The First Step

WOEZOR, WELCOME, BIENVENUE

If the ancient Chinese saying that "a journey of a thousand miles begins with the very first step" is anything to go by, i surmise that you're going to be a regular visitor to my blog world since you've taken the first step of visiting this blog spot. So welcome everybody to what i call The Gamelian World.

I intend to use this blog as a platform to introduce myself to the world, share my perspectives on life and any topical issue associated with it and get to know other people's views. So i hope you keep your comments coming. I will also try, in spite of my busy schedule, to update regularly so that we all have an enjoyable experience. Since this is our first step i am going to share with you some knowledge of my country, so that you can appreciate the angle i am coming from.

I'm a citizen of the African nation of Ghana, which is located in the very centre of the earth (the Greenwich meridian and the equator intersect near a town called Tema). Ghana is the first country south of the Sahara to gain political independence. At the dawn of independence the country's founding president, the luminary African statesman Kwame Nkrumah, stated that "the independence of Ghana is meaningless unless it is linked to the total liberation of the entire African continent. " Ghana's passion and drive towards establishing itself as a frontrunner in the comity of nations as well as a worthy model of black and African achievement was great in those early years. In Kwame Nkrumah's words he wanted to prove to the whole world that "after all the black man was capable of managing his own affairs." Unfortunately Kwame Nkrumah's lofty dreams could not be achieved because the country, like most third-world countries of the time, bore the brunt of the cold war exchanges between USA and USSR. In short, he was overthrown through Western influences. This sent the development direction of the country on a downward spiral, preventing the country from reaching its goals. The above development was fertilised by mismangement, corruption,... and frequent coups. With the country re-emerging from the lows of the 70s and 80s to a high of stable democratic governanace since 1992, the country is set for reinstating itself as the "beacon of Africa"' as symbolised by the black star that is so prominent on our flag. Over the last 16 years significant gains have been chalked in infrastructural development, education, agriculture and good governance. With the current breed of determined and motivated leaders on all sides of the political divide the future s certainly bright for Ghana.

You must forgive me, if you do like history or politics much, but i assure you that these things set the framework for how we perceive the world. To appease you, let's talk about a more interesting subject, tourism.

Over the last couple of years, Ghana has established itself as a destination of choice for most tourists visiting the west coast of Africa. The country has abundant tourist destinations in all its ten regions, spanning from the historical Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum and Dubois centre in the heart of Accra, former slave castles principally in the central region, slave routes dotting from north to south and awe-inspiring ecological sites in the volta region. Every region is unique with regards to what it has on offer and every you go you are bound to have a time of your life. So come visit Ghana!, the land of golden sunshine and warm people. Oh it, did i let it out? What makes the visit to Ghana worthwhile, however is not only the finery that the environment has in store. Rather it is the warm hearted, affectionate and always-smiling people that hold foreign visitors spellbound. Many of them "fall in love" with the country such that it is always a difficult task leaving when time is due. Suddenly, the curtailment of the Ghanaian oddyssey stares them in the face and most of them.......cry. The advantage that proceeds from this development is some sort of imaginary umbilical chord that ensures that Ghanaians who travel to any other part of the world have friends everywhere they go. Which is good for everybody. So visit Ghana and see you soon when you come(the tourist board does not pay me for this, i just love my country, lol).

There are certain characteristics that is typical of the Ghanaian people. Almost every Ghanaian is religious, socially conservative, we love football with a passion. The final thing is that we love our country and we are always willing to do what it takes to see her at the very top.

Thanks a bunch for visiting here and hope to see you around. Peace!

Gameli