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GETTING TO GHANA - June 19-20

This summer I got invited to do some lectures for the SDA GC Education Department at a conference in Accra, Ghana.  A group of about 20 profs from Africa, Asia and the U.S. were working on papers around the subject of the integration of faith and science in religious universities.  I gave three talks (even used PowerPoint to illustrate them) on the subject from my discipline.  When we finished at Valley View University, Ghana, we returned to England, and have been spending about three weeks in Anglia and the SE, driving a rental car and staying mainly in Youth Hostels.  I’ll post what I’ve been calling my “trip logs” here, including photographs as I have the chance.

June 19, 2006

Traveling is always an adventure, and sometimes more than others.  We got a call in the morning, letting us know that our passports had been picked up from the Ghanaian embassy (after two and one-half hours!) and were on the way to the Delta DASH courier service, to be delivered in Nashville by 3:00 p.m.  Greg King delivered us to the airport shuttle for our departure around noon, and about half-way to Nashville, Gail’s phone rang with the news that our Air Canada flight to Toronto had been canceled.  They were working on an alternative for us, but now we had a double adventure going!

Once in Nashville, we went to see Air Canada, only to find out that AC didn’t have a presence at the airport at all – it was United Airlines who was their partner, and they didn’t even have access to Air Canada’s computer system!  They did give us a phone number to call, but we called the travel agent, instead.  Bless Cherokee Travel in Georgia.  We were directed to Delta Airlines, who would take us first to Atlanta and then to London – hopefully in time to catch our regular flight to Ghana.  I left Gail to make arrangements and went outside to get a taxi to the Delta Cargo building, where our passports were arriving as I walked up to the desk.  With these in hand, we checked in and went out onto the concourse to wait. 

Our only remaining problem was that our arrival in London was to be Gatwick Airport, while our departure to Ghana was from Heathrow.  There is a shuttle from one to the other, and the “normal” time for transit if you are to make a connection is 3 hours, 30 minutes.  Our schedule gave us about 15 minutes less, but we were assured that this would be sufficient.  Imagine our agitation when Delta announced that their crew was taking extra time checking over the plane and we would leave a bit late.  Despite this, there was no mistaking the radical difference between the energy levels of Southwest Airlines staff and procedures and those of Delta, one of the legacy airlines – SWA planes load with remarkable dispatch in comparison. 

June 21, 2006

Another difference between Delta and SWA is that the Delta seats are closer together – we had more leg room on the shorter flights than to cross the ocean!  It was a long flight, and sleep was difficult, as always.  We got to Gatwick about 40 minutes behind schedule.  After deplaning, we got our luggage, and popped out to wait for the shuttle….and waited, and waited, and waited.  After perhaps 20 minutes, the bus appeared and off we went, still being reassured, this time by a bloke returning from Nigeria, headed to Edinburgh to see his son for a bit.  Sadly, we got to Delta 42 minutes before our flight was scheduled to leave – and the flights are closed at 45 minutes!  For reasons of security, they can no longer take any passengers after the 45 minute limit.  Were we disappointed?  Just imagine.

We were in a sort of shock, and went down and reserved a hotel room at a kiosk – completely forgetting that we were two Tube stops from Mrs. Masters’ B&B (not that she necessarily had a room for us on such short notice, of course).  We got a Comfort Inn room and a shuttle ride, and walked down the street to eat a pub meal for ½ what they wanted at the Inn – better, too.  In bed by 8:00 p.m. and slept until 6:00 – lovely.  Went out for breakfast at a nice B&B a block away – could have had a room there for ½ of Comfort Inn if we’d known it….and taken the same shuttle.  Now back at the Inn, waiting until 10:00 to get our ride back to the airport.  Internet here is 2 pounds/half hour but I bought two tickets in order to communicate with Ghana last night and this morning.  I’ll try to call them, as well.  They got the word that if we weren’t there on Tuesday, we’d be 24 hours late, but reassurance is always nice.

It took almost an hour to get to the departure lounge by the time the shuttle circled here and there picking up other people and we rode the tube from Terminal 3 to Terminal 4, then walked interminable hallways, rode glacial elevators and finally appeared at the right spot.  We were 15 minutes early for the three-hour limit on check-in, so we ate up five minutes walking the length of the hall, and the fellow let us into a line that took 25-30 minutes to get us to the clerks.  Checked in, found out the the gate wouldn’t be assigned until one hour before departure, and headed for Starbucks, where I figured I could e-mail…..  Sure enough, they have Wi-Fi – it’s just not free in Britain!  Ah well.  We had very nice sandwiches and chai latte – about the same price as the States, but no free Internet.  Read the paper and our books, walked a bit more, and then off for the gate.

Once there, we stood in a queue to show our papers, and then walked down a long spiral ramp, only to find out why the trip to Ghana was so cheap.  It was a BUS!  Ha!  I said that I’d heard of the boat to Ohio, but never the bus to Ghana – and we hadn’t brought enough granola for the trip!  Well, the bus took us from terminal 4 out onto the tarmac where the third-world flights (I’m making invidious assumptions here) were lined up, and we all got on the plane.  British Air is very nice.  Accommodating crew and nice amenities, but SWA still has more legroom…..  We took off on time, had drinks, lunch (salmon, mashed potatoes and peas plus salad and bread and a decent dessert without too much chocolate) and more drinks and a snack.  About six or seven hours and here we are.

We climbed down the rolling stairs, walked across the tarmac – air about like Tennessee – and into the terminal.  Passed through the passport control in 25 minutes or so, walked right through customs past unhappy looking people opening mountains of baggage for inspection, and met a crowd of people holding signs of various sorts.  Hotel names, company names, personal names, and finally Valley View University – two young guys that I pointed at and said: We’re who you’re looking for!  They loaded us into the van, shooed away the beggars and then gave us a wild ride for the better part of an hour through towns and on roads that have become familiar from travels to developing countries in S. America, C. America, Malaysia and Fiji. 

Now we’re in a dorm room with a ceiling fan and a gecko.  Sink in the room, toilet and shower in our own private cubicle as we pass the sink.  Very nice.  We’re arranged and ready for bed – it’s almost 11:00 and supper is from 7:00 until 8:00, just like the B&B this morning.  So, good night.

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