Getting To and From Sami Koto

Im pretty happy that I am so close to Basse, so if I want to get to there here is what I have to do: First, I will bike south for about 15 minutes to the town of Garawol. Luckily there is another volunteer there named Alicia. She will let me leave my bike in her house, and then I can walk to where the vans are parked in Garawol. The vans are actually called gellys. They are huge vans that are hollowed out, and then reconstituted with bench seats, so they can generally hold at least twenty people. Where you get on and off is called the Car Park. From Garawol, maybe two or three vans will leave each morning at six am, so I can either ride the night before and stay with Alicia, or leave at about 5:30 am while its still dark. The road that runs through Garawol is all dirt, and is actually perpendicular to the main highway, so when the gelly leaves it drives due south to Sudowol to meet the main highway. From Basse, the main highway is also not paved but there is alot more traffic than on the small road to Garawol, so the gellys will find some good ruts to drive in. The roads often meander across the road, so your just as likely to be on the right or left side. Its not a problem though because in the morning all the traffic is headed towards Basse. The trip takes about an hour and a half, and with no problems you can be in Basse by about 7 30 am, which is enough time to get on the public bus that will leave for all the major towns at 8, or to have some coffee and an egg sandwhich while you wait for the internet cafe to open at 9.
After the gelly arrives it will start running around Basse, picking up supplies from town that are needed in the village. Mostly its things like cement, bags of rice, maybe some special wood, beds, dressers, or mattresses. But if there's anything else that you need to get back, the gelly will load it all (for  a fee) and bring it back.
To get back to the village you can head to the Basse Car Park around 12, and hope that the vehicle is full of both freight and passengers by 1 pm. If its not full, or still has errands to run then you will be sitting in the car park until everything is ready. Or if it was all full and ready to go and has left without you, then you can wait for the next one which usually leaves around 5 pm. If I hear that theres no more gelly's to Garawol, then I will usually look for the ones headed to Fatoto or Koina. Those two towns are farther east down the main highway than Garawol, and I can drop at the junction and walk in about half an hour back to Alicia's place for my bike, pick it up, and ride the last fifteen minutes home in time for dinner.