Getting to town

The whole how to get to town thing, I've decided, has been blown out of proportion.  I have been hearing rumours since I arrived along the lines of "You will never find your way around without an escort......"  "You need a crash course in local language and a bewildering array of place names..........." "Transport is a problem in Ghana" etc etc.  But as of this week I beg to differ.  After a couple of trips into town, I decided that the route looks learnable, and determined that I would bravely give it a go.

Getting in to town is easier than getting back.  As you wait by the main road and a tro tro stops, if the driver's mate shouts 'Kejetia Kejetia Kejetia Kejetia' this means he is going your way.  You then push your way into the tro tro, or often I use my Obruni Privilege Pass which entitles me to sit in the front.  A tro tro, in case you were wondering, is a kind of Toyota van, usually, it appears, a scrappage or accident write off from Europe (tip: don't lean on the doors while you're going along, they tend to fly open as you go round corners).  They are designed to comfortably carry 10-15 people.  Generally in Ghana they'll squeeze in a few more.

Gettting back needs a little more care, as not all the tro tros will be going in the same direction.  This was the nut I really felt I needed to crack.  On Monday afternoon, I was in the centre of Kumasi, and my opportunity arose.  I ambled arond the tro tro station for a bit, wondering how to find a car for Abuakwa (the direction I needed to go in).  It would have been cheating, I decided, to call any of my Ghanaian friends and pass the phone to a hopeful looking driver - private taxis, by the same token, were equally off limits.  That said, a taxi driver did try to quote me 10 cedis to take me home when asked for directions.   How I laughed - you think I'm a mug? "Too expensive," I scolded,  "share taxi".

"OK then you stand in line" he countered, his enthusiasm for my custom mysteriously lessened.  So I did stand in line and after 10 minutes or so, clambered into the next tro tro for Abuakwa.  "Apatrapa" (where I needed to get out) I confidently announced to the driver's mate as I got in, and some 20 minutes later was strolling down the road to my front door.

Will 1, Kumasi Transport 0.

There's something a bit pathetic, I know, about someone my age swaggering in delight at being able to use public transport.  They're only buses FFS, and I'd been here nearly 2 weeks before I dared to try this.  Admittedly, I'm also aware of pride coming before a fall.  Having posted this, there is now NO WAY at all I can afford to get lost in Ghana's often chaotic transport network.  However, if a later blog opens with the words "I'm posting this from somewhere (I think) in Ghana - but to be honest I'm lost", you'll know what's happened, and jeering rights will be granted accordingly.

I'll let you know if it happens