When I was in school I had a pen pal from Albania. It was during the Kosovo conflict and the pen pal was from a scheme where kids from the UK would send shoeboxes of toys to kids in Albania. My pen pal Miri stopped replying and I never found out why.
It feels odd now thinking that the country could be a tourist destination when in my head it's still war torn.
It's the same story with me. Have had a friend in Gambia and one day he decided not to respond anymore... Sometimes I think about the question what is happened with him...