Our next adventure was to the Ashanti Region and its capital city Kumasi. The ride was extremely long but well worth it. We visited the previous palace of the king and queenmother and learned all about the traditions of royalty. The customs of the Ashanti people were unique and spoke to a song lyric I once heard by Nas. As we drove around the city, the structure and hustle reminded me a lot of pictures I had seen of Bangkok. The system of roads and rules was extremely foreign and confusing to me. We also visited the Culture Centre were its mission was to preserve the craftsmanship and authenticity of products produce as artifacts. It was nice to see people actually making a selling their work instead of haggling and stealing credit. On our second day here we visited rural villages and a market that has no comparison to anything in the US. The villages were an experience from traveling the rough terrain to the conditions that the people lived in. We visited three each specialising in a craft. Kente Cloth, Andrika cloth, and glass bead making were the three we visited. Each very unique and proud of their crafts. We then traveled to the market which was 3 miles long. The small portion we went through was the meat market, spice section, beauty supply, and the housewares section. It was amazing how close and fresh everything was. Some merchants had fresh live crabs and others were bagging flour , cinnamon and every spice imaginable. This market and the people that work there are the original ultimate hustlers.
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