Approaching Monrovia, Liberia

I loved coming into Liberia by ship. It is such a dramatic experience compared with what is often a sterile airport arrival. As ship crew we were all out on deck to watch the approach of Monrovia (Liberia's capital) early Tuesday morning. The atmosphere was humid and hazy and all the pictures that I shot appear black and white (although they are full colour). It looked and felt like olden days where inter continental travel was done by ship and sometimes took weeks to reach a destination. There was no feeling of immediate arrival or of immediate escape or departure.

Here we are approaching the dock that Liberia allows us almost exclusive use of. Liberia (liberty) is Africa's oldest republic, but it became better known in the 1990s for its long-running, ruinous civil war and its role in a rebellion in neighbouring Sierra Leone (along with destabilizing much of Western Africa). Although founded by freed American and Caribbean slaves, Liberia is mostly made up of indigenous Africans, with the slaves' descendants comprising 5% of the population. The American freed slaves modelled Liberia after the United States, including their flag (right). The Monrovia port is filled with sunken ships and I have been told is quite a steering maneuver to get a ship to the dock in such shallow waters with obstacles. Here is a picture of a half emerged ship that sits near the dock we occupy.