FERKESSOUDOUGOUxx..x x Called Ferke by those who know better, Ferkessoudougou was our connecting base for Korhogo and then on to Burkina Faso. It was a relief to arrive in that dusty, dry, small town. We asked a cab driver to bring us to the Catholic mission. He drove us three blocks for 300 CFA and it was the wrong spot. He said he'd take us to the proper place for an additional 400 CFA. We found a different cab.

This part of the Ivory Coast looked like what I expected of Africa. It was a dry savanna. The houses were all dirt (either round or square) with thatch roofs. Little round huts held millet.

After a few days of rest, we headed to the parking station for Burkina Faso where we were herded into the back of a truck like animals. When we were sufficiently uncomfortable, they put two more people in. We were off and stopping all day. It took us about two hours just to leave town. As soon as we left, we came to our first police checkpoint of the day. There would be seventeen more to follow. Some were good and some boring. In one I roamed a neat village taking pictures. At another two bandits behind bars leered at Amanda. At the Burkina Faso border, we waited for hours.