Obligatory "Typical Day" Post

While reading this, you should realize that it is essentially a vague list of what I might do on any given day. I’ve probably never had a day exactly like the one described below. I should also point out that this post was supposed to have a lot more pictures but the internet hates me today so you all just get the one at the end.

I typically crawl out of bed at about 5:30 am, cursing the existence of goats, chickens, and alarm clocks. From 5:30 to 6:30, I clean the house in some capacity or do laundry. It's amazing how quickly things gets dirty here so I have to do some sort of cleaning pretty much every day. After getting ready for work by about 7, I walk to the market and get corn porridge for breakfast.
Around 7:30 I get to school. Officially school starts at 7:45 am but the students come early to sweep the compound and clean the classrooms. In practice, assembly can be anytime from 7:30 to 8:30. My classes are generally in the mornings so most days I’m done with teaching by about 10:30 am. I spend the rest of the school day working on the next days lesson plans, helping some of the kids with their schoolwork, or just hanging out with them and the teachers. At some point I get a quick lunch from the school canteen and get back to school in time for the closing bell, which can be anytime from 2 to 3 pm, depending on how the headmaster and teachers are feeling that day.

After school, a few of the kids will sometimes come over, to fetch water for me, ask questions, or just say hello. Twice a week, I’ve started to meet with some of the students at the school for the HIV/AIDS club I mentioned in my last post. The English teacher, Sammy, also wants to work with me on a debate and drama club that we’re going to start sometime soon, probably in the next week or two. I finally got my bike in working order so I’ve been going on bike rides occasionally later in the afternoon after it stops being unbearably hot, or I’ll do a bit of yoga, or workout in some capacity. In the early evening, I head over to the market again to get things for making dinner. If I’m feeling lazy and don‘t feel like cooking, I go and get an egg sandwich at about 8:30 pm and talk to all the drunk folks milling about town. After dinner, I’ll watch something on my laptop (thanks for stocking up my hard drive JP!) or read for a bit and go to sleep at about 10:30.

Saturdays are spent either going to Cape Coast for internet access and getting things I need for my house or visiting my closest Peace Corps neighbors. On Sundays, I usually keep to myself and turn down invitations to go to any of the 10 churches in town while evading questions about why I don’t go to church every week. People here get quite persistent about this.
So that should give you some idea of how I spend my days here. I know it’s not terribly exciting but there you have it :)