Harper

Our final destination on the road trip was Harper, the easternmost harbor town in Liberia, situated in the county Maryland. It is a beautiful place. And it used to be really rich, and even its own state for a brief period back in the 1850’s. Its former splendor is visible everywhere.Not even the goats can handle the midday sun. Hanna at one of the local tea shops, taking shelter from the aggressive heat of the tropical sun. A coke in the shade is just what you need after wandering about Harper in the middle of the day.

(And look, all cokes in Liberia are Lebanese! Isn’t it interesting, how the Lebanese have decided to come do business in Liberia. As if they’ve mixed up the names of the two countries, like Sweden and Switzerland.) Harper shopping. An old cotton tree in downtown Harper. These trees are considered holy, sometimes thought to contain the souls of the old inhabitants of a village or town. It’s impressive, visible from almost anywhere in downtown Harper, high and huge, standing on a hill.   Most Liberians are, for some reason, FC Barcelona fans. However, just outside of this shot is a boy in a Ibrahimovic shirt. Morris played some ball with them, while Hanna and I took photos of the odd architectural specimen behind them, nowadays used as a place for public meetings.  Most people with the funds to leave, fled Harper during the civil war. Afterwards, some did not come back. Therefore, there are many abandoned and run down houses all over. The cemetery in Harper.Messi, the Liberians’ favorite football hero. Harper was the birth place of William Tubman, the longest serving president in Liberian history. He became president in 1944 and served until his death in 1971. His Italian style mansion is still left in the outskirts of Harper, but its in dire need of some attention. For some reason, the heirs of Tubman don’t deem it worth to keep the place up, but neither do they want to sell. So it just stands there, falling apart, with squatters sleeping on the marble floors.  The view from the President’s Mansion’s roof terrace. The road into town, and a thunder storm building up over the Hoffman River.