Opus Initium!

dimidium facti qui coepit habet 
He who has begun has the work half done (Horace)

Monday, April 12  (Day 1)

The day started in a taxi to the bank with $20,000,000 cash tied up in a black plastic bag.  We deposited the money into an account that would be used to purchase all the materials for the school project, and hopped on a bus to Bamako where we would buy the cement.  The ride to Bamako from Segou is roughly 3 to 4 hours, depending on the quality of bus, number of flat tires, and conditions on the road.  It's about 120 degrees inside and the windows don't open.  It took us about 3 1/2 hours.  Not bad.  As soon as we pulled into the bus station, we got a call from BuildOn saying they'd changed their minds, and would now like to purchase the cement in Segou (which we had wanted to do in the first place).  Since we were already in Bamako we took advantage of the availability of ice cream and ham sandwiches, and spent the night in air conditioning.

Tuesday, April 13 (Day 2)

Bus back to Segou.  1 flat tire.  4 1/2 hours.  120 degrees.  Not bad.

Wednesday, April 14 (Day 3)

Met with the cement vendor in Segou, negotiated the price of cement, the cost of transport, and struck a deal.  $14,323 for 1100 bags of cement.  $573 for transport to Tongo.  Not bad.  The payment would be made by wire transfer into the vendors bank account.  He seemed unfamiliar with this practice and slightly anxious but he eventually agreed and ordered the truck to start loading. The biggest truck they had could only carry 800 bags, so it would take 2 trips.  The truck arrived around 4pm and was loaded with 800 bags (40 tons) of cement in about 3 hours.

We sat in the front of the truck for the 35 mile ride to Tongo and the sun began to set.

When we arrived in Tongo it was nearly dark but we were met with enthusiastic cheers and greetings as what seemed like the entire village crowded around the truck to help unload.  The chief told me his mind had settled after the long delays and he was excited about the work that we were starting.  "This will be very good for the village," he said as bag after bag left the truck and was stacked in the only room in Tongo with a cement floor and metal roof.  

We finished unloading the truck and in true Malian style hospitality we were invited to eat dinner before we left.  By the time we were back on the road it was after 10pm.  Riding back we took the sand road through the fields, the only light coming from the trucks headlights.  It was one of those rides where everyone is quiet, lost in their own thoughts, and the world seems infinitely beautiful.  Not bad for a day's work.

Thursday, April 15 (Day 4)

There were still 300 bags of cement that needed to be transported to Tongo.  Again the truck came around 4pm, was loaded, and set off with us in the front seats.  Again we were met with a crowd in Tongo and the unloading went quickly.  Again we stayed for dinner and drove back through the fields at night.  Again, not bad.