Freetown - Day 226

Date: April 1st, 2010
Distance: 27km
Country: Sierra Leone

I did finally get my visa for Mali today. I am very happy about that. It means I can skip Conakry. It isn't supposed to be the best place in the world to visit. Plus it is at the end of another peninsula. (It seems like most West African capitols are that way. Dakar. Bissau. Freetown.) So that means a trip in and back. Hassles with army and police both ways. So I am glad to skip that. It did come at a price though. About $40. When I asked how much for the visa the guy said "100". One hundred what? Dollars. Now I had heard the visa was supposed to be just a couple of bucks. So I didn't have the money. I did have 20,000 CFA. Which is about $40 bucks. I gave them that and that seemed to work. Still, it left me with the impression of giving a bribe. I didn't like that.

In the afternoon I did head back out to the beach. Had a great time too. The beach was clean, at least for Africa. There was only a little bit of trash around. The water felt great. Cool, but not cold. I just had a great time swimming in the Atlantic. Then sat on the beach for a bit to get some sun. It seems like Freetown could be a really great tourist destination. Right now though the only places to stay near the beach are super expensive western hotels. So I had a bit of a trip back to my guesthouse in town.

Oh, I must tell you, on my way back I had more frozen yogurt. It took me a while to understand what these were. I kept seeing guys pushing baby strollers. Except there is a cooler instead of a baby. (I don't even know where the stroller came from. Babies are ALWAYS carried in a sling on the back of a mother or older sister.) Inside the cooler are glorious frozen treats. A little pouch with icy yogurt. They taste so good. If you ever get here, you have to try them.

Back at the hotel I just got cleaned up and ready to go in the morning.

-Dravis