Beach & Brunch

It is official, my summer has come to a close. While I am sad to put what has been such a great and memorable summer in my past, I am ready for classes here in Accra to begin. "Wait, you mean we have to take classes here?! ...oh yeah".

 Today, in order to bid farewell to the summer in style, we went to Osu for a delicious brunch and then made our way to the beach for a day of fun in the sun. 

The beach that we went to, called La-Pleasure Beach, was in fact quite pleasurable. The beaches in the Accra area are very different from our beaches in the states. There is far less swimming, due to the fact that the ocean is used as a public restroom... to an extreme. Also, people do not lay out on towels at the beach. This is for two reasons. Firstly, the Ghanaian people are not exactly trying to get a tan. Secondly, there are fly eggs in the sand that are looking for a prime place to hatch... human skin apparently is pretty prime. GROSS. I am freaking out thinking about it...AH.

....Ok, now that I have scrubbed and inspected my skin seven times over, I think I can continue.

So, if you can not swim and you can not lay out on the sand, you may be wondering what it is that one does at the beaches in Accra. Well, when you arrive at the beach parking lot, you pay GH 5.00. Once you walk onto the beach, you are greeted by a man who drags tables, an umbrella and comfy chairs over to which ever area you choose. Once you are settled, you are hooked up with a waiter who will bring you drinks and food if you decide that you would like such things. 

Besides for the bar service, there are a number of self employed individuals trying to make a buck on the beach. There are men and woman that come up to the tables and try to sell things that one would find in the markets. There are men with horses that are selling rides up and down the beach. Lastly, there are entertainers that put on shows and ask for donations.

Everyone on the beach also finds ways to entertain themselves. There are people playing soccer everywhere you look and many of the players have impressive foot work. Others, dance along to the music that they have blasting from the bar. Some talented individuals manage to dance and play soccer all at once. This makes for great people watching, which is my favorite activity. 

Above are some NYU students playing soccer....I mean football.

Above are a group of men putting on a show in hopes of making some money. They were very talented and super bendy. They would give the NYC street performers a run for their money.