It had been over 5 decades since I lived, worked, and traveled in Africa. Now, 50+ years older, I returned as a tourist with my goal to experience the people and culture and not focus on a bucket list of seeing the big “FIVE”. (I did, however, have the Rwandan Gorillas on my list that…Read more »
Author: susangreisen
Sunrise Sunset 2023
As the sun’s rosey glow brought us 2023, much has happened in our lives and around the world and I have many things to share with my readers. But as the sun sets on this December, I want to end with some photos I’ve taken through the year. Some I have written about and others…Read more »
Random Acts of Brownies
The holidays are not always special and joyous for everyone. I recall a period in 2016 when my divorce was final at Christmastime. The next several months were trying. I housesat, rented, and moved several times, deciding where I wanted to land. I am resurrecting a story I wrote at the end of that period.…Read more »
Curiosity, Commonsense, and Courage
I’ve been classified as crazy, stupid, or just a wonderment to many who know me. Some of my choices may have seemed foolish and maybe even daring, but in my seventh decade of life, there was always a method to my decisions – a trilogy of sorts: Curiosity, Commonsense, and Courage. Curiosity I continually wonder…Read more »
Outstanding Community Service Award
The National Peace Corps Association (NPCA) is pleased to announce the Friends of Liberia (FOL) as the winner of the 2023 Loret Miller Ruppe Award for Outstanding Community Service. (Click on any highlighted area for links to more information.) NPCA members selected FOL for this year’s prestigious award, recognizing the group’s publication of Never the…Read more »
Gorilla Doctors of Rwanda
Click on any highlighted area for more information. All photos for this blog are from the internet. I have always been skeptical of habituating wild animals to humans. I’ve seen the damage this has done to the bears in the National Parks in the 60s when I vividly remember traveling in Yosemite as a 12-year-old…Read more »
Gorillas of Rwanda
I generally tie all my blogs to either of my two published books. But I want my next two to stand alone. Not only because of their significance to me, but to all humans. There are usually lessons to be learned from my experiences and I want to share these with you. My early recollection…Read more »
A Lesson in Genocide
To be honest, I went back to Africa in 2023 for one main reason. I wanted to trek to see the gorillas in the wild in Rwanda before my body failed me. However, the trip was so much more than the gorillas, as you will read in the following paragraphs. I traveled with a great…Read more »
Hidden Volcano Abyss
On May 9th 2023, NOVA on PBS broadcasted a documentary, entitled “Hidden Volcano Abyss,” about the largest volcanic explosion documented in our lifetime in the Kingdom of Tonga. The Hunga Tonga – Hunga Ha’apai explosion occurred on January 15, 2022. The documentary explains the geologic and human impact this explosion had on this tiny nation.…Read more »
Former President of Liberia Recognized
Thanks to Dale Gilles (a returned Liberian Peace Corps volunteer and staff member) who keeps his pulse on Liberia, forwarded this article written about Liberia’s former President. I want to share it with my followers. Published May 2023 (verbiage taken from the Forbes article), read the entire article here. However, I have highlighted President Sirleaf’s…Read more »