KUMASI PREVIEW – Photos from afar to give us a glimpse into our future as we prepare to move to Ghana for a year in June
A new home is like a blank slate. Something you take and turn into living space that feels like home. Bob’s future co-workers at Waste Enterprisers, Ashely and Jeremy have emailed photos of the five-bedroom rental house we’ll be living in once we reach Kumasi. Jeremy is already down there, working hard to make the house a home, putting in a garden and fencing for chickens and goats. Captions are below the photos.
As you stand in the street facing the front of the house, here is the front of the house with its octagonal solarium and deck and the left side yard. The young folk will be sharing the upstairs. The old gray-haired couple will reside on the ground floor.
Right side yard looking toward the chicken coops from the front of the house. And the chicken coops themselves. Note the razor wire atop the stone walls around the yard.
Back yard looking from the chicken coops and from the chicken coops looking across the right side yard up into the street. And the back steps leading into the house.
Views from the front porch to the street in front of the house and a view from the second floor of the back yard. Bob was happy to see grander homes across the street because because if someone were deciding which house to rob on our street, they would likely go for one of the wealthier-looking homes. It looks quite lush as well it should with an average annual rainfall of about 57 inches.
Upstairs living room, dining room and kitchen. We decided to outfit only one of the two kitchens in the house to save on expenses. Camille will likely be the Cook of the House. That’s the female version of Cock of the Walk.
Camille imagines that when everyone goes off to work, she will go off to market, then come home to wash clothes and cook. Kumasi is home to Kejetia, West Africa’s largest open air market where one can buy everything from food to fabric. Camille is really looking forward to learning how to make Egusi Stew and Fufu and we expect there will be an to an endless supply of avocado, mango and breadfruit and many other delicious fruits and vegetables, both familiar and not.
The two-bedroom Trouts Pad will be downstairs. Here is the solarium and kitchen which may also be used as an auxiliary lab for work.
One of the downstairs bedrooms. Jeremy reports that our bed has arrived. We will decide after we arrive whether to install an air conditioner in the cutout on the wall or just go with fans. The temperatures range from low 70’s at night to high 90’s during the day.
We can’t wait to show off the “after” photos of the new home we create on this blank slate!