My Hotels Monrovia

... While we were there a group from South Dakota came in and wanted to spend 30 minutes with the children before their plane left. We were able to view the progress on the water well. They will need to drop several more concrete culverts to make it deep enough to reach good water. Hopefully by next week this can be completed.

... had. Dawn and I shared tabuli, hummis, green salad and screwers with shrimp and chicken- delicious!! Of course we had only had airline or airport food for the past 36 hours. The weather is hot and humid..and I've noticed how everyone here has beautiful skin. Dawn says the frogs are loud...I think it's ducks. Rosie will meet with us today to review the plans for the trip. Hope you all are enjoying cool weather!!

... make a car out of play dough and they were amazed. I told them that people in the U.S. care about them and want to help make their life better. The people we have interacted with are working hard to change Liberia and are so grateful for help. They are focused on all of the right things for the future- the children's education, healthcare and bringing them up with a sense of what is right.

... the city. It is difficult to start over, you must have resources to build and services are non-existant outside of the city. We drove by U.S. lead training barracks where many young men were gathered. Most of them formerly fought in the war and must learn to fight for justice now. There are signs of rebuilding mixed with destruction from the war. One building that was intended for government use has ...

... We'll also be taking trips way out into the bush where we'll set up tents and camp for a bit while we work in certain villages, so that should be really interesting. Ok, so I help this fills you in a little more with the details. I'll be sure to write if I come across any interesting stories and I'll give you more updates along the way. Hopefully I'll try to include some pictures if the internet allows me time to upload all of them. Hope everyone had a good 4th of July!

... sitting by the road - couches for sale... ****** i can't believe my trip is almost over.  its been busy and intense... a bit of an eye-opener, as every trip inevitably is... i have to say i've enjoyed myself - much more than i thought i would!  i'll miss waking up to the ocean outside my window... here are some pics of the typical morning ...

... thing. ew. anyway, he cleaned it up and took it out in the bag that i didn't want to touch. i was so grateful. i offered him my box of bunny grahams - half eaten and my snack of choice these last few nights w/ no whole foods in sight to replace them, but what the hell, i was so happy and thankful! as he left, he smiled and said "now we are friends." i thought we were already getting to be friends ...

... trying to squeeze through this little doorway where they were checking passports and clearing immigration (which, btw, was the strangest immigration setup. the doorman would collect passports, hand them to someone working there, who would take them into a backroom (where i think they were photocopying and stamping them) and a few chaotic minutes later, they would call out your name and you'd claim your passport. anyway... onto baggage claim. also a lot ...

... by a prolonged civil war, in which DOE himself was killed. In August 2003, a comprehensive peace agreement ended 14 years of int**mittent fighting and prompted the resignation of form** president Charles TAYLOR, who was exiled to *****ia. Aft** two years of rule by a transitional gov**nment, democratic elections in late 2005 brought President Ellen JOHNSON-SIRLEAF to pow**. The UN Mission in Lib**ia (UNMIL), which maintains a ...

... about fifteen minutes before they brought me to a clearing in the woods. The dirt ground was smooth and clean from years of foot traffic. There was a covered area used for cooking and a one room hut made of dried mud, bamboo, and a tin roof. I counted eleven people, (adults and children, including two babies sleeping on some blankets on the ground), standing or sitting around. They all turned and stared ...