As long as we don't have to call it "football"...

Africa fun fact #2: No matter how much I tan here, I'll always look pale.

Yeah, this is Ben. So for those of you who've expressed (rightly so) that the blog entries have been few and far-between, let's just say that the only thing that's been more exciting than our actual trip to Africa has been the constant hunt for viable internet access points. Please accept our deepest apologies, and know that, were we not spending so much time providing free medical care to African children on a daily basis, we'd be blogging more. Hopefully, this last statement has overwhelmed you with guilt, and you will therefore have no choice but to enjoy the rest of what I write. Dance, puppets, dance...

Whilst Farhan has taken it on himself to tell you about the public health work we're doing here in Ghana, I'd like to put that on pause for a moment and talk to you about something else we've been up to while we're here. I speak, of course, of the Africa Cup of Nations 2008! Now most of you (at least the Caucasian ones) are probably saying to yourselves "What is this 'Cup of Nations' he speaks of? I've never heard of it, and new things frighten me." Well don't worry everybody, we'll get through this together.

The Cup of Nations is an intra-continental soccer tournament for Africa that serves as a World Cup qualifier, and it's the biggest thing since Hootie and the Blowfish over here. And Farhan and I happened to find out about a week before we came that, this year, it's being held in Ghana! Not only that, but the main stadium is in the very city we're working at for the month! NOT ONLY THAT, but we're here just in time for the end of group play and the start of the play-offs! Now, I'm the first to tell you that I'm not a huge fan of watching soccer matches, but what I AM a huge fan of is watching crazed fans in body paint and wigs beating giant inflatable objects together while screaming their heads off, so we knew immediately that we had to make it to this thing.

But alas! Our first setback... in true "Africa" fashion, the Local Organizing Committee for the tournament only has the word "organize" in its name as some sick form of humor. Tickets are nearly impossible to come by, and that's only if you know the right people in the black market. Luckily, we have some shady friends here in Ghana!

So Sunday rolls around, and it's the big day of the first quarterfinal match: Ghana vs. Nigeria! Now, when I asked our host if Ghana has a rival that they must always beat, his response was "Oh it's Nigeria" (make sure you read that with an African accent in your head... it sounds more intimidating). So for you Americans who are still reading along, think of this match as World Cup meets UT/OU Red River Shootout... then imagine that the Super Bowl was being held in your home town for the first and last time EVER, and that would be a good gauge for the demand for these tickets.

But, before I talk about the game, let me tell you how Farhan accidentally became a Christian for a day. So, in preparation for the game, we went to church with our family that morning, which is a whole other blog entry in itself, but at the end the church leadership pulled us aside and sat us in a hallway with other visitors. Everybody shook our hands and greeted us, and then they gave us some Mirinda soft drinks. A pastor came by and asked me if I followed the teaching of Jesus, to which I said "Absolutely." He then asked Farhan (for those of you who don't know him, a devout Muslim), who, in a noble effort to avoid a scene and not embarrass our host family, said a quiet "Yes." Afterwards, I informed Farhan that that had constituted accepting Jesus as his personal savior, and that, by accepting the holy Mirinda drink, the Bible says he's now a Christian. It's somewhere in the back, I think. But we decided that, since he didn't finish the drink, the effects would wear off at midnight. But I will say that Farhan was much nicer to me that day... woohoo for Christian brotherly love!

So anyway, then we made the trek to the stadium for the game, after appropriately donning our Ghana gear. Outside the stadium was PACKED, and, once we got inside, we couldn't believe it. I'll never forget walking up the stairs and getting our first look at the filled-to-capacity stadium cheering like nuts... it was like that scene in "Gladiator" when they first walked into the Colisseum, except that they knew they'd never leave there alive and we only had a faint suspicion. Now, we were both concerned that we'd get bored trying to watch two straight hours of soccer, but, surprisingly, it was a great game! Nigeria went up by one, but Ghana came back right before the half, and the place EXPLODED! Literally, I wish I could describe it, other than there is absolutely nothing like it back in the U.S. They jumped and danced and sang, and, since it happened right before halftime, they went ahead and continued all throughout the break. Continuously. Without any decrease in volume. It was amazing.

The Ghana Black Stars (that's the team name) came back on the field, and ended up scoring again to take the lead, and again it was redonkulous. We were getting all sorts of crazy hugs from all the huge guys around us... we were feelin' the love, baby. Ghana ended up taking the game 2-1, and that's just when the fun STARTED. The streets were filled with people, the parking lot had turned into an impromptu party, and we were quite content with staying out as much as possible. We drove through the town on the way home, and, with me and my Ghana facepaint, Ghana captain's jersey, and Ghana flag on my shoulders, we definitely overheard a group of girls say in the local dialect "Look at the white guy supporting Ghana!" Bridging gaps here, people... bringing people together. Someday they'll just be saying "Look at the guy supporting Ghana!" Someday...

We returned to the stadium yesterday for the semifinals, but Ghana lost in what was not the most exciting game ever... but even then, the crowd was wild, the excitement was palpable, and we both said it's one of the coolest experiences either of us has ever had...

...but if you ever hear me call it "football", please call me a tool and kick me. Hard.