Roadtrips!

I hadn't been looking forward to making the two-day trek from Kankan to Conakry by myself with all my luggage, so I was delighted to hear that PCV Alana and her dad (who was visiting from America) were planning on hiring a car and were open to hop-ons. People usually make the trip in two parts: Day 1 is Kankan to Mamou, and then Day 2 is Mamou to Conakry. 

We left pretty early on Day 1, and PCVs Adrienne and Andrew rode along for most of the way to Mamou. Alana's dad took the front seat and the four of us rode in the back seat, which was one fewer passenger than usual - Guinean bush taxis generally put two people in the front seat, and occasionally two people in the driver's seat, which is excessive by pretty much anyone's standards but still happens sometimes. 

On Day 2 it was just the three of us, so it was a very comfortable and spacious ride the rest of the way. Here are a couple pictures of traditional medicine supplies, all laid out for sale at one of the gas stations along the way. 

Now I'm at the Peace Corps office in Conakry, catching up on e-mail and working through my Close-of-Service (COS) stuff. I'm done with the medical stuff - they check for everything from tuberculosis to HIV to tapeworms to anemia, so far so good - and this coming week I'll turn in my final reports, close out my bank account, have my exit interviews, and wrap up any other loose ends before I officially "get my R" and become a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, or in my case, a Returned Peace Corps Response Volunteer. Double R!

Speaking of cars and driving, newly-minted RPCVs Michelle, Chris M., Chris A., Zach, Clara, Brittany, and their friend Molly all just embarked on an epic West Africa roadtrip. They're calling themselves the Grey Goose Gaggle and they have a blog: "Armed with only our Peugeot 806, laughable hygienic standards and mad local-language skillz, we plan on taking West Africa by storm. Stay tuned to watch us embark on the greatest COS trip of all time."

The night before last PCV Wiatta and I got up at 5 in the morning to see them off as they packed up and left Conakry. As they pulled away we talked about how we wished we were going with them because they are awesome and we like hanging out with them, but when we think about the realities of the whole seven-people-six-weeks-one-car deal we start to reconsider... They're a good group though, very resourceful, and I hope they have an amazing time out there on the bumpy, dusty roads of West Africa.

"How exactly will all of this fit?"

The Grey Goose Gaggle!

Update (via Michelle): "Got a flat tire, the undercarriage fell off, exhaust pipe broke in half, our one belt broke, and our battery died. But we made it to Kankan! Bamako tomorrow..."

Tour de Kankan, Part II

These next five photos were taken by Stacy, on the mango-lined street (another landmark) that runs from the Totale gas station over to the market. (The last two are my personal favorites.)

The rest of these pictures were taken by me. A couple weeks ago I bought fabric from the fabric vendors (up close in Stacy's photo above and from a distance in mine, below) and they're nice ladies.

No one seemed to mind that I was taking pictures - I tried to stay in the background and make it obvious that I wanted a view of the general market scene and not anyone in particular, which may have helped. It was a pretty normal day - crowded, noisy, too many motos, lots of trashfire smoke and a wide variety of smells, ranging from frying fish to old meat to fresh soap to moto exhaust. 

Those are the towers of Kankan's big mosque (another landmark) in the background above, but the real reason I took this photo is that the "new" Senegalese restaurant is on the second floor of the building in front of the mosque, right where the palm trees are. The "Peace Bakery" below is right next to where Katie K. used to live - sometimes it's hard to get a photo without someone strolling (or moto-ing) into the frame. 

And that concludes our brief tour of Kankan. I have more photos to upload, of New Years and my neighbors, but those may have to wait for next week and the Peace Corps office's (comparatively) fast internet. 

Tour de Kankan, Part I

Like many people, I've always wanted to take a bunch of photos of the city of Kankan, but have been hesitant - I don't want to get yelled at by cops or people who don't want their photo taken or who demand money for photos. The other day, though, I tagged along with PCV Stacy as she went to get some photos printed at a little place on the second floor of a building right downtown, and I took some pictures from the comfort of the front and rear landings. 

The pictures aren't anything special, but they show what a typical street loos like - dusty, mango trees here and there - and in one you can see part of the main roundpoint by the Totale gas station, which is a major ladmark. 

After the photo place, Stacy and I walked toward the market, along murky drainage canals brimming with trash (very typical of the Kankan experience) and past a giant pile of refrigerators and freezers (less typical but still interesting). 

More to come, just as soon as they finish uploading... 

Friends & Amenities

I have some nice photos from Christmas and News Year's Eve that I would like to post, but the internet connection I'm currently using can't seem to upload or download anything, so that will have to wait.

With everyone out of town on their year-end holidays, the generator on my compound hasn't been turned on in over a week. This means no wifi, which is fine, there are cyber-cafes downtown. It also means that the water pump isn't turned on, which is more of an inconvenience. The water tank went dry nearly a week ago, and my personal water buckets ran out a couple days after that, so I'm back to fetching water from the nearest pump, just like I used to do when I lived in a village.

Happily, I still have a decent amount of electricity, thanks to the solar panels having been cleaned two weeks ago. The panels had been caked in such a thick layer of fine, red dust that they had all but stopped functioning, but now they're back to providing about eight hours of electricity every day, which is fantastic. (City power, which comes from giant gas-fueled generators, comes on about every third evening, for six or seven hours at a time.)

Hopefully my at-home internet access and running water will return next week, and in the meantime I'm enjoying the quiet afternoons, totally free of the roar of the generator. Happy New Year, everyone!