The Finish Line

I am exhausted. We've biked an immense amount over the last 6 and a half weeks, but it has been very rewarding. Yesterday, we biked to the villages of Togue, Dar Salaam (#2 for us, there are many villages named Dar Salaam) and Bambaya Labourou. These are at the wash at the bottom of a set of bluffs near a city called Fongolimbi. We decided to explore the turf out there, because we had heard that these villages were receiving a very low amount of health care support. When we arrived, we realized these rumors were true. In some of the other villages we covered, some of the population had managed to get mosquito nets, but out there, barely anybody had one. There were also increased eye infections. Our questions about malaria during our talk seemed harder to the populations in these villages. A pregnant woman in these villages in trouble would have to either walk up to the top of the bluffs to Fongolimbi or bike an hour and a half to two hours to get all the way to Kedougou. Our last village was Bambaya Labourou. When we were finished there, our nets were done, and now the Netlife team is trying to feel like it's on vacation. We do this mainly by trying to add cheese to more meals. After all, we need to bulk up. I (Andy) lost 5 kilos while I've been here and Jesse has lost 12 kilos. We'll be in Kedougou for a few more days then head to Dakar. I admit, I really miss home. I miss my loved ones and will be very happy to see them when I return.

Take care everyone.
-Andy