Ayiva makes the difficult journey from Burkina Faso through Algeria and Libya and eventually reaches Italy. He pays for his passage and sees his compatriots robbed along the way. In southern Italy, he lives in a squatted property while earning some money from orange picking, and petty thieving, and sends some money back to his family in Africa. The Africans are exploited for their cheap labour while not being welcomed by local villagers, although Ayiva is welcomed into the home of one Italian family, the Fondacaros. He tried to discourage his sister from leaving Africa to try and join him in Europe.