televi

Hi all! I know, I know, yet another day without updating has gone by. But don’t worry, yesterday wasn’t too eventful. Just had my usual two classes, both of which were really interesting, though both ended extra early. My internship class was only an hour long—hardly enough time to cover anything substantial, so we just spent the majority of the time just talking to our professor about NYU. She has a 12 year old daughter, and is beginning to think about college options, and said she would never even consider sending her kid to a school like NYU, with no campus or gates or anything. I guess we’re really lucky to have parents that trust us ad allowed us to grow up quickly in college. I’m definitely thankful for my NYU experience. Feeling like you live in the City and go to school is totally different than the normal college experience of living and breathing the university. Living in New York has been one of the greatest, most challenging, but most rewarding experiences of my life. Anyway, babbling on…

Today was a great day as well. I slept in and watched movies for a few hours since I didn’t have class or work today. Marykate, Gillian and I went to lunch and then MK and I went to the Art Center (the place I liked with all the cool gifts) to buy little percussion “instruments,” called Televi, for our African Popular Music class tomorrow. I don’t know how to describe them other than they are two balls filled with beans connected to a string. You put one ball in your hand and flip the other ball back and forth with a flip of your wrist to get the two balls to hit each other and create sound. It’s something all the locals use here in Ghana, and was originally a kid toy before it got appropriated and became a musical instrument in West African music. So anyway, we bought those, because our teacher is going to show us how to properly play them tomorrow. (I’ve tried and can do the most basic of motions, but am no where near proficient.) Sarah, I’m brining some home for you because I know you would love them. I bargained for a few other gifts at the Art Center, and let me just say, I’m a PRO bargainer. The seller even commented on how good I was.

Televi

After the Art Center we had recitation, and watched a documentary called Traces of the Trade by a roughly 30 year old woman who lives in Bristol, Rhode Island. She is a 6th or 7th generation decedent of the DeWolf family, one of the most prominent, wealthy families in Rhode Island and one of the leaders in the slave trade. Many of the buildings and monuments erected in Rhode Island were built using money the DeWolf’s made from the business. Anyway, this woman, a Princeton graduate, decided to trace the steps of her ancestors to follow their journey along the slave trade. She invited 200 of her family (clearly, both immediate and distant distant family) to come along, and I think 7 of them went. They went to Ghana and visited the Elmina Slave Castle (the castle we saw) and then went to Cuba where slaves were also held. Her point was to see what her ancestors had done, see the atrocities of the slave trade, make peace with Africans and apologize, and open up a dialogue about slavery and race issues between themselves and Africans and African Americans. It was a really good documentary and really cool to see Ghana and Elmina featured in the documentary.

Dinner was a bit different tonight, as Tante had some function going on at the restaurant, so they brought all the food over to Solomon’s. We managed to fit 45 people in our dining room/living room, which was a sight to behold, but it was fun. Gillian and I just got done talking for what must’ve been close to 2 hours. It’s great to have a roommate who I can talk with about whatever, and who I get along with so well. G, if you’re reading this, holla.

Anyway, tomorrow I have my African Popular Music class, and then I’m teaching the first workshop at a new school with Leigh. Should be great, I can’t wait!

How is everyone doing? Update me please! Miss you all so much!

love love love