Scoping out the land

My idea was to see where the team is thinking of relocating the school/church. Let's go look at land, I say. What a task! First we visited a small parcel of land the Covenant Ministiries owns because they used to have a church community in this location (don't ask me where- about an hour away). We walked a long time to see this land and greet lots of local people. The parcel is very small and I am sure we will talk further about it.
And then, we were tourists. Firestone has a rubber tree plantation in Liberia (I think the other one or the other major one is in Brazil). It is a beautiful forrest, nicely organized trees with buckets collecting the gold. It is not really the season so I don't see much "running" but it

was interesting. We visited with some of the workers (which apparently Firestone hates) and they showed us the process of collecting the milky white latex. They are paid very poorly and the latex is shipped out of Liberia for processing and making rubber. So maddening to think about.
Then we got down to business. We drove around a huge area behind the airport. Everything close to the developed roads are already sold and apparently trying to buy from someone else is extremely expensive. It is a nice area and fairly undeveloped. No schools that we see.
The second area we go to is about a half an hour from where CMA is now. It is more developed and there are three schools along the developed road. But the expanse of countryside is enormous and land is selling. It will be developed - which I have a hard time wrapping my head around with the economy the way it is. Or tha lack of economy. Where are people getting the financial resources to buy? But we visit one small community near the river to get a feel for it. And across the river is Eddie and Greta's land.
We come back to the ELWA compound where I am staying for exercise. I am dead tired but I changed my clothes and walked up and down the path along the beach, visiting with Moses. We had such a good day, laughing and talking and getting snacks from just about every roadside vendor. Oh, and as Moses said before I arrived, "the camera will suffer again." And it did!