Day 8 (? ) lost count 19th

Have I told you all yet how much I love Africa? I think there'll never be enough time to write why or to explain but this morning is a prime example. It is barely 3 hours since I was last writing and the world has changed again. Having left the internet cafe, I went to the bank to change my TCs. I'd been there maybe five minutes when a lady sat beside me and we started talking and I met my newest friend  and the lynchpin to a whole new network. The very gorgeous Gilda is an american professor who is here on holiday but works with refugees when she's at home in Washington DC. I explained what I'm doing here (or not doing here) and she was very enthusiastic and told me she has a friend who has a charity here which uses street theatre to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS in Ghana. Jackpot!!! This is exactly the sort of thing I'm here to explore. Gilda said she is meeting her friend for lunch tomorrow and invited me to join them. She then told me about a local man who calls himself the 'AIDS star' who is proudly and openly HIV positive and spends his time talking to anyone that wants to listen from what I understand and she can make sure I get to meet him.

Can you imagine this happening in London? I'd start a blog just to announce a stranger spoke to me.

I headed back to get some breakfast and asked Caesar to escort me to the Korle Bu to meet Sister Beque. The Korle Bu is enormous. Not much of an exaggeration to say it's almost the size of the town I grew up in. It took me about an hour to locate the correct building with the aid of a very patient security guard who I'm sure has better things to do with his time. I met Sister Beque and briefly explained my situation an she then introduced me to the administrator for the HIV/AIDS unit. I repeated my story and he listened patiently looking alternatively bemused and shocked. They seemed to share my view that Franklin is a mythical creature. More calls were made (on even to Franklin) and I met Doctor Patricia Nkansah-Asamoah who was extremely generous with her time and information. She explained that I would be unable to interview patients or anyone Living With HIV/AIDS (LWHA) without ethical clearance here in Ghana but she would be happy to meet with me another time ( if I have time as everyone is about to break for Christmas) and gave me her email address.

Progress!! Another call to another professor and the mud is clearing. It seems the Korle Bu had indeed stopped taking volunteers but the much aligned (mainly by me) Franklin has actually been doing something and I have now received official permission to work in the research unit starting tomorrow. And there's more!! They have found me a new host family closer to the hospital so no more expensive hotel bills...though I will be sad to say goodbye to the Phoenix but no longer have to worry about money and can afford to hit the beach at weekends. Priorities after all.

I rang Gilda to explain I couldn't make lunch tomorrow and she was very excited for me and promised we'll meet one evening or at the beach this weekend.

I'm in little doubt none of this would be happening if I hadn't stamped my feet and ruffled a few feathers but really looking forward to starting work tomorrow.

By the way, people....sign that anybody is reading this would be good...and feel free to comment ( good or bad). I'm taking loads of photos but as I can't install my camera on a public computer, won't be able to upload them until I get back.