END GAME

Yesterday was my last day in the Ministry. I was remarkably calm about this. It could be because I didn’t tell many people and sneaked off without saying goodbye…. Too upsetting really. I’ve come to know and love so many of my colleagues and I still don’t know whether or not I’m coming back. The last few days have seen lots of activity finalizing two proposals for continued technical assistance (as its called) for me to come back and finalising the brief for our new Minister of Health (a driven, committed woman, first impressions are that she was be great for the Ministry). Both of the proposals may be funded, or neither! I’ll know after Christmas, but I'm coming back to Freetwon anyway.

My colleagues gave me a lovely cola nut dyed dress with beautiful embroidery and a Thank You card ….Thank you for instilling hope in me when times were difficult… declared the front, I was very touched! Now looking forward to the Ministry Christmas party on Thursday where I'll try not to drink too much and cry!

Beach Hopping

What do you for a weeks holiday in Sierra Leone? Well there is Tiwai (an amazing wildlife sanctuary in Moyamba), Tacugama (The Chimpanzee Santuary in the hills behind Freetown), for the real explorers there’s Mount Bintumani (West Africa’s tallest peak up near Kabala somewhere!!) and of course there’s the BEACHES!!!!

So I took off for a weeks holiday and set off down the coast with a friend, small rucksack each and about £200 between us (we came back with change!). Hamilton was the first stop. It’s the far end of Lakka which is the nearest swimmable beach a few miles south of Freetown. You can of course swim at Lumley Beach if you want to risk various sewage borne diseases!!! We got public transport (rickety taxi) to Lakka and walked around the gorgeous bay to Hamilton and stayed 3 nights at Samso’s (078 764734) which is a wonderful quiet secret. Huts on the beach 120-140k Le per night inc breakfast (this about £10pppn). One day we took a walk to Sussex beach which is a 2 hour stroll through Hamilton village and then along the beach. You have to wade through the river to reach Francos (very variable food and service, from terrible to reasonable). There is also a gorgeous river behind the sea that you can float along, The nearest I’ve got to in months to a warm bath! Unfortunately my waterproof camera inexplicably let in water and stopped working after the floating! All the peninsula beach walks are so lovely with the beach and sea on one side and the forested mountains on the other, unfortunately NOT captured on film but lodging firmly in my memory.

After Hamilton, we took motorbikes to River No2 beach and from there hiked down the next beach and waded across the river to Tokeh…another beautiful and deserted white sand palm fringed beach, 2 nights here and then another local taxi to Banana Island. We stayed at Daltons run by a young Greek chap called Gregory. He is in the middle of major renovations and its going to be a great place to stay very soon (076 278120) basic en suite rooms 50k Le plus 12k Le for breakfast (Omelette and chips!!!) but there will be a cheap sleeping hut and also camping very soon. Gregory has devised a hot shower system which is a large metal barrel with a small fire/smouldering embers under it so amazingly I had a hot shower and without scalding myself too! Banana island is lovely and worth hiking around to explore the island and its many lovely beaches and quiet spots. Greg also is going to start dive courses. He is a master diver and has all the equipment. Also it is beautiful to snorkel around the rocks, lots of lovely fish.

So after a 6 day trip, it was back to Freetown via… 1 boat, 1 Poda, 2 walks and 3 taxis! Four hours later I was home again…. Back in the frenetic life in Freetown and those empty beaches suddenly seemed very far away!

Mami and Pikin Wellbodi week, World Aids Day, I cant keep up!

Mother and Child Health Promotion week was launched actually last week by the President, 3 key things are happening: 3 million Malaria nets are being distributed to all households in the country (so a tiny challenge then!), Vitamin A for all children and deworming medication (Albendazole) for all. I have a net, I take multi-vitamins, but I'm due for the 6 monthly mass genocide of the small pets living in my colon!!! these campaigns every 6 months do seem to have an impact

I cant believe that its 1 December tomorrow.... count down to Christmas and World Aids Day. There is a big event happening at the back of my office to mark the day (I know because of all the tents, chairs and red ribbons banners!) and we health workers are required to 'March' ok saunter in this heat from Victoria Park in town to somewhere else (not sure where yet). This is a lot easier than a previous sporting activity I undertook on 1 December 1989, which was to throw myself off the top of Fazakerly Hospital (a mere 14 storeys high) with only a rope for company... abseiling apparently. I raised enough money to pay for the post traumatic stress counselling needed for the next 5 years! I'm assuming the March will be less scary.

The photo is of some kids who will benefit this week I hope... plus an animal called a 'grass cutter' which is a delicacy but whose sweet taste I've not had the privilege to try yet!

Shocking

One of yesterday’s Freetown papers has a story about a young man caught stealing an old pair of shoes. Members of the Leicester Road community (up the hill behind the parliament, on way to Fourah Bay College) cornered him and its alledged that he was beaten and stoned to death by this 'mob'. There was an awful photo of him in the paper, naked and bloody. The paper intimated that he deserved to die, more or less saying that it was a lesson he would never forget and a warning to others.

I know this community are plagued by repeated robberies but this is an atrocity and should be treated as such. People taking the law into their own hands is not how a country grows and progresses. Members of the same community and the people who own and write for the paper will go to church on Sunday and I wonder what they will pray for.

The Awareness Times does a summary online of the latest local and national news in Sierra Leone, although it wasn’t the paper who reported this in such an irresponsible way it does cover the story in its summary: http://news.sl/drwebsite/publish/cat_index_037.shtml

From New York to SL

Monday 24th November 2008. I was half way through a short 4 day trip to the Big Apple, taken on a romantic notion and never regretted! Wednesday 24th November 2010 (location Freetown!) and I’m fondly reflecting on that trip only 2 years ago and started comparing Freetown to New York in my head. Here are a few highly subjective similarities in a random order:

· Chaotic traffic and enormous jams (but there are no bulldozers randomly taking the front of buildings off so the road can be widened!)
· Yellow taxis (although most of the NYC taxis don’t have smashed windscreens held together with Man United stickers and back axles scraping on the ground or scary sounding clunks as you drive along)
· Able to buy things day and night (although the choice here is severely limited)
· Friendly people
· Massive inequity between rich and poor (the relative differences I haven’t economically assessed)
· Buzz, pulse, beat, however its described – the pulsating life of a city that both NYC and FT have but lots of cities don’t have
· Some great food!
· Lots of people living in a small space
· Creative ways to make money, lots of entrepreneurs!
· Surrounded by sea
· Dirty air and Noisy (all kinds of sounds, including music everywhere?)
· Amazing hairstyles and clothes
· Areas that aren’t safe at night (but you could say that of any city)
· Some good places to have a beer!
· Lots of religious buildings!
· Lots of languages spoken

There are lots of differences too. There’s the obvious developed v under developed massive differences for people; levels and access to education, health care (although in both places, many poor people still have to pay for their health care), life expectancy, housing etc. But my comparisons are, well, a little less heavy in this blog! Freetown is hilly and wooded and there are hardly any tall buildings, no proper shops, overstretched and underdeveloped telecommunication systems, most buildings are not maintained, no proper public transport infrastructure and almost no galleries or theatre but it does have amazing countryside and beaches less than an hour away. Both towns have that essential life blood which makes them interesting, fascinating and exciting places to live. Freetown is definitely the Big Apple (or should I say Mango, as all apples are imported) of Salone and despite the fact that its not New York. I still love it.

In true Carole style, these photos have nothing to do with the blog but the 1st is the Taiama workshop photo taken with my colleagues last month (note I am the only women, hence the opening phase by the permanent secretary.... good morning Lady and Gentlemen!) and the 2nd is the kids in Peter's (Ministry Driver) village waving us goodbye!

Thanks to a certain lovely Irish guy for showing me the real New York and inspiring this blog (you know who you are)

Its a dogs life

Two weeks ago I met 3 female vets at Balmaya (one of them starred in a previous blog!). That day they had neutered 279 male dogs! Talk about being on a mission, impressive eh! I didnt ask how, too much information. But this is totally necessary. There are dogs everywhere and they almost all look the same, beige with white socks, the gene pool must be very limited! They breed and breed, leading to more canine misery as most of the dogs are homeless, thin and hungry. They fight alot and howl or bark continuously at night. Most of them have bits of their ears missing, wounds from the endless fights for food.

Although I am totally in agreement with this mass neutering, sometimes I wish these committed lady vets were removing the larnyx instead of the other bits, as I havent had a single nights sleep which hasn't been interrupted by bloody dogs barking and howling!!

'Dumbo' stars in the photo, an extremely skinny dog who lives at Hamilton Beach with abnormally large ears (of course!)

(Lack of!) Future Plans

I have decided to stay on longer in Freetown after my VSO placement ends at Christmas, for another 6 months or more. However I have to overcome some minor problems: (1) I have no job yet (2) I will have nowhere to live in 8 weeks time! I still have no idea whether I'm going home for Christmas or not and the flights are getting booked up! Mmmm... well at least I have started to look for a job and even applied for 2 but no luck yet. Plan A is to get funding to stay in the Ministry (easier said than done). Plan B is to work for a partner agency here but I'd prefer the Ministry in order to put the last 8 months to good use. Plan C is to give up on health and open a good italian coffee shop, with great coffee, paninis and cake! I even have the name..... Caroluccios! Watch this space!