Dakar...

Hell... that’s the only word I can think of when I arrive at dawn and feel the 30-degree heat I was doing in that place. In addition to heat, Dakar is very stuffy. To end my vision of hell, the stench that came in my nostrils as soon as I got off the plane, to the point of wrapping my stomach. Look for Leo in the middle of that heap of people, my luck is that there was no redhead at the airport, besides her who waved cheerfully next to Stephen. She laughs as soon as she sees me with my scarf covering my face. I hug my friend and greet Estevão who carries my backpack.

— There is a saying here in Africa: Either you love, or Hate, the Mother Earth. - says Leonor to see my face in shock.

Parking is even worse. I couldn’t find myself in that place. I walk beside Léa admiring the people and their dialects, some men beckon to me, leaving me confused.

— Do not face them. Especially men, they can interpret that you are a... person who provides worldly services. - explains Leo.

— Whore, you mean. - I correct Leo, who shakes his head.

I walk looking at the ground until we get to the car. As soon as we got in the car, the two saw each other and began to explain to me the real situation of Dakar.

— Senegal is going through a crisis in electricity, so it always needs to be alert and turn on the generator. Don’t worry, we always have generators ready. - Leonor.

— Kidnappings are happening in large numbers in Dakar, so always be alert. - explains Estevão. — Or rather, do not leave without us. We live in a condominium with 24 hour security and no one enters without being identified, so do not worry so much when you are inside.

— I bet you must be hating all this. - says Leonor, returning to his place.
Despite the initial shock of the smells, the dirt, the dialects, and the whole situation that is happening in Dakar, that is the first time I have felt at home, participating in something really important. I felt so essential.

I arrived at Leo’s house and went to settle in the guest room. I packed my things in the wardrobe and my notebook on the desk, I was staring at him for a few moments, nervous. My hand is itching, and I try to hold on as long as I can, not do what goes on in my mind. But I’m overcome by my anxiety, I go into my e-mail and:
___________________________________________________________________________________
To: Mr. X
Cc:
Cco:
Subject: Travel.

Hello X,
At the moment I am not in Barcelona and I do not have a return forecast.

Dália Penedo Salazar.
___________________________________________________________________________________

I send without blinking, feeling a relief in my chest. I turn off my notebook and lie on the bed. Does he still think about me?

***
I woke up very happy and excited to go to the village, Lac Rose. We took the road very early, the village is 60 km from Dakar. There is no water, electricity, or internet. Which is even better for me, so I focus more on what I came here to do. I stop next to Leo, admiring all that empty ground.

— Are you ready? - asks Leo, admiring the view. — You know we’ll do it all from scratch.

— I’m here for that. - I answer, smiling.

Leo is a kind of nurse/teacher, since she is trained in both areas. And I would be your helper while the school and the health center were being built. We watched the children more, those innocent eyes showed that they had witnessed more about human cruelty than I can imagine. The biggest problem is malnutrition and illiteracy. So we would go three times a week, teach and care for those wingless angels. 

Everything is so beautiful there and so invigorating that we all felt a huge desire to spend as much time as possible there, giving them the support they needed. To the point that Leonor and Estevão decided to live in the village, then they began to build their house, to then live there.

***
About a month later...

I never tire of admiring that pink water of the Lake, a vivid rose, pure and unbelievable, merging with the vegetation of the place. I’m entertained thinking of several hypotheses, like living there with Carlos, when Leonor touches my shoulder:

— Dreamer, come, we have to talk.

I walk to the construction of what will be the health center, inside are Estevão and some people I do not know, but the clothes seem to be doctors.

— This is my friend, Dalia. - introduces Eleanor to the others. — Dalia these are the doctors who will make an expedition to Guinea-Bissau to vaccinate the children and provide support for the region. They came to ask for extra help for this expedition. Estevão and I agreed, we would like to know if you would like to go too? It’s just for a week.

— Of course I do. - I say, excited.

Dakar is a sky near Guinea. As Estevão drives the car, I watch the view I have of the place: there is nothing but houses abandoned or destroyed by the civil war between Portugal and Guinea. It would be seven days traveling through the interior of this country with this kind of image. I’m almost asleep when Estevão slows down and Leonor starts looking for something in his bag. Leo’s husband lowers the glass and talks to the policeman, who stares at us one by one. He takes Stephen’s passport and doesn’t take long to make a gesture with his hand. Leo hands over some money, and then he releases us.

—What was that? - I ask, curious.

—Things from Africa. - grumbles Estevão, annoyed.

— Don’t worry. - says Leo, looking at me. — Police always stop at cars when they see a white person at the wheel. And there will always be a bribe. - She opens the bag full of things like pens, beans, and even peanuts. — Either you pay in cash, or offer something in return. By my count, we’ll still be stopped about three times, other than that.

When we got to the first town, I realized we were dealing with abandoned children, if I found the village children’s eyes sad, those eyes were worse... much worse. We took the opportunity to visit an orphanage that Leonor’s parents opened more than 25 years ago. 

— I haven’t been back here since they opened this place. - comments Leo looking at the rusty gate with the sign-off, nor can you know that it is an orphanage if it was not for the voices of the children. — It’s all the same.

We go down and enter the orphanage: that place is completely in ruins. Leo kneels and touches the peeled mural lying on the ground. She smiles, sad, as she touches what was once a beautiful painting.

— It was my father who painted. - she explains, looking at me. She gets up and cleans her face. —They didn’t even pass an ink hand... nothing.

A total degradation, but they still had almost 180 children, all abandoned, either by their parents or orphans. African culture is to be cruel when it comes to these little angels. If a child is born albino, it is cursed and the family abandons the newborn. If they are twins, they choose the strongest and the weakest, or the one that has less weight, is left to die. That killed me inside: how many children did not have the chance that those and ended up dead somewhere, abandoned in their own luck?

 We helped those children with all my heart, I ripped out a smile that had not long appeared in those childish faces, affection and protection, things that not all the money in the world would give them. As soon as we left, I felt inside me that I couldn’t go back, I didn’t have the strength to see that suffering again. *** Ten days later... On the way back, we stopped in a village in the middle of nowhere to buy coal, since there the price is much cheaper. We pulled up with the car in one of the houses to buy coal. She comes from a family of one husband, three wives and children of all sizes. One of them had a newborn on her lap and when she saw us, she ran towards us offering her baby: — White has money, white takes baby. I look at that baby, oblivious to his mother’s desperate request. He is beautiful and as soon as he opens his eyes, my heart races: I feel a real affection for him. I want to hold him in my arms and give him all the love he deserves. Then the car windows start to rise, I turn and notice that Leonor closed all the windows. — Don’t you dare look, because that’s what they want. They want us to feel pity for the child and then ask for money. If one day you want to adopt an African baby, we will do it by legal means. - says Leo. —  All right. - I answer, avoiding looking at the baby again. Until that day I had never thought about adopting, but seeing that scene I decided that if I could not get pregnant, I will add. As soon as Carlos sets foot in Africa I will talk to him about adoption, I feel that he will love the idea, filling me with hope.