Kristo Buase Monastery


View from a large cave on the groups of the monastery.
Selfie in front of an arch.  I so need a hair cut

I was at the Kristo Buase Benedictine Monastery from the 19th to the 23rd.  I spent the entire time on the monastery grounds relaxing and joining in with the prayers when my cough allowed.  It was very pleasant.  One minor disappointment was the limited time to be able to discuss things with the monks.  They hold to silence for most of the time as part of their practice.  I did have a nice chat for about an hour on Saturday with some of the monks and a nice shat on Sunday after mass with the priest.

I highly recommend a short stay for those visiting Ghana.  There are also plenty of other sites in the area that come highly recommended.  More information is on their website: http://www.kristobuasemonastery.org/

The monastery was established in 1989 on about 400 acres.  The monastery is surrounded by sandstone outcroppings.  There are a number of arches, double arches, and caves formed in the sandstone by erosion over the eons. 

Some of the cultivated ground is devoted to orchards and forests – mostly inter-cropped.  Native species of plants are also common and valued.  The monks are working to become self-sufficient.  They also have an agricultural outreach to the local farmers to help improve regional diversity, sustainability and profitability.  The monks have cashew, mango, orange, star fruit, banana, moringa and other trees – including timber and medicinal trees.
Cashew fruit.  The fruit is about the size of a fist

The cashew nut hangs down from the fruit.  The major focus is the nut, but it is hard to process so the farmers generally sell the raw unshelled nut and the majority of the profit is gained farther up the value chain.  In most cases the fruit is discarded.  The monks make a number of very tasty jams with the cashew and other fruits.  And what sort of monks would they be if they did not brew and distill alcohol?  Cashew fruit wine and brandy.

The monks also have fields for corn, squash, yams, and other crops.  I was a little surprised at the lack of livestock, but they don’t eat much meat anyway.  I saw only one chicken during my visit and eggs were never on the menu.  Rather than the rooster crowing at 4 in the morning the monks have a bell for Lauds (morning prayers).
Butterfly gathering nectar - just outside the back door of my cell (room)

  I was told that they previously had swine for income, but the animals took too much time so they halted.  I also heard that the number of monks is on the increase in the last couple of years (currently less than 20) so perhaps they will be able to restart that and expand other areas that are working as their population increases.

I wish them thanks and God’s blessing on their work.

Back in Accra


As my cough is still hanging around I was back in Accra on Monday.  It has now been a month away from site.  This is the luggage I’ve had for this month.  On Wednesday I was able to leave Accra to go back to my site.
Small backpack and my computer case with travel pillow.  And water bottle of course.
I’m working with two pairs of pants, one pair of shorts, three shirts and two tee-shirts and three pairs of underwear.  So I’m pretty much washing something about every day.

Health


My cough and congestion returned slightly after returning to Accra.  My shoulders are also starting to hurt again with some minor restriction in movement.  I continue to work on stretching and exercises, but I think some physical therapy might help.

I’ve started some new meds that seems to be helping and the Peace Corps has a new game plan for the cough and such.  I will have more information about it next week.

Love always,
John

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Yam harvesting

Image
Roger and I went to farm to harvest yam on Saturday morning, September 13, 2014.  In Ghana a yam is a root crop that is different from a sweet potato.  We have sweet potatoes here as well. Yam recently harvested Preparing a yam for boiling The yam has a white flesh – softer than a white potato. In this area the yams are planted between April and June.  Harvest continues into December and January depending on the weather and pigs getting into the field. The plant is a vine – which is grown on stakes rather than allowed the spread out.  The plants are placed on a raised bed about 2 feet high.  The beds are surrounded by flat trenches.  This allows the rains to flow around, but not wipe out the yam crop.  Intercropping seems to be common practice with yams planted in the raised bed, soybeans around the edges, and rice in the trenches.  The occasional corn or okra plant is also among the yams – although the bulk of those crop...
Read more

Pito – brewed millet

Image
Corn, rice, and millet are the common grains grown in my region of Ghana. All three are used food, but millet is also used to produce the local brew – pito, or daa in the local language. “N nyu daa” - in Dagaree means “I drink pito.” There are several varieties of millet grown here – a red and white varieties have loose heads. These are used for pito and other foods. There is also a smaller seed variety with a tight head of seeds that is mainly used for porridge. (Don't have a picture of that variety yet.) In all varieties millet grows on a stalk with the grain head at the top of the stalk. White and red millet in the field Two bundles of while millet to be used for seed next season Converting a grain to alcohol is a common practice in various cultures. It provides a way to capture and digest the nutritional value of the grain. In some places, like Germany and the beer brewing monks, the making a beer was a way to preserve the harvest. In Ghana the millet is ...
Read more

Ghana Archery and Travel to Tamale

Image
Ghana Archery Roger and I were walking to see a man in the community early last week and he happened across an arrow head. It was a long thin metal piece that would be attached to then end of a shaft. That got Roger talking about archery and got me thinking about another blog post. He explained how the arrow worked while we walked and promised to show me a bow and arrow when we got back to his house. He talked about the old times when they made poison. The process involved collecting plants and such things and placing them in a pot which is buried for a year. The poison was used on animals and people in the ancient times. That got me thinking about the information that has been and is being lost in the community from the older generation. Yesterday, I was sitting talking with some of the older men and they were talking about how the grandfathers could dig up the roots and such to make medicine for a variety of illnesses. They told me that the knowledge and practice of m...
Read more