trek up the mountain
Not much going on yet. I am sure the weekend will be eventful. Things are a bit slow as everyone is settling back down, moving around, and re-adjusting after all the preparations and changes after convention.I've been reading anything I could find. An encyclopedia on birds, old newspapers and BBC's Focus on Africa magazines, an old copy of Awake!, a publication of the Jehovah's Witnesses that had some really interesting articles about mountains, an article about why people in certain countries drive on the right side, and on the left in certain other countries. Here in Salone, driving is done on the right side of the road. There are no traffic signals as there is no electricity. At intersections and round-abouts (as in most third world countries), traffic is directed by a policeman.
Hailing from Bangalore, India, and then the concrete jungles of New York City, I don't often get to see and enjoy the mountains. Lush green mountains in their majesty and grandeur are plenty in Salone. The Freetown peninsula is one of the few places in West Africa where mountains can be found near the sea. After reading the article in Awake!, I had a better appreciation for the mountains all around me. Sierra Leone got its name when the Portuguese navigators arrived in 1462. They called the land Serra Leão (Lioness Mountain). Bro. John Samuel took David and I on a ride across town. We visited Fourah Bay Campus, one of the oldest 'English medium' universities in Sub-Saharan Africa. The university was founded by the Church Missionary Society in 1827. We then drove up Leicester Road all the way up Leicester Peak. From Leicester Peak, you have a good view of the ongoing construction of the new American Embassy. After the war, the Americans felt they should relocate to a mountain. At the new location, the embassy will be free from any possible dangers. The British embassy with green roofs covering all of its buildings is located just a few feet from the construction of the American Embassy. UN soldiers have a base at the peak of the mountain. Funny thing is, we were able to drive into the UN campus. The soldiers were all friendly and smiled and waved at us. I hope they have a way of detecting those of us who are friendly, and those who might be a danger.
From Leicester Peak, we drove back down to Lumley beach. The beach is popular with UN and aid workers. We drove by Bangladeshi troops playing soccer, UN aid workers jogging along the beach, and Chinese and Lebanese at their beach side beer shacks and restaurants. The beach is scattered with rubbish, but I am sure it would be cleaned in the summer. It looks safe enough to swim, but there you might have an encounter with a crab or two.
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I learned something interesting about the wives in the Krio tribe. This apparently happens only among those in the Krio tribe. If the man is wealthy and has a lot of land and possessions, it is common for his wife to grind glass into a fine powder and cook it in the fufu to kill the husband and inherit all of his possessions. Darn women! They're trouble all over the world!
For the past three days, Mommy Dupigny has been bed-ridden with malaria. She is faint, has no strength to move around, and can barely eat. She is getting better though and we hope that by Monday she'll be out and about.
posted by bthomas24 @ 7:16 PM
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