I'm Insane for Doing This.

It's hard to grasp the situation. Right now I am sitting in the antique armchair with the horrible floral pattern, my legs crossed underneath me and a cold latte from Wendels in my left hand*, and in exactly twenty days I will be flying into Ghana, my country of residence for the next five months, in order to teach at a co-ed boarding school.

How does such a drastic change occur? It's very simple...I'm insane.

Pending graduation I decided that I didn't want to go back to school right away, though Uvic was expecting me to show up in September my mini fridge and "I Heart 420" T-shirt in tow, and instead went completely mad and had the daft idea that I wanted to travel across the world; to the city of Takoradi and teach prepubescent Ghanaian children English and Music (though Ryan insists I should teach "Feminine Sexuality 101"). And now, it's really happening. 

The first five minutes, after I was told that I was accepted into the Lattitude program, were something resembling this.

 "Chloe, Stuart just e-mailed. Your going to Ghana in January!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

After this there was an excessive amount of high-fiving and  spinning around in circles, then I was able to calm down and read the information the Lattitude Canada coordinator had sent me.

I've been placed at Peter Piper's Learning Ways, a boarding school on the outskirts of Takoradi, near the coast of Ghana.  As soon as I discovered my placement I persistently harassed the two former volunteers via Facebook in order to uncover as much information about my future accommodation and pupils as I could: The school is 10 years old and  is still in the renovation process, it opened early because the previous building collapsed unexpectedly. and consists of approximately 1000 students, 200 of them boarders. I will be sharing a small cement hut in between the girls dorm & the boys washrooms (which should give my living-quarters a pleasant aroma). This building consists of a bedroom which is fitted with all the necessities, namely two beds, closets, a fridge and a broken TV; and a bathroom which I will share ONLY with my roommate. Ah Luxury!

So instead of spending my time studying philosophy amidst bunnies at Uvic, or taking an absurd amount of illegal substances with 2010 Olympian snowboarders I find myself  heading off Africa in order to experience something entirely new.

* The left hand has limited functions in Ghana as it is traditionally used for unsanitary acts.