0257. Sprawling Serakunda (Gam 03--new)
...So Serakunka it is... Soon I'm speeding down a modern highway--something I haven't seen since, well, Morocco... and a few minutes later, modern buildings, offices, schools on the side. Then the minivan drove down a long, narrow, dirt alley and stopped. Not sure which way to the heart of the city, I headed to the left. Soon I was following another highway with modern buildings on the side--but certainly not a "city center" feel... I even came across the US Embassy--which is kind of cool... it's fun to see what the each Embassy looks like...
I followed this highway for miles and miles until I'd reach what appeared to be the end of town--so I hiked off to the left to find another way back into town.... only to find that a couple hundred meters back, there's no more city! Determined not to take the same way back into town, I managed to find a dirt path through the swamps with only stones to cross the bog with.
...And then hell...
Up ahead, a huge cloud of smoke--but I saw people coming in and out of the cloud, covering their mouths. I got closer. And there I saw it--Serakunda's hell--right smoke in the middle of a residential neighborhood with fires burning constantly--is the city dump...
There's a pathway that goes right to the middle of it--and I strongly suspect that downtown is on the other side--so I decide to go for it, staggering through the haze of smoke.
Just can't imagine what it must be like to LIVE next to this place...
FINALLY I get to what looks like, real city. The streets are getting more and more crowded... and then--the market, it's got to be one of the most congested markets in the world, the alleys absolutely packed to the gills. Of course, I've got to squeeze my way down a couple of these--with my guitar, camera, etc--always a risky operation. Fortunately, I'm usually surrounded by women--so I feel pretty safe... whenever I've got a couple of dudes around me, I start getting a bit nervous...
Finally I make it out to where I can breathe again... Whew...
Still no semblance of a park, plaza, or modern city center of any sort, so parkbenching Serakunda is going to be a bit of a challenge.
Suddenly a fellow comes rushing out of his shop begging me to give him a very quick guitar lesson... The guys seems sincere, and I need to sit down for a bit anyways, so I follow him into his little car parts shop. I can see that he's DEFINITELY sincere when he tells a couple of customers to wait until we have our class... I finally tell him that I'm in no hurry and he can tend to his customers...
He does actually pick up very quick (he already knows quite a bit) then he starts to tell me of his story... He's a Nigerian, married to a Sierra Leonian with three children... He was actually quite well to do and then his wife died during childbirth, which totally devestated him... Now he's trying to raise his children and run his business on his own...
Finally we parted ways... I felt honored once again at a glimpse I was able to have into real life here in West Africa...
