“The thing you have to understand about Guinea, is that they were the county that said ‘no’.”
This was one of the first things we told visitors from DC when they asked what they needed to know about Guinea and it was important point—Guinea really was the only former colony that rejected membership in La Francophonie at independence from France and, as such, its relations with France have always been strained (we used to joke “1958 never ended out here”).
And so, with that in mind, I always found the Air France ads at a certain traffic intersection that I passed through frequently in downtown Conakry to be absolutely fascinating. “What message is this sending? How could this possibly resonate here?” It always just seemed wildly inappropriate and perfect demonstration of the complicated relationship between France and its former colony.
Unfortunately, there usually a number of police in uniform at this intersection (controlling traffic/shaking drivers down, etc.) and even though I usually passed through it in uniform and in a diplomatic vehicle, taking a photo in front of them would be more hassle than it’s worth. But it came to pass that one Saturday morning that i was coming back from grocery shopping downtown and the intersection was almost empty. I asked my friend who was driving to slow down for a moment and as she did, this gentlemen walked into the frame.
