Jump straight to ludicrous speed!!! 

Our time here at dagbe has been flying by and while time seems to have been short, the amount we as a group have accomplished is nothing short of remarkable. We didn’t do it all by ourselves of course, the dagbe cultural center’s incredible staff/ teachers are incredibly determined to use every minute we have left to polish our work. I personally, have not soaked up so much knowledge so quickly in my life. Being able to focus on a single aspect with the staff, a minute detail breakdown of ever rhythm, of every dance step has made drastic improvements to the groups performance. 

The environment we are in has only helped our learning progress, a focus on the dance, music, and culture without any distractions besides a gamble on what’s for lunch that day.  

I have been learning the lead drum to one of the more complicated pieces named Togo Atisa (pronounced a-cha). This song has many intricate rhythms that follow each other in a specific sequence, one after another. Just after 4, one hour private lessons with Wisdom, the assistant lead drummer, I have learned almost the entire thing. I could not have guessed I would have tackled so much in a short period of time. 

Since arriving at dagbe we have been more than welcomed by everyone, even at the market. We would wander around looking for fabrics or other items we might want and I would regularly hear “Yevu! Mia fue!” Which means how are you in ewe. People we so happy that I knew how to respond to them. 

Every single day I feel extremely lucky to have been a part of this trip. I feel lucky to be a part of such an open community, here at dagbe and back at SMC. I think lunch is ready, I bet it’s going to be pasta with red sauce