The Facebook, but mostly Cape Coast

In honor of facebook making something of a habit of deleting all my captions, I have decided to give up. But I will try to be better about talking about trips and experiences beyond food. So hopefully my blog can work to explain my random photos. 

Two weekends ago.

We went to Cape Coast. While there we visited Kakum National Park and the slave castle. 

The National Park was breath taking. We started with a short climb to one of the high points in the forest. We then walked up some stairs to the start of the canopy walk. A canopy walk is just what it sounds like. We walked one by one across these tiny shaky bridges above the canopy of the rain forest. It is probably on the top 5 coolest things I have ever done. Being above the trees you could see the forest in every direction. And the noise! You could hear everything. It was like something straight off discovery channel. I don’t really have many words for it, but the rain forest has to be one of the most incredible features of this earth. 

The slave castle was equally fascinating but in an entirely different way. And I probably have more words to describe it. All through school, we learned about slavery in the U.S. We learned the history, but I don’t think we ever learned the story. Visiting this place was learning the story. The castle was originally built by the Portuguese in the 15th century. Over several hundred years it was added onto and used by different owners. It was a center for trade. And that included the trading of humans. As a California kid, it  was one thing to learn about this unimaginable practice all the way out in the South and another to be in the place they were taken from. To walk the roads they walked, to sit in the cells they were imprisoned in, to hear our guide recount the sufferings of his people. Never has such a brief experience provided me with so much perspective.

In touring the castle we walked through all the places they walked. We were led through the separate men’s and women’s cells, where hundreds of people were left for months at a time. We were led into the courtyard where the women were paraded so that the governor and his soldiers could choose the ones they wanted for themselves. We walked the balcony where the governor would make his selection. We were led through the dark tunnels and finally to the gate of no return--the place where slaves were loaded onto ships. 

We stood in the courtyard where most every room surrounding us was a holding cell of some sort. A giant church stood in the middle of that courtyard. Surrounded by the malnutrition, the disease, the dying, and the suffering of an entire nation. 

It was a hard experience to wrap ones mind around. You try to understand everyone’s perspective. What were the Europeans thinking? What were their justifications? What were the African’s thinking? And then you realize that you can learn about the climate and the culture and the ways of that time, but it’s something that you will probably never be able to wrap your mind entirely around. 

It was a very sobering experience and I’m very grateful to have had it.