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After a ten hour ride on a leaky, squeaky government bus, Henry and I arrived in Freetown last night. We checked into the Diana II Guesthouse, a small 5 room guesthouse advertised in the guidebook as having hot water and mango trees (neither of which are true), but it sure is a nice change of place from Sierra International Hotel since we are outside the noise and bustle of downtown Freetown. We were supposed to have dinner with Dr. Barrie last night, but alas our deliquent phone failed us yet again. We’ve been unable to receive or make calls, or receive text messages. Needless to say, we’ll make sure to get a better one next year. Today we’ll be visiting the Freetown Library that is run by the Sierra Leone Library Board as well as the American Library to continue our research and assessment for a potential project with the Kono Library next year. Hopefully we’ll be able to find out more about how they are organized and run, as well as how the Library Board oversees all of its branches. Apart from that, we have some time to explore the more touristy area around here–hoping to hit up some arts and crafts markets and, weather permitting, Lumley Beach. Tomorrow, we’ll be taking the last ferry to the airport (and hopefully catch the sunset over the water!), and chill until our flight departs for Casablanca at around 3:30am. Currently, the possible sources of amusement include playing endless hours of Egyptian Ratscrew, playing a ghetto soccer game on Henry’s laptop, and reviving our conversation with Francis, a geography enthusiast who hangs around the airport. We’ll probably stop at an internet cafe again tomorrow before we leave but if not, see everyone back in the US! [A more reflective post on the trip to come; my precious minutes on the internet are coming to an end right now.]
-Zoe
