A Little Slice of Life

I've had a couple of quintessentially Ghana experiences lately and they're the type of things that define life in a developing country. 

Vodafone is the main phone and internet provider here.  Despite the fact that they are a major global corporation, they can't seem to get basic, reliable service in place in Ghana.  For example, I don't receive a bill for my monthly internet service at my house.  I have to remember when I paid it the prior month and get it paid the following month or, without warning, they shut off my internet.  This happened last week while I was out of town.  I went to the main Vodafone office to pay my bill and was told that I couldn't pay because the link was down and I should try another of their offices.  I laughed at the fact that the internet company couldn't take my money to restore my internet service because the internet was down.  I drove across town to another of their stores and tried to pay.  Again, I was told the "link" was down.  So, no payment therefore no internet (thankfully, I have a modem to use as backup). 

Today, I needed to get confirmation from KLM that the dogs can fly with me next week.  All morning, their phone lines were down - service provided by Vodafone, of course.  So, I decided it would be best to just go to the KLM office and sort out the dog issue in person, rather than wait for the phone lines to come back up.  I checked the internet (which was working)  and found the location of the KLM office.  I went there only to find an empty building.  No signs, nothing.  Someone on the street told me they had moved to an office tower near the airport.  I drove back across town to one of the new, shiny office towers in Accra (there are many that are partially built, but few completed and inhabited).  I got on the elevator and realized this is only the 2nd elevator I've been on in Accra.  Once to the floor of he KLM offices, I was told this was their administrative offices and I should go to the airport to the ticketing office.  The elevator felt......questionable to me on the way up, so I took the stairs down.  I noticed on each floor a good-sized metal hammer with a sign "In Case of Fire Break Glass" next to it.  I thought it was encouraging, as fire safety is not something you see often around here.  I've seen smaller hammers and signs in the US, but usually the hammer and sign is next to a small glass box containing a fire alarm to be pulled in case of fire.  There was no box - just a large hammer and a sign.  I realized that the instructions meant to break the glass of the glass exit doors in the stairwell in case of fire!!!!  I supposed you could hack the hell out of the glass door, hope you don't injure yourself with the broken glass and then head for a speedy exit in case of fire.  I guess it's the next best thing if there is no alarm to pull to alert the fire department.

I then headed to the airport where the airline offices are.  A guard directed me down the hall and to the left to get to the KLM office. I never found the office but did find an employee of another airline wandering around.  He informed me that KLM had their own building outside and I should just go out and look that way (he points).  So, I did that and finally found KLM's shiny new ticketing office.  Complete with an orderly "take a number" system and friendly agents sitting behind functioning computers with nice flat screen monitors.  But of course, the phone lines were still out!  I guess development is one step at a time........