Nzulezo stilt village
It was hard to leave the security and comfort of Elmina Beach Resort. I could have easily spent another day, relaxing by the pool with a book and watching crappy movies. Having watched a Hannibal Lechter movie and another with Swartzeneger the previous night it’s surprising I didn’t have nightmares.
Catching a tro tros, minibus taxi, from the junction outside Elmina, it was a ninety-minute ride to the uninteresting transport hub of Takoradi.
Marriage proposal and gin………
There was a 30-minute wait for the tro tros to fill up squashed by a window, sore bum and sweating.
My sponsored accommodation was at Beyin Resort where rolling green lawns met the beach and the sea, all this under tall palms. The resort took owners, Nina and Patrick Sarpong, six-months to build and was opened in February last year.
There are seven wood and thatch huts, two double and en suite, the others with two single beds.
British couple Nina and Patrick met and married in London – Patrick is of Ghanaian decent. Five years ago they made the decision to come to Ghana because they wanted a better life and to be their own boss. They also wanted family time with their two son’s Miles, 5, and Lewis, 3.
Patrick also organises tours of the country, costing approximately 2000 pounds for ten days, including everything except food.
Nina and Patrick have also taken over responsibility for the leatherback turtles along this stretch of shoreline. They are looking for volunteers to work at the resort during the turtle season – I was so tempted.
“It’s a lot of work at that time because we wake visitors so they can see the hatchlings go into the sea,” said Nina.
With storm clouds brewing I walked along the beach in search of Fort Apollonia. I found the fort but not the guide, but never mind, I’d had enough of forts. Fort Apollonia is the last fort along the coast, built by the British in 1770 using rock quarried from ten kilometres away.
Back at Beyin Resort I had a quick swim and was amazed to see a huge fish jump out of the water. Later, enjoying a Star beer in the open-sided thatch restaurant Nina said it was possibly a barracuda.
Through bleary eyes I tried to capture a picture of the largest lizard I’d ever seen, a handsome orange, black and grey one, approximately forty centimetres long and seen all over Ghana. There are many species of lizards in Ghana but is the largest and most colourful.
While walking along the beach I met Linda van Hilborg, a volunteer from Holland. She joined me for supper and we decided to go to Nzulezo stilt village together next day. We were eaten alive by mosi’s. The night was young but what to do? Thoughtfully management hire out DVDs and portable players. I selected the Devil Wears Prada and watched in bed, door open, the sound of the sea – nice.
Breakfast of croissant, filter coffee, fruit juice – wow!
The canoe trips to Nzulezo stilt village is a sustainable development programme run by the Wildlife Society of Ghana, neighbour to Beyin Resort.
After paid for the tour Linda and I climbed into a dug-out canoe and paddled along a canal, built in 2002. Initially we passed through Amasuri Wetland, a Ramsar Site and the largest inland swamp forest in Ghana. But we couldn’t see a thing because the bank was so high, added to this it was bloomin hot. Our guide, Ebonloa told us the area is flooded in the rainy season.
Suddenly the canal opened into a small lake covered with lilies and fringed with raffia palms and lush jungle, beautiful, and it was cooler.
Rowing through another narrow channel we negotiated shallow water before coming to a kind of fence, a fishing trap. Linda and I had to walk on a path for a short distance, through reeds, because the water was so low. I’d met people who were here a week earlier and they had to do a lot of walking, but it had rained since then.
Back in the boat we entered a narrow channel where I wouldn’t have been surprised to see snakes and monkeys. But we didn’t see any wildlife, including birds, although early morning and evening must be good for birdwatchers.
The channel opened onto five-kilometre-long Lake Amansuri and there, at the opposite end, was Nzulezo stilt village, television aerials poking out.
Keeping to the edge of the lake we could see fish traps made of raffia palms.
We entered the stilt village at one of the two homestays, which have received good reports, according to the guestbook.
As monkeys scampered underneath the wooden buildings at the edge of the lake we wandered through the village along a central wood and raffia walkway.
Going off perpendicular are ‘lanes’, each one belonging to a family. As usual women were having their hair braided, some played games, and many slept as naked children ran around or swam in the lake.
Ebonloa told us the wooden stilts are replaced every eight years, evidenced by logs curing in the water.
But why build a village on water when there are fertile fields ten kilometres north of the lake. One story goes that the village was built 500-years ago by refugees from modern-day Nigeria who were chased away by another tribe during a war.
Approximately 900 people, divided into two groups, live in the stilt village and on land. They grow their own food and catch fish as well as making apatashe, the local gin. In fact there appears to be an alcoholism problem in the village. Linda and I had heard numerous reports of the so-called chief getting very upset if obruni’s, the name for foreigners, bring him local gin, he wants the imported stuff. He also expects a gift – money.
Forewarned I bought pencils in the village and these were my gift, although there were no children in the two schools. As we sat with the so-called chief in the ‘hall’ I could smell alcohol on the breath, and it was 11.30am. After counting the pencils he meticulously wrote my donation in a book. He didn’t speak but looked very grumpy and I could well imagine him getting cross with obruni’s.
Back at Beyin Resort Nina said that no-one has ever seen children in the school. There is also a problem with in-breeding and like most places in Ghana the people didn’t want their picture taken.
The village is as untidy and unkempt as every other village we had seen, except this one is on stilts. But it made a good photo opportunity and besides, the canoe trip was wonderful, far better than expected and not as hot.
On our return we saw a large group of Americans, wearing lifejackets and not rowing. I bet they gave money and imported gin.
As we negotiated the narrow channel a fisherman passed, cheerfully singing, while Ebonloa asked Linda to marry him.
NZULEZU VILLAGE Amansuri Conservation and Integrated Development (ACID) Project run under the auspices of the Ghana Wildlife Society, 031 31861.
ACCOMMODATION Beyin Resort $30/50, s/dl in season; $10/20 s/dbl out of season, incl breakfast, www.beyinresort.com
The stilt village homestays cost about $10/$12 s/dbl, R80/R84, food is approximately R4.50, croc watching is $2, R16 as is breakfast.
