Palm Wine Heading to Market

Location: Blama Road in Kenema and Limba Corner

Date: 1968

photo © by Chad Finer

Men carrying Boulies (gourds) of palm wine to the local Kenema Market. It seemed that in our area the Limba ethnic group had almost a monopoly on the tapping of plan trees and the selling of palm wine in the local markets. That is not to say that other ethnic groups didn't tap and drink the wine, but in our area there were small villages of Limba, who, besides making farms and growing rice, also sold wine. The Mende called such salesman Mapalma. These men head west out on Blama Road to what must have been a palm wine market. Palm wine had a yeast-like taste to it - but on a hot day when you had worked hard it could be thirst quenching. For me it took a lot to get used to. 
There was also a local brew called Omoley. Consisting of distilled alcohol this was very strong and I found not to my liking.  

                                         photo © by Chad Finer
Men at the Limba village known as Limba Corner - a very small village outside of Kenema. These men were readying the recently collected palm wine for market in Kenema