It has been now 3 weeks since I left Ziguinchor in Senegal. Since then, I cycled through the cashew fields of Guinea Bissau, and up and down in the Fouta Djallon of Guinea. I am now in Freetown, Sierra Leone. In these countries, only the major cities receive electricity. And even in the cities, power is coming sometimes half a day, sometimes only in some neighborhoods, sometimes on and off, sometimes not at all. Most of the time, if you want electricity, you must pay for the petrol of the generator, and that’s a lot.

No electricity means no internet, and even when internet is working, it is very slow. Today, the upload speed allowed me to put 20 pictures online in a whole afternoon. But my slow WordPress server doesn’t even let me write a post blog. And that is in Freetown, a capital city on my route. As a result, I don’t think there will be many updates here until I reach Ivory Coast in another month. I found the following document from the IEEE showing how the region I am in now is disconnected from the rest of the world. At best I will be able to update my Log.

Despite the poor infrastructure, cycling is always good and the people still very warm and welcoming. I am mostly eating rice and leaves, but am in good health and the bike too. My main concern for now is the rainy season that just started. Rain every day, sky always grey (or a scary black cover) and the wind/rain/thunder/lightnings can be quite strong. I will stick to the paved roads (when available) and team with a German cyclist for the next weeks.