We woke up about the same time – 6:30 am Liberian time – we would have wakened up on Eastern time at home so I guess we transitioned well. We were taken back to the same home where we had eaten the previous night to have breakfast. Part way through Bishop Innis came to greet us. He went back to his office to finish preparations for annual conference. We would see him and his wife later on in Buchanan. We stayed there a while and some persons watched reruns of the Super Bowl with French commentaries. English is the predominant language in Liberia and French in Sierra Leone so the tv channels are a mix.
A little later in the morning we were taken on a tour of the business section in Monrovia. There was lots of commerce in stores and on the street. There were lots of changes through renovations in many areas – even more than when I was there in 2014. Then we went to the Conference Center. Frances took a few of us walking around the outside. In the back area we saw the Women’s Training Center, the Girls’ Dormitory, the Day Care Center, the Office of the Deaf Program and other Conference offices before moving on. We went back to the Lutheran Guest House to get our luggage.
Then we drove for 2 & 3/4 hours through the countryside to get to Buchanan. At first we were in suburban areas where there was lots of commerce again. There were many new business buildings and lots of new houses as well as ones being renovated. Some were painted in bright colors. We crossed several rivers where the bridges had been rebuilt. All the roads were well paved. We went into more rural areas. Again there were several newer houses among the older dwellings. We understood that we weren’t getting lunch until we got where we were going. We were prepared with some snack foods so we could eat and take our pills especially the daily malaria pill.
We drove past the Roberts International Airport. Then through the Firestone Rubber Plantation. We drove past the area where the Detroit East Mission Trip of 2008 that Duane led took place. It was a little off the road so we couldn’t see the parsonage that the team had worked on. The current District Superintendent will try to take us there after conference.
We kept going down the road and entered the city of Buchanan where the conference was being held. We got to a guest house about 3 pm and finally had lunch. Afterward Duane and I were taken to a hotel where the Bishop and his wife and other persons were staying. Our room was very nice; included a TV, air conditioning, and running water but no Wi-Fi or internet. Tom and Bill went to another hotel. They had Wi-Fi and could make connections. We had a good rest for the afternoon then went back to the guest house where we were having our meals. Bishop and Mother Irene came and ate with us. Then we went back to our room. It was about 9:45 pm Liberian time. We cooled down, put things in dressers, then went to bed. The distraction this time that woke us up about midnight was a large party going on nearby. It seemed to be the sound of late elementary children playing their type of football or other games. We guessed it was cooler at that time!!