Now that I’m heading back to Canada in only two weeks, I’ve been thinking about cultural differences that I’ve noticed during my time here.

Something that took some adjustment was that in Ghana it’s considered impolite, even disrespectful to use your left hand in interactions with others. This is based off the idea that the left hand is used for unhygienic actions.

This is kind of a problem when you’re left-handed— like me. So I’ve made a conscious effort to use my right hand all the time. And if I accidentally use my left, I say “sorry for the left,” like my Ghanaian friend instructed me to avoid offending anyone. I found it funny that a guidebook I read even said, “If you’re left handed, it isn’t your fault.” Oh, good, I thought it might be? But a Ghanaian woman who’s also left-handed told me her father used to beat her so she’d use her right! Fortunately, I’ve heard this is outmoded, and people are more forgiving of the obruni’s faux-pas.

Another important aspect of interacting is greeting people. At home, occasionally strangers will greet one another in the street, but greetings are mainly reserved for people you know. However, here if you don’t greet people you pass, some view it as a sign that you don’t care about their well-being or even wish them ill-will. A couple times I’ve had people angrily ask me why I didn’t greet them (although they also didn’t greet me!). It’s also expected that you will ask acquaintances how they are, whereas at home it might suffice to just say hi. I’ve found the greetings create a really friendly atmosphere that I’ll miss. I think once I’m home I’ll make more of an effort to be friendly in general Ghanaian-style.

Something else that interested– and initially offended–  me was the difference between cultural perceptions of body weight. At home, the ideal female body is thin, whereas here it’s considered desirable to be somewhat fat. Three times people have “complimented” me that I’m getting fatter, to which I first awkwardly replied, “Uhhh, okay, thanks?” and wondered if I should lay off the oh-so-delicious tea bread. Of course, this would be an insult at home. But here it’s a compliment to be called fat.

My Ghanaian friends explained fatness is associated with a comfortable lifestyle and being able to eat whatever you want; it’s a status symbol for women. One commented that she used to work out, but she stopped when she was “getting too thin and looking sickly.” Some women even take drugs to get fatter! It’s like the flip-side of North America’s obsession with weight loss.

They also mentioned that women tend to strive to be thin in Accra, the more expensive and more western-influenced country capital. I’m not sure the extent to which this is true, but it seems wealthier places value a thin body type as a symbol of self-restraint or asceticism and physical fitness, whereas places where food is scarcer or of limited variety idealize fat. Interesting, non?

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