The trip is planned. Raleigh will return to Hartsville for 15 days during the holidays and we will transit back to Africa together. Cheryl will join us there from Australia. Our trip from New York is 9 hours and her trip from Sydney is 26 hours!
We have talked about this trip since the day he was accepted into the Peace Corps. Ideally we would have gone when Cheryl was in Afghanistan, but the timing for us to be in country with him just did not work until now.
His Aunt Joyce and Melinda had expressed interest in going with us, but the more stories they heard the less interested they seemed to be. Everyone seemed to back off at the thought of going to the bathroom in a hole in the ground! Melinda has even asked for photos of this event. I can promise you this is not going to happen!
Our itinerary is semi planned. We will stay in Dakar for a few days. This is the capital of Senegal and where the only International Airport is located. Our next stop will be Saly which is a coastal tourist area. We booked a nice all inclusive resort for a few days. From there we will start our trek south to the city of Kolda which is located in the region of Kolda. His Village is also located in the region of Kolda. We will stay there a few days before we transit to the Village.
The Village is planning a large celebration and party when we are there. We are told there will be a goat slaughtered in our honour. There will be music, dancing and lots of fun. We provided our measurements in advance for our new attire.
We realise there will be nothing ordinary about this vacation. Raleigh has prepared us the best he can. However, we are ready to take it on and see how the people of Senegal live and how he lives. Yes, we have heard the stories, but we know seeing it with our own eyes and living it if only for a short while will provide us with a different perspective.
Here we go. Let the adventure begin.