Climbing coco Trees for taxi cocos

Yesterday, we went to a beach called Brenu Beach. We went during high tide so the waves were huge. So we didn't swim, we just splashed around. Anywho there were 2 kids who came along and were selling tender coconuts, so we got 4.

We started talking to the kids. They were 14 and their names were Ramson and Thomas. There was a third boy named Prince, who was about 3 feet tall and the same age as me! They told us they climb the coconut trees themselves. Some trees are 50+ feet tall! Ramson taught me how to climb. This is how you do it.

1. Find two notches at the bottom of the tree where the inside of each foot can grab onto the tree.
2. Then, push up holding your feet on the tree and hug the tree with your arms.
3. Find more notches, higher on the tree, for your feet.
4. Push up and hug the tree.
5. Repeat, repeat, repeat.

I was able to climb to about 12 feet - then mom and dad got nervous. To come down, you wrap your legs around the tree, keep hugging, and let yourself slide down the tree. It hurts - and is wicked hard on your shorts.

Ramson also taught me how to chop a coco open with a 'cutless' (a coconut machete). Mom and dad got nervous again.

"In Ghana, we beat."

For the last week, while we have been waiting for teachers to get off strike and for school to start, I've been visiting the nursery school on campus with Hannah. We've been feeding kids porridge and pasta.

Anywho, anywho. On the 3rd day, one of the teachers saw a little kid named Fifi - sounds like a pretty soft name, huh, but Fifi over here is not soft at all. He hit a kid I wanted to adopt (but couldn't). He hit him with a chair! So the teacher dragged him over to her chair, laid him sideways on her lap, and smack! She spanked little demon Fifi on the butt with 'often-spanking-little-kids'-butts' hands.

Anywho, anywho, lets get to the point. The teacher called me to come over to her after she spanked him and said, "In Ghana, we beat! Do you beat in America?"

I said, "No, we don't. We just tell them not to do whatever they did." and stuff like that.

Anywho...I thought it was pretty funny!

From,
Rock (aka Kojo)

The Taxi-Coco Guy

One day at the festival in Ghana, the Fante Christmas, there was a tender coconut stand. Here’s how you do it: 

You give him 50 peswas (25 cents).

He cuts open the top of a coconut for you with a machete.

You drink the coco water and give it back to him.

He cuts it all the way open.

You eat the meat inside. 

 

Anywho, there was a taxi driver that came along and got one coconut, gulped the water down, gave it back to him to be opened, then taxi-coco devoured the meat inside. Anywho, anywho, let’s get to the real deal: I’m not going to say it all over again, but the taxi-coco over here got three more coconuts and did the same! Bang, bang, bang and he was back in the taxi.