Overview

Ghana, a country of western Africa, is famous for its gold-- sometimes even called the gold coast. Ghana has three predominantly geographic regions: coastal, forest, and northern savanna. Having lots of ethnic groups Ghana has a rich indigenous culture that are closely linked by the religion. Ghanaians are known for their hospitality and friendliness so don’t worry if you have any troubles! Just know that most of the people are ready to help especially in Accra (the capital).

Daily Life

Extended family are important in the social norms of Ghanaians. Ghanaians are very serious about their respect for their elders and honor their dead ancestors. Living in Accra is a hustle life. Many people have to work hard because if they do there are endless opportunities for them. Not many people who you find in the capital are from there or even from Ghana at all! Many people stress in their offices because they want to be able to succeed which causes hour-long delays, commuter stress, and to top it all off is all the unhealthy intake of pollution from vehicles passing by.

Art

Ghana’s art includes dance and art (especially pottery and wood carving), textiles, and gold and silver work. When a festival or holiday is celebrated in Ghana wonderful pieces of art will be displayed. Some villages decided to specialize making these beautiful crafts therefore they were called craft villages. These villages are found throughout Ghana and have groups of craftsmen give out these objects around the country.

Cuisine

One thing Ghana is known for is it’s cacao. Cacao beans are grown then cultivated and exported out of the country. But be sure to eat some Fufu if you go to Ghana. Fufu is a traditional food made of green plantains mixed with cassava plus a soup, meat or vegetable stew, and sauces as some side dishes. This plate can also be called foofoo or foufou, it just depends which region you’re in. Another traditional dish is apapransa made of cooked crab with kidney beans in a soup. This traditional dish is served for weddings and funerals.

Fashion

Ghana’s fashion has evolved so much over the centuries! One of the most traditional clothing is called Kente. Kente means woven cloth; it was used as a beauty adornment and kings and chieftains usually wore it. Even now the kente is used for festivals and other holidays. Beautiful colors spark from the clothes Ghanians wear today. They have fabulous fashion dresses to sporty wear. What can they not rock!

Music

Dance music called high life became popular all over the world. This type of music was a mix of European dance steps with some indigenous rhythms. E.T. Mensah, a world famous saxophonist, trumpeter, and band leader, popularized this music. In modern days schools help artists teach them Ghana’s traditional music including drums and diving deep into their musical heritage.

Transportation

Roads and railways are found more in the southern part than in the northern part. A popular way of transportation is motor transport. They use this for the cacao-growing areas. The only problem is that the roads in Ghana are only about one-fourth paved. In the bigger cities there are coaches, municipal bus services, and freight services. Ghana only has small airports but they are used predominantly for passengers rather than goods. For exporting goods they use Takoradi and Tema that are one of Ghana’s most used ports.