A busy place

Accra is a busy place. With a population of nearly 2 million, the city is teeming with activity, from the legion of taxis, to the tro-tros (mini-buses) bursting at the rivets with passengers, to men pushing, pulling and sometimes dragging simple wooden carts, to a parade of those on whose heads sits a supermarket’s worth of items. For the curious, here’s a short list of things I’ve seen carried hands-free:


· Tangerines
· Towels
· Tables
· Tree limbs
· Apples
· Water bottles

It has occurred to me that adopting a similar practice in Portland would give busy urban sorts the flexibility to enjoy their iPhones, Blackberries and iPods while also drinking a specialty coffee drink, all the while knowing that one’s head is protected from the rain.

Traffic is a challenge, both in the number of vehicles on the road and the decidedly laissez-faire approach to movement. Drivers generally keep to their side of the road, but only while it’s convenient. Meanwhile, those without wheels weave through this unpredictable mess with all the aplomb of a first-rate Frogger player, never dropping a single pineapple from the pile perched atop their head.