Thinking of Traveling to Liberia?

Get ready for the trip of your lifetime! There is nothing like traveling to a very, very foreign country to pick up your new child or children! We hope that the information and tips below help you prepare for this out-of-this-world experience.

Please bear in mind that Liberia is currently one of the poorest countries in the world with very little infrastructure. There are occasional travel warnings posted by the US State Department for Liberia and these should be monitored and checked regularly. Many families have traveled and experienced the Liberian culture without incident. However, following certain safety guidelines such as using the 'buddy' system when traveling around Monrovia is still prudent.

Other items we advise you to bring:

• Donations for orphanage and humanitarian work
• Clothing, shoes, diapers, toys, etc for your child when you are in Liberia-you will be responsible for all aspects of care (excluding the three meals a day provided by the guest house) upon your first meeting
• One very nice outfit with closed-toed shoes for outings to the Embassy and church
• Weather-appropriate clothing
• Skirts and tops or dresses (below the knee) for women outside the guest house
• Long pants and nice shirts (polos, button-ups, short sleeves) for men outside the guest house
• Capris, walking shorts, bermuda shorts for women while at the guest house
• Long shorts for men while at the guest house
• Sandals are acceptable, but no flip-flops for Embassy or church
• Flip flops/beach wear
• Emergency Medical Kit/First Aid Kit-including all your prescription and non-prescription medicines
• Flashlight - power often goes out
• Battery-operated hand-held fan
• Snacks in small airtight packages (things go stale very quickly)
• Umbrella (the rain can be very heavy)
• Hand sanitizer
• Pre-moistened facial cloths, freshening spritzer (not heavily scented)
• Toiletries
• Garbage bags (for keeping luggage dry if needed)
• Camera and/or video camera, memory cards, batteries
• Baby/child carrier, if reasonable
• Strong mosquito repellent for both you and your child/ren
• One course of antibiotics for each person traveling (Cipro is recommended)
• Diarrhea and constipation over the counter medications
• Benadryl or natural sleep aids for your child/ren on the plane ride home
• Meds and vitamins should ALWAYS be in carryons. 

Notes For Traveling Parents

The following is intended to provide you with information regarding the guest house.

First of all, please realize that food is a quite different issue here in Liberia . Keep in mind you are visiting a fourth-world country. What that means in reality is that you can take nothing for granted here - if the water is running we are thankful and jump in the shower, if the electricity is on we are thankful and sit next to the fan and check e-mail.

With that in mind, here are more specifics about the food and meals at the guest house.

For breakfast we (try to) have instant oatmeal packets in a variety of flavors, tea, instant coffee and fruit juices.

Lunches are light. Sandwiches, or an occasional chicken noodle soup or some cheese. Fresh fruit is always served. The pineapple is out of this world.

Usually dinner is the big meal of the day and consists of white rice topped with some classic Liberian 'soup' like potato greens, water greens or eggplant soup. You will be surprised how tasty these Liberian dishes are.

Tip: Sometimes our visitors are struck by the 'munchies' in the afternoon. Please make sure you bring enough snacks and whatever delicacies you can't live without.

For all you soda drinkers there is a little shop around the corner where sodas and other sweets are sold.

Guest House Amenities

Having a house here is the amenity. You will see when you get here how the Liberians live. You will be staying at a two-story house.

Indoor plumbing - you will have a clean bathroom with shower or tub. Some rooms have a private bath and others are shared between rooms. Please plan to have your bathroom things organized and neat.

Hot and cold running water - most of the time, but there are buckets for toilet flushing when necessary!

Electricity - generally available Monday through Friday except between the hours of 3:30pm and 6:30pm (Liberian time*). Wednesdays we are out of power from 3:30 pm till about midnight.

Saturday the power is off all day until midnight and Sundays 6:30am to 6:30 pm. We have DC lighting and a DC receptacle system for those times when AC power is not available. If you have a car lighter type cell phone charger cable, it will fit and can be used in your rooms DC receptacle. If there is a great necessity for AC power we have the use of a back-up generator. Please understand our generator is a back-up and we will not be able to run it continuously on the weekend. To aid in your understanding, a gallon of diesel fuel costs US $ 4 or more and this will only provide 1 hour of generator time. The rooms are not air conditioned. However, we will do our best to keep you as comfortable as possible while you are with us. A traveler's tip : bring one of those nifty, handheld battery operated fans.

Laundry facilities - Monday, Tuesday and Thursday we offer Liberian laundry service. We have a wonderful young lady who will hand-wash your load, hang dry it, and fold it for you. This service is offered at US $ 5 per load. Keep in mind that your contribution is the reason we are able to provide a job for this young woman, who as so many Liberian women is the bread winner of her family supporting elderly parents and her little ones. A traveler's tip : bring light summer clothing. The average denim jeans will requite two days of line drying.

Back yard - we have a wonderful big back yard with a picnic bench/table under our plum tree. You are welcome to 'hang out' there with your kids any time. A traveler's tip : bring some out door games - frisbee, soccer ball, jump-rope, etc. Also, bring some age-appropriate indoor activities that you enjoy doing with your new child/ren. There is plenty of down time while you are here . (Play-doh is a hit with every age group)

Internet access - available. You are welcome to hook up (when there is power of course). This service is offered at US$ 20 per week donation to help cover access and electricity cost. Please note: our internet speed is slow so you might want to bring extra memory cards for your camera and download your pictures at home.

Phone calls to the US - a cell phone will be available to you. You will be able to purchase ($5-30 US) a local phone card or multiple cards that can be applied to the phone.

Shopping - we have contracted some local Liberian artists that offer nice quality products which we think you will enjoy. We have a wood carver who will showcase his products once a week at the guest house and we also have a wonderful tailor who creates fabulous batik clothing. Both artists have joined Acres of Hope Liberia in helping the orphans of Liberia by donating a percentage of their proceeds back to Acres of Hope Liberia. What a testimony to the Liberian people!

Beach - whenever possible we like to help our families enjoy a few hours at a local beach. Please understand there is no guarantee that this trip will take place but we will do our best to get your toes into the sand. We ask for a $10 donation per family for this outing to cover fuel costs and parking fees.

*Liberian Time

Time works different in a country like Liberia . The wonderful people of Liberia have learned not to worry too much about tomorrow or even the next hour. (This might have become an even stronger trait after or because of 20 years of dysfunction and war - I don't know.)

You are coming from a country where we enroll our children in Ivy League schools while they are still in their mothers' wombs. You are coming from a country where people worry about their retirement if they don't have a rock solid portfolio by the age of 35. You are coming from a country where 'things' can be fixed when broken or can be replaced with a new 'thing'.

You are visiting a country that barely has an educational system. You are visiting a country that has no retirement plan. As a matter of fact if you get to be 40 around here you did not just hit mid-life you are old! You are visiting a country that 'makes due' with whatever is available. If it's broken and you can fix it, good for you; if it's broken and you can't fix it you better learn to live without it because chances are there is no store to buy another one from and if there is then you probably won't have the money for it.

So you see, Liberian time is very much controlled by taxis that break down, by meetings that are not on schedule, by electricity not coming on at a certain time, by a loved one being ill with one of the many diseases here, by another baby dying from malaria, by gasoline running out at the gas station or your car choking from the watered down gasoline. I could go on and on.

Again please keep in mind food, utilities, transportation, and schedules are just different here in Liberia .