Ashanti

On day two of the big tour we headed out of Accra to Kumasi. Kumasi is the capital of the Ashanti region and the seat of the Ashanti King. The city is a cultural center for the nation and according to Charles, was never conquered by the colonists who landed along the coast. It is another 5 hour drive to the north and we made an early start picking up food along the way. Doughnuts were the order of the day! Several toasty and windblown hours later (windows down!) we took a quick drive through the city and out towards the three main crafting villages.

The first stop was at the village of Bonwire, one of the original "stools" of the kente weaving. Kente is recognizable by the colorful geometric designs which the men weave on large looms. The resulting cloth is beautiful and understandably expensive.

Calabash tree

Next we traveled a short distance to see Adinkra cloth being printed. Adinkra hosts a collection of symbols representing traditional parables or lessons. It is generally a monochromatic dye stamped onto woven Kente or cotton fabrics. The dye is made from the bark of the babie tree which is crushed and then boiled down to a thick tar. The artists then use stamps made from calabash to print the patterns. I tried my hand at it and also watched as an expert produced the same designs using silk screening as an alternative method for the very large designs.

Adinkra silk screening

Calabash stamps

After a quick trip and some clever bargaining in the wood carving village we were off to see Paco, Charles' older son, at his high school back in Kumansi. He was not expecting visitors and was very excited and surprised to see both Charles and Seth. He was grinning ear to ear the entire visit.

I have to say most of the time over this day was spent in the back of the car, peering out the window. There is much to see along the roadway as that is the main source of commerce once outside of the large population centers. You can find all sorts of food and drink along with charcoal and other staples. Along with the vendors there is a constant stream of children in various school uniforms making the trek from their home villages to the nearest school. Some schools are several miles away and the children have to leave very early to make the walk. Seth and I are beginning to think it may be more worthwhile for Framework to establish a new school in one of these rural areas rather than attempt to replace an existing structure. A smaller school could be built (meaning funds could be spread around) and it would address an immediate need.