Last night I chatted with a few of the UN soldiers who were hanging out on our dock. Both were from Ghana. I asked them about their duties and how long their assignment in Liberia is. I discovered they are specifically assigned to patrol our dock to keep our ship safe. It's part of the negociations Mercy Ships made with the country before we agreed to come. I guess I can feel a little better about the M16 they have slung across their backs...at least I know now they are here for our benefit. I could never figure out why they hung out on our dock every night. Barbed wire lines certain portions of our dock in an attempt to deter "swimmers" from accessing our dock and stealing our equipment. Already a generator and a projector screen were stollen out of a locked container on the dock. I don't feel unsafe around town though. it just requires us to viligent about our bags and camaras when out. We were advised that if something is stollen off us while we are in town not to try to yell after the thief. There is a thing in West Africa called "mob justice". If I were to yell -- "rogue,rogue!' (the term used here for a thief)-- everybody on the street would go running after that person. Once the thief was caught he would be beaten to death. Mob justice is seen as acceptable and more reliable then turning a person into the local police.

Gas stations are scarce around Monrovia. Most vehicles get their fuel from large gallon size jars on the side of the road. The kind of jars that you buy big pickles in. The fuel comes in two colors, bubble bath pink and a questionable murky brown/purple. A lot of times the gas is mixed with kerosene which can cause big problems for an engine. The other day I went to gas up and as I watched two men transfer gas from a big 10 gallon plastic container using a gallon-size pickle jar--A giant funnel jammed into the gas tank-- I thought, "this can't be safe". The man's hand was drenched in gas, the least little spark could have blown us all up. I wish I'd had my camara. definitely no pay-at-the-pumps here. The first few weeks of adjusting to Liberia--a new culture, new translators, a new workmate--was stressful and tiring. I finally had to ask the Lord to restore my sense of humor. Most situations are better approached with a sense of humor.