Last Day at UOB
Presentation day! But there was still plenty left to do in the morning after we’d had our last breakfast of baguette and tea. Phasing plans, of just how we imagined our endgame of maximum demolition to be reached, plus further elaboration of our final plan. Other people were running around, putting bilingual titles on all of the maps and posters, plus running them up to the front of the room where we were photographing maps for documentation. And the Gabonese students who had volunteered to present their alternatives at the big presentation in the afternoon were going over notes.
Early morning work on phasing
We were rushing to start posting and pinning up maps in the large auditorium before 1pm for the out-brief presentation, but when we arrived 30 minutes early to start, there was still a class inside! So there was plenty of waiting outside in the hot sun (still less muggy than inside however). When we finally got inside, there was yet another challenge to face: the walls weren’t made of any kind of easily pin-able or tape-able surface. No, instead the walls were covered in a wire mesh that we somehow had to figure out how to attach sheets of trace paper unto. Eventually we discovered a way of attaching tape to the trace and then wrapping it around the wires. Soon enough, we had all of the plan iterations and analysis maps up on the walls!
Analysis maps up on the walls of the auditorium
Yet again we were amazed: over 200 people showed up for the wrap-up presentations! Such a large number of people, yet as a sign of the crazy enthusiasm we saw throughout the week, it seemed so small after the 1100 of the opening day. Even on such a hot day within the auditorium, every one was rapt with attention while our new friends from the charrette gave their alternative presentations. The audience seemed more or less equally enthusiastic about all of the alternatives, except for the maximum demolition plan. Everyone cheered when max demo was presented, over and over! It seemed like making a clean slate was the easiest for the UOB students and faculty to envision as a new future.
After the presentations in front of the entire auditorium were finished, we dispersed to the sides of the room where groups answered questions about their plans and phasing to anyone who walked by. For the most part, we Oregonian students stood back and let the UOB students on our teams take the lead in showing off and explaining to their fellows. They all seemed to be so proud of what we had created together! There was plenty of coming together to take pictures in front of the maps and chatting about how wonderful the process was.
Discussing the illustrative plans after the presentation
By this time though, most of us were starting to lose our steam from the long hours, so Barry sent Pip, Madi, Lena, and I back to the restaurant in order to find some kind of sustenance. Being very tired and hungry ourselves, it took us a little while to figure out what to do when we arrived back at our private room and found no food. Eventually, however, Pip decided to just go into the main room of the restaurant and ask the staff for baguettes. One of the ladies disappeared into the back and emerged with a tray full of 10 baguettes. So then we had a fun walk back to the auditorium carrying a tray of baguettes, and yet not too many stares. Probably because by this time, the UOB students had just come to expect a bit of craziness from us.
At the end of this, a few of us (mainly those who had decided to go to the hotel earlier at night), decided to go back to the hotel yet again for some rest and recovery, a shower, etc. We would rejoin the rest of the group at dinner-time. Because of this, we missed what everyone else told was quite an emotional time at the ending reception. Everyone gave speeches about their experiences, gifts were exchanged between Gabonese and Oregonians, and Megan even had her hair braided as a farewell gift from the students of UOB.
Reception after the presentations
Our last dinner in Gabon was at yet another Italian restaurant. I honestly don’t remember too much: we were all on the edge of falling asleep throughout the entire meal. Mark, Barry, and Zoe gave us a final out-brief about our week-long charrette. And yet again, there was a lot of confusion about the menu, both from it being in French, and also the ordeal of trying to figure out what the particular Italian dishes were. The more cautious and boring among us ordered ravioli bolognese (ravioli with a meat sauce), others got seafood, etc. I had gnocchi with a verdant green pesto for the first time since I’d gone to Italy last school year. How I had missed it! A good gnocchi is perfection. After a round of desert, it was time to head out, many out to nightlife, a few of the rest of us back to hotel to prepare for the flight home.