told us this is the woman’s drink and the men drink the homemade gin.
After eating a really nice lunch at a restaurant overlooking the ocean and right next to Cape Coast Castle (very strange), we headed in for our tour. Cape Coast Castle was constructed in 1657 as the Swedish Fort Carlusbourg before the British overtook it and spent 100 years creating the current stone structure. Our really wonderful guide, Justice, explained that the castle was initially just a castle, used to protect the new colony and store supplies as the British began taking land. Then, it’s horrid history began. This castle, among others that dot the Western African coastline, was used to “house” those enslaved by the British and other Europeans for hundreds of years. After men and women were walked in chains from hundreds of miles away, they were held in disgusting dungeons anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months before being loaded on to British ships for transportation to the United States, West Indies and the Caribbean.
The separate male and female dungeons are among the largest of all the castles in Africa, and going in is shocking experience. The very small rooms are dank and dark with only a little light and air coming in from the small windows. At least one hundred men we held in each room at once. At least. Usually several hundred were shackled in chains and made to breathe, eat (very little), and sleep in each of the 5 male rooms to total 2000-3000 at any one time. Justice pointed out a line about 5 inches up on the wall that marked an excavation point where in the 1970s archeologists dug out the bones, chains, feces, and other filth that filled the floor at all times. Half the people held there died. There was absolutely to escaping the grim environment. I don’t know how to describe it.
The 2 female dungeon rooms are bit smaller but just as dark and horrible as the male ones. We went through the Door of No Return where the people were led out to small boats to then board the large ships. It must have been shocking to see the bright sunlight that looked no different than the day we were there. However, their lives only worsened as that were held in equally terrible conditions on the ships across the Atlantic and during their lives in the hands of the their white owners.
We went up to the enormous governor’s quarters several stories above the dungeons. It’s striking to see the vastness of the space and the air and light coming through the windows– such an extreme contrast to the dungeons.
The most haunting areas include the Cell, where rebellious people were locked in to die– no air, no water, no light– just suffocation, and the church built directly above the male dungeons. This was the first Anglican Church in Ghana and there is no doubt the white worshippers could here the loud noises emanated from below. In fact, there was a soldier’s perch a few feet away from the church door where someone would stand watch over the dungeons. So much for the teachings of Jesus.
Now many of the rooms in the castle are used for offices and storefronts as well as a very good museum and gift shop. We bought 2 paintings from an artist exhibit in what used to be a court used for several hundred years until the court was moved to another location in the 1960s. It is a strange this to see such regular things happening in such a terrible place, but at the same time you know Ghanaians are taking back something that is such a dark place in theirs and the world’s history.
We spent a few minutes outside of Elmina Castle originally built by the Portuguese in 1482 before it changed ownership to the Dutch and then to the British. Elmina Castle’s history as a slave dungeon and holding ground for transportation is similar to that of Cape Coast. The town of Elmina once was a vibrant fishing village before the invasion and occupation, and since independence, much of the industry has returned. It was fun to watch the fishermen load their wooden boats with nets to head out into the choppy gulf. Most of them spend the entire night on the water. The town is also known for its salt production in small pools near the harbor. As we watched the boats, we saw a very intense soccer game in the middle of all the market stalls. Even the smallest village has a soccer field with bamboo polls set up as goals, but this game seemed more official with established teams, goalies and sidelines. They will play anywhere and Rob is itching to join.
Fishermen headed to see for the night in the Gulf of Guinea
As we walked toward Elmina Castle, we were approached by numerous kids selling jewelry, food, etc, but there were several who walked along side us telling us their names and that they are college students. I had read about this specific tactic in the guidebook. One asked me my name and I told him, but I warned him that I didn’t want anything made and wouldn’t buy anything (remember, we already had bracelets with our names woven on them). Of course, once we headed back towards the van, the same kids approached us with shells coated in phrases about them being our friends and to keep in touch with their email addresses. The shells also had our names on them. I told the boy who handed me the shell that I wouldn’t give him anything but he told me to take it anyway. He then asked if I would donate to their football club. I refused, but Rob succumbed to the guilt-tripping and handed over 10 cedis ($7). I guess both of us were duped in separate occasions and you can tell where our hearts lie—me with education and him with soccer. So, that’s 2 name bracelets and 2 name shells. What’s next?
The name Elmina is thought to be from the Portuguese word for mine. Many houses in the town are noted historical sites for their use by the British during the slave trade. The homes were given to women who once in the female slave dungeon but were impregnated by British soldiers, likely the result of rape. They lived in the homes until their children were born and then they were returned to the castle to work as domestic slaves. Their offspring were the first Ghanaians offered formal schooling akin to the British school system on the grounds of the castle. They say that many of the people in Elmina today are the descendants of those born to African women and white, British men, and many of them several generations later have European surnames like Ferguson, Adkinson, and so on, and many are much lighter in skin tone.
Elmina Castle, built in the 15th century by the Portuguese
Door of No Return
After a very intense day, we were happy to head back to the hotel where we had our first alcoholic beverages of our trip—an amazing pina colada for me made from the freshest of coconuts and pineapple, and the locally brewed Star beer for Rob. The beer is about 40 ounces and cost all of $2. No wonder American college students come to Ghana and help the nation’s economy by consuming vast amounts of it, and it tastes much better than the cheap beer you get in the US. There was a small conference opening at the hotel and the organizers brought in traditional dancers and drummers from Accra. We were invited by their very friendly p.r. man Francis to sit and watch and think about how we can help him promote the group. We’re thinking about hiring them for Rob’s brother’s wedding next year. I think it would be an interesting mix—Scottish kilts and African drumming. Sort of Last King of Scotland-esque without the maniacal dictator. It was fun to mooch off the conference festivities although we didn’t partake of their open bar.
So, a few of the hotels we’ve stayed at have 2 twin beds pushed together, not a foreign concept in Europe or on cruise ships, however our bed at the Coconut Grove took it to a new level. There were two beds in separate bed frames with a 4 inch gap between the frames. The strange thing was it didn’t seem like you could separate the beds further to actually make 2 distinct beds. Instead, they were made up like one big bed with this gap between. Rob dubbed it the “romance gap.” I won’t elaborate any further.
