After 90 minutes of fairly smooth driving, we were rewarded with a beautiful view:
That day, some UNMIL (United Nations Mission in Liberia) bigwigs were also gathering near Blue Lake. All over the country UNMIL troops have built schools, roads, toilets, and countless other public facilities. Without them, our presence - that is, of the hundreds of development workers - would be nearly impossible, mostly because UNMIL's 13,000 troops also provide a steady security presence. We weren't allowed to hang out where the VIPs were gathering, so we retreated up the hill where we could picnic with our grouper sandwiches, sodas, and Pringles. We had a lovely lunch, and as ate we heard strains of...wait...is that really Madonna's 'La Isla Bonita'?
One nice thing about the UN presence is that the troops take great pride - deservedly so - in their contributions to the country. At the top of the pictures above, you should be able to see some picnic tables and shelters, in an area named Pak Point for the Pakistani soldiers that constructed them.All over the country there are signs for BANBATT, GHANBATT, and of course PAKBATT. According to UNMIL's website, soldiers from 49 countries are serving in Liberia.
The only downside about the UN troops - really, probably a downside about any military - is that it occasionally becomes true that many of them haven't interacted with women for many months. This is no big deal, and usually manifests itself in slightly awkward jokes and eager smiles. At Pak Point, we came upon some Jordanian soldiers celebrating the holiday with a little barbecue. The leader welcomed us and insisted on feeding us each a mouthful of delicious grilled chicken - and I mean by actually putting the chicken in each of our mouths himself. When Peter introduced me (protectively, as we are engaged but not yet married) as his wife, the Jordanian exclaimed, "Lucky man!" and smiled excitedly. "Lucky man!*
From Pak Point itself, we could see across the lake to where we had picnicked. It looks as though the lake was formed at a former quarry site, though no one could confirm this.
Later, I was sitting alone under one of the shelters while Peter chatted on the phone with a friend, and some solidiers approached me. Could I take a picture of them? Sure, sure. I started to get up and reach for one man's camera. No, no, they explained. They each wanted to be in a photograph with me. Oh. Um, ok.
