Uffff...I definitely caught something. I woke up with the worst headache and quite feverish. I didnt feel like talking to anyone. I just wanted to take off, yet stayed a bit because I wanted to experience the early morning in the village.
The breakfast was only a cup of coffee and a couple of cookies. Of well, what to expect for USD2?!
Soon after I took of. The sky was very and quite threatening. I just hoped it wouldn't rain. I was not in the mood for that.
A kid led me to the trail to get to the next hill village of Andiel. Slight same scenario as to get up to Iwol, but this time, the trail was way harder and hidden and I definitely thought I had gotten lost many times. Or perhaps it was the threat of snakes that worried me the most. The potential of already having Malaria was bothering me enough to the get bitten by a poisonous snake. Anyhow...what else was I gonna do. I kept on hiking and jumping from tock to rock to try not to walk into the grass. I definitely got a serious sweat out of it. The views of the valley were incredible.
When I finally got atop the hill, I was so frustrated as I was convinced I had accidentally looped bad to Iwol. I felt so stupid. I kept walking into the village and happily realized that no, I had made it to Andiel. At last. But as expected, barely anyone in the village other than the old women and new mums with their new born.
I was so feverish I needed water. My two bottles were empty. So I asked where to find the well pump. "Down" they replied. Ufff...I didn't feel like walking around the village more and so made my way "down" hoping that it was not all the way down. Hmmm...it actually was all the way down. :-( allllll the way down in the valley. As I was hiking down, I couldn't believe that women would actually climb all this way with buckets on top of their heads. Seemed inhumane for an NGO to have dug a well pump down there when the village is all the way up. Why?! (The pump was built by the Saudi Arabia Fund for Development...no comment)
Once I got my bottles filled and purified, I went to salute the woman who was farming nearby. She had something to her her smile. I should have known. She told me her name was Angel. When she saw I had fever she told me to go lay down by her hut under the tree, she would come up later to check on me.
So I went. It felt good to be in the shade. I watched her beautiful kids play around. Soon after se came up and brought over a bamboo mat she laid down on the floor and told me to rest and nap a bit. She would come by again later and bring me food.
The place was dream like. A big tree in the middle of the valley. A hut, couple of kids running and laughing around.
I went in and out of sleep for a good 2 to 3 hours. She later came by to see my photos of Ethiwar. She happened to be Bernard's cousin and used to live in Ethiwar. She was so happy to see everyone on the photos.
Then she went to a "corvee" nearby while her three kids where caring for each other. The 11yr old daughter was the one cooking for all three...and coincidentally for me as well. But I had zero appetite.
Later on I asked Angel if like the rest of the women, she was selling jewelry. She said yes with a big smile. Her stuff was up in the village. She actually ran up and down to bring it back to me. I felt it would be a nice way to thank her to buy a couple of pieces from her. So I bought a few things for Angelina from Angel. :-)
After resting, I felt strong enough to get up and walk...ufff...the sun was high up and strong. But I had to get going. I just wanted to shower up and lay down on a mattress. So I left. It was a long walk, in the dry hot sun hoping all along that I was on the right path and that Indar would pop up in the horizon soon.
After an hour and a half of walking, passing by the Patassy military training camp, I got lucky when some guy offered to give me a ride on his motorcycle.
It was good to arrive back at the campement. I showered and changed in the open air bathroom because Yohan, my hut mate had locked it while he went to Kedougou for the day. So then I just went to hang out in the tree roots with the guys, and rest.
The evening went by quick. A tourist couple from Dakar arrived. They seemed cool. He from Senegal and she from france. They apparently ordered a little baby goat to be grilled for dinner. We ate it all together. It was the worst goat I ever ate. Barely cooked. I forced myself though as I wanted to make sure to gain strength and most importantly, to not loose any weight over whatever bug I had caught.
Tomorrow I will go take the Malaria test. Strangely enough, after being so sick and losing so much weight in Nepal, the potential of having malaria didn't so much scare me for the excruciating pain, vomiting, or high fever, but rather for the sole risk of losing more weight.
Finally I am in bed. I just hope tomorrow will be better. I miss Angelina.
A demain...
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