Goree Island.

Today was a trip into history and into the city of Dakar. Today we went to Goree Island and took in some of the history that that island holds. Goree was the last part of Africa that the slaves saw before being shipped into America. One of the Masion of Slaves was a house that the slaves where held at for processing and selling before being shipped over. the place had seperate storage for the men, women, and childeren there. The men where kept there for up to three months before being sold. They said that they would hold 20 -25 people in each of the rooms that are not much bigger than the dorm rooms at Tech about 20' by 20' sitting down and chained at the neck and arms. Goree was the main post for the slave trade becasue of the fact of being a island, so there is no way for ecaping and that it is the closest point to the Americas. If ever one was to travel to Senegal you HAVE to stop and see this. The way that humans treated other humans is still unreal to me. The guides there said that the slave traders would take the young and attractive women for themselves. The trade was done according to weight, so a male would sell when he was 60kg or better. If he was under they would place him in a special room and feed him unitll he was 60kg. Then there is a door that opens up to the sea, this is called the door of no return and after the slaves when through that door that was the last that they saw of Africa. The guide also said that Pope John Paul II came through that door and appoligised to Africa for the slave trade.