Before leaving for my trip to Sierra Leone it was one of my wishes to visit the diamond mines. It seemed like something impossible to do, but by coincidence, I met two guys on the street. After talking to them for three days in a row about every aspect of life, they helped me to go to the diamond mines.

It was amazing how these two guys were so helpful to me. Why would they help me? – I asked myself in my hotel room. The day after, I went looking for them, as I knew I could find these guys at the same corner every day. They told me it was important for them that I get to know the country better and see the place where the world’s most expensive gem is being excavated. They know their country is corrupt and has a lot of challenges. There’s a lot of poverty, but they hope their country can change and become a better place on earth. They hope the future for their children will look better. They hope with awareness from Westerns to get more attention to the country, as they do not trust their government. They are both from Kono’s diamond district but they got disabled due to poliovirus at a very young age.

How is it possible that it is still one of the poorest countries in the world with tons of diamonds in the soil?

Sierra Leonean Leone is the country’s currency
I wrote about the amazing beaches of Sierra Leone, as I realised diamonds are not the only ‘hidden gem’ in the country. But is having diamonds as a resource in your country a blessing or a curse? In the past, it has caused a lot of trouble in the country. The rebel war, which ended in 2002, was mostly funded by the mining of diamonds and the smuggling of them to neighbouring countries. Other countries with diamonds have suffered too: South-Africa, Angola and many others. The mining has always been very primitive and very hard labour has always been the leading way to find diamonds by the local people. The export of diamonds could increase the GDP of the country, but will the GDP increase benefit the people of Sierra Leone in a corrupt nation?

There are different kind of miners:

• Local miners: Two different payment agreements are possible for the local workers. One of the agreements mean they get paid for a fixed price so finding a diamond does not affect their payment. The other agreement means that the workers take a risk and only get paid when finding a diamond.
• International mining companies: They mine with expensive equipment and their facilities are hard to reach and nearly impossible to visit unless you’re in contact with the company.

Mining crew at one of the mines of Koidu

Diamond mining has a negative impact on several aspects:

• Diamond is a very expensive gem, but miners usually get a measly payment. According to some miners, some earn about 20,000 leones (2014) [about 2 euro] a day to do hard labour in the burning sun. The big money makers are the exporters and the ones who polish the diamonds outside the country. Of course, the government takes their share by claiming high export taxes on the gem.
• Local communities and villages are destroyed so people could mine for diamonds. Sometimes, the village chiefs sell a piece of land to miners. The people who live there lose their house and have to find a new place to live.
• The mining activities destroy the land. The devastating piece of ground is hardly usable for agriculture and is inhabitable. On top of that, toxic substances may release in the waters, large water pits are formed and there’s a risk of people drowning in it, especially dangerous for children. The water is still and is a breeding place for mosquitoes. A project such as “Life after diamonds” try to restore the land and recover it to use it for agriculture.

Abandoned mining pit which is still used to search for very small diamonds that may have been overlooked by large scale miners

Here’s an example of how they recover the land for agriculture.

I was in Koidu, the main city of Kono district. Diamond offices fill the street. The road is still under construction. The ride to Koidu took almost a whole day by minivan, yet it is about 250 km from Freetown. The ride was extremely bumpy.

Diamond office in the centre of Koidu

The first diamond mine I visited was a local famous mine called “number 11”. It is known for children who mine at this place. As I arrived I was surrounded by a group of local miners asking what the purpose of my visit was. I introduced myself and told them I was just here because I was curious to see how diamonds are mined. They all seemed a little suspicious, but they allowed me to take a look. However, I was not allowed to take pictures. I asked them why they are so strict about the pictures. All they wanted to tell was “We had visitors before and by taking pictures they tried to bring us in discredit in their country.” I didn’t stay long because I did not feel really welcome.

Local miners showing me ‘black dirt’ and a very small diamondI asked my local biker to proceed to the next place. Upon arrival, a bill of 10,000 leone allowed me to enter their diamond mine. They showed me a diamond and also the mineral (the black dirt) they find surrounded to diamonds.

Other locals try to find very tiny diamonds in abandoned diamond pits by large companies in dry sand. Chances are very slim, but this technique doesn’t require you to stand in the water all day. Someone prospecting the sand on the left picture. On the right picture, you can see someone washing dirt in the hope to find a shiny piece of diamond.

On the left someone looking for small diamonds in abandoned pits. On the right, you see the most used technique by local miners. Dirt is being washed and inspected for diamonds.
I also tried the sand mining, which was pretty exhausting.

The last local miners I visited were much more laid-back. This local mining group did not ask for any money and they were making funny faces to the camera when I was taking photos.

I returned in 2017 and visited another diamond mine. This one was much more equipped and had a washing plant to process more dirt in the search of diamonds.

First, the dirt is being dug up.
A continuous running water pump is necessary to remove the groundwater from the pit.
The dirt is being washed in a washing plant.

In the end, the remnants from the washing plant are manually checked for diamonds with a pan. A shining diamond is easily identified with the burning sun on these pans.
Will Sierra Leone ever develop? The answer is not easy. Not only does the government has to change a lot, Western capitalism can only grow if resources are bought as cheap as possible, just like the clothes industries in Asia. Are fair trade diamonds a possible solution?

When you visit the beaches, you will find clean and wonderful beaches. I decided to sleep on the beach in a tent and it was an amazing experience. This is the River No 2 beach in Sierra Leone, only 20 minutes away from Freetown. With a bit of negotiating, I managed to find a motorbike that dropped me off for 20,000 leones at this beach, which is about 2,5 euro. During the day you can walk the coastline to Tokeh Beach, but in the morning you’ll need to take a boat because of the tide.

As I proceeded to Tokeh Beach I walked on the beach in the burning sun without passing anyone else.  Such a beautiful, untouched place…This is at Bureh beach.
Then there is Mama Beach, sometimes you can enter for free, other times they charge you some money because they maintain the beach. Banana Island is another hidden gem in the Sierra Leonean ocean. This island occupies only 2 guest houses and one local village. Walking around the island is like walking in the jungle, except that it is hard to get lost.

There’s a bat cave on the island.Those kids were walking back to their village from school and asked for a photo!This is the village on Banana island.Banana island beach with some dogs chilling around.
And… the reason why the island is named to bananas.

The beaches in Sierra Leone are wonderful. This untouched piece of paradise is just amazing… Tourism could contribute to the development of the country, let us hope there will be any tourist development soon and that the locals can benefit from it by decreasing employment rates.

During the time I was in Kenya, the wildebeest migration was in the Serengeti unfortunately. On the positive note, fewer tourists do safari trips in Kenya so the minivan is not as packed as usual.As we were roaming in the park, we quickly saw a family of lions. These cute lion cubs were playing. The minivan did not scare them.As we proceeded we passed a group of buffalo’s. This particular one did not seem amused by our visit.This giraffe saw some yummy leaves.The next day we had a whole day in the national park. The first thing we encountered was this scared warthog. The rest of the day we saw plenty of lions. These animals are so amazing and during the hottest moment of the day, they look so lazy. We even saw two lions having intercourse by accident. It lasted about 20 seconds though. This is the happy male lion after the deed.Three angry female lions are approaching us on this photo.
Another two female lions looking for something.
This wonderful female lion is posing for us. I really love this photo.
After driving a while, we didn’t encounter any animal. Until we finally saw another predator… the cheetah. These two cheetah’s had a fresh catch. It is not hard to find food for a Cheetah as they’re the world’s fastest mammal.
Another cheetah was resting in the shades. This cheetah one still looks young. It looks cute but potentially deadly.
Another cheetah posing on this broken tree branch.
As it was getting late. We were returning to the camp. During our drive back to the camp, I spotted a masked weaver.

Additionally to the safari, you could visit a village of the Masai tribe. I decided to do this. For a small donation, you’re allowed to visit the village and photograph the people. You may not expect this but nowadays, the village people have cellphones and charge them at the camps.

I tried the local beer they produce. Probably the sourest mixture with chunks inside I’ve ever drunk in my life. I don’t know how I managed to swallow it!

As the night approaches, stars start to fill the sky. Thanks to the natural habitat of Masai Mara without any light pollution. I thought it was a great chance to try something new and try to photograph a star trail. The attempt was not as successful as I hoped.

The last day at Masai Mara started with a short morning safari. As the sun rises, we found a lion patrolling the area to look for some tasty breakfast.

The lion had to choose what he wanted for breakfast.

and… this is how my trip to the Masai Mara ended.

Did I see the Big Five in Kenya? Almost, but that’s still a no. In Lake Nakuru, I had the chance to see the rhinoceros. In Masai Mara, I saw the African lion, cape buffalo and the African elephant. Leopards are hard to spot in Masai Mara and I hope I will ever be able to spot one! If you want to see plenty of African elephants then you should visit Amboseli National Park.