Ghana: Heaven for Namers

Before I went to Ghana, I had read that I could expect to see the country's passion for Jesus reflected in the names of their businesses, but I didn't expect 75% of shop names to have some kind of religious reference. Some of the more unusual names included included Blood of Christ Restaurant, Holy Canteen, and Jesus Loves Fashion. Unfortunately, while Ghanaians love the Lord, they hate cameras, so I didn't get photos of most of the signs I saw as we whizzed by. Here are some snaps of some of my faves... there's more in the official album.

Where's a McDonald's when you need one?

Some of the more interesting food names in Ghana...

Back from Ghana with a new name: Borley Atiaku

Little did I know when we booked our trip to Ghana and requested to take part in an African naming ceremony ($125 per person), that it would be a serious all-day affair that the entire village showed up for! We were adopted into the Royal Borketey Larweh family of the Ga tribe. My Ga name is "Borley Atiaku." The naming rites were performed by the Head of Family-Dr Sam Bortei-Doku (on right) who is a dead-ringer for Nelson Mandella. (Despite looking like my groom, the man in blue is our guide, Sam.) We spent a few days with the family and even went to church with them on Christmas where we danced by the collection box. Twice. More colorful photos here in the official trip album....

The secret to pearly whites

We think Pray would make a great name for a home pregnancy test, but in Ghana, it's a brand of toothpaste. I picked up a tube and have it at the office if you want to come by and see that it is indeed for real. Ghanaian's do have incredibly white teeth, but their secret is they use tree bark. (Can't you see it now.... NEW Crest Whitening Bark.) I have seen some pretty strange toothpaste names in my world travels. Here are some other faves.... (I picked up Darkie in Thailand around 20 years ago, but they changed it to Darlie a few years back.

FrightAll Wacky Package Flashback

This sign in Ghana for frightfully named Frytol cooking oil reminded me of Wacky Packages, the collectable 70s trading cards featuring parodies of consumer products.