I knew it was just some 30 minutes flight time from Accra to Kumasi, yet, when the captain for flight S9- 100 switched on the seat belt sign and announced that he had started the descent into Kumasi, like some little girl, my face gleamed with excitement. 

Looking down the window, I have always loved that scene of descending into the garden city from that height.   Kumasi indeed brings me lots of nostalgia.  It reminds me of childhood days as a school girl.

Kumasi might have its ugly sides and there are many such.  The fearsome security flashes are one.  Lawlessness in traffic is another.  I dared a curious visit to the central market to catch up from the last time I was there.   I regretted it.  The traffic hold-up was nothing compared to those that one tries to dodge in Accra.

Nonetheless, Kumasi generally presents a picture of a model city.  My admiration for the city gets better with each visit.  Like an old wine, the taste gets quintessential with time and last week gave me a bit of that flavour.

Even though Kumasi has lost some of its greenery, the city is still a picture to behold and relatively clean too.   The environment does not only look fresher and relaxing, the evenings are cooler with rains even at this time of the year.

Some of the roads within the city have been fixed.   So when I decided to see a bit of town over two days, I could not have chosen a better taxi driver to chauffeur me around.  This driver called Nana, was a typical Kumasi boy  who told me he would cry like a little boy if he was to be brought down to Accra for any reason.  His Twi was impeccable and could pass for a newsreader at a local FM station.

Driver Nana knew everything in the city.  From A to Z, he filled me in with double doses of gossips including some from other parts of Ghana.  He is the one who explained to me in detail the implications of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly‘s (AMA) new regulations for taxi drivers and the reason for the stand-off between them and taxi drivers in some parts of Accra.  He added with emphasis, “Mama, this kind of thing can never happen in Kumasi.  Whattttt?  We will resist it.”

Despite the show of might, my driver was very soft with me.  He asked me to fix my own fare on both occasions when he had to drive me around, sometimes offering to put on the air conditioner for my comfort.  I could not remember the last time I took a taxi in Accra and the driver offered to turn on the air condition. 

Sampling the cost of living in the garden city in comparison to Accra, we stopped by some foodstuff sellers.  Maybe the driver was right when he said he would not leave Kumasi for anything.  The cost of food is relatively cheaper in Kumasi compared to Accra.  Specifically, yam, plantain and cassava were very cheap and so was spinach and local banana. I was told beef was also cheap and my driver insisted to take me to a butchery to verify for myself until I convinced him that I was allergic to meat.  Accommodation in Kumasi is just as cheap as food, I was told. 

Stuck in traffic at Aboabo, a Kumasi suburb, a police motorcade drove past with a convoy.  That incidentally was the Black Stars visiting the Manhyia Palace to meet with Otumfuo Osei-Tutu II, Asantehene.  Our chat was deviated to football.  The Black Stars had been in Kumasi for some days getting acclimatised as they prepared for their World Cup qualifying play-off against Egypt.

Did the Black Stars have any chance of beating the Egyptians, I asked my driver.  “Eh, Mama, we will beat them by two goals to nil”.   “We will confuse them at the stadium so they play carelessly.”   The driver spoke with glitters of passion in his eyes and I dared not ask anymore questions to expose my ignorance in the game of football. 

Indeed Kumasi was already agog with excitement for the Black Stars.  As the taxi driver dropped me off at the hotel, one could see the number of spectators who were at the precincts of the Golden Tulip hotel in Kumasi to catch glimpses of the players.  Indeed, it was a daily pilgrimage for these spectators, I gathered.

As our familiarity drew to a close, I reached for my bag and gave the driver something I thought by Kumasi standards was good enough for my fare.  No, he refused it. “Why”?  I asked.  “Because you received an air condition ride”, he retorted.  With a little top up, it was still cheaper than what I would have paid for in Accra, anyway, not forgetting the well seasoned natter which now seemed to have bonded us. 

As the taxi screeched to a halt, my new friend asked me if he should pick me up again the following day.  He obviously had enjoyed my company as I had too.  Unfortunately however, I was reluctantly heading for flight S9-103 back to Accra the following day.  Kumasi was heavily on my mind and so was a plan to return sooner.

vickywirekoandoh@yahoo.com