Day 15
So time for the adventure to wrap up. The hotel which continues to grow on me accommodated us and provided breakfast at 6am (the 5/10 would never have been so helpful!) Then all in the cars with one third the luggage we brought and after a 10 minute ride, down to wait at the ferry. Beautiful morning and watching the dawn is special here as in only a few moments it goes from dark to light. Being Sunday it was not as busy as usual but still, a mass of humanity climbed aboard the ferry.
Men a Robert from Hythe who had connected with a church up country and told how they had baptised 200 people yesterday and had done various medical and building things. The challenges of the rural life being different but just as challenging as city life. Able to debrief more with Alison.
Off the ferry and on to the airport. The 20 minute ride was interesting; I have done the trip countless times but nearly always in the dark. Unload and then say goodbyes – but wait – why are all those people stood outside the terminal?
The plane is not coming! It may be a new terminal but no notices, signs of announcements, just a couple of staff saying they will tell us in an hour when there is news. Experience of flight delays here is usually every man for himself – so Peter and Alison went in search of rooms. Rooms were found but no point booking in until we are sure the plane isn’t coming. Decided to send the team to wait at the hotel whilst I hung around. Then a rush of people. Rather than use the positions for queues, the staff had blank paper and started taking passenger names. News filtered out that the plane was cancelled today and it might go at 4am or 9am tomorrow morning. BA, to their credit though put us up for the night and started a long process as they had 80 people and there are no beds available in Lungi, so have to cross the sea back to Freetown.
As we had our own transport we got to the docks and were immediately put on a boat and headed off. Met at the port and taken to the hotel. Well looked after in truth. Then stayed at the Bintumani hotel, a Chinese owned operation and has many rooms and certainly one of the better ones. It even had a pool which the team enjoyed. Able to sleep a while and get some rest – it’s been a full on couple of weeks. Couple of quirks in that I could not organise breakfast for everyone and on the way to bed was accosted by a prostitute – one of the better hotels in this country yet giving free reign to prostitutes – I mentioned it to the manager who said they get arrangements with the security guards! And so to bed –alone!!