Needles, needles, and more needles

It is unbelievable just how many immunizations you need to go to Ghana. I just spoke with the Travel Clinic and checked the CDC's website (Center for Disease Control, the #1 spot to check for health risks) for the immunizations I'll need to enter Ghana.

Check out this list:

- Hepatitis A, shot #1

- Hepatitis A, shot #2 (30 days after #1)

- Hepatitis B, shot #1

- Hepatitis B, shot #2 (30 days after #1)

- Hepatitis B, shot #3 (90 days after #2)

- Meningococcal

- Typhoid

- Yellow fever

- Malaria

Woah. Anyone still want to go to Ghana?

The good news is that I've already gotten all these immunizations for previous trips--so all I need to do now is a quick trip to the doctor for an updated malaria prescription, and then I'm good to go!

Needless to say, I'm excited to be avoiding the needles for this trip...

A grand entrance... for the visa

I am very excited to say that my Ghanaian visa has arrived! No big deal, you say? Actually, it is. You see, I mailed in my visa to the Ghana Embassy in Washington, D.C., last week. Although my departure for Ghana isn't until July 8th, I'm leaving the country for a family vacation before: on June 27th! Which means that... I had only two very short weeks to have my passport back in my hands or else I was missing the vacation.

Needless to say, I was stalking the UPS website, tracking the progress of my package nearly hourly. "What would happen? What if my passport is stuck in the embassy for two weeks and I'm stuck in the U.S.?" were the thoughts racing through my mind for three agonizing days.

And then, unbelievably, my passport arrived at the embassy and was turned around in only 12 hours. It went out the very next day, and is now safely back in my hands. I have no plans to let it go any time soon! Check out the pictures of this sherbet-colored little visa :

Oh, and you may notice that I choose the "Multiple Entry" option, which means that I can go in and out of Ghana for the next five years... just in case.

Climb aboard!

Climb aboard....

My trip begins July 9th and continues until mid-August. I am volunteering with an non-profit organization, "Women In Progress", applying business skills in a developing nation as I learn from those I am teaching. My project will include teaching basic business concepts, assisting with the organization's marketing efforts, and, of course, documenting each and every moment through photography. Above all, it will be a journey of learning.

Check back soon--my date of departure is racing closer each day, and with it the many stories to come.