Happy New Year! How was your holiday break? Hope you had a good one. We headed to Accra, the capital of Ghana, for the new year to visit family and eat our weight in fufu. Here are a few photos, if you’d like to see…

For most of the duration of the trip, we stayed at my mother-in-law’s home in Ghana. This home features six bedrooms, a living room and a family room, as well as a full kitchen. All of my husband’s siblings came to Ghana for the end of year, so it was nice to see everyone, and my son got to meet some of his cousins that live in Alberta for the first time!

Although the home is large, it lacked a few perks I take for granted in Canada… For example, there is no hot water, so we had to boil some if we wanted to take a bath, and the home has no washer/dryer outlet. Luckily, my husband grew up washing his own clothes by hand so we put him to work!

We spent an afternoon at the beach with some of the family! It was interesting to note that the beach is very different from the Caribbean. The waves are much stronger and higher, and you go from ankle-deep to waist-deep very quickly!

We made sure to visit the Independence Square in Accra, which has monuments to Ghana’s independence struggle, including the Independence Arch, Black Star Gate, and the Liberation Day Monument. It felt empowering to stand in a place where people were brave and fought for what I too often take for granted.

Then we did a very brave thing by heading to the local market to shop and practice our bargaining skills. My husband’s trick: pretend like you’re about to walk away! We often got items for 1/3 of the price that was originally quoted! Too bad you can’t do that in Canada. I was on the hunt for some wax fabric for a new project I have in mind!

While I was in Ghana, I learned how to make fufu, which is a staple food in most African countries, each with their their own versions. In Ghana, they mix boiled plantain with yam and pound them using a giant wood mortar until it becomes sticky and gooey! Then they form a ball with it. They eat it with any kind of stew. It’s quite filling and actually low in fat and cholesterol! Pounding it looks easy, but after about 16 seconds I got tired and handed the reigns over to one of my cousins!

We did lots of house hunting while in Ghana. We are definitely looking for ways to invest in this beautiful country. There, your money can take you a lot further when it comes to housing, and even land increases in value extremely fast! I loved that the houses are not all cookie-cutter!

Finally, towards the end of our stay, we stayed at a hotel, just me, hubby, and child. We settled for the Palm Beach Hotel, which is renowned in Ghana. It was nice to have some time in the pool and to eat food we are more accustomed to. My son ordered a cheeseburger!

Now we are home, sweet home, back in Montreal. Hope you had a good holiday and are looking forward to the new year. Lots of love to you. And now: 2018, let’s do this. xoxo