So, this is going to be my home for the next 12 months! Arriving in
James Bond-style by speedboat, with an amazing sunset in the back makes me feel
very welcome in this small unknown country.
When you think of Sierra Leone you think of a country somewhere hidden
in Africa that was terrorized by a horrific war for almost a decade (and of
Leonardo Dicaprio in Blood Diamond). But I see a whole different sight of
Sierra Leone now: people are very welcoming, friendly, have a great sense of
humour, party until the morning comes, dance in front of mirrors, drink ‘Star’
beer (which I as a good Belgian refuse to call ‘beer’) and the children shout
‘hellow hellow Puwni, I love you!’.
MSF started working here to provide medical care for refugees during the
war. When the war ended it was decided to continue providing free health care
for children and pregnant women and a hospital was built on the spot where
there used to be a refugee camp. Plans are made to move the hospital more
closely to the city center to make it more accessible.
It almost feels like I have a normal life now: getting up at 6am to go
jogging, walking over to the office at 8am, meeting the team in the hospital at
11am, lunch at 1pm, analysing hospital data and getting intrigued by
interesting epidemiological cases in the afternoon and going for a drink after
work in the ‘under the palm tree’ bar.
Let’s not mention the fact that the heat is killing me and that it feels
like I inhaled half of the Sahara which makes me cough like I have been smoking
since I was 5…
It is hard to believe that not so
long ago Freetown was under attack by an operation ‘no living thing’ and the
sand on the now beautiful beaches was coloured blood red for days. Keep in mind
that people forgive, but not easily forget.
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| On the road from Freetown to Bo, Sierra Leone |
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