As I earlier mentioned, higher learning was not in my plans due to my vocational interests but at the time school resumed, I was ready to leave the house. I felt good within mainly because I was useful at home. Secondly, because I earned a salary for 3 months hence I felt I had enough money on me to feed in school. My dad was taking care of me and my siblings but the extra money was doing the magic for me. School was resuming on a Tuesday hence I needed to grab some foodstuffs for the journey to decrease my expenditure in the town.
The cost of living in Winneba per many encounters with past students in the town was always going to be on the surge as the years went by. This made me pretty comfortable even after receiving the expected amount of school sum (including school fees and feeding fees) from my dad. Later in the evening, I had the opportunity to prepare some food with assistance from my brother’s wife. I packed all my clothes also including newly acquired ones I had gotten later in the day. So I set off early Tuesday morning to Kaneshie and waited for the first available “Kuffuor” bus straight to Winneba.
It was a fairly rainy morning toppled with a drizzling effect that gave us(passengers) a cool atmosphere en route to the location. This time I knew most of the landmarks of the town. I never hesitated to mention the names of most of the nearby towns in my head. I enjoyed the sightseeing more now that I was going back than when I was returning home for the vacation. Since it was still early in the morning, traders and even regular pedestrians filled the roads to the brim making it difficult for cars to find a way through.
There was a lot of traffic that is all I am saying with the major fault or cause coming from these tirelessly energized traders. I had the opportunity to purchase bread for myself and a colleague seated beside me on the bus. So 2 hours approximately we made it to the equally packed station of the town. I alighted and made my way to my hostel (WindayBay Hostel) at about 10: 30 am and went straight to cook. Oh yes, I forgot to let you know of my cooking abilities after the first semester. I needed to cook to reduce cost hence my newfound passion. I prepared rice and stew which at the time was the easiest to prepare. I took a nap right after and waited for my roommates.
At 6:00 pm, I phoned the other 2 guys and noticed I was the only one who would be sleeping in the room. I hurriedly ate, grabbed my laptop, and made my way to the South campus. This campus was WIFI active all the time and I remember discovering that when I was assisting workers at Radio Windybay. The school’s internet setup was WIFI based and hence was different from the radio station’s in the sense that WIFI cables were plugged into WIFI sockets at the station to access the web. Most of the students myself included were able to access the internet by using the WIFI system provided by the school. Students’ ID credentials were needed to log onto the web thus it was an innovative way of doing things. in the modern University system in Ghana.
I for one rarely used it due to my earlier connections to Radio Windybay. Mind you, lectures had not begun yet with most of the students expected to report to the campus in the coming days hence I was still enjoying the atmosphere the school campus already provided. After two weeks, the school was back in its right frame with many activities. From lectures, seminars, sporting activities, and even campus celebratory weeks, things were really on the ascendancy despite knowing everything about the school now. Lectures happened at the Amphi Theatre located in the heart of the South Campus with the rest being held at the Special Education departmental rooms.
Since we had fewer rooms for classes, the school made a bold effort to lobby for an ultra-modern building to be built for the department. Guess where this was going to be built, “North Campus”. I remember feeling disappointed when we were informed about this new disappointment mainly because I had grown fonder of the living conditions the South provided. As these tedious lectures progressed, I thought it wise to be more religious in my ways so as not to stray from the part of righteousness. Back at the High school level, I was affiliated with a Pentecostal denomination and the Assemblies of God ministry as well. However, due to the intensity of the classes, I stuck with PENSA as we termed it. PENSA is the Pentecostal Students Association.
The church denomination has a mother body highly recommended by many in Ghana today. I got fed up and dressed up one Sunday and made my way to PENSA’s Campus Ministry and that was it. I felt good about it because it was very difficult mixing lots of activities on campus and still sticking to your books weekly. I sometimes declined the invitation from other denominations on campus but was always available for this church group. I made friends while I continually worshipped with them and even met coursemates who had the same ideologies and shared the same beliefs as well. I began to enjoy the lessons a lot more because I felt energized by the periodic teachings being delivered weekly by the student pastors.
I combined this so well and in no time I was facing the dawn quizzes too. I had prepared well this time round mainly because I was not going to the Radio station more and because I was studying almost every night. My grades were okay after the first semester but I expected them to shoot up in the coming semesters. I recall in my first semester I spoke with an old student who was crowned a first-class student. I prayed to God to either get crowned similarly or receive a second-class upper in school. This was an achievement I could have done if only I kept up with the pace of studies on campus. Now campus exams or end-of-semester exams encompass everything that has been taught the whole semester and hence if you are a smart student, you can be able to score decent marks from your lecturers.
We had 7 subjects as we did in the first semester. Since I was taking a second area in Social Studies I had to take my second area exams at the North campus. I was less tense this time because I was well prepared and only needed to build upon the momentum already gained. After the papers, I had the opportunity to decide on the next hostel for the level 200 semesters. I chose a less busy Saturday for this search. I landed on a quiet road just meters from the South market known as “Water Works”. Upon further communication with the indigenes of the town, I stumbled upon a compound house with lots of aged women. A house I later came to love deeply along my educational journey.
Continue this story in the next post.