The Ackwasidae Festival

Hi BoBers,

The Ackwasidae festival is a gathering of the chiefs/kings of the Ashanti kingdom - the biggest region in Ghana. There is a lot of pomp and ceremony. Each chief arrives with a posse of dancers, musicians and other sub-royalty. Lots of noise and colour. And lots and lots of gold. Originally I thought the crudely cast jewellery was gold-leaf. In fact it was all pure gold. There’s a reason this region was previously called the Gold Coast when it was under British rule.

I also liked that the whole ceremony wasn’t taken too seriously. I had to bow before taking a picture with the king, who laughed at my efforts before everyone told me I did a great job. That is all to say that what might have been a useful convening of leaders centuries ago has turned into a little bit of a spectacle and party. Cameras and phones everywhere, trying to snap up a little of the glamour.

Either way, I managed to get some nice photos - hope you like them.

Festively, J&BoB

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