Guinea - The Lions on the Road: Cycling London to Cape Town - page 113

didn't ask me for the money again. He then took me to a small restaurant and bought
me some rice for lunch. Without thinking, I stupidly drank the water that the restaurant
provided without treating it first. That evening, I wrote in my journal, “…I may be sick in
the next few days” (that story is coming.) I thanked the man, and after crossing the river, I
continued on my way to Labé taking pictures of the scenery as I went along.
After cycling for 20 kilometres or so, I came upon a small village and requested to
speak to the village chief. Upon meeting him, I asked for permission to set up my tent in
his village. Without hesitation, he granted me permission to stay but directed me to guest
hut instead. I put my bike in the hut and walked down to the river to bathe. Of course,
for the locals to see a naked white man was a rare occasion, so I had quite a few spectat-
ors…namely the entire village. After I washed, I quickly dressed and after applying mos-
quito repellent, I joined my host.
Just then, a man walked up to me and in perfect English insisted that I go with him
to visit his home. I first asked him if it was far and he said no. So I left my things in the
village and walked in the direction where I just cycled from. To be honest, I really wanted
tositdownandrest.Iwasinnomoodtowalkaftercyclingallday.Afterthefirstkilometre
or so, I asked him again if it was much further. This time my tone was becoming more as-
sertive….well, actually it was aggressive.
“No,” he replied, “it is close.”
WekeptwalkingandthenIlostmypatienceandraisedmyvoicewarninghimtobe
honest with me. Just as I was about to go off on a tirade he said that we arrived. The total
distance turned out to be 5 kilometres. I had to admit that his place was impressive. He had
built a home, a storage hut, had fields of crops, a garden and some livestock. He built a
perimeterfencethatenclosedallofthiswithoneendofthepropertyalongtheriver.Iasked
him if he had to lease the land or pay tax to Labé's administration. He said no. He told me
that when he left Liberia and walked by the area, he liked it so much that he decided to put