Market stalls and castle cells

Here's the latest blog from Cheshire Fire Cadets who are out in Ghana, Africa. This blog has been written by Robyn Taylor and Ellie Dack.

Off to Elmina Castle

Today we started off once again at 8am, and only had a short drive towards the coast to Elmina Castle, with an amazing view of the massive beach along the way.

Greeted from the coach by hawkers and stallholders, the cadets were once again hassled to buy their goods before we actually made it into the castle.

The Room of No Return

Once inside our guide took us round and showed us all of the castle's secrets, including the slave chambers (which, even if we could describe the smell, you still wouldn’t appreciate how bad it was!) We were showed where the slaves would have left the castle through small crawl spaces and a series of tunnels and the 'Room of No Return'. It was quite a pull at the heart strings, when you heard some of the stuff they used to do with the prisoners, and how they were treated.

Cells and Shells

At one part of the castle we were locked in a cell where they were left to die when they were rebelling. It was very unsettling to know that people died on the floor you were standing on. In contrast, we also walked through the Governor’s chambers and had a very picturesque view of the coast from the battlements above.

After a short rest where the hawkers offered us conch shells with our names on (which half of us didn’t ask for) and we made our way through the crowded streets/passageways to the fish market! Once again the sights and smells were something to behold!!

People watching in the market

Next on our tour of the area was Cape Coast Castle, which was a British outpost until Ghana gained its independence. Half of the group decided not to pay the extortionate prices for the privilege of taking pictures so we sat in the market place just outside and went shopping! (Purchases included party pants, amazing bowls, hats and, almost, machetes - Kevin frowned!).

After this we stopped for a 'quick' bite to eat at an establishment that didn’t quite understand the meaning of fast food, and by that we mean some of the cadets didn’t get their meal, even after an hour of waiting, so we gave up and left.

The toast is amazing!

We returned to the hotel just in time for our evening meal and enjoyed a fairly spicy pasta dish and the amazing toast (which we think the hotel might run out of at the rate we were all scoffing it down) and then all went to bed after a few games of cards, exhausted and ready for a good nights sleep!