Bead markets--Agomanya & Koforidua

On Wednesday after our bead-making workshop, the two Global Mamas interns in Krobo, Sammy and Annie, were gracious enough to invite us to go to the bead market with them, as they were headed there anyways to interview a few of the bead sellers they work with for the Global Mamas website. This proved to be an invaluable experience because not only could they help explain the difference between the types of beads (glass powder/painted/glass and old* vs. new beads), I was also able to sit in and listen to a few of the women's interviews. It was very interesting to hear the women talk about their lives--their family, education, etc.--as well as their hopes and dreams for their bead business and the greater community. The connection with the Global Mamas through the interns set us apart from other tourists and it allowed me to ask some of my own questions of the women as well.

After the market, we headed to Koforidua by tro-tro. (We were proud that we successfully made this trip as well, as we had to transfer tros in Kpong.) Thursday morning, we went to the Koforidua bead market, which is the biggest bead market in Ghana; people travel from all over the country (& some from even further) for this market. Marissa would've been in bead heaven!

A funny thing happened when we were at the Koforidua bead market. We ran into one of the Global Mamas beadsellers with whom I had talked at the Agomanya market! It was fun to run into a familiar face. Below, you can see the picture of me with Mama Rose!

* A note about old beads: old beads are antique beads that were used for during the slave trade...people would trade these beads for humans. Because they're antique and hold a lot of history, they are quite pricey. It was great to learn the difference between the two and learn to decipher between them so that I knew what I was looking at (& why some were so much more expensive than others!)