I'm still here!

March 19, 2026

As recently mentioned,  Kwadwo and I (Fran Osseo-Asare) have begun a new chapter in our lives after retiring from Penn State. We  moved to Kigali, Rwanda, where he is working with Carnegie Mellon Africa as they continue to develop the school here. We sold our house in Pennsylvania, so apart from our long-term rental here, our only house is the one son DK built us in Tema, Ghana years ago. We will likely move there in a few months.

The time here to date has been amazing: the tropical garden at the house here  is fantastic, the culinary scene is exciting (more later), people are gracious and friendly and the landscape is so CLEAN and SAFE after Ghana (sorry). The hills remind me of the San Francisco of my childhood. People have been very welcoming. It's just uncomfortable when we have so much more than most people here.

I am only now settled enough to turn my attention back to my online presence. Lots to learn  --technology never slows down, does it? Please check back again soon. And let me know you saw this.

Now in Kigali, Rwanda

IMG_2885.jpg

It's been over 2 years since I've been present here on betumiblog. Amazing things have happened in that time.

My husband husband retired from Penn State in 2025, we sold our State College, Pennsylvania house,   have spent time in Ghana, China, Brazil, and now landed in Kigali, Rwanda for the past several months where husband Kwadwo is teaching at Carnegie Mellon University Africa, and, among other things, I am working on my next book. People here have been wonderful. When a restaurant found out we were celebrating our 53rd wedding anniversary they surprised us with a wonderful gift.

A note of profound sadness, though. My wonderful collaborator on The Ghana Cookbook, Barbara Baeta, died late last year. Kwadwo and I and our 2 adopted sons, Sam and Ernest, had Christmas dinner at her house.  I was recently in Ghana to attend her funeral. Truly, a bright light has been extinguised, though her legacy will never be erased.

Stay tuned for more updates! I'm back.  Fran