Better Photos, interesting news. Clock running down.

Chris Herwig, the photographer who I met while visiting Sapo National Park has some great updated photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/herwigphoto, including nice shots from Sapo, and also from Palm Grove Cemetary in Monrovia, subject of a recent Wall Street Journal Feature. If you're interested, I can forward a copy of the full article (only an abstract is available without subscription).

Court actions have begun against the accused conspirators to a coup plot, including Charles Julu, who was a leader in a failed coup at least once before in Liberia. Conspirators are charged with Treason. One thing that is amazing to an American observer is how swiftly criminal charges move to trial here, since we are so used to long procedural delays and clogged court schedules in the U.S.

And this week the Ministry of Mines and Energy issued legal permits for diamond mining and export for the first time since the U.N. banned Liberian diamond trade in 2001. There was also a US$50 million dollar gold mining investment plan announced this week, by an incredibly friendly and unpretentious Alaskan named Leonard Kragness who I met over lunch last month where we discovered we had a few mutual acquaintances in Alaska, where he was a long-time gold investor and former owner of the Talkeetna Air Taxi service.

At times the world is really quite a lot smaller than we expect.

And me, personally... I'm counting the short days until I fly back to New York and trying to feel ready for the shift of gears to getting back to law school.