Accra - Welcome to Accra – the star of West Africa – where the pap is sour and the air smells like hot salami; where tiny goats (the domestic animal of choice) skip freely across heavily congested roads; and where everybody – from the bottlestore owner to the guy who won Big Brother Africa – is a part-time fashion designer.
It is a proud and patriotic city with the fastest-growing population of millionaires in Africa. Accra is also densely punctuated with smiles and charismatic style, despite the looming Stalinist architecture of its government buildings, the strange insensitivity of its ultra-lavish super-churches, and the often squalid conditions that many people find themselves living in (sometimes right next to a church).
Artistically, it’s also one of the most progressive African countries, with artists from El Anatsui (Jack Shainman Gallery and the Venice Biennale) to Paa Joe (Joburg Art Fair) finding audiences and recognition in art capitals around the world.
My official reason for travelling was to be part of the celebrations surrounding the inaugural launch of the new SAA flight route connecting Accra to Washington – a significant occasion for Ghana and for the African continent as a whole, not simply because of the prospective business opportunities, but also because of the wealth of tourism it could bring.
I have always been determined to visit Ghana, and not just to soak up the sights, sounds and sunshine (of which there is an abundance).
Since my interview with Ozwald Boateng for the inaugural issue of GQ Style South Africa magazine, Ghana has been a place of great sartorial and cultural interest to me.
It is, after all, the nation that gave birth to one of the greatest African tailors in the world, along with Virgil Abloh – personal stylist to Kanye West, designers Casely Hayford and Bee Arthur (the designer).
It is also a country blessed with a rich history of symbolic textiles, traditional costume and European tailoring (perhaps one of the few colonial legacies worthy of praise), which is still alive today.
I distinctly remember Ozwald describing a scene from his trip. He was visiting Jamestown – among the poorest neighbourhoods in Accra and a site of deep historical significance.
Once a thriving fishing community, it quickly disintegrated under the weight of the slave trade during the country’s colonial occupation.
Two abandoned slave prisons and a crumbling lighthouse serve as a sobering reminder of this past. Sadly, upon being freed from slavery, many Ghanaians who returned to Accra faced rejection and further displacement.
This township became their home. To this day, that sense of displacement is reiterated through the debilitating poverty that enshrouds the Ga people who still inhabit Jamestown.
When Boateng visited, he observed a young boy standing by the roadside waiting for the school bus. The boy was beaming with joy, proudly flaunting his pristine and perfectly ironed school shirt, despite the fact that he was living in filth and decay of this ‘settlement’.
He was a vision of dignity in the face of adversity and in many ways a metaphor for what I would come to understand about the people of Ghana.
Taking the city in, it’s impossible to ignore how beautiful and poised the Ghanaian people are. The king of Ghana, who also had a hand in the celebrations, was swathed in the most exquisite hand-woven fabrics and followed by an entourage carrying a vintage parasol. His wife, whom I sat next to and shared a glass of bubbly with before discovering her royalty, was the pinnacle of African chic – both modern and traditional.
One of the porters at the stunning five-star Labadi Beach Hotel I visited was among the best-dressed men I have ever laid eyes on. He also happened to be a part-time fashion designer. Even the sex workers who chased me back to my hotel every night carried themselves with grace.
Walking through the streets of Accra – and it must be noted that I was very comfortable doing so – the most dangerous or annoying encounter I had was being hit by a wet plastic bag. You will not find a person drunk or disorderly on any street corner, no person dressed in filthy tatters, and not a single man or woman begging.
Take my word: if you’re heading to the US on SAA, stop over for a few nights for the time of your life. The city, surrounds and people will make you fall in love with Africa all over again. And it’s a shopping haven waiting to be tapped. Sure, it’s no stranger to 48-hour blackouts and even water shedding, but hey, it’s Africa.
If You Go...
SAA offers six flights a week to Accra with four weekly flights on to Washington.
Ghana Getaways
Put these places and spaces on your Accra to-do list:
Where to stay
The Labadi Beach Hotel has two massive pools, palm trees, wi-fi, air con, room service, a gym, a fully stocked bar, a spa, conferencing venues, a tennis court, and the most glorious buffet at all times of day.
It’s also close to everything (including the airport) and has direct access to the beach.
Where to party
You can go for the more upmarket venues, like Firefly Bar or Twist, but the “lady entrepreneurs” can get a bit savage there, and once one has tried her luck, the rest will descend like a pack of hyenas.
Trust me – you want to head to places like Republic, where the drinks are cheap and the live music is good. They also make an amazing goat stew. It’s a really exciting mix of locals and tourists, with a great display of fashion going on. The pinnacle of all parties happens on the beaches: Labadi Pleasure Beach (just outside the Labadi Beach Hotel) and Krokobite, just west of Accra, which is already being dubbed the “Ibiza of Africa”.
Where to go
The Kwame Nkrumah Memorial commemorates Ghana’s first president, who led the country to independence in 1957. Walk through Jamestown to visit the lighthouse, beach and slave memorials and head to Makola Market. Aburi Botanical Gardens has a collection of giant cycads along with a crashed helicopter, and if that does it for you head to La Tante DC 10 – an eatery inside a disused aeroplane that puts Cape Town’s train restaurant to shame.
Jason Alexander Basson, GQ Magazine