Settling In...

My Desk at the LEITI Offices on Broad Street
see all photos »

And to think I was worried about bedbugs… As it turns out, there was little need to worry about insects so alien to me when something all too familiar is much more likely to threaten a place like this: roaches. That’s right, 4 of these lovelies the size of my thumb decided that my room was a nice place to take shelter from the rain. Adolfus, a boy who serves as the cook and room manager for the APC, helped me kill the first one and sprayed my room. I went out on the sheltered walk-through bridge between the women's rooms and the main building of the compound to talk with one of the other guests for awhile, and then returned to the room to find 3 more roaches struggling their way through their final moments on my floor. After disposing of these, I came back to the room and left nothing of great consequence sitting flat on the floor. While I’d love to think I’ve gotten rid of all of those that snuck inside, I’m sure I haven’t seen the last of these guys. To be fair, though, this is probably my karma for having done all of that microsurgery on roaches for my last neuroscience class at Maryland. I’ll ask Adolfus to spray again in the morning - I wonder if I’ll get any sleep between now & then (she asks, looking up at the spider on the ceiling)….

And then, 10 minutes later...
see all photos »

In other news, life at the office is off to a busy start. The Steering Group meeting was an interesting experience - it was clear that there was alot of information about the various situations discussed that I didn’t have. Emotions appeared to run high under the veil of civility that many maintained. I gained a little more insight into the nature of these feelings today, at a Training Workshop for the LEITI Reporting Template used by the Ministry of Finance. This report is matched to those submitted by each stakeholder company, to identify discrepancies in the records. If any are found, both parties are asked to account for them in some way. As this process is still in its formative stages, there were many points of view about how to delineate the line items for each stakeholder industry. The workshop lasted the entire day, and there was lively discussion about various parts of the template throughout the time that the ~60 attendees spent together. It was a large group to try to keep focussed, but Negbalee made a solid effort to keep everyone on task. Afterwards, he asked for my input about ways that LEITI could make this process more efficient, and it is likely that we will continue this conversation as we prepare for the next Steering Group meeting. I should also add that this workshop provided me with the opportunity to taste another Liberian delicacy: Shortbread!  AMAZING cornbread - I helped myself to seconds.

And, 5 minutes after that...
see all photos »

At the end of the business day, Negbalee took us out to a nice restaurant at the Cape Hotel here in Mamba Point. They served many types of cuisine, with an emphasis on Lebanese. We started with Kibbeh & Spring rolls, followed by Shrimp, Curry Chicken, and Shawarma (which the fellow who ordered it pronounces /SHA-war-ma/). I had the curry, which was so mild that I almost didn’t recognize it. Hnede (/Ned-ee/), the LEITI Administrative Manager, got shrimp, but ended up sending them back (they smelled bad). I also got to try a Liberian cocktail, which tasted like dry vermouth with lime.

Downtown Monrovia, from the Window of Negbalee's Office
see all photos »

When I got back to the APC, I met Robert & Leana, a father-daughter pair just in from the bush (yes, they also call it the “bush” in Liberia, as well as the “hinterlands”). Leana came down with typhoid fever out there, right before she was headed into the deep jungle. She was taken to an emergency room here in Monrovia, and she and her father are staying here until Monday, when they’ll head back to San Francisco several weeks earlier than expected. Leana, who came here to do HIV/AIDS and other health-related work, wishes she could stay longer, as planned, but says that her experience has given her an acute appreciation of healthcare in this country. We had a nice chat on the bridge between the buildings this evening, enjoying the ocean air and listening to the waves and the music playing at the party at the nearby Norwegian Embassy.

Negbalee's Desk (in the same office)
see all photos »

Well, I still kinda have the heebee-jeebees, but I think I need to try to get some sleep. I’m going to another function with Negbalee tomorrow morning, which is followed by lunch. Then Emmanuel (the LEITI driver) is going to help me brave the supermarket. I’ve almost got this online journal thing together, but I’m worried that I won’t be able to post many pictures, given the slow internet connections here. Stay tuned for another update from our intrepid hero…