Departure lounge

The departure lounge is a place to hear about the
excitement, anticipations and expectations of
future volunteers.

Carling Tedesco will be arriving in late May 2007
and shares her feelings as she prepare to join
us here in Ghana.


I was born of the Disney musical generation; therefore, I was exposed to Africa at a very early age. Apparently, it was a wonderland of animals bounding about the grasslands, the jungle and the desert, a noble kingdom in which the lions rule with a firm but fair hand, and there is not a human in sight. Now, as I have become exposed to media such as photojournalism, I have learned the truth: that Africa is a war-torn continent rife with disease and poverty and expendable individuals, and there is not a hope in sight.

Thankfully, I know that both these versions of Africa are appallingly false. While one cannot deny the presence of disease and poverty, the same can be said for the existence of the natural beauty and the simple, happy lives of many of the continent’s inhabitants.

As a member of the human species, I have always had felt what can only be described as a yearning to see the land where my first ancestors evolved and civilization was born. (As a Caucasian, I’ve received countless odd looks for referring to Africa as “the motherland”, but I’m rigid in my view that it is, indeed, all of our homelands.) Of course, I have heard countless times about the citizens of the continent who have very little compared to us, yet who know true happiness. While I am not skeptical, I do wish to see it for myself. I want to learn how to be happy with little in the way of material possessions.

Having said that, I am not going without my apprehensions. At sixteen, I’m at a comparatively young age for this kind of travel. I know that I am protected against yellow fever, meningitis, rabies, typhoid, diphtheria and polio; but I will have to be diligent to avoid malaria, dengue fever, worms, or snakebite. Though English is the official language of Ghana, I understand that I’ll meet a few language barriers; and I still have not figured out how thirteen people can share a toilet. But I know that after having lived through a month of these concerns that the citizens of the Akuapem Hills region experience daily, I will be a stronger, more responsible, and entirely healthy person.

I will forever be grateful to my school, St. Mildred’s-Lightbourn School, for giving us the opportunity to bound and leap outside our comfort zone, and to my parents for giving in to my fancies and letting me go to a country where they’d never even considered going themselves. And, of course, a huge thank-you to Projects Abroad for existing, giving us nomadic spirits a safe opportunity for personal growth and for giving back to the world.

By Carling Tedesco