Un drum prin Ghana

  Azi-dimineata m-am intors din Accra, capitala Ghanei. Zborul pana acolo  este de aproximativ 8 ore si sincera sa fiu, ma asteptam sa fie destul de greu avand in vedere ca saptamana trecuta am fost in Lagos ( Nigeria ) si cam toti cabin crew stiu ca este un zbor dificil. Spre surprinderea mea, nu a fost asa. Pasagerii sunt foarte draguti si foarte politicosi. Intradevar, iti trebuie ceva timp sa te obisnuiesti cu mici lucruri care ,la prima vedere par nepoliticoase - pentru cei din Africa nu exista  "excuse me" sau "please" daca vor sa ceara ceva..la ei se practica  "pisaiturile" - "psssstt psssssst one cola" sau pur si simplu vin si te bat pe umar. Dupa un timp ti se pare amuzant si in acelasi timp mai usor de ignorat  :).
   Spre deosebire de Nigeria unde este foarte periculos sa iesi pe strada ( de la aeroport la hotel am fost escortati de o masina de politie iar cu noi in bus erau doi jandarmi inarmati pana in gat ), Accra este un oras foarte linistit si sigur. Toata lumea este foarte prietenoasa si intra in vorba cu tine fara un motiv anume..doar ca sa te intrebe daca te simti bine la ei in tara. De indata ce am ajuns la hotel, am iesit impreuna cu o americanca la un targ cu sculpturi in lemn. Toate mastile si statuetele sunt facute manual din lemn, in micile lor ateliere. Magazinele reprezinta, de fapt niste baraci de lemn, foarte rudimentare, localizate pe marginea soselei. Fiind o mare amatoare de sculpturi africane pot spune ca am fost in al 9 lea cer cand am vazut sutele de modele de sculpturi in lemn...nu cred ca mai trebuie sa adaug ca le-as fi cumparat pe toate!

                           
   Bineinteles ca targuiala a fost intr-un mare fel, eu tinandu-ma tare pe pozitii si fiind foarte convinsa cand le ziceam vanzatorilor ca nu pot plati prea mult pentru ca nu mai am ce manca in urmatoarele 3 zile..intr-un final am luat totul la pretul pe care l-am vrut..dar stiu ca puteam sa obtin un pret mai bun! Mi-a fost mila de bietii oameni care stateau pe pamant, in 30 de grade si lucrau la masti...ce sa mai, ma simt mai buna ca am facut o fapta buna :).  Pentru ca nu puteam sa fi ajuns in Ghana si sa nu exploram imprejurimile, ne-am imprietenit cu Abu, un localnic care s-a oferit sa ne arate orasul. Asa ca ne-am urcat intr-un taxi si ne-am inceput calatoria prin aglomeratul Accra. Nu este nimic de vazut - ma refer aici la cladiri istorice, locuri frumoase..sunt saraci oamenii insa am reusit sa intru putin in viata cotidiana a ghanezilor. Curiozitatea mea de jurnalista a fost satisfacuta pe deplin cand am inceput sa il intreb pe Abu despre traditii. In Ghana se vorbesc 50 de limbi si exista 260 de dialecte. Toti se inteleg intre ei. Cu acest prilej am aflat ca daca doi tineri vor sa se casatoreasca, baiatul trebuie sa ofere miresei lui daruri constand in vaci, capre, gaini - fiecare dupa posibilitati. Bineinteles, mama fetei poate fi nemultumita de daruri si atunci negocierea se reia. Divortul exista, insa e cam greu de obtinut. Trebuie sa aiba motive foarte bune ca sa divorteze si atunci cand reusesc, unul dintre cei doi soti trebuie sa plateasca pagube celuilalt. Am intrebat daca este posibil sa ai un copil fara sa te casatoresti insa acest lucru nu prea este acceptat de comunitate. Ghana este o tara foarte libera, nimeni nu te trage la raspundere pentru nimic. Orice persoana care are o masina, poate fi taximetrist. Socant este ca nu trebuie sa ai carnet de sofer ca sa conduci. Am intrebat daca un copil de 11 ani are voie sa conduca in aceste conditii...mi s-a raspuns ca atata timp cat stie cum se conduce o masina, nu exista nicio problema. Vrei sa faci scoala de soferi, o faci...nu vrei, nu o faci. Am fost opriti de politie pentru ca soferul nostru a depasit pe contrasens o coloana lunga de masini. Doua "big mama" imbracate in uniforma ne-au tras pe dreapta..soferul se gandea daca sa opreasca sau nu. Big mama politista s-a infuriat si a inceput sa tipe la el. Intr-un final a oprit. Nu avea voie sa depaseasca, bineinteles..am intrebat ce se intampla in aceasta situatie - trebuie sa plateasca vreo amenda, ii ia carnetul - Abu ne-a zis ca aici nu se dau amenzi. "Pedeapsa" a fost sa ne intarzie 10 minute pentru ca am incercat sa depasim coloana de masini. Ciudat, nu?

   Seara am iesit cu totii la un restaurant italienesc "Mama mia" unde am mancat cea mai buna pizza de pana acum. Proprietarul, Peter,  un italian burtos si mare ne-a aranjat o masa pe masura pizzelor ( adica foarte mare ). In acelasi timp, am sarbatorit-o pe o colega spanioloaica, cu tort si vin spumant rosu. Nu trebuie sa mai adaug faptul ca dupa 2 cupe eram cea mai vorbareata si cea mai fericita de la masa. A fost o seara foarte reusita si gustoasa.
   In urmatoarea zi am avut un scurt zbor pana pe Coasta de Fildes ( 45 de minute ) unde, din pacate nu am stat. Dupa-amiaza acelei zile am petrecut-o jucand tenis ( mai bine zis incercand sa nimeresc mingea cu racheta ) dar a fost frumos si cu siguranta pofta de masa mi-a crescut dupa asta. Fiind un crew conservator si constant, ne-am reintors la Mama Mia si la prietenul nostru Peter, unde am mai "ciugulit" putin din delicioasele pizze.
  Norocul nostru a fost ca in fiecare miercuri in Accra se sarbatoreste regge night asa ca petrecaretii din noi nu ne-am putut infrana dorinta de a asculta putin regge pe cea mai popolara plaja a orasului. Doua baraci de lemn reprezentau barul iar in fata acestora multe mese din acelasi material. Totul albastru. Pe ici-colo era cate un foc si multa lume. Primul lucru pe care il puteai simti era mirosul de iarba...foarte specific si interesant a fost sa vad negri cu caciuli mari in cap fumand iarba. Toata lumea era vesela...pe scena canta o trupa de africani. Toti dansau in jurul focului, melodiile erau frumoase, toata lumea prietenoasa. Pentru cei care sunt ineteresati, iarba era foarte ieftina -  un joint era 4ron..nu pot sa spun nimic despre calitate pentru ca nu ma pricep si nu sunt o fana a acestor indeletniciri. Destul de multi straini, toti hipioti..poate ca pot compara putin atmosfera si locatia cu cea din Vama Veche.
  Ultima zi am inceput-o cu un mic-dejun copios si cateva ore bune la piscina hotelului. Maine plec in Londra...vedem ce-o fi si pe acolo.

Pentru poze, click aici


English - A trip through Ghana

 I've came back from Accra this morning, the capital of Ghana.The flight uo until there is approximately 8 hours and to be honest, I expected it to be difficult considering that last week I was in Lagos (Nigeria) and almost all cabin crew know that is a difficult flight. I was surprised to find out that it was not. Passengers are very nice and very polite. Indeed, you need some time to get used to small things that seem rude at first glance -  in Africa there is no "excuse me" or "please" if they want to ask for something .. they just "pssstt you"  - "psssstt psssssst one cola "or just come and tap you on the shoulder. After a while you find it funny and also easier to ignore :).

    Unlike Nigeria where it is very dangerous to go out on the streets (from the airport to the hotel we were escorted by a police car and in bus with us were two armed policemen  ), Accra is a very quiet and safe city. Everyone is very friendly and starts talking to you without a partiular reason ..they just ask you if you like their country. Once I reached my hotel, I went with an American girl at a fair with wood carvings. All the hand-made masks and statuettes of wood were made in their small workshops. The shops are actually some wooden shacks, very rudimentary, located on the road. Being a lover of African sculptures I can say that I was in the 9th heaven when I saw hundreds of models of sculptures in wood ... I don't I have to add that I would have bought them all!

Of course, bargaining was the main activity, and I was very confident when I said that I can't pay so much as I have nothing to eat the follwing three days .. finally I got everything at the price that I wanted .. but I know I could have gotten a better price! I felt sorry for he poor people that were sitting in 30 degrees celsius and working on their masks ... what can I say.. I feel better now than I did a good thing :). Because I really wanted to explore the surroundings, we became friends with Abu, a local who offered to show us the city. So we cjumped in a taxi and we started moving through busy Accra. There is nothing to see - I mean historical buildings, beautiful places...  people are poor .. but we managed to get a little taste of their everyday life. My journalistic curiosity was fully satisfied when I began to ask Abu about traditions. In Ghana, 50 languages ​​are spoken and there are 260 dialects. They all understand each other. I found that if a couple wants to marry, the boy must provide his bride gifts consisting of cows, goats, chickens - depending on how rich they are . Of course, her mother may be dissatisfied with the gifts and then the bargaining is resumed.  There can divorce but it's hard to get it.One must have good reasons to divorce, one of the parts must pay something to the other. I asked if it is possible to have a baby without getting married but this is not really accepted by the community. Ghana is a very free country, nobody holds you responsible for anything. Any person who has a car can be a taxi driver. Shocking is that you mustn't have driver's license to drive. I asked if an 11 year old child is allowed to drive in these conditions ... I was told that as long as he knows how to drive a car, there is no problem. If oyu want to go to a driving school you can, if you don't, there is no need to. We was stopped by police because our driver exceeded speed limit and drove on the opposite way of the road.  Two "big mamas" dressed in uniform  pulled us over .. the driver was thinking whether to stop or not. Big mama cop was furious and started screaming at him. Finally he stopped. He was not allowed to exceed the speed limit, of course .. I was wondering what will happen in this situation - must they pay a fine, suspend the driving license- Abu told us that theycan't give fines here. The "Punishment" was the fact that we had been delayed for 10 minutes because we tried to overcome the column of cars. Strange, no?

In the evening we all went out to an Italian restaurant "Mama mia" where we ate the best pizza ever. The owner, Peter, a big italian guy with a big belly  arranged for us a huge a table as, one as big as the pizzas. In the same time, we celebrated a colleague's birthday, with cake and sparkling red wine. Needless to add that after two cups I was the most talkative and happy person at the table. It was a very nice and tasty evening.

   The next day we had a short flight to the Ivory Coast (45 minutes) where unfortunately we did not stay. The afternoon was spent playing tennis (or rather trying to hit the ball with the racket) but it was really nice . Being a conservative  crew, we returned to Mama Mia and to our friend Peter, where we ate a bit of the delicious pizzas.

  We were lucky because every Wednesday night in Accra it is  celebrated Regge night on the most popular beach of the city. Two wooden shacks were the bar and several tables of the same material were in front of it. All blue. Here and there were fires and of course, many people. The first thing you could feel was the smell of weed ... very specific and interesting was to see black people with big hats on their heads smoking weed. Everyone was happy ... on the stage was singing an African band. Everyone danced around the fire, songs were beautiful, everyone friendly. For those who are ineterested in weed, it was very cheap - a joint was 4ron .. can't say anything about the quality because I do not know and I am not a fan of it. Quite many foreigners, all hippies .

  Last day in Accra started with a rich breakfast and several hours at the pool. Tomorrow I will go to London ... and see what's new there.
For pictures, click here

Venice

   Venetia este cu siguranta unul dintre locurile mele preferate din intreaga lume. De fiecare data cand pun piciorul in gara Santa Lucia, ma simt ca intr-o poveste din secolul XV....si stiu ca asta este doar inceputul. Freamatul canalelor, zgomotul barcilor cu motor si murmurul miilor de turisti aflati acolo imi umplu inima de fericire.

   Primul popas este, bineinteles, la o Gelaterie. Mereu imi place sa savurez o inghetata de iaurt...nicaieri in lume nu am mancat o inghetata de iaurt mai buna ca in Venetia. O recomand 100%.
   In Venetia trebuie sa te lasi purtat de farmecul orasului..nu iti trebuie o harta ca sa ajungi la Piazza San Marco.trebuie doar sa te indrepti acolo unde te duc pasii, sa admiri frumusetile arhitecturale specifice venetiene si sa te lasi privit de multitudinea de masti pe langa care te perinzi....

   Ceea ce este cu adevarat minunat este faptul ca Venetia nu se schimba de la un an la altul. Peste acest oras miriric, timpul nu trece....traditiile, gondolierii, cladirile colorate si balcoanele pline de flori au fost si vor ramane la fel mult timp de acum incolo. 

  De data asta am ajuns aici alaturi de colegii mei de la Emirates, persoane pe care le cunosteam de 5 ore dar cu care parca eram prietena de-o viata. Asa este jobul de cabin crew...in 24 de ore te imprietenesti, povestesti vrute si nevrute, cutreieri diferite parti ale lumii si te desparti..o prietenie ce se  consuma in numai 24 de ore...ciudat, nu? Si totusi...cat de multe poti cunoaste si explora intr-o singura zi! Ai timp sa si dormi, sa si mananci, sa si vizitezi si de ce sa nu recunosc, mereu gasim timp si pentru putin shopping ( mai ales noi, fetele ).
   De indata ce am ajuns la hotel am pornit in inspectie impreuna cu 7 colege si singurul barbat norocos..co-pilotul :). Nu se putea sa nu ne oprim la un restaurant pe malul Gran Canale, unde am savurat o pizza si un pahar de vin alb. Nu stiu cum o fac, dar este delicioasa!
 Ziua ne-am petrecut-o plimbandu-ne toti pe stradutele  minunate pana cand am ajuns la Piazza San Marco. Grandoarea Palatului Dogilor si frumusetea nemaintanita a Pietei ma face mereu sa ma gandesc cat de norocosi suntem noi, oamenii ca avem sansa sa admiram inca operele Renasterii.

  Dupa ce ne-am pozat cu porumbeii, am decis sa ne asezam la o terasa si sa bem ceva. Fiecare terasa era acompaniata de o mini-orchestra care canta muzica live..tot ce pot sa spun este ca a fost minunat! Simturile mi-au fost mangaiate, fiecare in parte de o muzica superba, o priveliste perfecta si o atmosfera de poveste. Si ca sa incheiem seara si mai frumos, am luat cu totii barca pana la statia centrala de unde am alergat sa prindem ultimul autobuz inapoi spre hotel.

   Este o traditie pentru mine sa cumpar o masca si o pereche de cercei, de fiecare data cand ajung la Venetia. Astfel, a doua zi dis-de-dimineata m-am apucat sa hoinaresc, de data asta singura, pe stradutele intortocheate, in cautarea mastii mele cu numarul 3. Dupa vreo doua ore de umblat, negociat, am ales o castigatoare. Bineinteles ca acum troneaza la mine pe perete. Mi-am zis ca nu pot pleca inpoi spre Dubai fara sa mai gust o data din celebra inghetata de iaurt..

  Asa ca daca cumva, ati vazut intr-o zi insorita in Venetia, o fetita fericita cu o inghetata maaaaree de iaurt si o masca cu pene...eu eram aceea :)

Pentru poze, click aici.

   English

Venice is definitely one of my favorite places around the world. Every time I found myself in Santa Lucia train station, I feel like in a fifteenth century story .... and I know this is just the beginning. Rustle channels, noise of motor boats and thousands of tourists whispering fill my heart with joy.

   First stop is, of course, an ice cream stand. I always like to enjoy an italian gelato ... I have never ate a yogurt-flavoured ice-cream better than in Venice. I recommend it 100%.
   In Venice you should go with the flow .. you do not need a map to get to Piazza San Marco. Just go where your steps take you to,  admire the beauty of  theVenetian architecture and allow all that lovely masks to watch you  ....

   What is really wonderful is that Venice does not change from year to year. Over this magical city, time does not pass by .... traditions, gondoliers, colorful buildings and balconies full of flowers have been and will remain the same long time from now on.

  This time I came here with my colleagues at the Emirates, people I've known for only 5 hours  but they were like my lifetime friends. This is the job of cabin crew.. in 24 hours you get to make friends, share everything with them, wander in different parts of the world and break up .. all this happen in just 24 hours ... weird, huh? And yet ... how much you get to explore in one day!You  have time to sleep and eat and visit and why not admit that we always find time for a little bit of shopping (especially us girls).
   As soon as I reached the hotel I started the Venice experience with 7 colleagues and only one lucky guy ..the First Officer :) . We could not pass by some restaurant on the shores of Gran Canale and not stop for a pizza and a glass of white wine. I do not know how they do it, but it is delicious!
 We spent the rest of the day walking on the streets  until we reached the Piazza San Marco.  The grandeur of the Doges Palace and the beauty of Piazza San Marco  always makes me  think how lucky we,people, are,  that we still have the chance to admire the works of the Renaissance.

  After we took lots of photos with the pigeons, we decided to sit on a terrace and have a drink. Each terrace was accompanied by a mini-orchestra, playing live music .. all I can say is that it was awesome! My senses were comforted,  superb music, a perfect view and a fairytale atmosphere. And to end the night in a nice way, we all took the boat that got us to the central station where we ran to catch the last bus that took us back to hotel.



   It is a tradition for me to buy a mask and a pair of earrings, each time I go to Venice. Thus, the next day, early in the morning I started to wander,alone this time,on the winding streets, looking for my mask No. 3. After about two hours of walking, negotiating, I chose a winner. Of course now the mask is to be found on my wall. I told myself that i can't  go back to Dubai without having once again the taste the famous ice cream yogurt ..

  So if somehow, you saw on a sunny day in Venice, a happy little girl with a biiiiig  yogurt flavoured ice-cream and a mask with feathers ... I was her :)For pictures, click here.