I left Accra at the crack of dawn to join Lea and Mr Bright for a surf at The Point in Kokrobite. ( See Day#19 )
For the first time since I started going to Kokrobite the sea was not bathwater warm (28 degrees). Which was lovely!
One of the things I love about surfing back home is how awake you feel when that first (17 degrees) wave hits you.
The locals did not agree though, they were all complaining about the freezing water!
Don’t know what they would say about the (14 degrees) Instant-Ice-cream-Headache-Elands-Bay-Waves up the West Coast at home, then!
I reminded myself of one of those “Vaalies” (inland holiday-makers), we used to make fun of when I was growing up in Durban, for swimming in mid-winter.
Instead of driving to Kokrobite on Saturday and Sunday, I decided to stay over at Dizzy Lizzy’s this time.
Don’t know why this has not occurred to me before! This way I can surf two days for the price of one trip. And get Reggae Night thrown in too!
(Don’t know how I am going to break the news to King Appiah, Godfred and Innocent – our Saturday trips together have become an institution.)
We were enjoying a post-surf Milo at Dizzy Lizzy’s when Lea mentioned that she and a friend were planning to visit the Kaneshie market later.
I have been wanting to visit some of the big markets in Accra.
But have been a bit intimidated by some of the things I read on TripAdvisor ( See Day#25 ) which described the markets as “intense”, “sprawling chaos” and “take a guide”.
Enter (Lovely) Guide Lea.
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We took a Tro Tro from Kokrobite to Kaneshie.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/cxq29xdsczspgb3/Day%2354_Kaneshie.MOV?dl=0
A sea of umbrellas and stalls cover every inch of floorspace, pavement, stairs, bridge. And that is before you even get to the market!
Kaneshie market itself is a three-story building filled to the brim and spilling over onto the surrounding streets.
The name Kaneshie means “Under The Lamp” because it started off as a night market in the 70’s. (Love the art deco building blocks.)
Each floor houses a different product category:
The ground floor is food: Here you can buy anything from grains and freshly ground chilli to live crabs and giant snails.
(The picture is out of focus because I took it with my eyes closed. Otherwise I may have gone home with a bucket of Rescue Crab Pets.)
The first floor is hair: All things hair, braid and hair accessory.
The second floor is fabric. We headed here first.
Adepa and Kente fabric as far as the eye can see, with vendors, tailors and seamstresses competing for your attention.
The rich colours and patterns merge into an endless patchwork that is so vivid that you can almost taste it.
I only bought one piece of fabric, my favourite: “You Are Quoting From” ( See Day#28 ), before sensory overload took over and I became completely indecisive.
Lea and her friend (whose name has slipped my mind) were far more productive, choosing patterns and negotiating deals like old hands.
At the rate I am choosing fabrics it will take me years to build up my Not “For The Funeral” Wardrobe.
Long after we left the market those colours and patterns still danced behind my eyes.