19/12/2022
We are back home 🏡 and rested after us both catching chest infections and feeling a tad run down 😥 , the ✈️ home was really stressful funnily enough as both involved multiple changes when all we wanted was a cup of tea 🍵 and our own bed 🛏️ .
Unfortunately we got food poisoning in Dakar , we decided we would have some r & r , a swimming pool and a little luxury before the last long bus journey into Gambia . We checked into Radisson Blu late at night , had a meal in the hotel and were then quite ill and incapacitated for 3 days , it really knocked us about and spoilt our time there , the last thing we needed ! Ironic really when we had been eating at roadside cafes and out of the way local cheap places , then the place you least expect it leaves you really ill.
Thanks Radisson you’re in house care and your customer care is shocking .
We’d like to thank you all for following, liking and sharing our posts , it was good to know you were watching our journey .
In total we travelled 5452 miles , this took into account the bus 🚌 and train 🚂 routes and the walking 🚶🏼♀️ we did whilst sight seeing .
We are deciding on what are the priorities at the schools 🏫 for the money 💵 to go towards , building a much needed wall and a refurb of the toilet 🚻 block we think are the first things to be done .
It was without a doubt a fantastic trip , the photos don’t do it justice at all , I think we discovered a few more wonders of the world , the natural beauty of the desert 🌵 🐫 , secluded bays and the warmth and kindness of complete strangers , took our breath away .
Even people on the ferry to Spain donated , encouraged by a stranger going round collecting for us 😊.
There was also another side which we couldn’t post as we travelled , the time the taxi driver wanted €300 from us for the journey to the border instead of the agreed €20 , all because we were white and obviously had loads of money 🙄🙄, who refused to let us go and hung onto Jackie , despite there being numerous police 👮 and border control officers they all turned a blind eye , and it got quite scary . So many vehicles drove past and pretended they couldn’t see us . However an Italian lorry driver came to our rescue again a complete stranger .
The pure exhaustion of travelling in a country where we weren’t fluent in the language , where women are often classed as second class citizens , when we knew we needed a safe and clean room for the night but we had no internet as the SIM card wouldn’t work because we had crossed an international border .
The time where the shared taxi broke down in the middle of nowhere and night fell , the van that gave us a lift but thought it fun to drive 80 mph on untarmaced pothole ridden roads in the pitch black are two incidents we’d really like to forget .
However the kindness of strangers was amazing , the young lad who rang his Aunty to get beds and a meal ready for us when he knew there was no hotel we will be ever thankful to , we arrived at 2am , to be met by buckets of water ready for a shower , a lovely hot meal and a safe place to sleep .
When all we wanted to do after a long cramped bus journey was sleep but we needed food , we needed tea and a shower , luckily the days I could function no more Jackie had a bit more strength and went food and tea hunting and vice versa ( it’s not common for a kettle in a room in many places 🤷🏼♀️🙄🙄)
It was with doubt bloody fantastic but it was challenging in many ways , Jackie’s dad isn’t too well but after so many cancellations had wanted her to go , I sadly only buried my dad earlier this year , so emotionally at times it was so very hard .
Lastly if there’s anyone who would still like to sponsor us , it’s not too late 😊and if anyone hasn’t paid please could you giftaid it or contact Jackie or myself and we would come and pick it up .
I would just like to say as we have both been asked a few times that ALL costs from doing the trip came out of our own pockets , none of the sponsor money in any shape or form paid for anything . Every single penny raised will go towards the schools .
Once again thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all your support , whether it emotional , physical or financial ❤️
