Sierra Leone

Over the course of my 2 month solo backpacking trip in West Africa, I visited many countries. Among those countries was Sierra Leone. I had no idea what to expect when I arrived. I would like to share my experiences on this, as navigating the country proved much more difficult than I expected. I flew in to Freetown’s airport. Luckily, American citizens are granted entry visa free. I did have to get tested for COVID at the airport and wait for the result to be released but that was actually quite simple. I was impressed by the speed and efficiency to test incoming travelers. As I am walking out of

the airport, I realized I was nowhere near the city of Freetown. In fact, a vast bay, Tagrin Bay, stood between me and my destination in the city. I had to arrange a motorbike transfer from the airport to the ferry station, which was about 30 minutes away. Once there, I queued for an hour to buy passage to the city. To my surprise, I bought a ticket on a boat held together with duck tape. It was but a canoe with a motor attached. It was certainly a unique experience. The crossing took about 20 minutes from the station to the outskirts of Freetown. As we approached Freetown, the

rain started pouring down. I was dropped off in a completely random place and had no sense of direction, as I was getting soaked. Luckily, a benevolent local who rode on the boat with me took me under his wing. We shared a taxi and headed off to my airbnb. However, we ended up going to the wrong part of town. If you travel to Freetown, double and triple check your destination!!! It ended up taking 2.5 hours to get from the dock to my airbnb. I got to my airbnb, a beautiful house up in the hills of Sierra Leone with a beautiful view of the city. As I

sat on the balcony, some local kids excitedly called me down and wanted to take a picture with me. I obliged and met their mom and everything. It was an incredibly wholesome interaction, just like the man who helped get me to my airbnb. The next day, I attempted to visit the chimpanzee sanctuary. It turned out it was closed due to covid. However, against my better judgement, I was able to bribe a guard at the sanctuary to take me. We had to trailblaze several miles through the jungle, where we ended up seeing the chimps. Sadly, they were locked up due to the outbreak. Nonetheless, the experience of

trailblazing miles to get a view of these magnificent animals was well worth it. The next day, I went around the city, trying to get a good feel of the city. During my walk, I met many wonderful people, including a military man stationed on a corner. We exchanged stories and had a wonderful conversation about our countries. Later that day, I invited Mohammed, the man who helped me after the ferry, to dinner. We had a wonderful dinner on the coast and many touching conversations regarding his country, religion, etc. To this day, we stay in contact. I cannot emphasize enough how wonderful the people of Sierra Leone are.

They are so quick to help in any way they can and they love to exchange stories of any variety. As my trip neared its end, I had to yet again cross the Tagrin Bay. I had quite a bit of trouble this time around. Due to a misunderstanding at the dock, a crowd began to mob me a little bit. Luckily the driver of the canoe helped me out and took me on his boat to diffuse the situation. Eventually, I made it to the airport and to my gate. I had hours until my flight to Dakar, Senegal. I sat down at the bar to have some drinks

and I was joined by the most surprising company. Two men from the airport’s security joined me for beers. We yet again shared stories and drinks! My flight got delayed a bit which allowed for more time to hangout. It turned out that I was taking the very first flight from Sierra Leone to Senegal. It was such a big deal that the minister of tourism made an appearance and I was allowed to take a photo with her. It was an incredibly unique visit to Sierra Leone, from beginning to end!