Hello Everyone!
It has been great living here in Cape Coast. The last 2 days I walked all around the local market. I've also been able to walk down to the ocean. The waves here are Huge! Our compound is very nice. In our yard, we grow coconuts, pineapples, mangos, tangerines, apples, and even bananas. The last 3 days I have also been able to visit a local school here. The kids are very fun to be around.

I have been given the opportunity to teach while I am here in Africa. I will have my own class starting on Monday. I will be teaching math or English until November. Although I will not be teaching in Cape Coast. As of last night, I will be moving west about an hour to a city called Takoradi. I am very excited. I have been told that it is very beautiful. The compound I will be living in sits on the top of a hill looking over the ocean. I can't wait to see it! Going to this city was not planned in my trip, I'm excited for a little adventure haha.

The internet here is very slow, so it makes it very hard to upload pictures. I will try to post more pictures soon.

This is the View from my room

Holy Cow today was a busy day!
I spent the entire morning at the local school down the street. I was able to spend time with the kids. They are a lot of fun. In the afternoon I played soccer with some local guys. They were my age and older (but much stronger haha). We had a ref and a crowd watching us too, it was lots of fun. Tomorrow the guys have the day off so we will be going to the market. I think that in the morning I will go back to the school.

Today I am very excited. I will be visiting a school after lunch. I am getting into my routine. I get up at about 5 am every day. During the week, we have morning prayers at 6 and then we go to mass at 6 30. On Sundays, the mass begins at 7. Breakfast follows mass. The guys usually have class until lunch and then work around the house until dinner. Its fun over here, meeting lots of new people. I will try and post more pictures if I can.

Hey everyone! I have made it go Africa. It take a very long time here to upload pictures because the internet is pretty slow. I will try to upload as many pictures as I can. This picture was taken from the slave castle. It is located right on the ocean (4miles from my home)

Its almost time!!!
I am just about done packing. I have moved back into my parents place for the evening. I was able to have dinner with Katie and Nate (sister and brother-in-law) which was delicious. I will be getting on the plane tomorrow evening and I am very excited! I have done all of my shopping and even got a new phone that will work overseas. I have created a new skype account so please message me if you wanna chat with me while I'm away. I want to thank everyone for all the wonderful emails, I love reading them. I will be updating this very often from now on, I promise!

Today was a very busy day!
I was able to get all of my stuff packed up into boxes and put into storage. Katie, Nate, and my parents came to help. It was a lot of work, but we finished! Now my room is basically empty except for my luggage. I'm getting very excited for this trip, It's sooo soooon!

8 Days Until Departure

The trip is getting close!!!!!
Today I officially received my visa. I also had to go to the travel clinic today to get all of my shots (ouch). I have all the medication I need as well. Now I just need to start packing. I want to thank everyone who has been following my blog and my music page on facebook. I have gotten a lot of great responses and messages from people. Keep them coming!

Great news everyone! I have officially purchased my plane ticket to Africa! My passport has been sent to D.C. so I can have a visa. I have spoken with the Holy Cross brothers and they are helping me coordinate rides from the airport. All of my plans are set, I am now just figuring out the small details (rides between my destinations). I am also very excited because I found out that my parents will be visiting me for a few days while I am in Africa! This will certainly be something to look forward to.
I want to thank everyone who is following my blog. It means a lot to me that people are interested in my journey. Please feel free to email me or facebook me at anytime!

Hey everyone! Today I officially received my letter of invitation in the mail. I can now go ahead and send in my application for a visa. I am doing a rush order so it will only take a few days. I will probably go ahead and buy my plane ticket today. Its getting close, 15 days until departure!!!

I had my picture taken in Minneapolis with downtown behind me!

Hey everyone, Big News! Today I was told that my letter of invitation was sent to my house. This means I can get my visa. I am currently looking for the cheapest plane tickets as well. Today was a big step. Now it is time for me to also coordinate my transportation around the country. I'll need to make sure someone will be there to pick me up from the airport...man that would be a bummer to show up without a ride haha... Although it shouldn't be a problem. I will be visiting the Brothers of Holy Cross and they are very excited that I am coming. I will let you all know when I officially have my plane ticket!

Introduction

Hey Everyone!
I am excited to share with everyone that I will be traveling to Ghana at the end of September. I will be traveling all over the country playing music and doing mission work along the way. I have been asked to teach English in some areas and teach music in others. I am looking forward to this trip, I will be gone for about 5 months. At this moment, I am still trying to get a visa. From now until the end of the trip, I would love to hear from people, I am traveling by myself, so I will try to stay in contact with you all as much as possible. I look forward to posting pictures and blog frequently throughout my trip.