Some of My Favourite Recent Shots

Highlights of the Past....Two Weeks, well, actually Three Weeks

The 'L'-Party - on May 19

Theme parties are so much fun, aren't they? Well, I have to admit, I am not the greatest fan of them but from time to time I can handle them. Monrovia is a challenging environment in this way, as some people here are obsessed with theme parties. And believe me, here are some high level costume investors...not easy to catch up with. One recent theme party had the theme "L" - as it was the first letter of the birthday guy's first name. So we were supposed to dress as something starting with an "L". We did our best and as you can see, my roomies and myself got a little creative - there was 'Luxury' (final items were purchased during a quick stop-over at the second-hand and anything-else market - check the real diamonds attached to the shirt), then a very pretty 'Lighthouse' - again, check the jewelry; all unique, all handmade, and - as you can clearly see - a 'Learner' in a driving school. With real pen-pen rider glasses in red. Sweet-o!

LEITI Inter-High School Debate - on May 25
I have talked about the Liberian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI) at least once before, when LEITI in cooperation with GIZ openend the first Resource Centre with plenty of literuature on Natural Resource Management and Governance. By then, I was already a big fan of the LEITI staff and enjoyed a lot working with them. And now, I am even a bigger fan.
In order to promote the resource centre among members of the target group (students, civil society, local media, general public) and also to raise awareness on extractive industries issues, LEITI decided to organise a high-school debate; inviting the debate teams (don't forget, you will  find a lot of US American ideas also implemented in Liberia - ties are strong) of four different high schools including their classes and have them debating about issues of transparency and accountability in the natural resource sector. I have to admit I was a bit sceptical in the beginning, if this will work out as planned, but it was legendary and so much fun. Eventually, all the students stayed for 7 hours more or less non-stop in a gym without proper windows, it was extremely hot and humid and a rat started running around and climbing up people's legs at some point - but everyone was happy.

The morning started with two short lectures from the National Investment Commission and CENTAL, the Liberian chapter of Transparency International on the governance challenges in the resource sector and what needs to be done to turn the recent discovery of oil in a success for the country.
After a typical Liberian lunch - fried fish with rice - the debate club entered the arena and for the next more than 3 hours, the students enthusiastically discussed questions such as "Is the current set-up of the LEITI steering group (the Multistakeholder Group, comprised of Government, Civil Society and Private Sector) advantageous?"; certainly always following the very strict debating rules. I was sitting in the jury for a while and it was very impressive. And by the end, when everyone was pretty much exhausted - there was a winner: The B. W. Harris Episcopal High-School from Monrovia. One of their team members was also found as being the "Most Valuable Player" and won a three-month-internship with LEITI.
Congratulations to LEITI - that was awesome!

Getting "fished out" - on May 30
While most of the experiences I have in Liberia are of positive nature, there are some things which are not that nice - and bulglary is one of them. Going to bed around midnight on Tuesday night, I woke up on Wednesday morning and found myself "fished out" - meaning that during the night, thieves came and fetched valuables through my window - including my cellphone with all my German numbers (please email your numbers!!!), my Suisse knive, some cash money and...my keys. They then used the keys to open our iron back door but luckily there were not able to open the following wooden door as I don't have these keys on my key chain and the door is also locked with additional iron bolts. The thieves gave up and disappeared with what they got. However, it is worth to mention that they were somehow considerate as they left the keys (also my office keys) behind when they could not use it, my emptied wallet (credit card and business cards still in) and my small Lappa bags where I had other stuff in. 
Our landlord reacted instantly (it was the third break-in into this building within 10 months...) and got people over to fix the windows with even more iron bars (living in Fort Knox now) and the security guys came to apologize. They did not hear anything as heavy rain was pouring down.
The police came later the day and "investigated" the case of criminal activity and afterwards made me pay 40 USD for "facilitating" the police report - I had to beg for a receipt, so draw you own conclusions on the legality of this money request...
Personally, I learned that I do not have such a light sleep as I always believed - I did not hear a single noise when the guys pulled the bags to the window and emptied them although my bed is only 50cm away. Well, but at least we know that our doors what doors are supposed to do - and I will never ever leave my keys on the desk.

Charles Taylor Trial is eventually over: 50 years in prison - on May 30
Also, on the more serious side, Liberia just experienced a historical moment:
Already on April 26, 2012 Charles Taylor, former Liberian president and dictator, was found guilty for 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity by the Special Court for Sierra Leone and on May 30, the final sentence of 50 years was announced.
Charley Taylor, who took over power in Liberia in 1990 by torturing and killing his predecessor Samuel Doe after six months of rebel war, used to country's vaste natural resources to lead the country into a 14years long civil war and is also responsible for fuelling the civil war which broke in Sierra Leone a bit later. He was eventually arrested in 2006 and has been waiting in the Hague for his trial to begin since then. For a very good overview of the events which led to his verdict can be downloaded here.
I will seize the opportunity to write on the reactions to the outcome of the trial in a different post - it would get too long here.


Liberian Basketball - on June 2

Last Saturday a friend of mine and I went to a basketball match which another friend had organised. He is a member of an organisation founded by Liberians who are aiming at supporting the development in their country. The basketball game was a charity event with all entrance fees etc. being used for the projects. It was great fun to see Liberians playing basketball as usually soccer is the dominant team sport here and you will find soccer fields (or places used as) just everywhere in the city, but barely a basketball court.


Ok, that's it for now. Germany - Portugal will be on in about 1.5 hours and it is time get ready. Thanks once again for reading and take good care of yourself.

PS: I will arrive in Germany in five weeks from today! :)

Random Impressions

Variety of sun glasses at Waterside Market. Pen-pen riders prefer the ones with the coloured frames in pink, red, green and turquoise. I got myself one with a red frame and figured that the glasses are so dark, you cannot really see anything anymore. So I set a new rule for myself: Don't let your pen-pen rider wear his sun-glasses when you are on his bike.







Below: My roomies and I. Yes, we look silly. But that is only because we went to a theme party. The theme was "L". So I turned into a Learner in a Driving School, next to me is a light house, and Lady Luxury is on the very left. We had loads of fun!








Below: Second hand market on Bushroad Island. Very close to water side market, just across the bridge (decide which one you want to use - the new or the new new one) there is the second hand market where you can find clothes you have even dreamt of. As well as the H&M collection of the past two years.


























To the right: Children at the Community Hall in a village in Bomi County. I joined our implementing partner, a Liberian NGO, for a meeting on local development planning in one of the communities we are working with. It was a really good day and helped me to better understand how the concepts, workplan and implementation strategies I discuss with our partner actually turn into practice.

I also gave my first radio / newspaper interview in Liberia, however, so far I could not find anything reported in the news. Maybe also because Bomi county radio cannot really count as a nation wide broadcasting station.

Maggie's beach, somewhere off Monrovia. We seized the opprotunity of a beautiful Sunday and escaped to the beach. When I got bored of just laying down, I took my camera and strolled around. And soon enough I found a swamp. And an egret.

Waterside market. I still wonder if there are more vendors or more buyers. It is a great organised chaos. If you know the market, you will easily find your way through as each part is selling some particular things. If you don't know the system you may search for hourse without finding what you are looking for. But believe me, by the end of the day, whatever you need, waterside has it. Sooner or later. Here or somewhere else.

Running Liberia

When I was a kid, I did not really like running over a longer distance. Unfortunately though this was the only discipline in lights athletics I had kind of potential, so I went along with that. And when I became older I learned to enjoy running and today, I feel stressed if I cannot run at least once in a couple of days. It is not that I like the idea of running so much, it is rather a great way to clear your mind and to get rid of pressure, anger and feelings of annoyment.

This is why I also run in Liberia. And to avoid to gain too much weight as the Liberian / Lebanese diet is not necessarily the most healthiest one you could ask for.

Running in Liberia though is extremely different from running at home. It starts with the climate. The only chance to run and not risking to experience a stroke, is to run early in the morning - like 6am-ish, when the sun just starts rising - or after 6pm, when the sun gets down. During the day, the heat and humidity are just too much to cope with at least for my spoiled German system. 

Running after 6pm so is also pretty challenging as  I usually won't come home from work before 6.45pm and soon after most parts of the town are pitchblack. And so are Liberians (no offense at all - it's a fact). You barely see them when running along the road and you also barely see the numerous potholes. As I prefer not to break my leg, I usually run early in the morning before work. 

It is the nicest time of the day. When I leave the house around 6.15am, the shanty town next to our building slowly wakes up and I greet my neighbours before I put on my music on high volume and start running.

Only few cars and pen-pens (motorbike) are on the roads and I have plenty of space. The guards at the several UN offices which I pass know me already and friendly wave when I run along.
In general, running is perfect to get to see a bit of daily life in Libera. The early morning hours are slow though: The first people get up to fetch water, others already find their way to work, dogs are stretching their legs and from time to time you hear a child cry.
I have one route where I pass the same neighborhood twice and when I come by for the second time, it is already around 6.45am and people are up. Then I usually get some applause (yeah, no kidding) and people congratulate me - "Good job, missy!" - or show their gratitude - "Thank you, missy!". I still wonder what they thank me for and at some point I will stop my run just to figure that out.

At Benson Hill, I always meet the same group of young Liberians. They climb the hill from the other side as I do and their side is much worse and way more exhausting. However, they don't only do it once (something I am only barely able to do); no, they do it ten times. Up and down, up and down....I always feel a little embarassed in particular as they always look fine while the color of my face had already turned into an intensive red. When I am lucky though, I reach the peak of the hill just in time to see a beautiful sunrise and then I forget about any embarassement and just enjoy the view.

This is running in the morning. At weekends though, I like to seize the opportunity to run around 6pm when the sun starts setting but there is still enough daylight for an hour. At this time of the day, the streets are crowded and it is almost an adventure to find your way through the people. Again, I hear a lot of "Thank you!" and "Good exercise!" when I pass street vendors and pen-pen riders. And I can smell Monrovia then. Almost every meter, there is a different smell in my nose - freshly fried plantain (banana) chips, roasted meet, exhaust fumes, human sweat, sea water breeze, fresh fish, garbage and certainly also human excrements. A functioning sanitation system is still missing and this smell is best indicator that the situation urgently needs to be changed.
Generally, I like this mix of smells as it brings Monrovia and the Liberians closer to me and it creates memories: By now, I actually now when on my route I should better lock my nose and only breath through my mouth to avoid unpleasant surprises.

The best thing on these early evening runs are the kids. They spend their weekend on the street, keeping themselves busy whatever they can find. For example, a white missy with a red face, who is just passing by. What else could be more fun than following her. In a group on five. Or ten. So sometimes when I turn around I just see this bunch of small kids running just behind me with big smiles on their faces. I always have to smile then as well and just hope, that they laugh with me and not at me. When I am in the mood, I slow down a little and we shake hands and give each other high fives. This only applied for very young children though. In general, Liberians are in great shape and older children can at least for a while keep up with my pace and are even faster than me. About a week ago, I ran along the beach and I passed a group of maybe 15years old girls. One of them challenged me and so we got into a race. She certainly beat me by far and I was completely exhausted afterwards, but it was just great fun.

Running in Liberia is a challenge - in particular for my system which is sometimes struggling hard not to collapse - but it is a great way to recharge the batteries and a very interesting way to discover the city. So I will keep running. I wished I would have some pictures which show what I am talking about but unfortunately running and takinga camera along is no good match. So this time words have to be enough. But next time there will be pictures. I promise.

Cheers for now and take good care!

Highly irritating perspectivce on Gay practice and rights...

....however, it is a call for applying only non-violent measures. This is certainly a good thing.

An Open Letter to Gays in Liberia (Gay-marriage will not hold!) – Part I 

Frontpage Africa Online, April 27

(http://frontpageafricaonline.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3022&catid=48&Itemid=121)

Dear Gays,

I am only greeting you with the hope that you will leave Liberia alone and go to a country where your rights as gays are guaranteed and protected. You will do the good people of Liberia Justice if you suspend and totally abandon your current gay-rights campaign. It is often said that the voice of the people is the voice of God. No one needs to tell you that the preference of the Liberian people is heterosexuality, and not homosexuality. I would appreciate if you respect the general view of market women, petit traders, taxi-drivers, pen-pen riders, students and all well meaning Liberians who have refuted this insane social order (homosexuality). I know it is not easy to accept the choice of the people, especially when it is not in your favor, but you have to, because this is what our society dictates. If gays are objective and honest enough to themselves, they will agree with me that our setting does not support this unpleasant misdeed. Our custom completely frowns on same-sex marriage. It is an open secret that man getting married to man in Liberia will not hold! I certainly don’t think that this is the kind of generational change we are hoping to achieve.

I find it very necessary to once again remind all gays and their advocates that Liberians are not ready and willing to accept any form of offer that will compromise the national culture and social dignity of the State for an act that is counter productive to the true existence of mankind. Be warned not to underestimate the commitment and determination of the people to publicly trash any bill that tends to make homosexuality legal. I wonder sometimes whether you (Gays) have critically reviewed the track records of Liberia on this matter. If you haven’t, it would be in your best interest to do so. Quickly, let me bring to your attention that since 1847, gay-marriage has not survived on this soil and will never. No number of tactics or persuasion from the quarters of so-called gays can twist our focus from the path of national development, reconciliation, and societal transformation.

It is unthinkable and ridiculous to have seen such an issue surfaced in the Liberian Republic. What baffles me the most is that majority of those who we have entrusted with public offices, including the President has not taken a definite stand on this matter. We are proud of the few public servants who have committed themselves to championing the cause of the anti-gay struggle. History will judge all public trustees who are still mute on this issue because they want to be decorated with international favor. I am confident that this is not the type of national vision our government is envisaging for the youthful generation before 2030.

One thing I can assure all gays is that our society will never fall prey to any kind of intimidation and coercion from the West. I know you still hold strongly to the conviction that one day you will have freedom to practice such a harmful transgression in Liberia. My appeal is that you drop that belief now, because there is no space in the moral closet and social bank of our common patrimony for such grave wickedness and unnatural phenomenon to take precedence. What difference does it make for another man to be used as a sex-machine for his male counterpart? The biggest question that currently exists in my mind is, who will we call our mothers and sisters? Will there be any distinction between a man and a woman? God forbid, this thing will never hold in Liberia!

I know you may want to argue that your right to choose who you want to marry is violated, but let me swiftly disabuse your minds that since the formation of this State, there has been no legal instrument that authorizes same-sex marriage. Why I find it most significant to protect and respect the rights of others, I have also pledged my unrestricted allegiance never to undermine the decency of the State. This is why my voice on this matter will remain sturdy. I will only stay quiet a bit if you denounce your current status and keep silent. If you have nothing to offer during this critical interval of national renewal and reconstruction, I beg your indulgence to refrain from distorting our destiny. Don’t take advantage of our leniency and economic condition by contaminating our moral fabric with abnormal attributes. We are proud to be who we are. We are comfortable with the culture we have. We are not prepared to photocopy any absurd lifestyle that will usher our nation’s pride and self-respect into total disgrace and degradation.

I am quite aware that some of you (gays) in Liberia have accepted to be used as sexual toy for others because of social, political and economic reasons. Some of you feel that it is the only means of climbing the social ladder, achieving political prominence, and maximizing wealth. Unfortunately, you have missed the mark by ignoring the demerits of this dreadful disease. I pity your condition sometimes for the horrible mistakes you have made. I know you had no other option at the time when poverty, ignorance, and peer-pressure kept knocking at your doorpost. Notwithstanding, it is not too late to make a U-turn.  The choice is yours to either stay as deviant sexualists or to find another positive way of survival. Wake up from your slumber, and stand up against gay activities. Is it rational to you for a man to become the wife of another man or for a woman to become the husband of another woman? Even animals know that this act is wrong. Do you need a rocket scientist to tell you that men were not created for men and women were not created for women? If so, you will continue to exist in the world of fantasy and stay long inside.

My foremost responsibility at this time is to defend the interest and aspiration of the Masses and all those who want to give up in our present struggle against homosexuality. The Masses Against Gay Activities in Liberia (MAGAL) is ready to spend sufficient time, effort, and resources to ambush any initiation of gay-rights bill in Liberia.  Our goal is definite. Our priority is plain. Until you can have regard for the many voices that have recognized how dangerous and detrimental gay-marriage is to the future existence of our common denominator, you will continue to receive unending lashes and condemnation from all sectors of the society. Have you (gays) taken into consideration the future of our children and the unanticipated masses? Do you hope for Liberia to become a country of gays and lesbians twenty (20) years from now? Are you envisioning to get wedded to your own brother one day? Is it your plan to see a man kissing another man at homes, high schools, universities, churches, mosques, workplaces, and public areas? Interestingly, you got to stop day dreaming, because neither Montserrado nor Maryland will accept the horrendous face of homosexuality. Beware to withstand the wrath of the people! Don’t overlook their disenchantments!

I wonder most often whether you really have conscience.  Is it normal to really alter your sexual orientation? What does being a gay add to your life? What kind of parenting will you provide? Are you true patriots and nationalists of Liberia? What legacy do you intend to leave? I suggest that you don’t allow cash violence and insensitivity to keep you where you are. You can become great without reducing your dreams to gayism and lesbianism.

The Masses Against Gay Activities in Liberia (MAGAL) uses this medium to reaffirm its devotion and diligence to the Liberian people and the anti-gay movement. We encourage all of our supporters, sympathizers, and well-wishers to always tread the path of non-violence in this matter. We promise to use the power of the pen at all times to defeat their unsubstantiated arguments. One thing I know for sure is that victory over homosexuality in Liberia is certain. As we remain on the corridor of national unity, economic expansion, social civility, and political development, we are cognizant of your plot to keep us down as a people. It would be prudent enough for you (gays) to disregard your fruitless campaign and help rebuild the nation. Nevertheless, if you have nothing to contribute at this crucial stage, just remain taciturn!

MAGAL encourages all gays to make reference to its recent fourteen page (14) article that was published in the FrontPage Africa Newspaper. The very next time I hear the voice of any gay, I am going to make public the first anti-gay book comprising of one hundred and fifty (150) pages to expose the inner agenda of all so-called gays in Liberia and discourage this distasteful deed (gay-marriage). A hint to a wise is quite sufficient. I will do a great disservice to the youthful generation of this country without making clear to them that ‘GAYS’ are Gangsters Against Youth Success!

Long live the anti-gay movement…Long live the Liberian People….Long live Lberia!! This thing will not hold!!

Martin K. N. Kollie, III.

National Chairman

Masses Against Gay Activities in Liberia (MAGAL)

About leaving the capital for once

Since I came to Liberia I have gotten stuck in Monrovia (except for a day trip to Buchanan where I saw nothing else than the county administration building and the trips to Sierra Leone, but this does not really count) and had not seen much of the country. But eventually the day had come where I was able to escape the capital and to travel up country: I headed off to Foya in Lofa County where a friend/ temporary flatmate/ colleague of mine lives and works to spent a couple of days there before we both travelled back to Monrovia.

Liberia is separated into 15 different counties which serve as administrative units with local authorities in place. Different to neighbouring Sierra Leone (and also Germany) though, Liberia has a rather centralised political system and local officials are not elected by the people living in the respective county, but appointed by the central government in Monrovia which is seen by many as a power-keeping mechanism of the ruling elite in the capital. However, this is just a side note, as I actually wanted to say that Lofa County is the largest county in Liberia, located in the North and rather sparsely populated. It borders with Sierra Leone and Guinea and the distance to Monrovia is quite a bit - geographically and also when it comes to the question if the needs and demands of Lofa people are properly considered in the capital. At least six different tribes (there are about 16 different tribes in entire Liberia) call Lofa their home - the Kpelleh, Lorma, Mandingo, Kissi, Gbandi and Mende. In Foya, the Kissi are the dominant ethic group.

The GIZ programme my friend works for is focussing on food security issues. The team supports local rice and cocoa farmers to increase the cropyield as well as the quality of their products in order to ensure food security on the one hand and increased income through selling more and higher quality products on the other hand.

Before I came to Foya though, I had to make it to Gbarnga, capital of Bong county first as there as there I would get a lift to Foya. So my colleague in Monrovia succeeded in helping me to find someone with a car and at 6am I got picked up by that guy. We kept chatting while we left the greater Monrovia region, mainly about life in Liberia, his family, my work and all that stuff. On the way you have to cross several police and immigration checkpoints (so better have your passport with you). You likely may be asked for a bribe, in particular when you are Liberian and you are squeezed with seven others in a shared taxi on your way to the market to sell cassava leaves. We were lucky and were not even asked, so we hence also avoided long discussions.
However, when we passed the last checkpoint close to Monrovia, he told me: "So, during the war, this was a dangerous checkpoint." I asked why and he explained: "Well, outside, where we are now, there were the rebels. Inside you were safe as the area belonged to Monrovia where the rebels did not go. But it was not easy to get inside. When you came here, you had to kiss a skeleton which they hang up. Or sometime you even had to kiss a freshly chopped man's head, where the blood was dripping from. If you would not kiss that, the rebels would kill you. Very dangerous checkpoint." And he looked at me and laughed. Looking at the driver, who was just about my age, I recalled what he'd just said and froze internally. Having built up a working and living routine here, it is somehow easy to forget about the country's past for a while, and then it will just hit you in situations you wouldn't expect and once again you realize what kind of memories each and every single person in this country carries around.

Market day

Back to driving to Gbarnga though. After crossing huge replantation areas for rubber tree

Foya 'Highway'

s (run by one of the world's largest tire companies Firestone) we made it to the city in just four hours and I jumped in the next car. We instantly left the paved road and for the next six hours I found myself on a sandtrack,  listening to very interesting details about the villages we were rushing through and enjoying the beautiful landscape with its various greens. And then we were in Foya where my friend was waiting to show me around.It is a rather small place, with only about 2000 people living there, three junctions, one 'highway' (still not paved though), one bar, no grocery store, millions of mangotrees, one Ecobank branch as well as one Total gas station to come (no one knows when though) and many friendly people who get themselves through the day somehow.

Blacksmith in Foya

Lappa sale at Foya Market

We spent the weekend preparing a workshop for following Monday, reading, doing Pilates (!!!), walking through the village and certainly going to the market. The market is the weekly highlight and the entire village seems to be on the move. We shopped lappa (African fabric), bread, vegetables and a as a small snack some cassava balls and fried sweet potatoe slices to take away, before we walked back home, already melting in the baking heat. At noon, barely anyone is one his or her feet, everyone is just resting as currently - when dry season turns into rainy season - the heat is just too much. I got used to be sweaty here most of the time, but Foya was even a bit more.

Boy from the village swimming in the river which is used to irrigate the rice

Rice Farmers

On Monday, after an early run in the morning towards the border to Sierra Leona and after my friend finished her workshop, we left for a field trip and I got introduced into the specialities of how to properly grow rice. Water is the key to success. Grow rice in water, and you won't have problems with grass, the rice will grow quicker and be more resilient. Grow it in drylands, and you won't succeed. Well, this was obviously a little too simplistic, but indeed the GIZ programme supports the community members / farmers to build up dams and to establish irrigation systems to ensure that the rice always will have sufficient water. I found it extremly interesting and hope to learn more about cocoa farming next time when I'll be there.

Kpatawee waterfall

The next morning we left Foya early the next morning to head back to Monrovia. My colleague came along as she had some thing to sort out in the capital. Travelling together is more fun than just being on your own so we decided to seize the ooportunity to have an overnight stay in Gbarnga and to visit the beautiful Kpatawee waterfalls. It is quite a highlight as it is actually signposted as a Ecotourism Sight - one of the very few they have in this country. Obviously it is taken advantage of it and you have to pay an entrance fee: After paying 100 Liberian Dollars each (about 1 Euro each) which ist meant to be spent on community development (although the man in charge was not sure if that will be spend on building a school or drilling a well - difficult decision, in particular as he could also just keep it for himself.....) and a nice ride through large rice farming areas, we reached the lower waterfall and it was just perfect.

Upper waterfall

River in the thick forest

Quiet and beautiful, no people around (apart from an older man who was forced to get dressed when we came) and huge trees - I have not seen any bigger so far. As we knew that there is also an upper waterfall, we decided to climb up there and our colleague and super reliable driver served as a perfect guide. He literally ran through the forest (although you could barely see that he lifted his feet - it was highly impressive) and it was a challenge to catch up with him. Which means it is not true that Liberians are slow walkers - they are just smart walkers: Taking their time in the heat of the day, where is no shade, they are fast and extremely efficient walkers as soon as the air cools down a little and trees are covering the tracks.

Downstream view from the upper waterfall

So eventually we sat on a big rock in the river and enjoyed the cool breeze while small butterflies were dancing around us, greedily soaking the salt from our skin. Definitely worth the effort to get there. On our way back we met a couple of Liberians - members of the community next by - who were on their way to do some fishing, carrying fishing rods and machetes along. I have to admit, once again, when they moved through the thick and sounding forest it did look way more elegant than it did for me and my friend.

After a sleep-over in Gbarnga and an spontaneuous meet-and-greet with a 24cm long and 1,5cm thick centipede which ended with the centipede being kicked out of the room and me being a little disgusted, we returned to Monrovia the next day and went straight into the office. It was a great chance to see more of the country than just Monrovia and I am looking forwards to travel a bit more inner country in the upcoming months.

Banana

A trip back home to Sierra Leone

Above: I did forget the name of it, but we passed this beautiful river on our last part of the journey - somewhere between Bo and Freetown. It is peak of dry season right now and the water is very low. It is fascinating to see how much human life and activities is in and around the river. People do their laundry, swim, fish and chat. The river seems to be an integral part of their life and livelihood. However, this may change a lot when the river fills up with water again and rather turns into a risk as many people cannot swim. I am very curious to see how it will look like.

This huge truck managed to drive on the incredible bumpy road all the way to Monrovia, ensuring trade between both countries. But you can imagine, it is quite a nightmare. Transport of goods is a serious challenge and certainly present constraints for intensification of trade activities.

To the right: This is my friend I.. As I said, this trip was a bit about coming home. As many know, I met Isata in 2008/2009 when I was doing my Master research in Freetown. Since then, we have never lost contact and such as three years ago I enjoyed spending time with her and the kids a lot. And as usual, we cooked - this time we prepared greens, the most expensive leaves you can find here, with rice and fish. I am just cleaning the rice of small stones, dirt and millions of ants (which actually bit my fingers annoyingly often).




Lunch time - I really missed eating from the bowl with my fingers. Food was delicious, I did not eat the fish though. But I made people happy by handing over my fish. And in return I got the best part of the rice, which you have to scrape of the pot and which is a little crunchy. To the right, there are Isata's daughters J. (with the jerry can) and S. (blowing the white balloon) as well as a neighbour kid.

Family Picture with I. and the kids. The small one was born in summer last year and he is a real cutie. Being the only boy among all the girls Isata has high expectations for him take care of her economically when she is older and he is grown up. For now,  he does not do much more than babbling, laughing and well, whatever babies do.
My friend M. is missing here as he is taking the picture.

As it was planned, we actually managed to get in a taxi on Staurday and went to Waterloo (small, but busy town, next to Freetown) to see the land site which was purchased with my support and where a now a house shall be build on. So far, you can see preparations for the toilet (lesson learnt: This is what you always do first) and the first bunch of sandbricks which are made by Mr. M. himself. The foundation shall started in the next couple of days and the idea is to finish the first room before the rainy season starts. If they would leave the land like this, they run the risk that it might be sold a second time to someone else and then they have to fight for their rights and this needs to be avoided.

However, although it was great fun and we had a good time together, once again there were some issues which needed to be discussed. Without going into detail, I just realised once more, that I still understand so little of the dynamics, mechanims, the understanding of rationality and personal desires which exist in my friends' Lebenswelt (living environment). But by the end of the day, we managed to reach a mutual understanding in a way that provides the ground for ongoing friendship and learning from each other. And I think that might be the most you could ask for.

And while the men worked on the land, the girls had photo session. All of them like to snap and to be snapped, so we spent an hour with just taking pictures and playing around.
J. and S. were very happy and in a good mood and kept climbing on my back and competed who can sit on my lab.
Both of them are very smart girls and time and time again, I am impressed how self-responsible they act for being just 9 and 12 years old.

I. likes pictures too, so we let the girls snap us. And certainly, the guys like pictures too, so we took some in front of the sandbricks to have a nice thing to remember. The guy in the pink pants is a good friend of M. and currently stays in Waterloo to ensure that the land is safe. As said above, there is a risk that land is sold twice if you don't "occupy" properly. Freetown is about to burst and cannot take any more people, so everyone is looking for new places. Prices for land are skyrocketing and competition is huge. Waterloo is a good choice though as it is connected by paved road with the capital and also has a large market area itself. And it will grow a lot in the upcoming years.

On our way back  to Free- town we certainly stopped at one the markets as Isata wanted to buy a chicken. In the picture, she is asking for advice, but I was not really helpful and recommended to better pick a brown one. Well, she went for white. So, just another passenger joined us and mingled around our feet in the car. Its future is crystal clear - to lay eggs as many as possible and then at one day to serve as proper dinner.

So far my trip to Freetown. Besides spending the weekend with my friends, I was certainly also working. It was an interesting workshop, I spare you the details though as it might be less interesting for you. Take good care, everyone near and far!

General specification

Wow. This has been quite a long time again. So, no discussion about the need for an update, but where to start?

I managed to get tested negative for typhoid and malaria - woohooo!

Maybe we go from the general to the specific. Generally, I am doing very fine. I really like Liberia and so far, not much has happened which made me reconsider my decision to come here and to stay here for a while. As it always happens after a while, life became a kind of routine, although it is a routine with many exceptions and many unexpected incidents.

By now, I was lucky enough to meet quite a number of very nice people I like to hang out with so that the sudden feelings of homesickness and loneliness can be cured if desired. No doubt, I do miss my friends and family a whole lot (even Frankfurt – can you imagine???), but it is good to know that there are people to call nearby as the distance to anywhere else in the world is quite a bit.

Regarding work, it is now getting much better. After having worked so much in January and February without seeing any progress, I got pretty frustrated. Some personal issues were involved and at some point I was actually not completely sure I will be and want to be able to cope with the situation as it was any further. Anyway, things changed a lot and we are still working hard and long hours, but now we see things moving on and proceeding. Catch-up exercise almost completed! And personal issues solved. Work is fun again. And very interesting, so I am happy.

Nadine, our third roomie, came back beginning of February, now being properly employed by GIZ. Unfortunately she has already left again as she is based up country in Foya and only returning to Monrovia once in a while. It’s a bit unfortunate as she is a pretty good roomie, but at least I have a good reason to travel a little outside the capital to visit her. Actually, I will drive up to Gbarnga in mid of April, where I will meet Nadine and then we continue to Foya where I stay for few days before we both go back down to Monrovia to attend just another training. Wosh, after all these workshops and trainings I will have attended by the end of the year, I should be an expert in everything.

Once again - crossing the river on the way to Freetown

Talking about travel I should mention that I am going to Sierra Leone on Thursday next week. I went there a month ago and now we have to go again to attend a planning workshop involving both countries, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

As I missed to see Isata, Momoh, Jojo, Sally and the little trouble maker last time when I was there, I am kind of happy to go again. As you may know, I was involved in some land buying issues, so now there is land to build a proper shelter, and Momoh just graduated from college and got his final documents, which is a great reason to celebrate.

Momoh, just in case you read that: I am very much impressed and proud! Fingers are crossed for successful job hunting! 

Stunning landscape

So, when I will be in Freetown we will get in a taxi and go altogether to Waterloo to visit the land site.

Talking about leaving, I should also mention that our great intern Max will leave the country right by tomorrow. This is also very unfortunate as he has been a great office companion for the past couple of months and he was a great support to the project and a perfectly fitting and very valuable team member. So Max, in case that you read this – thanks for everything, you will be missed as friend and colleague and good luck in Berlin!

So, that was the general update, now we are getting to the specifics with some highlights from the private and the work sphere:

Opening of the LEITI Resource Centre

Peter and Max in front of the new Resource Centre

After weeks of hard preparatory work, the first Resource Centre – a small library stocked with books and documents on resource governance and related issues – was eventually opened in the facilities of the Liberian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (LEITI). The German Ambassador gave the key note speech and members of the Multi-Stakeholder Group steering the LEITI process welcomed very much the initiative. The idea behind is to provide easy access to information on natural resources and its management and governance for the civil society, students from the university and the general public. More can be found in this article.

Lazy Raft Day on St. Paul’s River

Sunday morning, 11am. Few people were gathering down at a site near St. Paul’s River somewhere on Bushroad Island (is that actually true???). Over time, the crowd gets bigger, majority of them are expats. Cellcom is doing constant promotion, Vuvuzelas and first drinks are handed out. And people are waiting. And waiting. Big pig gets prepared to end up on the BBQ. Some people dressed in white Shirts are busily running around. And people are waiting. Waiting for what?

Well, on March 3, the 3^rd Lazy Raft Day, organized by Barefoot Safari, took place and it was just great fun. Starting with some hours delay (this is about the waiting), about 80 people eventually jumped on barges, rafts, tubes and whatever can float and started rafting down St- Paul’s river. I was in the water for about 3 hours non-stop, tangling myself to a tube or string and let the water carry me along. The sun was shining; there was music, nice people and the stunning landscape of Liberia. So I enjoyed every single minute and I did not even get sick although I swallowed at least 3 liters of river water. When we returned it was already dark and the big pig was ready to be eaten (which people did instantly).

More pictures will follow – have to find some from others as I did not take any myself during the actual trip.

Shopping in Monrovia

When I came back to Monrovia in January, there was definitely no need for any shopping. All this running around in Germany and the hours of packing I spend before my departure really did not want to make me buy anything in a long time. Did I mention that I brought about 80-90kg of stuff back here?

Making pots

Anyway, after two months of being shopping-absent, I felt that I need to buy something nice and something which is not food. Or toilet tissues. Or bug spray. As shopping opportunities are somehow limited in Monrovia, I decided to go plant shopping. There are some really nice places along the main road in Monrovia and so a friend of mine and I chartered a cab and bought some really nice green plants in big pots. I got one for my room, one for the living room and one for the office and guess what – they are all still alive. I also stopped at Kasawa, a nice tailor shop in town, and got a table cloth and large blanket. And for some reason I felt very happy afterwards and still do when I see my plants and the blanket and everything. Apparently some small shopping adventure once in a while is very much needed.

Car Hunting

Nadine and I would like to buy a car. We know which car we want – a cute, little Toyota RAV4. However, buying one is apparently not as easy as we thought. Our experiences so far are rather disappointing and it seems that some man (meaning male) power is needed to get things proceeding. This is frustrating, in particular for such emancipated ladies as we obviously are…

Well, this is the story: I got in touch with a used car dealer from Nigeria who is running a garage here in Monrovia. We talked about what we want and one day I got a text saying that a RAV4 would be available for a test drive. So we agreed on a time and went there on a Saturday morning to check out the car. Surprising detail here: There was no car. The dealer only invited us to find out if we are “fine ladies”. So instead of checking out a car, we got checked out. I am pretty sure you can imagine that I was furious. And speechless. At least almost. I expressed my deep disappointment and left. This clear condemnation of the dealer's behavior however only resulted in an invitation for lunch. Obviously, I did not go. 

Anyway, after some weeks I got another SMS saying he just got the perfect car for us and came up with a reasonable price. As I am convinced that people should get second chances, I agreed to see the car, but took two colleagues along who have advanced mechanical skills. The dealer actually presented two cars, one of them seemed to just have come out an accident. My colleagues looked at both cars and agreed: “Well, Juliane, this is nothing for the future after tomorrow.”  So here we are. No car. No reliable dealer. But a lunch date. Story to be continued.

Ok, actually I will close for today. This is a pretty long post. Thanks for reading and I hope you are well. Take good care and I miss ya all!