There were no vehicles heading to Zwedru, the only road to Harper by 8.30 (that’s very late!) so I organise a mototaxi for the journey. I later find out its 200km! Although I slept well, I am grouchy by the time the driver gets his act together and we leave at 9.20.
There is an NGO car with space for me in it heading to Pleebo almost straight away as I arrive in Zwedru at 2pm. The road is very long. On arriving in Pleebo – I only learn the name from a shop front – at 11pm the driver is kind enough to find an exhausted traveller a hotel. Its then just a quick hope the next morning to Harper.
I walk along the high street to the beach at the southernmost point of my journey until Cameroon – Cape Palmas. On the way I pass the remains of a Masonic Lodge, and President Tubman’s mansion, now a giant squat.
Is there a pre-election run-off nervous tension in the air next morning, or is it just me worrying about the border? There is lots of talk, and radio broadcasts, about peaceful elections.
The border is probably the easiest and quietest to date, and I cross the river by dugout canoe. After Liberia, its great to feel part of the furniture, a leaning post, and not just a “whiteman”.
San Pedro goes on for a while. It seems larger than Monrovia. It also feels like returning to “civilisation”. My 12 pound room has electricity, running water, TV, en suite… The difference between Liberia and Cote d’Ivoire is just mindblowing and difficult to put into words.
