September 21st 2013 – Barnesville, Liberia
In the morning, Emmanuel invited us to have breakfast together. There was no surprise there: rice and fish, but nonetheless it was really so tasty, I couldn’t stop eating until it was all finished. After, he called Abel and we agreed to leave for Robertsport at around 11 am. Before Abel came we had a photo frenzy. I wanted to have as many pictures as I could with Emmanuel’s family, so I can remember the good time we’ve spent at his place. All family members were at home so it was perfect. I left the camera near the window and we got a picture every 10 seconds. When we looked at the pictures, everyone was laughing because we were in all sorts of positions.
Family photo
Abel came and we were ready to leave. Our bags were already packed, so one last thing before leaving was to hug and say goodbye to everyone in the house. Everyone was smiling, but I was a bit sad since I was leaving this place. It was really close to what I call “home”. We got in the car, but we were not alone. We were actually 7. Marcus and a woman from the family on the right seat and us two plus Emmanuel and another woman from the family in the back. The two women got off in the centre of Barnesville so they can buy food for Sunday celebration. At Duala, we said goodbye to Emmanuel and Marcus, they wished us good luck and we told them hopefully this is not be the last time we see them. We were leaving behind really good friends. We went to the gas station where Abel asked me what was the arrangement. I told him that we will go to Robertsport and from there the next morning to the border crossing with Sierra Leone at Bo Waterside. So Abel offered to come to Robertsport, stay with us that night and the following morning drive us to the border. Really good guy. While he was putting gas, he was pushing the car from the side so that the tank can fill way beyond the limit. Vlad was still in the car; he had no idea why the car was moving like that. The look on his face was just priceless.
After leaving behind Monrovia, Abel described what we saw on the windows. He told us mostly everything about Liberia’s natural resources and how is it exploited in different regions of the country. We were still in the Montserrado county which is the most populous in Liberia. Nearly everywhere you could see palm trees, rubber trees and other types of plantations. This region is one of the most fertile in the country. He also told us how disappointed he is when he looks at all of this and knows that Liberians have everything, but actually they have nothing.
When we reached the first checkpoint, we were invited in the outpost by the Liberian police officers, we presented our passports and a policeman told us to wait on a bench until the guy would finish inspecting our documents. Abel came in and told me whispering to my ear that I need to give him some Liberian dollars so he can speed up the process. So I gave him all the small bills I had. After a few seconds I could see out the window how Abel was spreading money to policemen and military officials. He was also invited by the chief policeman in his office where they stayed for a couple of minutes. Me and Vlad, we were staying impatiently on the bench waiting to leave the place. When they got out, they were still talking and smiling. Abel told us we can go and he handed our passports. We got in the car and while Abel was starting the car, I couldn’t not ask him what happened in the office. He smiled and said it was just a regular conversation. The money that I gave him was a “compensation” for the “good job” the policeman do in their country. They are paid only for about 150 US dollars per month, so they collect “compensation” from people for their services. In other words, this is the easy and faster way to pass a checkpoint.
We left behind Montserrado and passed though Bomi county. Elephant grass covered almost all the scenery. Abel stopped a few times on the way to greet the locals. He told also a few things about the way of life and marriage here in Liberia. He showed us some pictures from his brother’s wedding with an Italian woman, that took place a few months ago. I could see the groom and the bride with a lot of people celebrating that beautiful day. On his camera there were also some very disturbing pictures of a dead man right in the middle of the street. He said the man was beaten to dead and his corpse remained there for 3 days until his family collected it. Real brutal images. The road was really long, so we had time to talk about mostly everything. He told us that sometime in December there is a festival where all the magicians from the communities gather and they perform real magic. I didn’t believe that, maybe he was talking about illusionists, but he assured me that this kind of magic exists. One time a guy cut his tongue in many pieces, took the pieces in his mouth again, chewed a bit and when he opened his mouth, his tongue was there like nothing happened. This is what he witnessed once. I asked his if this is related to voodoo rituals that we all heard about and he said that if you want something to come true, like to became a senator or something, you give the guy some parts from the a woman’s body, like breasts or vaginas and you get what you want. Couldn’t get much sick then that!
We passed several checkpoints on the way and every time the drill was the same. We give the passports, Abel spreads the money and everyone gets what they want with really no hassle. Entering Grand Cape Mount county, we got off the main road leading to the border with Sierra Leone and took a left at the junction. The road was no longer in good condition. The asphalt disappeared all of a sudden and it was replaced with a muddy road filled with holes. You needed a 4×4 to use it, but Abel did a great job with his own car. Already you could see the ocean on the left and Lake Piso on the right.
When we arrived in Robertsport it was almost 3 o’clock. The first thing we had to do was to find a place for the night where we can leave our stuff before exploring the surrounding beaches. Abel called a friend of his and the guy recommended a cheap place just near the UNMIL headquarters in town. It was called Club Piso. We were invited in by Robert, probably the owner, who showed us to our room. After negotiating the price we took our backpacks in. We decided it was better to sleep all 3 in the same room. Then it was really lunch time since on the way to Robertsport we had basically nothing. At the restaurant just near Club Piso, the woman serving us understood that I want to buy a whole fish and she brought it to us. It was a huge fish! We smiled and since she brought the fish I asked her if I can take a picture with her and the fish. She accepted to be photographed.
Woman in the restaurant
After, we went directly on the beach, which was really great. Except for the waste that was left there by the villagers. Abel told me that the government is struggling to educate the people in the community to clean the beach, but so far no real result. Except for some kids playing football on the beach, we were the only ones there. The Atlantic ocean was in front of us. Finally we made it here. I took my clothes off and I just plunged in the ocean like the next morning it will no longer be there. I asked Abel to join us, but he said he could only swim in the sea, river or lake, but never in the ocean. The weather was windy, so we got really strong waves. While I was in the water, the waves carried me about 20 meters from the place I originally got in.
Robertsport is a small town just near the beach, really nothing special, but still it has that unique feel. Such a pity we had to leave in the morning. Later in the evening, we tried finding a place where we could drink some beers, but the only place opened was at Club Piso. We grabbed a couple of beers from the bar and stayed inside for a few hours. We could see and hear the heavy rain pouring on to the ground. The rainy season was still in it’s peak. Before coming to Liberia we were aware that any reference or subject about the civil was a delicate subject for most of the people here. But Abel felt he wanted to tell us some inside stories. He even knew about general Buttnaked. One time 4 rebels with guns came into his village and started shooting randomly into people, so the men in the community became some sort of vigilantes and tried to defend their village. With their bear hands they disarmed the rebels and beaten them to death. One of the tragedies of this country was the brutal civil war. When I asked him if he ever shot with a gun, he smiled warmly. He did it just twice, but up in the air celebrating the end of this unending war.
Travelling is part of life 