Chapter 3 - Back to the Jungle

It was dark, my heart was racing, i was scared and i was covered in spider webs.
Today i got accused of being a UK journalist and got lost in a Gambian jungle.

The day started as most others did, pumped some heavy rock as our truck descended from the populated area of Kuto and into the dusty village of Gunjur. We headed out to visit a secondary school. This was the most exciting day for me as it was a real chance to capture what Gambian children thought about their education system and also how hard they have to work to make a successful life for themselves. I interviewed a boy and one girl asking them questions similar to the ones i asked the Commonweal school students before the trip began.
one question was "What would you do if i gave you $100 right now"
to which 90% the UK students replied either TopShop or River Island.
the Gambian students told me it would go towards education, family and their futures.
i was quite taken back with some of the replies, i expected a difference but not one as substantial as i was given.

We went back to the village and i got given an African dress by one of the boys that lives in the compound who i've befriended. Ive managed to get two football shirts to take on Sunday as a thankyou.

On the way back i noticed a row of flags outside a fully glassed and beautifully colored building. I was eager to get back as i soon learned it was the African embassy. Now one thing you do not do is walk into an embassy waving a camera around asking for an interview. So as soon as we arrived back at the hotel i got a taxi back there hoping to ask someone some questions. After getting past security and waiting in a lounge with some important looking people, i was approached by the second in charge, the former African minister of justice. After interrogating me about who i was and the nature of my being there he decided to let me ask a colleague some questions. His colleague however thought i was a journalist and swiftly had me escorted out. Unfortunately i couldn't get any footage until i was outside but it was quite fun.
That however is where the fun stopped.

The guide i had with me Sukai decided it would be a good idea to take me to a place he had been before, one of the nearby jungles in the hope of seeing a monkey.
After not being able to get footage at the embassy i decided this was a great idea and that we should go.
Not only was i 4ft away from three Gambian moneys, i got some amazing closeup footage showing them in there natural habitat. (sorry cant upload any wildlife photos, their on my other memory card)
The walk back however began to get a bit tedious and i was sure we were traveling in a different direction to that we came. I queried my guide but he assured me we were on track.
30 minutes later the sun was setting and the jungle was becoming quite dark. I made some videos with the small amount of space i had left telling my guide he was a douchebag for getting us lost. As pleasing as it was to call him such things, little did i know how much i needed that camera battery and memory card space. It got dark very fast and the shadows of my surroundings were becoming quite daunting. As much as i knew i had to keep my head in gear and my focus on my challenge ahead i began to panic, desperately trying to find a way out. I honestly thought i was spending the night in a Gambian jungle with a tour guide i barley knew and my one thousand pound camera. It was pitch black and i was close to doing that scream for help you hear in films.
As my battery ran flat we began to run.
Hearing a truck ahead we knew there was a road ahead, my legs found a strength they didn't know they had. Blistering through spiderwebs and  jumping giant ant hills we dived into the nearest taxi outside and began the drive home.
My head rested back on the seat, my camera kit off of my back and my eyes catching glimpses of humanity outside.
life felt amazing.
and it still does, I'm glad I'm here writing this, because tonight was a close call.
but god was it ever exciting.