july 4

independence day.
the connections between liberia and america run deep. so it was not surprising to see a few cars with american flags and people here and there with american flags on their shirts. most liberians that i have spoken with speak highly of the united states but with some misgivings and a general distrust of our current president. almost universally they want a democrat in office with the next election. those that i have spoken with see the republicans as too quick to embrace war. and for all the fighting liberia has seen, they know they want no part.
in general the day went as ususal for me: teaching two classes of kids in the morning and two sessions for teachers in the afternoon. but for the fourth i wanted to go into monrovia. gradually i have found that i live in the 'burbs. as i commute to work in the morning, i along with hundreds of others, all head in the direction of monrovia, the capital. up to this point i had never even made it that far (things have been too busy or heavy rain has not made it possible).
my driver and a friend of his drove me into the city and showed me around. unlike other cities that are lit up like a christmas tree, monrovia is shrouded in virtual darkness. there is no general electricity in the city. if there is to be light, one must be wealthy enough to own a generator and have the money to fuel it--this excludes most.
the last time the roads were repaired to any noticable extent was probably fifteen years ago. it is a little odd to be driving in the dark going through the capital of the city and only vaguely (only in parts) seeing markings on the roads for lanes. in most places there are the shells of streetlights lining the road but they house no light. most buildings are blanketed in darkness. along the road there are people selling their wares by candle, lamp, or by mini generators.
the buildings by and large fit into three categories: (1) half-built and left in disrepair (because of the war), (2) grey and ramshackle, or (3) fairly nice but obstructed and hidden by 10 foot walls topped with forboding razor wire and/or broken glass (and maybe a guard or two at the gate). something seemed amiss as we were driving around looking through the darkness at the lack of light and sound.
though people could be seen on the sides of the road it seemed as though it were from some hollywood movie that depicted life in a city post civilization. take for example the executive mansion and the parliament building - absolutely black - no light whatsoever.
the only seemingly anachronistic thing about the above statement is the pervasiveness of cell phones.
so after visiting the american embassy and learning that the party was at the ambassadors house - and i was not invited, i went to a fancy hotel to drink a beer.
i brought my two liberian friends in with me and we had beers (liberian, and not much different from a bud light) and sushi. it was the first time i had been in air conditioning since i arrived and i must say it was quite nice. also the sushi was quite good. the best part of the whole experience was watching my friends who probably rarely even go into a restaurant like this eat something totally foreign to them. eat raw fish! why? nevertheless they liked it and especially liked the pickled ginger.
no fireworks in liberia. ever since the war, fireworks have been illegal. but after we returned to the car and started to drive home, the rain started again.
ah, this is liberian fireworks. the rain pounded the roof of the car echoing sounds almost equivalent to fireworks. i dropped the guys off at their home and drove the car home the rest of the way. it seemed as if i was in a boat going down a river. and as soon as i parked and opened the door to run to the house i was drenched.
ah, it is good to be here.