Yaouzieee! March 21 Abutia Kloe, Ghana

I had a late start today after spending three hours online changing all my passwords because of the loss of my flash drive. I booked another night in Ho and decided to spend the day exploring the surrounding countryside. I hesitated between three very different destinations: a circle of some 40 villages at the foot of the tallest local mountain (butte?), a weavers` village or a nature reserve. The later won, and I took a cab shortly after noon to cover the 12 miles to the little village of Abutia Kloe, and walked the remaining 2.5 miles on foot-without water. Not only do I dress like a tramp but I travel like a dork! The walking on the dirt road was a treat of quietness and greenery (see video). At the park entrance, I was greeted by a 10 year-old girl who was cooking yam over a camp fire. She fetched her uncle who woke up from a nap to put his worn out ranger uniform and rubber boots, and grabbed his 1950 shotgun. He took me on a nice walk through the savanna where we spotted over 100 grazing kobs (horned antelope), and through the adjacent forest where I got to meet my first giant native trees (don`t know their name yet). It was a real treat after being in the city for 10 days! We passed near a man-made water whole for the serve animals and it was full of fish! I asked how the fish got there and the guide told me that God put them there and as long as there was fish, there will be water in that hole. So fishing isn`t allowed of course! The park manager gave me a ride out of the park on his motorcycle (see slideshow)
After getting a cool drink in the tiny village of Abutia Kloe, I hopped into a cab but jumped out a 100 feet further as I heard live music and saw a gathering under a tree by the roadside. My lucky day? Yes, I was up for a feast! I hadn`t sat down for more than 5 minutes that a girl grabbed me to dance with her. It was her and me and the whole village watching, cheering and cracking up. As much as I was happy as a clam to finally find myself where I wanted to be, I was also terribly self-conscious, and awkward about not knowing their dancing customs. They obviously have some kind of protocol where the woman controls the dance but I really couldn`t figure out how it all worked. An impressively big man hugged me and asked me to go dance again. I grabbed the girl next to me and the whole circle went berserk! I had no idea what I was supposed to do. I smiled and shook it as good as I could, but couldn`t shake the discomfort of being caught in a flirting/mating dance without knowing what I was getting into. Well, when the girl grabbed my face and gave me a juicy kiss, I knew I was getting into more trouble than I was ready for, so I stepped away from the dance to regain my bearings. I went to the corner store and bought a case of beer for the musicians. One of the elders came over to me and gave me a big hug and kissed me on the cheeks. The young men were pouring themselves shots of gin and were getting a bit rowdy. I thought it was time to leave as dusk was falling so I jumped into a trotro and sadly said goodbye to the girl who had so kindly given me a kiss. What a lovely day I had! (see dance video 1 and dance video 2)