Whew made it!

Hey folks. Life is busy but this past week work has changed up a bit. And it has been a messy ride-literally and figuratively.
It started Sunday morning when I went to the road town and found that the health relais who was supposed to do net counts with me got called to the Post de Sante (the big, but not big health post that serves as a head quarters for all the health huts and a care center for the rural population). Normally I would have been fine with this but this conflicted with the SCHEDULE, which has become life and the only way I can keep track of everything. This was the last village I needed to count and it was also the largest. At least 50 compounds which translated into atleast 500 people. I already did basic counts but I needed names and gender statistics and I did not want to do it by myself. However it needed to get done because month of June I have booked with no room for the delays another day of counting would bring (it didn't help that we had planned to do this earlier and I changed the date to accomadate him.)
Anyways got mad sat under a grass overhang and moped over how crappy it was going to be to count those nets all by myself. It took 6 hours to us to the other big town, together! I was going to be there all day.
So finally I went to the chief's compound, got the numbers for four houses and then as I listened to the kids who had been sent with me to guide me in this town I decided 'Hell with this! I'll move something around I cannot and will not do this by myself!'
Went back and chilled out in my village, (did I mention the day before I had done 40K of trail riding, again nearly gotten sick from dehydration, and I was sore as all get out?) and got a call from the relais.
"No problem Adama we will do it this evening!!'
Problem 1) I wanted to go Kolda so I could prepare to to go to Thies for the SENEGAD conference.
Problem2 2) I was still mad that it hadn't been done in the morning and now I would have to potentially miss the ride into Kolda and ride my bike out there again in the hot weather.)
Eventually I sucked it up. We did it (4 hours!) and I still missed all the cars but at least it was done! Had to go back to village inthe dark (head lamp died-speaking of which the power surges fried my battery charger. If anyone can send me some AAA batteries or a charger, old, new, whatever, I would be thankful. A volunteer without a head lamp is a volunteer who squats over a scorpion. No one wants that.)
Anyways got into Kolda the next morning. Here is something tha has happened to my body that is good and bad. I can eat village food for the most part with no problem now. Repitition is tedious but its good and consistent and my stomach knows it.
The bad part is when I go to Kolda I get sick because I eat food I don't normally eat. And this was the case. Naseua, light headedness, and fever, followed by vomitting. All before I need to get in a car at 3AM to go to Thies. ANd for those of who don't remember my motion sickness here is on an epic level. I need to be unconscious for these rides. I thought about not going but I really wanted to learn more about SENEGAD, see what projects they fund and give feed back on Kolda.
PLus my change purse disappeared on the alhum, along with 4 mille and my peace corps ID. And I got sent the wrong malaria medication. That pretty much sealed my fate. Got into the car (got a window seat-no one wants me to puke on them.) Passed out till Gambia where for the first border crossing miraculously I was not asked to pay showing my pass port, a favorite pass time of the border people who KNOW that PCVs do not pay to enter and leave the country.
Unfortunately I was super sick at this point and just wanted to make it to an area not populated by people who try to speak english so I could vomit.
Made it to Senegal before I had to urge the driver, in my poor poor french, to stop the car. Botta and I (another volunteer) made it Thies where we a) stopped and got food (even I needed to eat something) and then got to the center and passed out for 15 hours straight. Didn't even put sheets on the bed. Hard core, still covered in a layer of red earth, shoes on, blissful sleep.
The meeting went pretty well. I think we are going to be doing a lot of projects this year and hopefully integrate more men (Senegalese and male volunteers) into gender development.
Its the after part that was really the big adventure.
I went to my homestay village to greet my sister who recently had her wedding (the guy is still in Spain but he is arriving mid-June I guess. Hope he isn't a jerk.) Got out there by myself (or at least as by myself as I could get asking everyone with in ear shot or within my cell phone if I was going the right way) met up with the family. They are amazing. I was so lucky to have them. But anyways the big debate was this-How was i getting to Dakar tomorrow?
My family wanted me to go out there, and come back and then they would send someone to the Garage with me to make sure I got on a good car. Sounded fabulous to me but too much car, i.e. to much vomit potential. So I convinced them (and myself) that I would get to Dakar in the morning, by myself, find the Peace Corps office (which I have only been to twice-during PST and on swear in) and then I would stay at the office until midnight when I would catch the midnight car to Kolda. My reasoning was this. I want to travel in Africa, and I will probably do some of it myself which meant it was better to learn now rather later how to do it.
My mother looked at me like I was saying I was going to walk myself back to America. She is so wise. However she gave my the benefit of the doubt. And then sent one of the cousins with me to garage so that he would find someone on the alhum who was heading in my direction who then would be trusted to see I got there.
Good intentions but the Fates of Africa prevail.
The alhum broke down and so w had to get off. I got into conversation with some Pulaar du Nords who sent me in the direction of the big city buses. "it will stop at the garage.' They said
Got on, near the front. The bus took off. Ok I thought thats not too bad. Only a hundred CFA (like 25 cents) to go another 50K. Thought I was getting a deal.
Then as the naseua started building and Dakar popped I realized something about this bus.
It was making stops. Not like hitchhiker stops but like actual scheduled stops. It was the SMART bus of Senegal! It wasn't going to the garage! It was making rounds!
Now I am freaking out a little. I start askling who understands pulaar.
Zero.
So I start asking in rudimentary french. No one understands with my atrocious accent and infantile grammar. At this point we are in the city and I comforted by the fact that the road is nice (there were nice roads by the office right?) but still started to believe I could be legitimately lost in this city.
Someone told me that the bus was eventually heading in the direction of Ngor but that doesn't mean anything. Direction could be within 5K or 20K. So I realize my options are down to this. Call another volunteer. Or. Call the Peace Corps.
I debated over this for a moment. Do I want another volunteer to think I am an idiot and then try to give me directions even though I doubt they know where I am or what landmarks I am passing? Or do I call Peace Corps and have the comfort of knowing they know Dakar and still have them think I am an idiot.
Chose Peace Corps.
Our security coordinator was the one I called (hey if I am lost I am not secure!) and bless his soul he didn't call me an idiot but said make sure the bus is heading toward the airport. Did that and then another nice man (seriously for ever pick pocket and toubaub hating jerk in this country there are at least 3 more good samaritans) said he was going to Ngor and would take me there. We get off the boss and he negotiates a taxi for us and we get in. About 20 minutes later Id ecide to call the security cooridinator again. I know we are in Ngor, I just don't know where the office is. I figure he can talk in wolof to the man and we will get there in a flash.20 minutes later we are pulled over and he is still talking.
I'm thinking there is no way we are THAT lost. I know we are close. I can practically smell the air conditioning.
Two minutes later and another mille more we are at the office jsut in time to get in before the office closes. I thank the man profusely and I want to give him money for the cab so he can get where he is going. He just waves it off. Who in America would get in a car with a foreigner who barely speaks english and see them to where they need to be and then not ask for anything in return? I finally give him my phone number so if he ever needs a volunteer he can call me up.
So now I am chilling. I made it to the office. The next hurdle is making it to te garage and then to Kolda. Lets hope it is less than 15 hours and vomit free.