What to see in Liberia: 10 must-sees

Set foot on the island in the Mesurado River where freed African Americans landed in 1822 and founded Liberia, today a peaceful park with a monument to that first landing. Cross by boat from Water Street, stroll among palm trees and the ruins of the first Baptist church, and gaze at the skyline of a capital that grew from this shore. It is ground zero of Liberian history.

Stop at the 1947 neocolonial pavilion where the centennial of independence was celebrated and where Liberia's presidents are still sworn in today. Admire its architecture of twin arches and columns, walk through the Capitol Hill gardens among government buildings of the same era, and look for the plaque commemorating Africa's first republic. It is the institutional face of Monrovia.

Paddle a canoe across Liberia's largest freshwater lake, separated from the Atlantic by a sandbar where crocodiles and waterbirds share the mangroves. Wander among the Vai fishing villages along the shore, take in the green hills sloping down to the water, and cross over to the open beach where the western surf breaks. This is Liberia's coastal nature without a single crowd.

Venture into the second-largest primary tropical forest in West Africa, where forest elephants, pygmy hippos and chimpanzees live among 50-meter trees. Walk with Forestry Development Authority guides clearing the way with a machete through ferns and river crossings, and listen for the distant roar of the white colobus at dawn. It is Liberia's most authentic no-frills adventure.

Tour the three floors of the museum on Broad Street, where ceremonial masks from the secret societies of the indigenous peoples share space with photographs and documents of the nineteenth-century African American settlers. Take in the war drums, the country cloth weavings and the portraits of the first presidents, and understand the dual heritage of a country founded from two worlds. An hour of dense history.

Surf the long, clean waves of the Robertsport point, Liberia's best spot, where rental boards and fishermen with canoes share a pale-sand bay surrounded by palm trees. Walk to Lake Piso, a freshwater lake beside the sea, dine on fresh snapper at the shoreline cabins, and watch the sunset dye the fishing boats. It is the perfect coastal escape from the capital.

Climb the Liberian slope of Mount Nimba, the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve it shares with Guinea and Ivory Coast, where highland grasslands and cloud forests hide frogs and shrews found nowhere else on the planet. Hike with the rangers' permission among giant ferns and orchids, and from the crest gaze over the three-way rainforest border. It is the highest trek in the country.

Step into the largest open-air market in West Africa, where hundreds of stalls crowd Bushrod Island selling country cloth, dried fish, electronics and spices amid unceasing noise. Haggle for a handmade textile, try the jollof rice from the street kitchens, and watch Monrovia's real commercial pulse, unfiltered. It is total sensory immersion in Liberia.