Water

When we go to some place where we don´t feel totally comfortable – when we’re invited to someone’s house for the first time or when we go to a meeting – and we are offered something like coffee, water or tea we tend to say “no, I’m fine thanks”. That’s what’s considered polite once we’re totally comfortable with the person. In Ghana, it works the other way around.

When we go to someone’s house here the first thing that happens is that we are offered water and we should not refuse it. Accepting it means that the topic that brings us there is a “cold topic” – it’s not bad news or something serious. If we don´t accept it then that’s because we’re bringing a “hot topic/news”.

If we don’t accept the water that is offered then we won´t get anything from that people – whatever we ask for; whatever information we want we won´t be given.

04/09/2012