Volunteer in Africa.

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In Tamale, one can be treated to both local and exotic cuisine in any of its 2 or 3 star hotels like Gariba Lodge, Mariam Hotel etc. The city happens to be the cereal, Yam and Meat breadbasket of the country so these sell cheaply in the local markets. Tamale is reputed to be one of the fastest growing cities in West Africa.

Even though limited in natural resources, seasonal farming is the major occupation of the natives who receive strangers with open arms. With its mostly flat terrain, one secures a good look of the city on any three or four-story building. In the heart of the city are the traditional palaces of the Gulkpe Naa and the Dapkema where one can catch a glimpse of pure traditional architecture. All the intra city roads in Tamale are tarred with the central dual-lane double road lit in the night. Being close to the Sahara Desert (in comparison with other major cities in Ghana), one has the opportunity to enjoy a true tropical sun-bathe in Tamale. The hamattan season presents two extreme weather conditions each day. There is the extreme cold temperature of the early dawns and morning and the very warm afternoon.

There is a suburb called Education Ridge in the northwestern part of the city covering an area of about 3km sq. where one can find over 20 schools crammed together ranging from Kindergartens through junior secondary and senior secondary schools, teachers training colleges, a polytechnic to the Central administration of the only university in the northern part of Ghana. Tamale secondary school and Bagabaga Training colleges that have produced the current Vice president (Alhaji Aliu Mahama) and a past head of state (Dr. Hilla Limann) respectively are located within this area. The numerous trees especially Mahogany lining up the streets in this part of the city gives it a tropical rainforest outlook.

There are also a considerable number of international Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) like the Catholic Relief Services (CRS), CARE International, ActionAid, World Vision etc. having their offices in Tamale but mostly work in the rural areas of the north. Communication with the outside world is as good as that in Accra, the capital city of Ghana.

We cannot deny that Philip Briggs, the author of the Bradt travel guide, was right when he wrote that "the main route focus in northern Ghana, not to say the largest urban conglomeration, Tamale is hot, flat and quite incredibly dusty: first impressions arriving in the harsh light of day are less than flattering, unless perhaps you're a homesick construction worker, though the sunset, filtered through a misty suspension of fine red dust, can fleetingly make it look like one of the most beautiful construction sites in the world!" Especially during the Harmattan season, dominated by a hard wind for 2 months, the dust might sometimes by hard to stand. But the most important feature of Tamale is not the dust, which is even less in the city centres as a result of a substantial number of new roads where recently even streetlights are added to.

The most important feature is fortunately also described in the Bradt travel guide, which is the pleasant provincial atmosphere, so inherent to the whole northern part of Ghana (Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions). Since most city quarters are resembling to small villages (with scattered food stalls and small shops) and the city does not know any buildings with more than three floors, most people do not realise that Tamale houses more than 300,000 people. Especially when the swimming pools are open and contain water, one could even think of Tamale as heaven on earth.