Ok, I wrote this extensive semi-daily journal of traveling from Ghana to Amsterdam. I'm no professional travel writer, but if I must say so myself, it wasn't bad. That journal with all its African and European content was left in a car in Madrid, Spain with two men not able to speak or read English. So, I suppose to record my travel before my mind resets the hard drive, I'll write down what I remember. Here goes, the 4 month post-travel reminiscence of the trip of my life.

I was supposed to visit Mama Laadi (Prince is one of Mama Laadi's kids pictured above) for 2 days just long enough to do a tour of the schools that received desks from The Desk Project and make sure our work was still holding together. I ended up staying for a week, just hanging out with kids I didn't really want to leave and helping Mama Laadi with some organization and form-filling. The last 2 days at Mama Laadi's I met and spoke with Sofiatu. Sofiatu is a friend of Mama Laadi's originally from Bolgatanga, but now living in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. She travelled to Bolga for a relative's funeral and ran out of money for the return trip to Ougadougou. She travelled with her daughter and grand-daughter and they needed fare and I needed someone who knew Ouagadougou and who could speak French. I agreed to pay the fare for Sofiatu and her crew in exchange for some guiding around Ouaga and some help getting situated. So we left Mama Laadi's around 7 in the morning and boarded a bush taxi (which once across the

Francophone border becomes a sept-place meaning seven places even when there are 9 adults and 2 kids) with way too many people and babies sitting in my lap for the 7 hour ride to Ouga. More later.

Sofiatu and grandchild pictured above in Ouagadougou