I could have used another couple of hours of sleep, but my trusty Timex alarm
watch wouldn't allow it. Five o'clock usually comes early any day of the week,
but in Kumasi , Ghana , on Thursday, May 31 st , it seemed to have snuck up on
this traveler terribly quick. (Our buses were scheduled to leave the hotel at
6:15 to take the 8:30 flight to Accra .)
When it came time to field the story on Russell Stover, I thought I had
done my homework regarding their operations, new product introductions,
etc. Well, was I surprised after I had a chance to sit down and talk
with Tom and Scott Ward, co-presidents of Russell Stover Candies.
Just a footnote before I file my impressions for Day 3 in Ghana : it's not always as simple to file copy via the Internet as I envisioned. First, there are occasional power outages, even in our hotels.
It's not a secret that I love attending parties. Actually, I almost
like giving them as much, the only deterrent being that there's so much
more work involved than just showing up and being a bon vivant.
I kept thinking, “I'm sure we'll all catch up on sleep next week.” Because on
the World Cocoa Foundation Ghana Cocoa Tour, there's no lollygagging. Even on
the last day, our roll call started at 7 a.m. sharp.
It had been an interesting travel day on Saturday, May 26, first motoring from
southeastern Germany to Zurich Airport after having had the opportunity to visit
Alfred Ritter several days earlier in Waldenbuch , Germany.
It's not every day you get a chance to meet a king. But that's what our
itinerary for May 30 th called for, specifically a visit to Manhyia Palace in
Kumasi , Ghana , to see the Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the king of the Ashanti tribe.
