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time, I let go of the handlebars on my descent and stretched out my hands as if I was a bird
flyingawaytofreedom.Thelast14kilometreswerequiteeasyandIspentmostofthetime
admiringthescenerywhichwasprettybutnotasdramaticasGuinea's.Istillhadtobecau-
tious however for parts of the road fell away to erosion. I arrived at a military checkpoint
and was directed to the Holy Ghost Cathedral in Enugu. There I met Father Anthony and
photographed him on the bike (the first person other than me to ride it.)
Iwasinvitedtostayandhavingcompleted112kilometres,Igladlyaccepted.Iwent
to bed almost immediately.
After a simple breakfast, I was on the road again. The start was a bit shaky for I
was given bad directions and headed on an incorrect road. Immediately it felt wrong for I
wasn't cycling into the sun (east) but heading north (the sun was on my right). I stopped to
ask for directions again and the person explained how I could join the motorway. In retro-
spect I only did an extra kilometre, but the reason for mentioning this short anecdote was
to remind travelers to ask several people for directions and not just one or two.
I joined the motorway and thankfully the traffic was lighter. I completed 84 kilo-
metres rather quickly and arrived in Abakaliki at 1:15 p.m. where I met with Father
Alphonsus at the cathedral, who permitted me to stay. During our long discussion, he re-
buked something I said. He argued that even though I visited projects in Lagos and other
areas,Ididn'thaveanunderstandingofthetruepredicamentofthosechildren.Iresponded
that even if I spent 3 months with them, I still wouldn't understand their predicament but
at least my visits gave me something tangible that I could draw from whenever I did any
interviews.
Since I arrived rather early, I took a shower and then napped for one and a half
hours. After a stroll into town, I returned to dine with Father Alphonsus and the religious
community. I ended the evening by watching a James Bond movie, 'The Living Daylights'
and five minutes after the movie ended, the generator was switched off.
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