When I get that feeeeeeling

-Yesterday I went to a dance class that I'm trying to register for. There were a ton of people and a good mixture of students who had taken the class and ones who had not. Since classes haven't technically started yet, the teacher had the experienced students just lead the class in dances they learned this past semester and everyone else just kind of followed along. I lucked out because the first two, Gahu and Gota, were dances I have learned but the next two seemed kind of hard. Regardless, I felt so happy my heart was about ot explode...people were whistling and shouting out of excitement and just going crazy on the floor. Nii Armah always talked about how this happens, but to experience it first hand...wow.

-We went to a bar called Champs tonight for karaoke. Champs is an English sports bar in Accra that’s usually (as I hear) filled with Europeans and Americans…not somewhere I’d like to go very often, but as I’m still adjusting, I guess it fulfilled my need for a little Amurica tonight. I suppose it’s part of the weaning process. Of course, this is only one night and one person’s perspective, but I noticed a few things.
One: American girls in Ghana like to sing pop songs in large groups. We (Americans) have such an individualistic mentality about so much, but when it comes to getting up on stage, considerable back up is necessary.
Two: American girls in Ghana like to sing the song “Like a Prayer” by Madonna as it was performed three times before I left.
Three: Ghanaians get down to Haddaway's "Baby Don't Hurt Me" form Night at the Roxbury just as hard as Americans, although the Americans were the only ones to join in on the synchronized head nod.
Four: Two people performed the song "Small Town Girl" by Journey at separate times throughout the night and it painfully reminded me of camp.
Five: I was disappointed in Champ's lack of Chumbawumba, but ended up doing a song with my friend, Nana, anyway. Turned out we only knew the chorus, but the nice man in charge of karaoke saved us. Apparently Marvin Gaye is deeper than we thought.
...It's funny how music crosses cultures. As bad as this is, when a bunch of people start joining in on "Believe" by Cher, it feels kind of good to have that commonality when you are still finding things to identify with in a new country. Who knows how long that will stick around for...

-I wish the US played more of the pop music they play here. It's way fun to dance to.

-I had a conversation with three Ghanians who had (separately) lived in the US for some time and they all had very contrasting opinions about the experience of living in Ghana and United States. Again, this is just one night and a handful of conversations, but I feel like I’m starting to get a better understanding of how diverse people's opinions are about Ghana. It’s all so much to take in…I had to take a few minutes to sit back and just observe what was going on for a while. My friend Bri and I joked about having to step back and be anthropologists for a moment, but I don't think either of us could resist.

-I also met a girl who goes to CU and is studying in Accra. That was pretty exciting. Yayyy Buffs.

-A Ghanaian girl told me she liked my hair in the bathroom. I'm still getting used to having short hair. It's been almost ten years.

-I had my first, hopefully last, but inevitable space cadet incident today. Left my water bottle at some fancy pants restaurant CIEE took us to. I'm really aiming high here and planning on this not being repeated.