The final chapter of the bicycle effort...

Jacques Piriou and Guy Guivarche, our compatriots with ASSOCIATION SOLIDARITE DAR EL SALAM just sent us this link for a blog detailing the work being done in Dar.

There are a few pictures of the bicycles and wheelchairs at their final destination and lots of shots of the village and the community.

In other news associated with our French friends, Kara and Scott are hoping to travel to Carhaix again this summer to visit all the great folks we met in February and work/enjoy the Festival des Vieilles Charrues - a massive music festival they have in their beautiful little town every summer.

This year it's a great line-up

Hope everyone is doing well!

More pictures, please

Okay, my little droogies. I've taken some of my meager pictures and put them up on the flickr site. You should notice that the picture badge (that thing on the right hand menu bar with the changing pictures) has lots of new stuff.
Being the geekishly interested person that I am, I've also tried to geocode the pictures that I have. Check out this link, and tell me if it works. It should give you a fun little interface that links pictures to maps. Some of the pictures are well referenced on the map (they are where they should be). Others are more generally placed in the general area where they were taken. You figure out which are which.
If that doesn't work, I've shared the set, so you should be able to navigate to:
http://www.flickr.com/gp/59447537@N00/D6nj0o
and see all the pictures. I think there's a link to the map section from there, as well.
Alternatively, you can navigate to the www.flickr.com, and search for all pictures with the "penitent yanks" tag.
If that doesn't work, we'll have to do it the old fashioned way -- you'll have to come over to the house, and endure a tedious slide show. Oh boy!
I can't wait until Mike is ready to debut the 5 gigs of pictures he took!
happy surfing.

Random Pictures

While I still haven't gotten up the gumption to write a little post-trip musing, here are the few still photos I took on my video camera when I wasn't actually filming video...

Kate and Kara in Marrakech

The Yanks (minus me) on the ferry from Europe to Africa.



Essaouira

McAya's in Dakhla - home of the "Big One", and provider of Yanks sustenance for six days...

Four Wheeling in the Desert

We definitely picked the right place to break down. Plenty to do while we wait. Mike, jenna and I went 4 wheeling in the desert, down the beach and along the lagoon.
Other options we may need to consider - surfing on the atlantic side, kite surfing in the lagoon, frying ourselves on the beach, deep sea fishing, reading books, writing home to Mom, plaing a major Cinch championship. The list is endless.

Photo essay of a breakdown

You've heard the story before, and now you've got some pictures to go with it.

First, the bus stopped working.



Then, these local guys came along ( and you ask yourself, 'can there be a hoodie without a hood?'). These guys were unbelievably friendly and helpful, sticking around with us for hours and doing everything they could to keep our spirits up and the bus running.



Then a passing semi stopped for a while and tried to help out, too. This guy was hauling a large load of small rocks. In the desert!


'So, Scott, what's my motivation in this scene? Do I actually fix the thing, or just look like I'm trying to get it working? Union regs say we get a break now, you know.'

A couple hours later, the cavalry arrived. This is either an outing of the society of mad max recreations or the moroccan chapter of burning man.

Then we all stood around looking pensive and contemplative.

Or just stood around eating and talking.

The master mechanics at work on the engine.

It ain't nothing but a street party!

Lawrence of Arabia, eat your heart out

Shipwrecked!

If our trip were a novel, seeing this ship a couple of days ago would be considered ominous foreshadowing.