Africa day 2 - the slums of Accra

Well this was a morning I'll never forget.  I got up early and went to a place that the locals have nicknamed "Sodom and Gomorrah".  It is the literal slums of Accra, where somewhere between 40-80,000 people are crammed into tin roofed, smaller than my bedroom shacks.  Most of us have a nicer place to park our lawnmower.

Let me show you some pictures.

The first thing I saw as we drove up:

Piles of garbage everywhere and many people were digging through these piles trying to find something they could sell.

A few kids outside their "home":

There were children everywhere, many completely naked, others running barefoot through the mud (a nice way to say dirt mixed with urine).  Here's a little girl I met who is turning 4 - she's in her families home.

I spent some time at a ministry called "Lifeline" whose main purpose is helping teenage girls out of prostitution, trafficking, and poverty.  The girls stay at this place for 9 months and are taught about God, they receive counseling and rehabilitation, and are taught some sort of trade (when I was there they were teaching them to sew)
Here's the whole group - I was told there is 87.  Many of these girls have been raped or trafficked:

Here's where they sleep - the nets keep the mosquitoes away:

One of the girls learning to make a dress - the sewing machines had a hand crank that you turn:

Their toilets:

 At Lifeline they also have a program for children.  The kids come early in the morning and are taught how to read and write.  Here's a few pictures of the kids - they were so fun!

And my favorite:

I'm flying out early tomorrow morning to Northern Ghana.  Apparently, North Ghana is poorer than Accra.  In fact I was told that many people who are living in the slums of Accra are originally from Northern Ghana and have come to the city for a better life.

Thanks for your prayers!

I don't know if I will have internet access for the next couple days, I'll have to wait and see