I followed a path that wasn't in the Lonely Planet, but I'd made the effort to see these staples everywhere else, so why should Ghana be any different.
I'm of course talking about its landmarks and Oxford Street (yes, you heard that right). I saw Jubilee House, the new seat of government and the national theatre, with it's 60s vision of the future architecture. I saw Independence Square (the second largest in the world after Tienanmen Square) with its stadium, arch and Black Star Gate.
I also visited the Dr Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park. This man really is quite remarkable, even though the homage to him isn't. I couldn't take photos from inside his museum, but it consisted of his furniture being piled into the middle and roped off. His desk and phone (sneaked a photo of this one), a metal coffin that was used to carry his body and some clothes. The black and white photos adorning the walls are pretty impressive, from Ghandi and Mandela to Mohammed Ali, Princess Michael of Kent (seriously, huh), Harold MacMillan, Castro, JFK and our very own Queen.
He's really quite a remarkable man, leading the revolution that lead to Ghanaian independence and becoming the country's first President and Prime Minister. It's clear he's a bit of a hero.
Oxford Street lives up to its British counterpart, it doesn't have the designer outlets and flagship stores, but it is shopping central full of people and cars tooting their horns.
Ghana reminds me of India or the Middle East, it has the same industrial look and feel with colossal, brightly coloured billboards selling everything from savings, religion and malaria solutions.
The roads are lined with craftsmen making beds, sofas and cupboards. And a line of traffic isn't complete without people walking in between the cars selling the wares carefully balanced on their heads.
I've not seen anywhere particularly wealthy and although poverty exists (it exists everywhere, FFS), it's not an impoverished country. I found India far more heartbreaking and its poverty far more prevalent.
I didn't get the soul of Accra or Ghana, but I got a sense of its average day-to-day. The entrepreneurialism and the strong sense of religion that could be found everywhere, including divine slogans plastered on the back of their mini-bus taxis to a patchwork of ads lining every possible space.
It also reminded me that it's only in the UK that we get nannied. People here cross the road, pedestrians and drivers are supposed to use their brains to make sure all parties are safe. There are no special crossings or strict road rules, but they're driving around like deranged dodgem car operatives.
That said, I've not seen any smokers. The only ones I've seen are a handful in the designated bar in the swamp of the hotel. I wonder if it's a failed B&H campaign, state intervention or the fact people have enough to worry about.
