Bohemian rhapsody

I feel I have to redeem myself. Maya's earth is beginning to look too dreary to its readers. Unless I write something more cheerful, I'm sure you'll all leave me. So I'll try and avoid the following words for a while: death, die, too young, funeral, crying, tears, body bag and...fed up.

If I succeed, promise to shower me with comments (good or bad, doesn't matter, it's just fun to read your opinions).

So instead, let me write about a less gloomy (but still my usual whining) topic: the deprivation we suffer from in Ghana. In Ghana we may never starve, freeze to death or live a life of loneliness, but there is a very real possibility that we'll d.. (darn, I can't use that 'd' word), pass away from boredom. The entertainment scene is scarce. A full night out consists of drinks at Monsoon or Twist from 10.30p.m. onwards. Sometime after midnight we all continue to the awful, cold, crowded (can you tell i'm not a fan?) Office. After wondering why we paid (if we paid) to get in, we then walk the whole 15 metres to Cinderellas. Since Cinderella has been a bit dry lately, the night ends early, around 2.30a.m. There are other nightclubs, Boomerang, Aphrodisiac and Monte Carlo, but it seems no one goes there any more, well, actually we may pass Monte Carlo once every six months.

So as you can see, the entertainment scene gets boring after three or four...weeks. For me, being here for almost three years, going out has become a once-in-a-while thing, when the visitors come to town and force you out.

So, visualise starving dogs feasting on a dead rabbit, and you can imagine the hype over Rhapsody, the latest place to open in town, at the Accra mall (isn't it a restaurant?!?). EVERY social event is now scheduled at Rhapsody, from the official ones like the Obama celebration meet up, to the hanging out on a Friday night. The Poetress even sacrilegiously suggested we eat there instead of our usual sushi at Monsoon!

Yes you may say this is an "i-lands problem" (industrial country problem as opposed to a third world problem, any English word for that?) but on a Friday afternoon, it's an all too real problem. ;)

As for me, I may not know how I'm spending my Friday night, but the next few days will be spent baby- and housesitting at H's on Spintex Road. I suspect H, his wife S and I may have different opinions on what makes a good housesitter, as I look forward to inviting lots of friends over. I may even create my own Rhapsody!

Have a good weekend!