Dave Wooster found a long twig and poked around to see if there was any diesel fuel to run the large rig. No gas. Again, another hurdle. Another hour passed as the team went in search of enough fuel to run the large equipment.
Finally the drilling process began, slowly. That was until we ran out of oil. Where in the world were we going to find 25 galllons of oil in this part of the country? We would have to travel to to the large town of St. Marcs. This is a busy city in compared to Montrious. The cars, moter bikes, large trucks, buses, goats, are all fighting for the road to travel upon, while merchants sell their wares in and out of traffic. The dust is so thick and consuming, that most people covered their mouths and noses as they traveled on the road.
Our search for oil had taken form quite abruptly. We knew we would be fighting with the sun and our time was limited to getting enough drilling accomplished before it was time to clean up before dark. We jumped into the truck without eating lunch. Luckily, Dave Wooster brought a small bag of pretzels that we could snack on during our road trip.
While we waited in town for the fuel to arrive, we split up in different directions. I decided to wander off around the streets, visiting the markets, and shanty villages where people lived - amongst the trash strewn all around them.
We eventually purchased 25 gallons of oil for $300, almost double the amount it would cost in the States. We climbed back into the truck, sitting in between 5 gallon drums of oil. I asked Dave for some of his pretzels. "Sorry, bro, I gave the entire bag to that lady," he pointed his finger to a woman sitting on the street corner, (pictured above), "she asked me for food, she was hungry." I looked down at the lady who was snacking on the pretzels. I knew I would eat something within the next hour. As for her, I couldn't be certain.
Man cleaning trash in St. Marc
Trashy inlet
Pastor Kumar directing traffic
The pretzel lady Photos courtesty of Kumar Dixit