Lessons learnt but not from the old...

Gosh! When I started this blog it was my aim to write posts every single day, but now am sorely dissapointed.
2011 has really brought with it so many surprises. I got a partime job helping foreign students settle in Ghana which is pretty much fun and on top of that am helping at my mum's new school. Furthermore, youth meetings need to be attended, choir rehearsals and other mundane tasks like cooking, cleaning etc.
Anyways am not here to discuss my hectic life but talk about something I learnt this week.
   From the kids I teach I learnt how to cultivate patience. You know how people keep saying you can learn from anything. So, I thought what could I possibly learn from 3-5 year olds? Nothing academic of course.. we have been reciting the ABC's for a week now but they keep on forgetting. It's so frustrating repeating yourself over and over but then you know through all this agony your leaving an indelible mark which would show in years to come.
   Also I realised this week that my world as I know it may be so simple, understanding and kitsch to me but could be another range of ajectives for another person. I sat in a orientation lecture organized for foreign exchange students and it dawned on me that my Ghanaian culture could be described as strict, pre-modern nonetheless friendly to all. It sounded strange at first but I quickly accepted the facts, I am 19, boyfriend less, still have a curfew, my parents are strict no guys allowed to visit at certain times yet I don't see anything wrong because I have become accustomed to it. Ghanaian culture still doesn't accept homosexuality and so do I, women are expected to do most house chores , get married  and not end up single mothers. We still view the left hand as the evil hand, so we do not give presents or take them using that hand.
Ghanaians are staunch believers of sorcery , witchcraft and divination and are less enthused at science. But, we are so friendly and I experience it everyday when a market seller gives me more tomatoes than i payed for or some anonymous person pays my bus fare for me with no ulterior motive. From a westerner's view of point we may be pre-modern but I think that's what makes us so unique and heartwarming. I'm going to end this note with a familiar local saying 'Travel and see'. Learn about different cultures you would be amazed! You could end up appreciating your culture more than ever.

2O Best African Artistes of all times!

          Africa has been blessed with great artistes and I want to appreciate them in my own way either dead or alive. So, this is my list of the Best African Musicians. It varies from soul to reggae and some might make you smile or even cry. Enjoy the best of African music by listening to each one of them.                           

                                              1. Miriam Makeba

                                               2.Lucky dube

                                                          3. Yvonne Chaka chaka

                                                      4. Ceasaria Evoria

                                                         5. Salif Keita

                                                 6. Papa Wemba

                                                    7. Kojo Antwi

                                           
                                                     8. Youssou N'dour

                                            9. Cheb Khaled

                                                   10. Fela Kuti

                             

                                              11. Brenda Fassie

12.   Tiken Jah

                                      

                         
                                            13.   Miriam et Amadou

                                         
                                                       14. Oumou Sangare

                                                  
                                                 15. Angelique Kidjo           

                                            16. Kofi Olomide

                                         
                                               17. Alpha Blondy

                                           
                                           18. Lokua Akanza

                                            19. K'naan

20.    Nneka

 PS. Leave any comments,  you may disagree or you can suggest that I add someone else. Who knows? I could extend it to 25 or 30!

chic-africana: 2O Best African Artistes of all times!

chic-africana: 2O Best African Artistes of all times!: " Africa has been blessed with great artistes and I want to appreciate them in my own w..."

Highlife,Hiplife, Soul Music and Ghanaian rhythms

People say music is their religion, Shakespeare said it is the fruit of love. My opinion is that music is like a sixth sense it is universal, does not discriminate and it has the power to relax, destress and gently rock our senses. I am crazy about all types of musical genres from acapella to zouk and I constantly search for talented artists around the world.  However, I have lamentably noticed that African music and especially Ghanaian music is not represented internationally but we have great old artistes like Kojo Antwi( who reminds me of Lionel Richie)his musical genre is called highlife and recently there are gifted artistes like Becca and Jay Ghartey. Ghanaian music can be divided into two main genres Highlife which originated in Ghana in the 1900s and spread to other west African countries by 1920. It is influenced by jazz tunes and multiple guitars. Hiplife is recent and is a mixture of highlife and hiphop hence the name hiplife.
            1.   EL MAESTRO of Highlife. Kojo Antwi - Mirika            

                                        

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lN2mKAd5wsg

                                                        
                          2.          Kwabena kwabena - Obi do wa do ni be(luv this song!)

                             3.  Becca ft. kwabena kwabena - U lied to me

                                 4. M.anifest-  Coming to America

An imported Ghanaian

I am Ghanaian all right because I am a proud owner of a passport emblemed with 'The Republic of Ghana'.
  But, on a more serious note I have been a permanent resident in Accra for two years now. I was born and raised in Cote D'Ivoire which am sure you all know now since it has become the first country to have two ruling presidents for more than 3 months now, it deserves to be in The Guiness World Book.

Thus, am an Imported Ghanaian (term used for ghanaians that have been away to long). My first encounter with this phrase was through a satirical book written by; Alba Kunadu Sumprim. The story is narrated through cartoon characters so no excuses for you lazy readers .Check her out on  www.theimportedghanaian.com

Anyways I think I can give myself some brownie points for adapting pretty well to my country. If one wants to know if he/she has fitted appropriately into my culture the person should be able to; sit in traffic for two hours in the tropical heat congested with car fumes, not forgetting the occasional honks of taxis and buses  yet enjoy the beauty of the chaos which could have been prevented if one car had obeyed the traffic light and stopped when it was red.
Another thing I should be proud of is the improvment of my fluency in' twi' and 'pidgen' . Note! this is very critical in any transaction. Whether when stopping a taxi or buying a yard of cloth in the market. First reason, it reduces the chances of any trader duping you because he or she believes your a foreigner and can make more profit from you. Secondly, it makes everything much simpler today I was able to maintain a conversation with a cab driver and he talked about reckless drivers, risen petrol prices and more.  Lastly, if you are able to fall asleep although your neighbour is a church which constantly  sings, prays and chants because it believes it can attract non-belivers with this strategy or a 'drinking spot' around the corner that booms non-stop all night long with nigerian and ghanaian latest hit songs then you have conquered it all.
Surprisingly, it is pretty calm today. Lord thankyou! Really need my beauty sleepy got assigned to a voluntary organisation today will tell you more... next time.

Tabular Rasa

Am  sure you are wondering wassup with this greek, latin or whatever ancient language title 'Tabular rasa'. Well, I wanted something original to be my first post title and this is a product of deep thinking. I started with Fresh beginnings, it sounded cliche, and then enlightenment but it sounded to scientific and out of the blue I remembered 'tabular rasa that was one of the first things I learnt in my psychology class- meaning clean slate. So, it's final. Today just seems like the perfect day to start a blog..

                             1. It is a tuesday(a day after monday)!

                             2. January is the first month.

                             3.Today's date is 11-01-2011

                              These reasons are enough.