-Ralph Waldo
Emerson-
Today was a day of rays and blogging. I wasn’t interested in any of the activities
on offer, I just wanted to relax and work on my tan and 85% of the group was
also in agree-ance, well for today anyway.
Breakfast was at your leisure and waking up at 7am, I was at the beach
restaurant at 8am. We had the luxury of
getting an omelet cooked fresh or a crepe and they had REAL ham, REAL cheese
and the added luxury of Nutella. All
over West Africa I have seen Nutella for sale in the fancy supermarkets but it
also came with a fancy price tag! Add to
that fresh bread rolls, croissants, chocolate rolls, orange and hibiscus juice
and coffee it was a breakfast fit for a king or an overland traveler who has
been on the road for 8.5 weeks. Really,
it was heaven. The table faced directly
out to the ocean and with the beach 10m away down 15 steps, it was like we were
all living a dream. We were supposed to
be overlanding West Africa, not having a scrumptious breakfast on a beach with
a full day of nothing but sun and pool ahead of us. Especially since I have been painting a
pretty harsh and tough trip all along, it is like I feel a little guilty for this small 3 night
pleasure, well just for a millisecond but I wouldn’t change it for the world.
After breakfast, the day was already starting to heat up
and I admired the boys who decided to rent the bicycles and go for a ride into
Cap Skirring town, which would have been over 20km away. The cost of the bikes was only 4000 (8AUD) for
the half day and as they set off I had my laptop and I found a table in the
shade by the pool and I attempted to blog for the next 1.5 hours. I could see Ian and Suzanne getting in and
out of the pool as they sunned themselves on the sun lounges and I was just
waiting for my computer to go flat, so that I could go for a swim while it
recharged. I was chomping at the bit to
get in the pool. You know when it is
hot, as I just don’t get into my swimmers for no reason and today was one of
those days. It was a scorcher. Finally at 11.30am my computer went flat as I
finished a blog and I was able to find a power point in the bar area and I got
my book and got straight in the pool and it was like liquid ice, it was the
most refreshing thing ever. Well besides
walking into our air-con room which was like an ice box. But man it felt great. Sam had mentioned that there was going to be
another overland group arriving today.
There is a guy who used to work for Dragoman that branched off and
started his own overland company specializing in West Africa and he was
bringing a group through on their way south.
They arrived just before noon and we couldn’t believe when we saw them
walk past the pool that the line seemed never ending! There were 19 of them on their truck! Imagine!!!
They were going to be camping for their 2 nights and they had just
started their 10 week journey 10 days ago.
They have started easy and will get thrown in the deep end in a few
weeks. I then spent the next 2 hours
floating around the pool reading my book, talking to the gang as they came and
went from the pool while I didn’t leave the water at all until 1.30pm when
lunch arrived on the table. I had
ordered a club sandwich, which was ok, not as great as the dinner last night
but served with a few chips and a coke WITH ICE, it hit the spot and for a cost
of 3500 (7AUD) I was back in the pool at 2.30pm to catch the last of the
afternoon rays.
The ‘other’ group came to the pool after they had set up
and eaten lunch off the truck and I tell you just observing them there seemed
to be a lot of BIG personalities in their group and they all seemed well bonded
now, but would love to be a fly on the wall in a couple of weeks’ time. I had an older guy approach me in the pool a
little later and he looked familiar and he said to me was my name Zoe? I said no, we have a Zoe but it’s not me and
then he asked my name and when I replied Bernie, he said that we had traveled
together but he couldn’t place where it was.
I then asked his name and when he said John I knew exactly where and it
was in Ethiopia in 2011 when I did a 2 week trip with G Adventures and it also
happened to be the tour where I also met Zeme.
Man that seems like a life time ago now.
How random! What are the chances
of meeting a past traveler in West Africa, in Senegal, at Cap Skirring on
exactly the same day at exactly the same resort!!! That is really random and I would see that as
a sign, but I am not sure what kind of sign when he is 60+, but it is pretty
mind blowing all the same.
By 4.30pm the sun had moved mostly off the pool, so it
was time to finally get out and Sian, Cathy and I walked to the restaurant next
door, which entailed a walk along the beach, to buy a drink and use their
Wi-Fi. It was one thing that was missing
from our resort, but apparently they had it, but it just wasn’t working and
would be back on ‘some time’. The
internet was fast enough for me to load what blogs I had, which were only 2 as
I am officially 4 days behind and I need a kick in the arse to get them
done. But it was good to get onto some
communication and it is funny really, unless you have things to do, you really
only need 30 minutes to an hour to be reasonable up to date, well as much as
one can be while on the road anyway. As
it worked out we decided to come back to the same place for dinner, and to
celebrate the occasion of being somewhere ‘western’, we could have been at a
hundred different places around the world, I ordered a red passion cocktail,
which was basically vodka, OJ and some red stuff, add ICE, and it was a perfect
way to finish off a perfect day. And
just when you thought it couldn’t get any more perfect I had a calamari salad
for starters and then garlic prawns for main and both meals were a delight to
the taste buds that have mainly consumed tuna, chicken, bread and tinned meat
for the last 9 weeks. FOOD HEAVEN,
LOCATION HEAVEN AND ALCOHOL HEAVEN. Add
into all that great company, I really love my travel buddies and it made for a
great evening. The total meal cost for
me, with an additional red passion, came to 14,000 (28AUD) and I think it was
money well spent.
We had decided at dinner as a group, and it was unanimous,
that we would be spending the 3rd night here and it makes a really
nice change to have 3 nights/2 days somewhere, which we haven’t done all trip I
think. I also had to conspire with Zoe,
as it was Suzanne’s birthday tomorrow, she had found some balloons on the truck
and as I was next door to Ian and Suzanne, I was going to wait until they went
to bed and I was going to blow some of them up and stick them up outside their
door. Well I am generally 1st
or 2nd person to bed and I waited until 11.30pm when Helen came back
to the room and she said they were still at the bar! So I just decided I would get the balloons up
in the morning as I was half asleep already!!!
Day 2 of paradise started the same way. But first I had to get Suzanne’s balloons
up. I knew they were up early as Ian was
heading off fishing at 8am with 5 other group member, and after checking with
Karl who was returning from breakfast where Suzanne was, I figured she was
actually in the room, but with stealth moves, Helen and I blew up 4 balloons
and with a sign from all the Madge crew, stuck them up outside her door without
her evening knowing and then we headed down to breakfast which was again at
your leisure at the beach restaurant. It
was a magnificent view from there. We
had the luxury of getting an omelet cooked fresh or a crepe and they had REAL
ham, REAL cheese again! Talk about
getting spoiled and to an outsider and other guests we must have seemed like
kids in a candy store with them not knowing what we had travelled the last 2
weeks for the newbies, the last 6 weeks for the oldies and the last 8 weeks for
me. FOOD HEAVEN. Sam was around to buy our Guinea francs from
us and exchanged them into CFA, which was our last currency we would be using
and then I sat down with Sam one on one and worked out what my final kitty
balance was, as I had made some payments along the way and with a final amount
now locked in after a leisurely breakfast we made a game plan to head into the
town of Cap Skirring for a few hours to use the ATM. Cap Skirring is a town on the Atlantic
Ocean coast of the Basse
Casamance (Ziguinchor) region of Senegal.
It is a popular seaside resort with Europeans and has an airport and
a golf course.
The town was first occupied by fishermen. It was discovered by the French of
Ziguinchor as a balneal zone in the 1960s. A landing strip for small planes was
built at the end of 1960 by members of the Aero Club de Ziguinchor. The beaches
in the Cap Skiring area are among West Africa's finest. Unsurprisingly, a
thriving tourist industry has developed around it, though it remains pleasantly
low-key. So with a quick look around the
town would then be back at the pool before midday if all went well. Helen and Rich were on the same wave length,
so after ordering 2 taxis, there were 7 of us heading in we met up at 10am and
with us in the first taxi and negotiating the price from 2000 to 2000 (the
driver wouldn’t budge) we were whisked away for the 10 minute drive, with the
plan of meeting the others at the ATM. I
had to start getting money out to pay for my kitty, which is WELL OVERDUE and
also to start getting my tipping money out for Zoe and Sam.
Talk of tipping on trips is always a contentious subject
and I would rank it right up there with religion and politics. Everyone has a stance on it, everyone has a
different opinion and it can start disagreements, passenger v’s passenger. I am a tipper. I always have been and I always will be. When I did my 165 day overland trip of South
America, based on the 2 bucks a day recommendation I tipped Gray and Mark over
300 bucks each!! It does seem like a lot
of money, but these guys got me from point A to point B safely. I was looked after well and I felt that the
guys had done an amazing job. It’s not
to say that we didn’t have bad days, on a 6 month trip that is inevitable, but
one should not tip based on personality or personality clashes. It makes me a little mad when people are
travelling on a budget, which I get and understand, but when they want all the
bells and whistles and then say they don’t have enough money to tip at the end
is really poor form. It is like paying for
a holiday (whatever the cost) and then saying you don’t have enough money for
travel insurance. Paying for a tour and
airfare and a budget to not work in the tip is very poor form indeed. I have tipped people I have not liked, not
got along with all that well, but their job was done, they earned the money and
I have tipped. I agree that drivers and
guides get to see the world with their jobs BUT they have to deal with
difficult and at time asshole customers and they aren’t doing their too job to
save for their retirement or a house or a car, they do it for the love and
adventure and a tip is always welcome, sometimes needed and ALWAYS
appreciated. Anyway, this trip is 70
days and I want to tip Zoe and Sam the recommended tip of 2 bucks a day, so I
need at least an additional 300 bucks so that I can pass on my thanks in
monetary value as well as emotional.
When you are next on a tour, think about the work that is done behind
the scenes and work out if it is worthwhile to throw some dollars your guides way.
As we arrived at the ATM first, after Sian I used 2 cards
to get out what I hoped would be the last time I would have to use my cards on
the trip. As I left all my spending
money and kitty money in Nairobi, I have really lost track on what I have been
taking out of the bank and I have a feeling I will be in for a rude shock when
the time comes to reconciliation the bank statements, but I have always had the
attitude of you only live once and I will continue to have that catch phrase
and if it involves spending over budget, then so be it. But it will still be a shock I am sure. The boys had arrived as we finished up
raiding the ATM and as we all had different things we wanted to do, we all went
our own ways and Sian, Suzanne, Helen, Rich and I made the plan to lap the main
street up and back and then head home.
It was quite hot and the main street of Cap Skirring looks a little like
a western movie. It was dusty/sandy and
stalls were located on both sides of the street. I stopped in at every single material shop I
saw, made quick assessments and then walked back out if I didn’t see anything
that jumped out at me. It is a feast for
the eyes when you are looking at so many patterns and colours, so you do need
that one pattern to jump off the shelves at you. The material shops here were the best that I
have seen since Ghana and it was good that I knew I would be able to cross off
my Senegal material from my list. I was
in material heaven, but you did have to wade through the repeated patterns and
the crap ‘touristy’ ones with palm trees and village huts on them. I ended up buying 2 pieces and I have found
in all West African countries that the price has not changed at all and you are
paying around 3AUD a meter. I am getting
3-4m with each piece, so I have enough for a dress, but if it only works out to
be a skirt, then I can use the left overs to get cushions made for home. That would be pretty cool. It was also probably the most touristy place
we have seen so far with groups of other whities on bikes and in cafes and
there were some small jewelry shops along the main drag. I stopped to have a quick look in the window
and saw immediately a ring I liked and after trying it on, working on a price I
would want to pay (50 bucks was in my head) I ended up paying 75AUD-I left with
a Senegal ring that is awesome.
A few more stops, some of the girls peeling off to use
the internet, Rich, Helen and I started a walk to the beach to see if we could
see the fishing village, but Helen and I got distracted by a guy selling masks
and wooden knick knacks, so Rich continues the walk in the heat to check it out
as we bartered with the guy over some masks.
We were right next to the Club Med fence line, so there must be a good
share of foreign people through here during the year and explains why their
shops and tourism infrastructure was the best we had also seen all trip. This was turning out to be a very productive
day and I walked away with 3 small ceramic masks as part of my West African
collection to hang on my wall at home. I
have realized you need to make hay while the sun shines (use the opportunity
when you can) as you just may not get another chance. This way the pressure was off for the rest of
my Senegal days rather than leave it to the last moment or worse still miss
out. Just as we had finished our
transaction for the ceramic masks Rich was on his way back and said the fishing
village was not down there and with the hope when I asked the question did he
want to try another road? The reply was correct that he would survive and we
were ready to head home after a quick stop to buy some postcards. Man we were, well I was on fire today with
purchases and there is nothing like a little retail therapy to make a gal feel
better and back into the swing of things!!!
We were now in search for a taxi, which none of the cars had taxi signs
on them, but when a guy asked what we were looking for and we said a taxi, he
pointed to his car, which did not look like a taxi at all, but we figured with
the 3 of us we would have safety in numbers and asking the price, which was
half of what we paid this morning and getting in, and then 2 of his friends
squeezing in the back with Helen and Rich we were on our way home, and it was
PERFECT timing as it was just before midday. The taxi driver wanted to give his number to
me, so I said sure and I would file it away with all the other emails and
numbers I have been given on the trip.
No wonder why I love Africa!!!
We were wilting like flowers and the second we arrived
back to the hotel we all scrambled to our rooms to change into our swimming
costumes and were at the pool within 5 minutes and into the pool 7 minutes
later and it was just after 12 noon.
This is where I continued to stay until lunch at 1.30pm, took 30 minutes
out to eat and have a drink, which Sian had ordered for me, and then I was back
in the pool again with my book until 3.30pm.
The hotel had its’ life ring floating around the pool and made a perfect
floating device for me to sit inside the ring and read my book for the
afternoon, floating around the pool.
This was the life and reminded me of my pool days back at my old house
in Brisbane that now belongs to my ex-husband.
That was a good house. The guys
returned later and poor Karl was the last of the group to use the ATM and it
had run out of money by the time he had got to it. Luckily he had got some out yesterday, so it
wasn’t too bad but funny that our group raided the whole machine of all its
money! The fisher ‘people’ returned just
after lunch and they had a swag (well plastic bag) full of fish that they had
caught on their trip and after Zoe had spoken to the chefs in the kitchen they
were going to cook the fish for us to eat for dinner tonight. It’s pretty cool that the fish they caught
would feed the group that night, I’d be tickled pink. Karl and Ian headed out on the quad bikes at
4pm and I was out of the pool and heading to the restaurant next door when I
bumped in Suzanne, when I told her where I was going she decided to come along
as well and I said that I would buy her a birthday drink. Well that birthday drink turned into 2 red
passion cocktails as we laughed and chatted an hour or so over the internet
until it was getting close to dinner time and Suzanne headed back to the hotel
and I finished my latest blog and had one more red passion care of Clem and
with Rich and Ellie before heading back to the room for a shower and dinner.
Dinner was bought out on a massive platter that had ¾ of
the fish that had been caught, well may be less as the fisher people had given
some of their catch to the locals, there was some of the other group that took
some fish, but we were left with a massive feast of fish fresh from the ocean,
still with their heads on and grilled and seasoned to taste. I guess food does not get better than that
and to see the proud faces of the fisher people around the table together, was
a pretty amazing feeling. Accompaniments were also bought out including
pasta, chips and rice and the meal was enjoyed by my new travel family. It always takes a little time for a group to
blend and bond and even though I always knew I had a good group, seeing the ‘other’
group yesterday and today, it just cemented our friendship and I know that I
will be seeing people again from my 2.5 months on the trip. It may have also helped that I had 2 vodka
and cokes with dinner and with the 2 cocktails with Suzanne and one with Rich
and Ellie, it was the most alcohol I have drunk the whole trip-added all
together. Maybe I am realizing that I
need to get my drinking mojo back on, for when I hit Australia it will be a
drinkfest with my birthday which I always milk for at least a week, welcome
home drinks and then into the final run of the festive season. Yes I may as well jump off the wagon and hit
the booze again. The dinner was finished
with a DELICIOUS cake, a western cake, with fresh cream and it was a fireworks
in my mouth. I don’t think I have had anything
that sweet in over 3 months and you can never beat fresh cream. It is things like this on the road that make
you appreciate the small things, like fresh cream or spices for food, or
non-tinned food for a meal. If only
everyone could taste a little bit of travel, just for one day in their life, I
think a lot of people would be a better person for it. Just saying.
The night was finished off with Sam and Zoe playing a few
requests from Suzanne on their violin and melodica and as the beers flowed and
the jokes repeated and the craziness started I left at the opportune time and
headed back to my room at 10.30pm.
Another great day finished and it is now time to tackle the last week,
the heat and back to Madge for our last days of travel, 2 more countries and
the end of what has been a trying, tough, rewarding and demanding trip. And I have loved every minute of it.
HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY SUZANNE xx
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