The Convenience of Ghana

One thing I'm going to miss about this place is how convenient certain things are.

The tro-tro system, for example. These mini-bus type vehicles are literally everywhere. I was completely reminded of my old Canadian ways when, the other day, I sat down on a road-side curb for about 10 minutes to await a tro-tro. At ten minutes... no, probably more like eight, I realized, wait a sec! I'm in Ghana. If I haven't seen a tro-tro in 8 minutes, then tro-tros just don't come here. So I got up feeling a little foolish and walked to a different road. But that's what it's like. They are everywhere so waiting for a tro-tro really only takes a few minutes.

Telephony here is unique in that very few people here actually have land-lines. Very few. The lack of land-line infrastructure back in the day made it convenient and cheap for the mobile phone companies to move into Ghana and make cell phones the norm, not normal telephones. So everyone has a cell phone. The best part about all this is that to get an account, you don't need to have an address and wait for the bill to come in the mail or any of that non-sense. Of course, this system wouldn't work since many people don't have an address since the many of the roads are unmarked. It's a pay as you go system and you buy cards basically anywhere. Like the tro-tro system, if you're walking around looking to buy a phone card and more than 8 minutes have passed, you've either left Ghana or you haven't a clue what a phone card actually looks like. They are everywhere. EVERYWHERE. People sell from from little desks on the side of the road, or by just walking around.

The next hyper-convenient item on the Ghanaian market is food. Street food to be precise. Here you are only as limited as your courage and stomach will allow. I say that, but really, I have yet to meet a chop bar (that's what they're called) that I haven't found extremely tasty. (I'd be amiss not to mention here that my flatmates used to say I thought food from the compost was tasty...) But on nearly every block there is some lady selling beans and rice or salad or hard-boiled eggs with salsa or fried rice or chicken kebobs or a number of other tasty dishes. This makes a guy with an insatiable appetite very very happy. Not only is this convenience everywhere, but it's also quick (whoo!) and very cheap (whoo hoo!!) making Ghana the best place on Earth and most probably the solar system.

Now you might be thinking, Phil, if this place is as good as you say it is, then why aren't I there? What I'd have to say to that is, Well, it gets a lot better, son. You see, some of these conveniences mash together into one gigantic flaming goo-ball of convenience. See, while you're sitting pretty in your tro-tro that you waited 12 seconds and paid 20 cents for, you are approached by hand-fulls of people selling everything from soap to cookies to Ghanaian flags every time your tro-tro stops. Feel like a phone card? Done. Thirsty? No, don't get up from your seat. Water is on it's way - and cold! Hungry? There's lots to choose from: fried dough balls (called bo fruit), papaya, apples, kebabs, bread, ice cream or frozen yogurt. Many people make it their goal in life to serve the tro-tros. Actually, my favourite place to buy underwear is from a tro-tro. The selection and quality of fabric is magnificent. Folks, you can even by a puppy from a tro-tro. Or books. Heck, last week I bought Shakespeare from one. Toothbrushes, soccer balls, even toys from the kiddies at home. The list goes on and on.

To be serious for a moment, I think this industry reflects well on the society. The people resorting to this way of life are generally uneducated and would otherwise be poor. Yet, instead losing hope and turning to crime or begging they walk the dusty and sun-violent roads everyday inhaling literally kilograms of emissions per year. The job isn't safe either. These people hawk on multi-laned roads, strategically selling in between lanes and vehicles. Ghanaians are hard-working and proud people who set an example for every one of us. Because while they are carrying crazy loads of wares on their heads, sweating under the afternoon sun and dodging traffic like an intimate dance, they go about their days with an unfounded happiness, with the brightest smiles.


This is me buying an unknown type of sea-food kebob. I think it was oyster but what ever it was, it was stuffed with gari, a local grain. I ate about half of it until my appetite went out the window - and thus, so did what remained.