Placement Information

This is an International School, which teaches children through to secondary education. Even though it is an international school a majority of the children are local. All of the staff are local. The schools starts at primary aged children, including nursery and goes straight through to secondary school. The staff and children in the school speak English. It is a good place to visit as the staff and children are very friendly and they are very helpful when it comes to giving you a chance to experience working in this setting. The teaching and school environment is very different to the UK, so it will give you good insight into the teaching in Ghana. As this is an International School, you may want to find a completely local school to work in, however, I felt it was very different in comparison to the UK, and reflected in some ways on Ghanaian culture and lifestyle. If you would like to read up on this school their website is: http://soulclinic.org/

Accomodation

There are is a Novotel hotel which is near to the airport. I am not too sure how much it cost, but I am sure it will not be too much. There are many more hotels as you get into the city. If you are going with a volunteer group they will provide you with some sort of accommodation. As I had organised this trip independently and stayed with family, I am not quite sure what the accommodation they provide you with is like. For more information on the Novotel hotel, click on this link to the website:http://www.novotel.com/gb/hotel-1021-novotel-accra-city-centre/index.shtml. The hotel, which I stayed at in Elmina Bay was very basic and provide with a bed and bathroom, however the beach, bar and restaurant was very nice. Unfortunately I have forgotten the name of the hotel.

Transport

As you come off the plane, if you need to make your own way to the place which you are staying at then there are plenty of people who are offering taxis. There are plenty of taxis around the city centre. If you are travelling between different areas in Ghana, you can either go by air, car or bus. There are many leading car hire companies in Ghana, however, the driving is very different to the UK. For more information on different ways of travelling road Ghana, click on this link: http://ghana.embassyhomepage.com/ghanaian_railway_ghana_bus_accra_airport_taxi_ghana_domestic_airports_ghana_ferries_ghanaian_motorway.htm

Social life

There are plenty of bars and restaurants in the city which you can go to in the evenings. There are many restaurants, however there is not a variety of different kinds of food. The main types of restaurants are Indian, Lebanese, Italian and Chinese. There is an art gallery, which you may want to visit, however I did not get the chance to visit it so I do not know the name or what it was like. If you ask in a tourist centre, they will probably be able to tell you more about it. If you are going through original volunteers, there is always likely to be people on your flight who are probably going to the same volunteer group as you. If you are able to find out who they are before you leave and try get in contact with them, then I am sure that will help you make more friends and be more comfortable when you start volunteering. Unless you are able or willing to travel places further away, depending on where you are staying, there are many countryside places around where the canopy walk is in Kakum National Park.

Things to do, things not to do

There is a tourist market, which is nice to go and see some traditional clothing, furniture, jewelery etc.You can also go and see the Independance Arch. There are not many other tourist attractions within Accra. Outside of Accra, there is the canopy walks which is just walk across several canopies. If you are scared of heights, this is not for you. If you are looking for a weekend at a beach, you can go to Elmina Bay, however you have to be able to travel by car to get there. There is also a historical castle, Elmina Castle, near Elmina bay, which is very interesting and has nice views. Here is a website of the things to do and not do while in Ghana: http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Africa/Ghana/Things_To_Do-Ghana-TG-C-1.html. When walking around the town, I would advice you either carry your personal belongings in a bum bag or a bag which hangs at the front of you, so that you know nobody can get into it. I would not advice you to go anywhere alone, especially in the evening. You can wear pretty much anything, in the evening it can get cold, so you may want to take a cardigan or jumper with you. For ladies, you can show legs and arms, however, in the evening and in some areas I would advise you to cover up. In terms of local currency, I would advise you either take Cedis (local currency) with you before you leave or take pounds out there and then change it into Cedis once you get there. When you are travelling around, I would not carry all your personal belongings with you and leave them in a safe place wherever you may be staying. Whatever you want to buy in Ghana, try and barter and start by saying half of the price which they are offering, and then negotiate a price.

Useful Contacts

It would useful to have contacts with the people you are staying with before you leave so that once you leave, if you have any issues once you have landed then you can get in contact with them. If you are staying at a hotel, I would also keep the hotel telephone number with you, just in case you need to call them for any reason. If you know you are not going to have internet access, I would keep Cheryl and Cyndy's phone numbers and email address, so if you get internet through an internet cafe or if you are using your mobile, then you can always get in contact with them if there is any trouble or queries. In a medical emergency, I would contact your main contact person whether a family or friend or the main person at the volunteer group. If you are not able to get through I would contact the local medical service, and hope they send an ambulance, the telephone number for this is 193. For more emergency numbers, visit: http://www.modernghana.com/ghanahome/information/numbers.asp?menu_id=6&sub_menu_id=335&gender=. (They are approximately half way down the web page). It would also be useful to have Foreign Commissions Offiices' details for added security, which is on this website: http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/find-an-embassy/sub-saharan-africa/ghana, this will be useful if you have problems with visa's or anything you may feel they can help you with. while you are there.

Before you go

Make sure you have the address of where you are staying, on the flight with you, as you need to put this on your landing card. Make sure you have left plenty of time before you leave for Ghana, at least a couple of weeks, to check your injections are all up-to-date. Especially if you think you will want to have or need hepatitis B as the first inject for Hepatitis B needs to done over 3 weeks before departure. Make sure that your mobile phone and contract works abroad, so that once you land you are able to contact whoever is collecting you if necessary. Before flying and booking your flights, I would make sure your insurance covers you to go to Ghana and if not, either add it with your insurance company or find a cheap insurance company which will insure you. The most important documents you must make sure you have with you before departing are your passport, yellow fever injection certificate, your visa, and as I have said above the address of where you are going to stay, and any other documents which you feel you may need. I would advice you to look at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office web link on travelling in Ghana, to make you aware of certain things to be aware of while travelling: http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/travel-advice-by-country/sub-saharan-africa/ghana

Costs