Bureh Beach and an Accident

This morning, the sheep wondered near the restaurant.  She butted my fist with her forehead as her form of greeting.  Kalomere is Temne for sheep which seems to be a more beautiful name than Shikira.  From this day on, she shall be called Kalomere.  Yesterday was the Year of the Lamb/sheep/goat/ram of the Chinese New Year but for Kalomere every day is the same.

A day off for me. 

A Police Check Point

Five of us went to Bureh Beach.  It was about a 2-hour drive.  We passed through very busy markets and the driver said the markets were closed at the heights of the Ebola outbreak.  The traffic slowed at Ebola check points while passengers got off minivans to get their temperature checked.  Our van was waved on without us having to get off.  On the wind screen was placed a certificate marking our vehicle as an Ebola response conveyance.  Like Malawi, the stretch of land to the beach is largely deforested for firewood or charcoal; only remnants of trees grow in the land.  Like the people here the trees are very resilient, despite all that slashing shoots grew everywhere, including shoots from the burnt stumps of palm trees. 

Bureh Beach

The driver drove through a village to get to the beach which seemed to stretch far into the distance.  Tall slender coconut trees lined part of the beach especially near the rocky section.  To one side was a river flowing towards the ocean.  Unfortunately in the river, on parts of the beach and ocean particularly those near habitation are scattered a variety of trash which found its way into the water.  I dug my feet into the soft sand and we plunged into the warm water, catching some waves.

Spending a lazy day on the beach was the perfect way for us all to relax. For lunch, I had coconut rice and mackerel.

On our way home through Lunsar a mini passenger van was on its side in a deep ditch.  I saw a person in PPE while someone else saw a body being put on a stretcher to be carried to an ambulance.  The days of Ebola make all these precautions necessary.  The road though smooth is still a dangerous place to be, casualties through road accidents are still one of the most common causes of death in Africa.  We learned later that two passengers were killed in the accident.