Hissing in Ghana

If you want someone’s attention in Ghana you hiss at them, or make a puckering noise with your mouth. I was pretty appalled the first time I heard someone do it on my first visit to Ghana around four years ago; to my Western mind it was the epitome of rudeness! If you require the attention of a waitress, hawker, etc, it is expected that you will hiss to get their attention or if in a tro-tro (mini bus) a call of whatever you are after (be it pure water, biscuits, a handkerchief, an egg, maybe a t-shirt – you can literally buy anything you wish whilst travelling in a car or waiting for it to fill up as is usually the case!) usually works or shouting ‘small boy, small girl,’ or whatever is appropriate before they come running.

I think I’ve done a pretty good job of embracing Ghanaian culture. I’ve made an idiot of myself dancing in Church, ate fu-fu with my hands, bargained for goods at the markets and now expect to click my fingers every time I shake someone’s hand. I travel by tro-tro and now turn up to meetings, press conferences around an hour late, safe in the knowledge I won’t miss anything important! But hissing is one thing I just can’t bring myself to do. The silly thing is, I know it’s won’t cause any offence and its part of life here, but I can’t stop a small part of my brain telling me it’s wrong. Maybe it’s my years spent working in customer service, where I was regularly yelled at or referred to as ‘hey you come here,’ that makes me refrain from doing anything that I myself would never respond too.

On a completely different note, things are going pretty well here at the Daily Graphic. The editor congratulated me today on all the features I have had published (7 so far!) and my work as a news reporter. Big happy face! As much as some of the office politics frustrate me to the brink of tears and I often feel like I’m talking to a brick wall when ‘discussing’ certain issues with other journalists (some of their justifications just make no sense and attempts to reason fall flat) I am going to be sad when I have to leave. I think I’ve been pretty lucky to have the experience and opportunities I’ve been given and on the whole it’s been a pretty fantastic few months working here.

Currently listening to Christmas carols on the radio and Oprah on the television as I type a story about inflation rates (definitely not my most interesting assignment)!