Date: May 24th, 2010
Distance: 57km
Country: Togo
Got on my way again today. I saw Christoph as I was leaving Benin. His father had come in for a UN conference in Lome. So the two of them were riding in a nice air conditioned car as I pushed my overloaded bike through the wind. I do sometimes wonder why I do this. It was nice to see them though, and they wished me luck on my journey.
I rolled out of Benin and into Togo without any real hassles. No one seemed to notice that I neither officially left Burkina Faso or entered Benin. I guess is really didn't matter.
The ride along that border area is amazing. Long sandy beaches with a smattering of palm trees. There are often groups of men standing on the beach pulling in long fish nets. In Togo, around the town of Aneho, the colonial influence is more apparent. Lots of elegant but ruined buildings along the road. Sort of an indication that things haven't really gone all that well since independence. It did seem like a nice place though. So maybe things are looking up.
I stopped on the outskirts of Lome at a place called Chez Alice. A E couple on a motorcycle who met me along the road in Benin recommended it. It was a cool place and they let me camp there for 1,000 CFA, or about $2. I also got to go to the beach and do a little swimming. The swimming there isn't that great. By not great, I mean a bit dangerous. About 10 feet out the sand drops off pretty quickly. So the water at your feet is dropping down and pulling you under while the waves on top try to push you over. Once I stepped off that ledge and got tumbled pretty good, I decided it was time to stick to the shallow surf.
Back at the hotel I had some dinner and met Tom, another American. Actually, he confused the heck out of me at first. He came up and said "Biking through europe and Africa sure beats working in the states." Turns out he is a volunteer from Benin who had heard about my trip from a couple other people. So when he checked into the same place and saw my bike he knew who it was. We chatted for a good long while before heading off to bed.
-Dravis
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Cotonou to Gran-Popo - Day 278
Date: May 23rd, 2010
Distance: 91km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: On the Road Again - Willie Nelson
Woke up early and said goodbye to Liz. Thanks for everything! I really appreciated you letting me crash at your place for so long. Good luck with Yovo.
I did putz around in town for a big getting some breakfast. I knew I was going to need lots of food for the day though. By the time I was on the outskirts of the city, it was raining. That suited me just fine. Leaving the city wasn't that pleasant though. It was a busy road. The shoulder was muddy and often clogged with motos anyway. It is all built up along the road as well. So you don't actually leave what looks like a city for 20km or so.
I did stop at Ouidah. It is supposed to be this big cultural capital in Benin. Some voodoo stuff there. Plus a direct link with slavery. I don't know, I guess I missed what was supposed to be great about it. The museum there was cool, but not for the exhibits. Most of which weren't marked or described very well. Instead it was cool for the architecture of the old Portuguese fort it is in. Though I am not even sure how much of that is original. Still it was the only thing the brought me back to what it must have been like to be living there during colonial days.
After that I headed down the "Route de Esclaves", (The Slave Road) down to the beach. Again, I must have just missed the point here, but it didn't intrigue me in any way. There were some statues along the way that I didn't find very interesting. At the end was the giant modern construction of the Door of No Return. It was more of a monument to the men and women taken from Africa rather than an explanation of the history. I took a couple of pictures and got back on the road.
From there it was a tough slog to Gran-Popo. The wind was in my face most of the time. Really nasty. The road was flat though, so that did help.
I was supposed to meet Liz out there, but when I arrived, she had already left. I did get a place to stay. A Rasta bar that lets you camp on their beach. Not bad. Plus the beach is amazing. Not good for swimming apparently, but long and lined with palm trees and places to get a cool drink.
Liz also put me in touch with Christoph, who everyone in Cotonou told me I had to meet. I guess he used to race bikes professionally. So I met up with him and his girlfriend for dinner. We had some pizza, which was amazing, though not all together filling. I think between the three of us we had four of them. It was fun to explain my trip to them. I guess Christoph is thinking of taking a motorcycle trip at the end of his service around Africa with a local Puehlani friend of his. (These are nomadic herdsman found through out west Africa.) So they were going to stay at various migrant herding camps along the way. It sounds like fun.
-Dravis
Distance: 91km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: On the Road Again - Willie Nelson
Woke up early and said goodbye to Liz. Thanks for everything! I really appreciated you letting me crash at your place for so long. Good luck with Yovo.
I did putz around in town for a big getting some breakfast. I knew I was going to need lots of food for the day though. By the time I was on the outskirts of the city, it was raining. That suited me just fine. Leaving the city wasn't that pleasant though. It was a busy road. The shoulder was muddy and often clogged with motos anyway. It is all built up along the road as well. So you don't actually leave what looks like a city for 20km or so.
I did stop at Ouidah. It is supposed to be this big cultural capital in Benin. Some voodoo stuff there. Plus a direct link with slavery. I don't know, I guess I missed what was supposed to be great about it. The museum there was cool, but not for the exhibits. Most of which weren't marked or described very well. Instead it was cool for the architecture of the old Portuguese fort it is in. Though I am not even sure how much of that is original. Still it was the only thing the brought me back to what it must have been like to be living there during colonial days.
After that I headed down the "Route de Esclaves", (The Slave Road) down to the beach. Again, I must have just missed the point here, but it didn't intrigue me in any way. There were some statues along the way that I didn't find very interesting. At the end was the giant modern construction of the Door of No Return. It was more of a monument to the men and women taken from Africa rather than an explanation of the history. I took a couple of pictures and got back on the road.
From there it was a tough slog to Gran-Popo. The wind was in my face most of the time. Really nasty. The road was flat though, so that did help.
I was supposed to meet Liz out there, but when I arrived, she had already left. I did get a place to stay. A Rasta bar that lets you camp on their beach. Not bad. Plus the beach is amazing. Not good for swimming apparently, but long and lined with palm trees and places to get a cool drink.
Liz also put me in touch with Christoph, who everyone in Cotonou told me I had to meet. I guess he used to race bikes professionally. So I met up with him and his girlfriend for dinner. We had some pizza, which was amazing, though not all together filling. I think between the three of us we had four of them. It was fun to explain my trip to them. I guess Christoph is thinking of taking a motorcycle trip at the end of his service around Africa with a local Puehlani friend of his. (These are nomadic herdsman found through out west Africa.) So they were going to stay at various migrant herding camps along the way. It sounds like fun.
-Dravis
Cotonou - Day 277
Date: May 22nd, 2010
Distance: None
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: No Woman, No Cry - Bob Marley and the Wailers
One more day in Cotonou. The day was actually pretty boring. I did laundry.
The evening was better. Melissa invited me to dinner at this chawarma place. So I headed over there just before sunset. It was fun to see Melissa again. I guess she was heading to South Africa about an hour later for some medical stuff. (For you Americans out there, that is on your dime.) We also got to talk about plans for getting back. I guess she just got the date her service is up. She didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with the fact that most of my plans center on food. So it was fun. That food was good, too. I really wish I had turned around and ordered another chawarma though.
Instead I went out and found a street vendor who sold me some spaghetti. He asked me if I wanted red sauce or white. Thinking white sauce was probably cheese based, I ordered that. (I love cheese.) No, apparently blanc means without sauce. My mistake. Still it did quiet my hunger down a bit.
After that I headed over to the Artisan Center. Liz and Melissa both told me about it. Melissa was gone taking her plane, but Liz met me and we headed to the place. I guess one of the other PCVs knew a local artist who made masks. The artist had put together a party and asked for as many volunteers to come as possible. Apparently it was like a lot of parties in Benin. Lots of food, lots to drink and Reggae music that is too loud. It was a lot of fun though. For me, a nice way to cap off my trip to Cotonou.
-Dravis
Distance: None
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: No Woman, No Cry - Bob Marley and the Wailers
One more day in Cotonou. The day was actually pretty boring. I did laundry.
The evening was better. Melissa invited me to dinner at this chawarma place. So I headed over there just before sunset. It was fun to see Melissa again. I guess she was heading to South Africa about an hour later for some medical stuff. (For you Americans out there, that is on your dime.) We also got to talk about plans for getting back. I guess she just got the date her service is up. She didn't seem to think there was anything wrong with the fact that most of my plans center on food. So it was fun. That food was good, too. I really wish I had turned around and ordered another chawarma though.
Instead I went out and found a street vendor who sold me some spaghetti. He asked me if I wanted red sauce or white. Thinking white sauce was probably cheese based, I ordered that. (I love cheese.) No, apparently blanc means without sauce. My mistake. Still it did quiet my hunger down a bit.
After that I headed over to the Artisan Center. Liz and Melissa both told me about it. Melissa was gone taking her plane, but Liz met me and we headed to the place. I guess one of the other PCVs knew a local artist who made masks. The artist had put together a party and asked for as many volunteers to come as possible. Apparently it was like a lot of parties in Benin. Lots of food, lots to drink and Reggae music that is too loud. It was a lot of fun though. For me, a nice way to cap off my trip to Cotonou.
-Dravis
Cotonou - Day 276
Date: May 21st, 2010
Distance: None
Country: Benin
Another day of not doing much. Can't say that I mind. It is nice to have a couple days of rest. Then again, it would have been nice to do something. Especially since my friend Melissa (from Basilla) sent me a text right before I went to bed saying "Where were you?" Apparently they had a big party and no one told me. D'oh. Sometimes that is just life.
-Dravis
Distance: None
Country: Benin
Another day of not doing much. Can't say that I mind. It is nice to have a couple days of rest. Then again, it would have been nice to do something. Especially since my friend Melissa (from Basilla) sent me a text right before I went to bed saying "Where were you?" Apparently they had a big party and no one told me. D'oh. Sometimes that is just life.
-Dravis
Friday, May 21, 2010
Cotonou - Day 275
Date: May 20th, 2010
Distance: None
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Change Your Mind - The Killers
I woke up and it was pouring rain. So I went back to bed. I really didn't see a need to get up early to go out in miserable weather. Plus I do like sleeping in. I did have to wake up at some point though.
After the rain stopped I took Yovo for a walk. Also got a little better picture of the neighborhood around Liz's house. Yovo is actually really good to walk. She just follows me as I wander the sandy back streets. Unless of course she finds a fish head someone has tossed into the street. Then Yovo won't move until she has scarfed up every last bit. Yum. I also found a place where I could get some food for breakfast. There is one good thing about not having health codes here. No one seemed to mind that Yovo was hanging out with me in the little restaurant.
After breakfast I headed out to the immigration office. I still don't have an entrance stamp for Benin. I don't even know why I bother. It isn't like it affects me that much. I spent almost 3 hours there trying to get a stamp. They didn't have one somehow. I really don't understand that. If you are the head office there has to be one somewhere. They wouldn't give me one though. Finally after bugging them for a couple hours they told me there was no problem. I really didn't need a stamp anyway. Whatever guys. It is your rules.
Back at Liz's place I took Yovo for another walk. Then I went out to find my own dinner. By this time it was dark and had started to rain again. I found a little walk up cafeteria to get some spaghetti. At night, with the rain and the dirty streets of the city around me it felt like the opening scene of Blade Runner.
-Dravis
Distance: None
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Change Your Mind - The Killers
I woke up and it was pouring rain. So I went back to bed. I really didn't see a need to get up early to go out in miserable weather. Plus I do like sleeping in. I did have to wake up at some point though.
After the rain stopped I took Yovo for a walk. Also got a little better picture of the neighborhood around Liz's house. Yovo is actually really good to walk. She just follows me as I wander the sandy back streets. Unless of course she finds a fish head someone has tossed into the street. Then Yovo won't move until she has scarfed up every last bit. Yum. I also found a place where I could get some food for breakfast. There is one good thing about not having health codes here. No one seemed to mind that Yovo was hanging out with me in the little restaurant.
After breakfast I headed out to the immigration office. I still don't have an entrance stamp for Benin. I don't even know why I bother. It isn't like it affects me that much. I spent almost 3 hours there trying to get a stamp. They didn't have one somehow. I really don't understand that. If you are the head office there has to be one somewhere. They wouldn't give me one though. Finally after bugging them for a couple hours they told me there was no problem. I really didn't need a stamp anyway. Whatever guys. It is your rules.
Back at Liz's place I took Yovo for another walk. Then I went out to find my own dinner. By this time it was dark and had started to rain again. I found a little walk up cafeteria to get some spaghetti. At night, with the rain and the dirty streets of the city around me it felt like the opening scene of Blade Runner.
-Dravis
Takon to Cotonou - Day 274
Date: May 19th, 2010
Distance: 82km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: What's the Frequency, Kenneth? - R.E.M.
Had another lazy morning. Satin was kind enough to make some breakfast. Really
good omelette's. Yum. Thanks Satin for letting me stay. Good luck in your village and your third year in Cotonou.
From there it was back on the road. Or in this case the bush path. It was tougher going this time as it was mostly uphill. The last hill into Houegbo was a killer. After Houegbo things got a bit easier. The highway made for pretty quick riding when I wasn't just smashing into the wind.
Getting to Cotonou wasn't that fun though. The last 15km into town was through heavy traffic. I even got hit by a car. Here is a hint for divers, two objects can't occupy the same space. If I am to your right, you can't turn right without hitting me. Fortunately no damage was done to either me or the bike.
When I got to Cotonou I called up Liz and she said she would meet me at her place. It took a bit of finding, but I got there eventually. Liz is actually going to a conference in a different part of town, so won't be around. That means I will be taking care of her dog Yovo. Yovo is really adorable. I have missed having dogs around.
Liz had to head out for a conference dinner just after dark. She did give me a map to the Thai restaraunt in town. I have also missed Thai food. (That is one of the great things about the U.S., all the best food from around the world comes there.) Getting there was a bit of a trick. Liz had also loaned me a spare motorcycle helmet, so I took a Zemidjan (motorcycle taxi) there. I even showed the driver the map and he said he knew where to go. He didn't. I don't know why I expected an illiterate zem driver to understand how to read a map... We got most of the way there and I had to tell him which directions to take. A block away from the place he stopped and refused to go unless I paid him an extra 50 CFA. Again, this is about 10 cents, so not that big a deal. I just don't like being jerked around. He agreed to the price, it isn't my responsibility to pay more because he doesn't know how to get there. So I got off and gave him 50 CFA less than our agreed price. Hell, I wasn't going to pay him the full price for almost getting me there. It was all the mor rediculous because it was so close. It would have taken about a minute to walk. Finally he relented and took me the last block.
The place itself was very nice. I had some chicken curry and rice, it was pretty good. The bill seemed a bit much though. I know it is in the ritzy part of town with all the embassies and NGOs. I got charged 900 CFA for rice, or about $2. Probably what you would pay in the states. Still, I could get the same amount of rice from a street vendor for 100 CFA. Ah well.
-Dravis
Distance: 82km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: What's the Frequency, Kenneth? - R.E.M.
Had another lazy morning. Satin was kind enough to make some breakfast. Really
good omelette's. Yum. Thanks Satin for letting me stay. Good luck in your village and your third year in Cotonou.From there it was back on the road. Or in this case the bush path. It was tougher going this time as it was mostly uphill. The last hill into Houegbo was a killer. After Houegbo things got a bit easier. The highway made for pretty quick riding when I wasn't just smashing into the wind.
Getting to Cotonou wasn't that fun though. The last 15km into town was through heavy traffic. I even got hit by a car. Here is a hint for divers, two objects can't occupy the same space. If I am to your right, you can't turn right without hitting me. Fortunately no damage was done to either me or the bike.
When I got to Cotonou I called up Liz and she said she would meet me at her place. It took a bit of finding, but I got there eventually. Liz is actually going to a conference in a different part of town, so won't be around. That means I will be taking care of her dog Yovo. Yovo is really adorable. I have missed having dogs around.
Liz had to head out for a conference dinner just after dark. She did give me a map to the Thai restaraunt in town. I have also missed Thai food. (That is one of the great things about the U.S., all the best food from around the world comes there.) Getting there was a bit of a trick. Liz had also loaned me a spare motorcycle helmet, so I took a Zemidjan (motorcycle taxi) there. I even showed the driver the map and he said he knew where to go. He didn't. I don't know why I expected an illiterate zem driver to understand how to read a map... We got most of the way there and I had to tell him which directions to take. A block away from the place he stopped and refused to go unless I paid him an extra 50 CFA. Again, this is about 10 cents, so not that big a deal. I just don't like being jerked around. He agreed to the price, it isn't my responsibility to pay more because he doesn't know how to get there. So I got off and gave him 50 CFA less than our agreed price. Hell, I wasn't going to pay him the full price for almost getting me there. It was all the mor rediculous because it was so close. It would have taken about a minute to walk. Finally he relented and took me the last block.
The place itself was very nice. I had some chicken curry and rice, it was pretty good. The bill seemed a bit much though. I know it is in the ritzy part of town with all the embassies and NGOs. I got charged 900 CFA for rice, or about $2. Probably what you would pay in the states. Still, I could get the same amount of rice from a street vendor for 100 CFA. Ah well.
-Dravis
Bochion to Takon - Day 273
Date: May 18th, 2010
Distance: 72km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Brothers in Arms - Dire Straits
I woke up today and said goodbye to my host Jeff and Eric. Thanks Jeff for letting me stay. Have fun moving up north. Eric, best of luck with the Deadbeat. I hope the re-launch goes well. 
Liz had already left and I will see if I can stay at her place when I get to Cotonou. Satin had offered to let me stay at her place in Takon as well. So that was my big goal for the day.
As for the terrain and weather, not much to say. More hills and headwind. At least for the first 60km to Houegbou. After that it was another 10km through the bush. This was the best part of the ride. I do like getting off the highway every once in a while.
I made it to Satin's village an hour or two before dark. So she showed me around. Her place is actually pretty nice. It may be a concrete box, but they trimmed it up pretty nice. Plus it has water and electricity. Okay, the water is a tap outside and the electricity is solar powered and provides just a couple of hours of light during the evening. Still, not bad for 11km into the bush.
After that we took a stroll around her village. The first stop was at her neighbor's house across the street. He gave us some Sodebe, which is a local palm liquor. Actually it tastes a lot like tequila. In other words, not really my thing. Satin also took some time to explain what she does as a rural community health worker. I guess a lot of her work is just teaching the people in the area about basic health concepts. Like sanitation, nutrition and disease prevention. While we were there one of the mothers was force feeding her tiny baby. Satin was saying they do this when they don't want to take the time to breastfeed. For kids, like this little girl about 2 months old, food forced down can be deadly. I have also learned that Satin is not the kind of person who lets something like that slide. She got up and confronted the mom about it. She also asked one of her friends to talk with the mother about it as well. So when the mom was back at it not five minutes later, Satin made a show of storming off. Change is not quick here.
After that we went over to another section of the village. They also gave us a bit of dinner. Really not much, as most of the people here couldn't afford even rice. It was Pate (what I knew as To in Burking Faso) with a tiny bit of sauce. The sauce had a some pieces of chicken in it which was great. Even the Pate was good. It was kinda like if someone tried to make mashed potatoes with tortillas. Unlike To or other Pate I have seen, it was even edible without sauce.
-Dravis
Distance: 72km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Brothers in Arms - Dire Straits
I woke up today and said goodbye to my host Jeff and Eric. Thanks Jeff for letting me stay. Have fun moving up north. Eric, best of luck with the Deadbeat. I hope the re-launch goes well. 
Liz had already left and I will see if I can stay at her place when I get to Cotonou. Satin had offered to let me stay at her place in Takon as well. So that was my big goal for the day.As for the terrain and weather, not much to say. More hills and headwind. At least for the first 60km to Houegbou. After that it was another 10km through the bush. This was the best part of the ride. I do like getting off the highway every once in a while.
I made it to Satin's village an hour or two before dark. So she showed me around. Her place is actually pretty nice. It may be a concrete box, but they trimmed it up pretty nice. Plus it has water and electricity. Okay, the water is a tap outside and the electricity is solar powered and provides just a couple of hours of light during the evening. Still, not bad for 11km into the bush.
After that we took a stroll around her village. The first stop was at her neighbor's house across the street. He gave us some Sodebe, which is a local palm liquor. Actually it tastes a lot like tequila. In other words, not really my thing. Satin also took some time to explain what she does as a rural community health worker. I guess a lot of her work is just teaching the people in the area about basic health concepts. Like sanitation, nutrition and disease prevention. While we were there one of the mothers was force feeding her tiny baby. Satin was saying they do this when they don't want to take the time to breastfeed. For kids, like this little girl about 2 months old, food forced down can be deadly. I have also learned that Satin is not the kind of person who lets something like that slide. She got up and confronted the mom about it. She also asked one of her friends to talk with the mother about it as well. So when the mom was back at it not five minutes later, Satin made a show of storming off. Change is not quick here.
After that we went over to another section of the village. They also gave us a bit of dinner. Really not much, as most of the people here couldn't afford even rice. It was Pate (what I knew as To in Burking Faso) with a tiny bit of sauce. The sauce had a some pieces of chicken in it which was great. Even the Pate was good. It was kinda like if someone tried to make mashed potatoes with tortillas. Unlike To or other Pate I have seen, it was even edible without sauce.
-Dravis
Bohicon - Day 272
Date: May 17th, 2010
Distance: 5km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Eminence Front - The Who
I was supposed to leave early today, but that never happened. Instead I slept in. I did wake up when the sun rose, but it was raining pretty hard. I know that would have made a great (cool) day to ride in, I just didn't feel like it.
Actually I really wanted to see some of the cultural sites in the area. This area is
where the capitol of the Dahomey empire was. Jeff works at an archaeological site for that empire, so after a bit of breakfast the two of us headed over there.
The site was full of these holes the Dahomey people had dug into the ground. They were made for the defense of the empire about 300 years ago. When the Oyo (Nigerians) would attack, the Dahomey could hide in the holes and reappear behind their enemies. Each hole consists of a vertical shaft about three feet wide down to a main room. In the main room are small openings to other lower rooms. Since these holes were dug into the bush it is nearly impossible to find them. Quite a defense for the people in the area.
After that we headed back to Jeff's place. Two other volunteers, Ivy and Satin, were already there. The five of us, including Eric, went out to grab a drink in the afternoon. It was fun to sit around with them, but much of the conversation centered on gossip. I could understand Ravi's comments about the Peach Corps being and insular community. Eventually Ivy had to leave to head back to site, but shortly after Liz showed up.
I don't know who came up with the idea to head out for some chuke. I guess this is a local millet beer. Traditionally this is served in half of a gourd, but for us it was served in a plastic cup made to look like half a gourd. It was actually pretty good. It tasted sweet almost like cider. After that we headed over for dinner and continued the conversation. Finally everyone headed back to Jeff's house to crash.
-Dravis
Distance: 5km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Eminence Front - The Who
I was supposed to leave early today, but that never happened. Instead I slept in. I did wake up when the sun rose, but it was raining pretty hard. I know that would have made a great (cool) day to ride in, I just didn't feel like it.
Actually I really wanted to see some of the cultural sites in the area. This area is
where the capitol of the Dahomey empire was. Jeff works at an archaeological site for that empire, so after a bit of breakfast the two of us headed over there.The site was full of these holes the Dahomey people had dug into the ground. They were made for the defense of the empire about 300 years ago. When the Oyo (Nigerians) would attack, the Dahomey could hide in the holes and reappear behind their enemies. Each hole consists of a vertical shaft about three feet wide down to a main room. In the main room are small openings to other lower rooms. Since these holes were dug into the bush it is nearly impossible to find them. Quite a defense for the people in the area.
After that we headed back to Jeff's place. Two other volunteers, Ivy and Satin, were already there. The five of us, including Eric, went out to grab a drink in the afternoon. It was fun to sit around with them, but much of the conversation centered on gossip. I could understand Ravi's comments about the Peach Corps being and insular community. Eventually Ivy had to leave to head back to site, but shortly after Liz showed up.
I don't know who came up with the idea to head out for some chuke. I guess this is a local millet beer. Traditionally this is served in half of a gourd, but for us it was served in a plastic cup made to look like half a gourd. It was actually pretty good. It tasted sweet almost like cider. After that we headed over for dinner and continued the conversation. Finally everyone headed back to Jeff's house to crash.
-Dravis
Bohicon - Day 271
Date: May 16th, 2010
Distance: None
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: The Weight - Weezer
I did nothing today, and it was great. I did need a good rest day though. I spent most of the day just hanging out with Eric. Read a bunch of stuff about west Africa. Also talked with Eric a lot. Jeff returned late in the afternoon. He had been out (drinking) with the nuns in a nearby village.
For dinner I cooked up some chili dinner. It was pretty good, but not as great as the stuff back home. I do miss home cooking. At least it was filling. Afterward we watched some TV shows (on the computer) and went to bed.
-Dravis
Distance: None
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: The Weight - Weezer
I did nothing today, and it was great. I did need a good rest day though. I spent most of the day just hanging out with Eric. Read a bunch of stuff about west Africa. Also talked with Eric a lot. Jeff returned late in the afternoon. He had been out (drinking) with the nuns in a nearby village.
For dinner I cooked up some chili dinner. It was pretty good, but not as great as the stuff back home. I do miss home cooking. At least it was filling. Afterward we watched some TV shows (on the computer) and went to bed.
-Dravis
Dassa to Bohicon - Day 270
Date: May 15th, 2010
Distance: 76km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Rags to Rags - Eels
I got up quite late today. Then I proceeded to putz around getting breakfast. Still I seemed to eat everything and then the kitchen sink. So I had a lot of energy, but really it isn't a great idea to start riding when it is hot out.
The first 20km out of Dassa were amazing. It is in an area of rocky hills known as Collines. They are stunning to look at. A jumble of gray boulders studded with green 
trees. Most of them are a couple of hundred feet tall. Just amazing.
After that though the terrain flattened out and the wind picked up. I spent most of the afternoon on long slow ascents into a relentless wind. That heat would not let up either.
The people I pass are also getting more annoying. In the northern part of the country I was almost never asked for gifts. It was usually a pleasant bon soir, or the amusing bon sour. In the south, I get a lot of yovo. This is like tubab or aporto from other parts of west Africa. Still, it gets quite annoying. The kids also have little chants they do like "yovo yovo bon jour ca va bien merci" or "yovo yovo cadou". Kids are always asking for cadou. It is almost like it is a reflex but they don't actually understand what it means.
About 10 km outside of Bohicon I picked up my second wind. Actually, I think I am getting my energy back. The Cipro seems to be setting my GI track right. I never felt bad, so I didn't notice that my energy level was so low. Now it seems like I have the extra juice to really push myself. That helps a lot.
Once in Boichon I met up with another volunteer, Jeff, who was going to put me up for the night. Eric another volunteer was also staying there. So I had a great time chatting with them. I have gotten used to the fact that I spend at least the first hour or so explaining my trip. It was also fun to get their perspective on west Africa and Benin.
Eric was also telling me about publishing the Deadbeat again. I guess this is the newsletter put out by the volunteers here in Benin. It was started 20 years ago, but nobody had been running it for the last few years. Eric seems to be the senior editor putting it all together. He let me read some of it, and it was a lot of fun. I am not a PCV but I can commiserate with a lot of the stuff they have to put up with here.
-Dravis
Distance: 76km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Rags to Rags - Eels
I got up quite late today. Then I proceeded to putz around getting breakfast. Still I seemed to eat everything and then the kitchen sink. So I had a lot of energy, but really it isn't a great idea to start riding when it is hot out.
The first 20km out of Dassa were amazing. It is in an area of rocky hills known as Collines. They are stunning to look at. A jumble of gray boulders studded with green 
trees. Most of them are a couple of hundred feet tall. Just amazing.After that though the terrain flattened out and the wind picked up. I spent most of the afternoon on long slow ascents into a relentless wind. That heat would not let up either.
The people I pass are also getting more annoying. In the northern part of the country I was almost never asked for gifts. It was usually a pleasant bon soir, or the amusing bon sour. In the south, I get a lot of yovo. This is like tubab or aporto from other parts of west Africa. Still, it gets quite annoying. The kids also have little chants they do like "yovo yovo bon jour ca va bien merci" or "yovo yovo cadou". Kids are always asking for cadou. It is almost like it is a reflex but they don't actually understand what it means.
About 10 km outside of Bohicon I picked up my second wind. Actually, I think I am getting my energy back. The Cipro seems to be setting my GI track right. I never felt bad, so I didn't notice that my energy level was so low. Now it seems like I have the extra juice to really push myself. That helps a lot.
Once in Boichon I met up with another volunteer, Jeff, who was going to put me up for the night. Eric another volunteer was also staying there. So I had a great time chatting with them. I have gotten used to the fact that I spend at least the first hour or so explaining my trip. It was also fun to get their perspective on west Africa and Benin.
Eric was also telling me about publishing the Deadbeat again. I guess this is the newsletter put out by the volunteers here in Benin. It was started 20 years ago, but nobody had been running it for the last few years. Eric seems to be the senior editor putting it all together. He let me read some of it, and it was a lot of fun. I am not a PCV but I can commiserate with a lot of the stuff they have to put up with here.
-Dravis
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Bante to Dassa - Day 264
Date: May 14th, 2010
Distance: 91km
Country: Benin
I got up early with Ravi. He is heading north for a big birthday bash.
He did take me to a place close by that made great omelet sandwiches. The lady next to it was selling the corn porage stuff. I can't remember what they called it though. I washed it all down with a bottle of bissap and I was ready to go. I said goodbye to my host and was off. Ravi, thanks for everything. Good luck here! Maybe I will see you in Ghana.
The scenery on the road has become a lot more interesting. To the east there is a ridge of forested hills. There are also occasional rocky outcrops. Quite fun to look at. Toward the west is just a large green valley studded with palm trees. The road is still up and down a lot, but not worse than before. I will take the beautiful vistas any day.
The day did drag a bit though. It could be the intestinal issues or the heat, I just don't have the same level of energy I used to. Or it could be the recent lack of sleep... I did finally get a good rain storm to wash over me at the end of the day. That made everything nice and cool. Great for riding. I have missed the rain.
-Dravis
Distance: 91km
Country: Benin
I got up early with Ravi. He is heading north for a big birthday bash.
He did take me to a place close by that made great omelet sandwiches. The lady next to it was selling the corn porage stuff. I can't remember what they called it though. I washed it all down with a bottle of bissap and I was ready to go. I said goodbye to my host and was off. Ravi, thanks for everything. Good luck here! Maybe I will see you in Ghana.The scenery on the road has become a lot more interesting. To the east there is a ridge of forested hills. There are also occasional rocky outcrops. Quite fun to look at. Toward the west is just a large green valley studded with palm trees. The road is still up and down a lot, but not worse than before. I will take the beautiful vistas any day.
The day did drag a bit though. It could be the intestinal issues or the heat, I just don't have the same level of energy I used to. Or it could be the recent lack of sleep... I did finally get a good rain storm to wash over me at the end of the day. That made everything nice and cool. Great for riding. I have missed the rain.
-Dravis
Bassila to Bante - Day 268
Date: May 13th, 2010
Distance: 86km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Campus - Vampire Weekend
It was a slow morning even by my lazy standards. I didn't sleep well either. I had been having some intestinal issues during the night. I am not sure if it is the same problem I have been having or something new. I think it is time to call in the big guns. So I started taking Cipro.
Melissa was very kind and made up some egg and cheese sandwiches for breakfast. They were really good and gave me the energy to really get going. It was also fun to chat with Melissa over breakfast. I love meeting new people and sharing ideas. Melissa, thanks for letting me stay. I had a great time. Good luck with the cats and kittens.
Out on the road, nothing much has changed. It is still the rolling hills and headwinds. The countryside is quite pleasant looking. A vibrant green brought on by the recent rains. It isn't very dramatic though and seems to drag on through the day.
There was one strange incident in the morning. I stopped to buy my mid-morning mango in a little town. While I was haggling over the price I heard this loud explosion. I turned to see a man walking toward me with a shotgun. He popped open the breach and tossed the spent shell. All the while staring at me with a blank look on his face. As he got closer though he gave me a big smile and a bon jour, so everything worked out. It turns out the men of the village were having a meeting that, for some bizarre reason, called for them to intermittently fire off shotguns into the air.
Melissa did give me the phone nubmer for a volunteer, Ravi, down in the next big town. I got in touch with him in the late afternoon and he said he would put me up for the night. When I got to Bante it turns out there is a big rock north of town. Like 100 meters tall kind of big. Ravi lives right at the base of that.
I dropped my stuff off at his place and we headed into town for some dinner. I spent a lot of time talking about my trip. We also talked about life here in Africa and living in less remote places. I had a great time. When we got back to Ravi's place I let him copy stuff from my portable hard drive. That got us off into a big conversation about movies and literature. I don't even want to think about what time we actually went to bed. Then again, this wasn't the first and I am sure it won't be the last time I have ended up in a late night discussion with a new friend.
-Dravis
Distance: 86km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Campus - Vampire Weekend
It was a slow morning even by my lazy standards. I didn't sleep well either. I had been having some intestinal issues during the night. I am not sure if it is the same problem I have been having or something new. I think it is time to call in the big guns. So I started taking Cipro.
Melissa was very kind and made up some egg and cheese sandwiches for breakfast. They were really good and gave me the energy to really get going. It was also fun to chat with Melissa over breakfast. I love meeting new people and sharing ideas. Melissa, thanks for letting me stay. I had a great time. Good luck with the cats and kittens.
Out on the road, nothing much has changed. It is still the rolling hills and headwinds. The countryside is quite pleasant looking. A vibrant green brought on by the recent rains. It isn't very dramatic though and seems to drag on through the day.
There was one strange incident in the morning. I stopped to buy my mid-morning mango in a little town. While I was haggling over the price I heard this loud explosion. I turned to see a man walking toward me with a shotgun. He popped open the breach and tossed the spent shell. All the while staring at me with a blank look on his face. As he got closer though he gave me a big smile and a bon jour, so everything worked out. It turns out the men of the village were having a meeting that, for some bizarre reason, called for them to intermittently fire off shotguns into the air.
Melissa did give me the phone nubmer for a volunteer, Ravi, down in the next big town. I got in touch with him in the late afternoon and he said he would put me up for the night. When I got to Bante it turns out there is a big rock north of town. Like 100 meters tall kind of big. Ravi lives right at the base of that.
I dropped my stuff off at his place and we headed into town for some dinner. I spent a lot of time talking about my trip. We also talked about life here in Africa and living in less remote places. I had a great time. When we got back to Ravi's place I let him copy stuff from my portable hard drive. That got us off into a big conversation about movies and literature. I don't even want to think about what time we actually went to bed. Then again, this wasn't the first and I am sure it won't be the last time I have ended up in a late night discussion with a new friend.
-Dravis
Djoubou to Bassila - Day 267
Date: May 12th, 2010
Distance: 88km
Country: Benin
More hills and headwind. The morning was actually pleasant though. A big thunderstorm had rolled over the night before. It left behind lots of cloud cover. It was almost cool for the first 25 kilometers or so. I also had another one of those big mangoes for my mid-morning snack. Those things are amazing. So juicy. Not like the little ones with all the hairs that get stuck in your teeth. Just great eating.
By noon the clouds had pretty well burned off. So I was riding in the heat and the sun. Not all that pleasant. That heat just really takes it out of me. Plus it was up and down a lot. The area around here really is quite green. It is also the beginning of the rainy season. So I can roll down the road as farmers are working their fields. It is all done by hand though. I don't want to say western farming methods are the best, but hand dug furrows just don't look efficient to me.
I did make it to Bassila and met up with Melissa, a volunteer there. All the Benin PCVs I met up in Senegal seemed to be in some kind of training. Melissa was nice enough to take me in sight unseen. Actually we had a good time chatting about all kinds of stuff. She mentioned that the volunteer community is a bit insular. Getting to talk with an outsider is a good change of pace.
She is also heading home in August. That was something else we had in common. I enjoyed talking about things to do/eat when I get home. Speaking of eating, she also took me out to here favorite restaurant. The food was really good. I had rice with bush meat (I am not sure what kind). She had rice with that local cheese I have been eating. I guess it is named Wagasi. Melissa also said it can't be made in the U.S. because it requires some crazy local plant. So if you are here in Benin, try it.
-Dravis
Distance: 88km
Country: Benin
More hills and headwind. The morning was actually pleasant though. A big thunderstorm had rolled over the night before. It left behind lots of cloud cover. It was almost cool for the first 25 kilometers or so. I also had another one of those big mangoes for my mid-morning snack. Those things are amazing. So juicy. Not like the little ones with all the hairs that get stuck in your teeth. Just great eating.
By noon the clouds had pretty well burned off. So I was riding in the heat and the sun. Not all that pleasant. That heat just really takes it out of me. Plus it was up and down a lot. The area around here really is quite green. It is also the beginning of the rainy season. So I can roll down the road as farmers are working their fields. It is all done by hand though. I don't want to say western farming methods are the best, but hand dug furrows just don't look efficient to me.
I did make it to Bassila and met up with Melissa, a volunteer there. All the Benin PCVs I met up in Senegal seemed to be in some kind of training. Melissa was nice enough to take me in sight unseen. Actually we had a good time chatting about all kinds of stuff. She mentioned that the volunteer community is a bit insular. Getting to talk with an outsider is a good change of pace.
She is also heading home in August. That was something else we had in common. I enjoyed talking about things to do/eat when I get home. Speaking of eating, she also took me out to here favorite restaurant. The food was really good. I had rice with bush meat (I am not sure what kind). She had rice with that local cheese I have been eating. I guess it is named Wagasi. Melissa also said it can't be made in the U.S. because it requires some crazy local plant. So if you are here in Benin, try it.
-Dravis
Natitingou to Djoubou - Day 266
Date: May 11th, 2010
Distance: 82km
Country: Benin
Well, it was another long day. That wasn't helped by getting a flat tire not 10km out of town. It wasn't a puncture though. A little hole was worn in the tube from a high spot on the inside of the tire. I guess the tubes are just cheap. The patch does seem to be holding, so that is good.
There are still a lot of hills in this part of the country. I think there are more descents that ascents though. Which makes sense. If I am up in the mountains and heading to the coast, I will eventually loose all that elevation.
The wind is still bothering me. Not too bad for the most part. It does make things harder though. There was a thick cover of puffy clouds in the morning. They did spread apart in the afternoon. So not much cover there.
I am impressed with Benin. The countryside is lush green and beautiful. It reminds me of some of the first training rides I did in the hills east of Seattle. It also looks like many of the small villages even have power. I see transmission lines running all over the place. It might just be here along the highway though. Still, I hope that a little electricity can empower the people here to get their economy to grow.
Arrived in Djoubou late in the afternoon. While looking for a hotel I got into a discussion with a guy who, like so many other people here, wanted to go to America. I do try and discourage people from that idea. It isn't that I think my country is only for the people there. It has more to do with the fact that the desire is such a childish notion. Everyone thinks that if they arrive in America they will get off the plane and be given a job and a big car. It is as if they have been led to believe the streets are paved in gold. Plus there is so much opportunity here for those people who know where to look. It doesn't seem to work explaining that to people though. It is a sacred dream that even common sense can't damage.
-Dravis
Distance: 82km
Country: Benin
Well, it was another long day. That wasn't helped by getting a flat tire not 10km out of town. It wasn't a puncture though. A little hole was worn in the tube from a high spot on the inside of the tire. I guess the tubes are just cheap. The patch does seem to be holding, so that is good.
There are still a lot of hills in this part of the country. I think there are more descents that ascents though. Which makes sense. If I am up in the mountains and heading to the coast, I will eventually loose all that elevation.
The wind is still bothering me. Not too bad for the most part. It does make things harder though. There was a thick cover of puffy clouds in the morning. They did spread apart in the afternoon. So not much cover there.
I am impressed with Benin. The countryside is lush green and beautiful. It reminds me of some of the first training rides I did in the hills east of Seattle. It also looks like many of the small villages even have power. I see transmission lines running all over the place. It might just be here along the highway though. Still, I hope that a little electricity can empower the people here to get their economy to grow.
Arrived in Djoubou late in the afternoon. While looking for a hotel I got into a discussion with a guy who, like so many other people here, wanted to go to America. I do try and discourage people from that idea. It isn't that I think my country is only for the people there. It has more to do with the fact that the desire is such a childish notion. Everyone thinks that if they arrive in America they will get off the plane and be given a job and a big car. It is as if they have been led to believe the streets are paved in gold. Plus there is so much opportunity here for those people who know where to look. It doesn't seem to work explaining that to people though. It is a sacred dream that even common sense can't damage.
-Dravis
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Tanguieti to Natitingou - Day 265
Date: May 10th, 2010
Distance: 51km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Zero Chance - Soundgarden
I slept in today, which was amazing. After days of camping and getting up with the sun, it was nice to stay in bed. Actually, it was nice just to get up in a bed rather than a tent. I even thought about staying another day, but eventually figured I should just get to the next town. In any case I really didn't leave town until almost noon. Natitingou wasn't that far away though.
The terrain out of Tanguieti is quite spectacular. There are green hillsides with red
rock cliffs. There was a jagged scar in one of the cliffs with a little waterfall flowing from it. Plus the sky was dotted with these puffy white clouds. Just beautiful. Of course, the hills meant that I was going up them. I spent almost the first two hours working 
on some pretty steep ascents. The puffy clouds also meant little protection from the sun. Because of the late start it was getting into the heat of the day. So it was a hot steep struggle.
Toward the top of the hills there is a tiny village, and I picked up a few young boys running along side me. I wasn't going very fast at this point. Just making the final push to the top. So they kept up for a couple hundred yards. As soon as I crested the hill, I said "Au revoir" and left them in my dust. I did half the distance of the first two hours in the next 20 minutes.
At the bottom of the hill I stopped for lunch. I had some rice with a spicy tomato sauce. For some reason it reminded me of enchilada sauce. (I miss mexican food.) It also had a local sponge like cheese in it. Strange, but quite tasty. There were a few professional looking people sitting at the table next to me. They were working on something, but I wasn't sure if it was a test for school or for a job. The one guy in the group kept bugging me to give him stuff. First my watch then my pocket knife. I couldn't believe it. Here he is in a suit basically begging for stuff. He was worse than the kids. Get a life man.
After lunch the going was a little flatter. I was hitting a big headwind again. I didn't mind too much, because I knew it was a short day. Also, it seemed to make sense. North bound winds from the coast bringing clouds and rain. I can understand that. As I am going south the next few days, it will probably get pretty annoying.
There was also one big hill right before Natitingou. Not as tall or long as the first hill of the day. It was just another grind though. Cresting the top and getting to zip down the hill felt great though.
I got to town and found the commissariat right away. Sadly they didn't have the passport stamp I needed either. They referred me to the Immigration office in Cotonou. Arg. Feels like I am getting the run around on this one. Still, not having an entrance stamp hasn't proved to be a very big deal so far. The police assured me I was fine. For all the money I have spent on visas, it doesn't seem like anyone actually cares that much when I cross a border.
-Dravis
Distance: 51km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Zero Chance - Soundgarden
I slept in today, which was amazing. After days of camping and getting up with the sun, it was nice to stay in bed. Actually, it was nice just to get up in a bed rather than a tent. I even thought about staying another day, but eventually figured I should just get to the next town. In any case I really didn't leave town until almost noon. Natitingou wasn't that far away though.
The terrain out of Tanguieti is quite spectacular. There are green hillsides with red
rock cliffs. There was a jagged scar in one of the cliffs with a little waterfall flowing from it. Plus the sky was dotted with these puffy white clouds. Just beautiful. Of course, the hills meant that I was going up them. I spent almost the first two hours working 
on some pretty steep ascents. The puffy clouds also meant little protection from the sun. Because of the late start it was getting into the heat of the day. So it was a hot steep struggle.Toward the top of the hills there is a tiny village, and I picked up a few young boys running along side me. I wasn't going very fast at this point. Just making the final push to the top. So they kept up for a couple hundred yards. As soon as I crested the hill, I said "Au revoir" and left them in my dust. I did half the distance of the first two hours in the next 20 minutes.
At the bottom of the hill I stopped for lunch. I had some rice with a spicy tomato sauce. For some reason it reminded me of enchilada sauce. (I miss mexican food.) It also had a local sponge like cheese in it. Strange, but quite tasty. There were a few professional looking people sitting at the table next to me. They were working on something, but I wasn't sure if it was a test for school or for a job. The one guy in the group kept bugging me to give him stuff. First my watch then my pocket knife. I couldn't believe it. Here he is in a suit basically begging for stuff. He was worse than the kids. Get a life man.
After lunch the going was a little flatter. I was hitting a big headwind again. I didn't mind too much, because I knew it was a short day. Also, it seemed to make sense. North bound winds from the coast bringing clouds and rain. I can understand that. As I am going south the next few days, it will probably get pretty annoying.
There was also one big hill right before Natitingou. Not as tall or long as the first hill of the day. It was just another grind though. Cresting the top and getting to zip down the hill felt great though.
I got to town and found the commissariat right away. Sadly they didn't have the passport stamp I needed either. They referred me to the Immigration office in Cotonou. Arg. Feels like I am getting the run around on this one. Still, not having an entrance stamp hasn't proved to be a very big deal so far. The police assured me I was fine. For all the money I have spent on visas, it doesn't seem like anyone actually cares that much when I cross a border.
-Dravis
Panjari to Tanguieta - Day 264
Date: May 9th, 2010
Distance: 47km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Mother - Pink Floyd
I had set my alarm for 5:30 this morning. I was supposed to go with the Safari crew at 6:00, so that would give me a bit of time to pack up the tent and everything. At 5:20 one of the guys from the Safari came by the tent to check in on me. He came back ten minutes later to say they were going. Fine by me, if they wanted to leave early, I wasn't going to bust my butt to chase after them. Then the guy running the Safari came by to say they were going. I told him that he had promised me six o'clock. He said yes, they were going now. I told him I still had half an hour. He said, no, it was time now. It turns out there is an hour time difference between Burkina and Benin. I didn't want to make them wait, so I said they could go without me.
I still got up and got packed. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do. I still needed to get my change from the forestry post. So I was going to go back there and talk with them. I even though of maybe helping out the lady doing the lion study. It would be something to do for the day, and I could see if there was another truck leaving tomorrow. Just as I got all packed away, one of the staff from the hotel came by and brought me my change. I am not sure how that happened, but it saved me a trip out there.
I now found myself ready to go, and nothing but the bush to stop me for the next 75km. I decided I would go for it. So I filled up on water and headed off down the road. That was some hard cycling though. The road across the border from Parc D'Arly was bad, but I knew that nobody maintained it. This was bad, but clearly someone was taking care of it. Just not very well. Much of it was a coarse sand that is hard to cycle through. When the roadbed was more solid it was almost entirely washboarded. It also meant that I spent most of the time just watching the road. I know I was in a beautiful natural park, but after a few kilometers of savanna it gets boring. Still, I did want to keep a lookout for elephants or anything else dangerous. Mostly I had to concentrate on picking the best route. I set myself for a tough day ahead.
At one point I was passed by the two Safari trucks. They stopped to chat for a minute. They asked if I wanted to come along, but I felt like I had made it this far (about 20km) so the rest was no problem. Plus I didn't want to make them wait why the bike was somehow strapped to the back of one of the trucks. So I said goodbye and they drove off. After going 500 meters through more sand I did regret that decision.
I did have to stop at a four way intersection. It had a sign for the hotel, and for a lake, but not for Batia (the town I was heading to). I sat there for a bit, like Gandalf, pondering the correct direction to take. Finally I worked out that I should take a left. My compass said that was was south, and I knew the exit was directly south. Plus the sign for the hotel was placed to be seen from that direction. So I figured that is where the entrance to the park was.
I wasn't quite sure that I had got it right. I just couldn't hang out all day, so I kept going. After 10km I saw a bus come by. I tried to get it to stop so I could ask but it passed. Fortunately there was a second bus, and that stopped. I asked if I was going the right way for Batia, and the driver assured me I was. Good enough for me. I thanked them and the bus drove off for a bit. Then it stopped. Someone got out and asked me if I wanted a lift. I said yes. I had made it through over 40km of the bush and didn't get eaten by lions or trampled by elephants. I proved, at least to myself it could be done, and was now happy to sit back and relax a bit. Plus it was the hot part of the day, and who wants to cycle then? So my bike was loaded onto the empty rack on top, and we set off.
It turns out the bus was full of students from a university in Cotonou. The man who had offered me the ride was their professor. They were basically wildlife management students. He described it as "animal health and protection". It was nice to see that Benin is taking an interest in protecting their animals and habitat.
We stopped at Batia for a bit. I went to the Forestry office there and asked for my passport stamp. They said they didn't have one and I would have to go to the police station in Tanguieta. professor was nice enough to offer me a ride all the way to town though. So I rode along for a bit more.
Once in town I got dropped off and headed to the police station. They didn't have the stamp either. Urgh. I must remember to stop taking these back-woods border crossings. I would have to go 50km north to Porga. Then come back. So a 100km detour. Finally they said I could also go to the commissariat in Natitingou. So that is my first goal there.
I then found a nice cheap hotel to stay at. Then went to a cyber cafe. I e-mailed my mom to let her know that I was doing fine. I do sometimes open web pages to read offline. So it was later that night that I realized it was Mother's Day. Frankly I didn't even know it was Sunday. So sorry mom, happy Mother's Day.
-Dravis
Distance: 47km
Country: Benin
Song of the Day: Mother - Pink Floyd
I had set my alarm for 5:30 this morning. I was supposed to go with the Safari crew at 6:00, so that would give me a bit of time to pack up the tent and everything. At 5:20 one of the guys from the Safari came by the tent to check in on me. He came back ten minutes later to say they were going. Fine by me, if they wanted to leave early, I wasn't going to bust my butt to chase after them. Then the guy running the Safari came by to say they were going. I told him that he had promised me six o'clock. He said yes, they were going now. I told him I still had half an hour. He said, no, it was time now. It turns out there is an hour time difference between Burkina and Benin. I didn't want to make them wait, so I said they could go without me.
I still got up and got packed. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do. I still needed to get my change from the forestry post. So I was going to go back there and talk with them. I even though of maybe helping out the lady doing the lion study. It would be something to do for the day, and I could see if there was another truck leaving tomorrow. Just as I got all packed away, one of the staff from the hotel came by and brought me my change. I am not sure how that happened, but it saved me a trip out there.
I now found myself ready to go, and nothing but the bush to stop me for the next 75km. I decided I would go for it. So I filled up on water and headed off down the road. That was some hard cycling though. The road across the border from Parc D'Arly was bad, but I knew that nobody maintained it. This was bad, but clearly someone was taking care of it. Just not very well. Much of it was a coarse sand that is hard to cycle through. When the roadbed was more solid it was almost entirely washboarded. It also meant that I spent most of the time just watching the road. I know I was in a beautiful natural park, but after a few kilometers of savanna it gets boring. Still, I did want to keep a lookout for elephants or anything else dangerous. Mostly I had to concentrate on picking the best route. I set myself for a tough day ahead.
At one point I was passed by the two Safari trucks. They stopped to chat for a minute. They asked if I wanted to come along, but I felt like I had made it this far (about 20km) so the rest was no problem. Plus I didn't want to make them wait why the bike was somehow strapped to the back of one of the trucks. So I said goodbye and they drove off. After going 500 meters through more sand I did regret that decision.
I did have to stop at a four way intersection. It had a sign for the hotel, and for a lake, but not for Batia (the town I was heading to). I sat there for a bit, like Gandalf, pondering the correct direction to take. Finally I worked out that I should take a left. My compass said that was was south, and I knew the exit was directly south. Plus the sign for the hotel was placed to be seen from that direction. So I figured that is where the entrance to the park was.
I wasn't quite sure that I had got it right. I just couldn't hang out all day, so I kept going. After 10km I saw a bus come by. I tried to get it to stop so I could ask but it passed. Fortunately there was a second bus, and that stopped. I asked if I was going the right way for Batia, and the driver assured me I was. Good enough for me. I thanked them and the bus drove off for a bit. Then it stopped. Someone got out and asked me if I wanted a lift. I said yes. I had made it through over 40km of the bush and didn't get eaten by lions or trampled by elephants. I proved, at least to myself it could be done, and was now happy to sit back and relax a bit. Plus it was the hot part of the day, and who wants to cycle then? So my bike was loaded onto the empty rack on top, and we set off.
It turns out the bus was full of students from a university in Cotonou. The man who had offered me the ride was their professor. They were basically wildlife management students. He described it as "animal health and protection". It was nice to see that Benin is taking an interest in protecting their animals and habitat.
We stopped at Batia for a bit. I went to the Forestry office there and asked for my passport stamp. They said they didn't have one and I would have to go to the police station in Tanguieta. professor was nice enough to offer me a ride all the way to town though. So I rode along for a bit more.
Once in town I got dropped off and headed to the police station. They didn't have the stamp either. Urgh. I must remember to stop taking these back-woods border crossings. I would have to go 50km north to Porga. Then come back. So a 100km detour. Finally they said I could also go to the commissariat in Natitingou. So that is my first goal there.
I then found a nice cheap hotel to stay at. Then went to a cyber cafe. I e-mailed my mom to let her know that I was doing fine. I do sometimes open web pages to read offline. So it was later that night that I realized it was Mother's Day. Frankly I didn't even know it was Sunday. So sorry mom, happy Mother's Day.
-Dravis
Djabonli to Panjari - Day 263
Date: May 8th, 2010
Distance: 42km
Country: Benin
Overnight it had rained a bit. I didn't really mind because there was a thatched roof on the barn and it was only sprinkling on my tent. I figured if it got worse I would put the rain fly up. When I woke up in the morning I could see blue sky through the reed mat used as roofing. Whoops. My tent wasn't really wet though. So I guess it wasn't that big a deal.
I got packed up and left Djabonli pretty early. The guys at Arly had mentioned that a truck was going to the border today. Again, that might have been delayed because of the brief rain last night. When I got in the guys at the forestry camp were just sitting around. I realized the truck wasn't leaving. I did fill up my water and got ready to head off. The chef of the forestry camp made me a little map. Very cool. We said goodbye and I set off.
While winding my way down the road, I did ponder how weird it was that I needed a guide with a gun just to go around the park. Heading 25km to the border, through the bush, was no problem though. No one seemed worried that I might be killed by an animal doing it. Strange. I guess those are the rules though.
The road itself wasn't all that great. Some of it was hard packed. A few places were sand. The worst were the sections where the elephants had walked across the muddy road. They are the amazing creatures for destroying a wet dirt road. Each footprint is a perfect pothole. Just a few can make the road miserable. I did a couple of kilometers of road like that. Not fun.
Right before the border there is a immigration post. It is boarded up and abandonedthough. I wonder when the last time it was manned was? I wonder when the last time anyone passed here? After that the Savannah turns into this amazing tropical jungle. It was quite cool. I really felt like I was exploring new territory. I knew I must have been the first person to cross the border here in quite a while.
There is a low bridge over the Panjari river there. I was glad I didn't have to try and wade across a hippo or croc infested river. Actually I didn't see any of those either, which would have been kind of cool. On the Benin side, the road was blocked by a fallen palm tree. I had to push my bike through the bush for a bit to get around it. I was starting to wonder if there really was anyone on the Benin side to greet meet me. The jungle was outstanding though. Lush green palm trees. Beautiful tropical birds. Quite a sight.
After a couple of kilometers I did come across some kind of post. At first I wasn't sure if it was abandoned like the one on the Burkina side though. Someone did respond to my call though. It wasn't quite what I had expected. No, he didn't have the passport stamp. Crap. I would also have to pay 10,000 CFA for entering the park. Double crap. It was also illegal to go through the park on a bike. The animals were too dangerous. I would still have to pay 3,000 CFA for bringing a vehicle, though. Now hold on a minute. If I can't use the bike, then why am I getting charged for it? After a bit of arguing, we compromised, and I would pay half, 1,500 CFA. He didn't have any change though. So I left a deposit of 15,000 CFA. I asked if there was somewhere for food, and he told me I could get some at the hotel 7km away. He said I could also ask there about getting a ride out of the park.
I headed off down the road on my bike. Which again was
odd, if it is illegal to go through the park by bicycle then why was it okay to go down to the hotel? Maybe I am not supposed to understand. Then again, I wasn't that scared. I know most of the really scary creatures only hunt at night. It didn't bother me a bit.
When I arrived, it was an amazingly posh place. I asked for food, and they said it would be 6,000 CFA. I nearly fainted. That is about $12, or what I might pay for a really nice hotel room. The night before I had dinner for 50 CFA. (Okay I had a second dinner with the family who took me in, but that was free.) Eventually they said I could have a little rice and sauce for just 2,000 CFA. That is a bit more reasonable. Plus it was pretty good.
I asked at the hotel reception about any trucks leaving for Batia. The manager told me all the trucks were independent and I would have to ask their drivers. I didn't even ask about getting a room. The lowest price marked was 18,000 CFA. Yesh. Tourist trap.
Outside I started talking with some guys sitting around in the shade. I sort of thought they might be drivers. It turns out they were the grounds crew. They did help me find the manager for a Safari company with a truck. I asked if he was going to be going to Batia the next day. He said he might. I also asked if he was going out around the park today. Yes, but his truck had been hired by two girls, so I would need to talk to them.
It turns out they were from Quebec, working here in Benin for a month. They said it would be fine for me to ride along with them. The ride was a lot of fun. A lot like you see in the movies. It was just a regular truck with a couple of seats in the open back. We drove around for a couple of hours, but didn't see much. A lot of gazelle by the road, but not much else. We did stop off at a couple of little ponds with hippos and crocs. That was neat. I frankly wanted to join them. Floating around on a hot day sounded good. Of course I would want to avoid the hippos and the crocs... I did see one elephant, sort of. It was mostly behind a tree. I could see an ear flapping once in a while. Not that exciting. It was fun to go though. I was going to pay the girls for letting me come along, but they said it was their treat.
After that I tried to talk to the head of the safari company and see if I could get a ride. He said they were headed back to Batia in the morning. So I asked if I could come along. Well it turns out his truck had been hired for the weekend by the two girls I was with. That got them involved. Finally they agreed, but I would have to pay the head of the safari company 20,000 CFA (about $40). Again, that was a lot of money for me. I also felt bad, like I was mooching off these two girls. Eventually I decided that it was the best thing to do. I told them I would go along.
Next I had to figure out where I was going to stay. I wanted to stay at the forestry post, but that was 7km away and it was now dark. I really didn't feel like riding that. While pondering that I started talking with this Beninese lady, Eto. It turns out she comes up here frequently to study the lions. How cool is that? I asked here where she was staying, because the hotel was so expensive. It turns out she was going to camp at the forestry post. She did have a car though, but it wasn't going to fit my bike. She did talk with the manager of the hotel and got him to agree, begrudgingly to let me camp there. So that is what I did. Eto even gave me her number in case I got down to Cotonou. Then again, she may still be up hanging out with the lions.
After that I needed some dinner. I wasn't that hungry. Lunch had been pretty filling. I did need something though. I asked the head of the Safari service what he did. He said he brought his own food. He also offered me a mango and so bread. The mango he brought out was huge. I had been used to these tiny mangoes, about fist sized. I guess in Benin they grow them big. Bigger than a softball. Then again I had seen huge ones, dark green and red, growing in trees all over. Maybe it is just their season now? That mango was amazing. So juicy and so much fruit. Awesome. Plus the pit was tiny and had a lot fewer hairs (that get stuck in your teeth) than the little ones. I have to eat more of those. Plus after that, and a bit of bread, I was full.
I still had one other problem, which was that I needed my change from the forestry post. I guess I would figure that one out in the morning.
-Dravis
Distance: 42km
Country: Benin
Overnight it had rained a bit. I didn't really mind because there was a thatched roof on the barn and it was only sprinkling on my tent. I figured if it got worse I would put the rain fly up. When I woke up in the morning I could see blue sky through the reed mat used as roofing. Whoops. My tent wasn't really wet though. So I guess it wasn't that big a deal.
I got packed up and left Djabonli pretty early. The guys at Arly had mentioned that a truck was going to the border today. Again, that might have been delayed because of the brief rain last night. When I got in the guys at the forestry camp were just sitting around. I realized the truck wasn't leaving. I did fill up my water and got ready to head off. The chef of the forestry camp made me a little map. Very cool. We said goodbye and I set off.
While winding my way down the road, I did ponder how weird it was that I needed a guide with a gun just to go around the park. Heading 25km to the border, through the bush, was no problem though. No one seemed worried that I might be killed by an animal doing it. Strange. I guess those are the rules though.
The road itself wasn't all that great. Some of it was hard packed. A few places were sand. The worst were the sections where the elephants had walked across the muddy road. They are the amazing creatures for destroying a wet dirt road. Each footprint is a perfect pothole. Just a few can make the road miserable. I did a couple of kilometers of road like that. Not fun.
Right before the border there is a immigration post. It is boarded up and abandonedthough. I wonder when the last time it was manned was? I wonder when the last time anyone passed here? After that the Savannah turns into this amazing tropical jungle. It was quite cool. I really felt like I was exploring new territory. I knew I must have been the first person to cross the border here in quite a while.
There is a low bridge over the Panjari river there. I was glad I didn't have to try and wade across a hippo or croc infested river. Actually I didn't see any of those either, which would have been kind of cool. On the Benin side, the road was blocked by a fallen palm tree. I had to push my bike through the bush for a bit to get around it. I was starting to wonder if there really was anyone on the Benin side to greet meet me. The jungle was outstanding though. Lush green palm trees. Beautiful tropical birds. Quite a sight.
After a couple of kilometers I did come across some kind of post. At first I wasn't sure if it was abandoned like the one on the Burkina side though. Someone did respond to my call though. It wasn't quite what I had expected. No, he didn't have the passport stamp. Crap. I would also have to pay 10,000 CFA for entering the park. Double crap. It was also illegal to go through the park on a bike. The animals were too dangerous. I would still have to pay 3,000 CFA for bringing a vehicle, though. Now hold on a minute. If I can't use the bike, then why am I getting charged for it? After a bit of arguing, we compromised, and I would pay half, 1,500 CFA. He didn't have any change though. So I left a deposit of 15,000 CFA. I asked if there was somewhere for food, and he told me I could get some at the hotel 7km away. He said I could also ask there about getting a ride out of the park.
I headed off down the road on my bike. Which again was
odd, if it is illegal to go through the park by bicycle then why was it okay to go down to the hotel? Maybe I am not supposed to understand. Then again, I wasn't that scared. I know most of the really scary creatures only hunt at night. It didn't bother me a bit.When I arrived, it was an amazingly posh place. I asked for food, and they said it would be 6,000 CFA. I nearly fainted. That is about $12, or what I might pay for a really nice hotel room. The night before I had dinner for 50 CFA. (Okay I had a second dinner with the family who took me in, but that was free.) Eventually they said I could have a little rice and sauce for just 2,000 CFA. That is a bit more reasonable. Plus it was pretty good.
I asked at the hotel reception about any trucks leaving for Batia. The manager told me all the trucks were independent and I would have to ask their drivers. I didn't even ask about getting a room. The lowest price marked was 18,000 CFA. Yesh. Tourist trap.
Outside I started talking with some guys sitting around in the shade. I sort of thought they might be drivers. It turns out they were the grounds crew. They did help me find the manager for a Safari company with a truck. I asked if he was going to be going to Batia the next day. He said he might. I also asked if he was going out around the park today. Yes, but his truck had been hired by two girls, so I would need to talk to them.
It turns out they were from Quebec, working here in Benin for a month. They said it would be fine for me to ride along with them. The ride was a lot of fun. A lot like you see in the movies. It was just a regular truck with a couple of seats in the open back. We drove around for a couple of hours, but didn't see much. A lot of gazelle by the road, but not much else. We did stop off at a couple of little ponds with hippos and crocs. That was neat. I frankly wanted to join them. Floating around on a hot day sounded good. Of course I would want to avoid the hippos and the crocs... I did see one elephant, sort of. It was mostly behind a tree. I could see an ear flapping once in a while. Not that exciting. It was fun to go though. I was going to pay the girls for letting me come along, but they said it was their treat.
After that I tried to talk to the head of the safari company and see if I could get a ride. He said they were headed back to Batia in the morning. So I asked if I could come along. Well it turns out his truck had been hired for the weekend by the two girls I was with. That got them involved. Finally they agreed, but I would have to pay the head of the safari company 20,000 CFA (about $40). Again, that was a lot of money for me. I also felt bad, like I was mooching off these two girls. Eventually I decided that it was the best thing to do. I told them I would go along.
Next I had to figure out where I was going to stay. I wanted to stay at the forestry post, but that was 7km away and it was now dark. I really didn't feel like riding that. While pondering that I started talking with this Beninese lady, Eto. It turns out she comes up here frequently to study the lions. How cool is that? I asked here where she was staying, because the hotel was so expensive. It turns out she was going to camp at the forestry post. She did have a car though, but it wasn't going to fit my bike. She did talk with the manager of the hotel and got him to agree, begrudgingly to let me camp there. So that is what I did. Eto even gave me her number in case I got down to Cotonou. Then again, she may still be up hanging out with the lions.
After that I needed some dinner. I wasn't that hungry. Lunch had been pretty filling. I did need something though. I asked the head of the Safari service what he did. He said he brought his own food. He also offered me a mango and so bread. The mango he brought out was huge. I had been used to these tiny mangoes, about fist sized. I guess in Benin they grow them big. Bigger than a softball. Then again I had seen huge ones, dark green and red, growing in trees all over. Maybe it is just their season now? That mango was amazing. So juicy and so much fruit. Awesome. Plus the pit was tiny and had a lot fewer hairs (that get stuck in your teeth) than the little ones. I have to eat more of those. Plus after that, and a bit of bread, I was full.
I still had one other problem, which was that I needed my change from the forestry post. I guess I would figure that one out in the morning.
-Dravis
Arly to Djabonli -Day 262
Date: May 7th, 2010
Distance: 49km
Country: Burkina Faso
My goal for the day was to get out of Burkina. It didn't really work out that way though. The rain last night made everything a bit slow. The guys had told me they were taking a truck to the border in the morning. So I was hoping to go with them. They were taking the morning easy though. So I had to sit around and wait while things got going. After breakfast they told me the truck wasn't going. The rain made the road impassible, but I could still go. Okay.
I went to the Chef to get my passport stamped, but he said they weren't a border post. So they couldn't stamp it. I think he would have given me the stamp they did have but it didn't even say Burkina Faso on it. I would have to go to a town 35 kilometers away, called Logobou. I could cross the border there.
So that set me off on a huge journey. First I was heading through the bush over a set of small rocky hills. The scenery was amazing. Green trees, surrounded by rocky cliffs. It really felt like being in Africa. Out in the bush. The path was not so great. This wasn't even a road, just a path for bicycles or motos over rather than around the hills. Much of the path seemed like going over a dry stream bed. I had to push my bike over the jumble of rocks.
Once I got into Djabonli things got a bit easier. There was actually a road from there on out. Not a great road. Just two dirt ruts through the grassland. It was washed out in places as well. Still the going was pretty good.
When I got to Logobou, it turns out they didn't have the stamp either. I was informed they weren't a frontier post either, and didn't have the correct stamp. I didn't really care about the correct stamp at this point, just something that said "Burkina Faso" would do. They wouldn't do it. They did call up the office in Pama and talked to them. I think they said I could go, and just get a stamp at the next embassy I passed. Fine, whatever. I now needed to find the path to Benin. At first they said I would have to go 100km down the road to the next crossing. I wanted to go between the two parks though. For a bit they said it wasn't possible. Finally the police said I could talk to someone at the forestry office. I would need to wait for a bit though.
I took this opportunity to get some food. One of the guys hanging out in front of the police station took me to a place he knew. Actually I think his sister was running it. I had a small plate of rice and sauce and all it cost me was 50 CFA. This is about 10 cents. What a deal. I was just finished when the guy from the forestry office came.
When I got to the forestry office there was a dusty collection of (I am not kidding) muzzle loading guns in one corner. Apparently poachers still use cap and ball rifles. How would you like to hunt for food with a 200 year old musket?
When the boss came in, we chatted about the guns and I explained my trip. So I thought things were going well. They said I could go through the bush the next day. It was too late in the evening now. I would need a guide to take me. Actually, two guides, so that they could come back as a pair. I would need to pay for gas and so forth for their motos. Fine. The price wanted 20,000 CFA. That was just ridiculous. I realized they were scamming me. I stormed off and said I was going back to Arly.
I didn't make it that far. I got back to Djabouni just before sunset. I didn't really want to risk going over the hills through the bush at night. So I asked another cyclist going with me if he knew a place to stay. He said he could help me out. Of course this was in French, and he only spoke a little. I just got the impression he wanted me to follow. So I went to his compound first. Then to his girlfriend's house. I think he thought she spoke better French. When I spoke to her though, she kept saying she didn't speak English. I may not speak much French, but I do know how to say I need a place to sleep, thank you. Finally she got it and explained to my guide that I just needed a place for my tent. So my guide to me over to the market. I am not sure why really. He asked me to wait for a minute while he rode off somewhere. After a few minutes he came back and told me to come along.
He took me over to a compound that looked like most in the village. Just a collection of mud brick huts. The patron there welcomed me and tried to show me a room. I just wanted a place for my tent. It ended up in what I think must be their barn. They were nice enough to sweep out the goat poop for me though. I also got a bucket of water and a place to shower. They even feed me dinner. More to, which is awful. The chicken in the sauce was just amazing though. I think it was the best I have had since being in Africa.
-Dravis
Distance: 49km
Country: Burkina Faso
My goal for the day was to get out of Burkina. It didn't really work out that way though. The rain last night made everything a bit slow. The guys had told me they were taking a truck to the border in the morning. So I was hoping to go with them. They were taking the morning easy though. So I had to sit around and wait while things got going. After breakfast they told me the truck wasn't going. The rain made the road impassible, but I could still go. Okay.
I went to the Chef to get my passport stamped, but he said they weren't a border post. So they couldn't stamp it. I think he would have given me the stamp they did have but it didn't even say Burkina Faso on it. I would have to go to a town 35 kilometers away, called Logobou. I could cross the border there.
So that set me off on a huge journey. First I was heading through the bush over a set of small rocky hills. The scenery was amazing. Green trees, surrounded by rocky cliffs. It really felt like being in Africa. Out in the bush. The path was not so great. This wasn't even a road, just a path for bicycles or motos over rather than around the hills. Much of the path seemed like going over a dry stream bed. I had to push my bike over the jumble of rocks.
Once I got into Djabonli things got a bit easier. There was actually a road from there on out. Not a great road. Just two dirt ruts through the grassland. It was washed out in places as well. Still the going was pretty good.
When I got to Logobou, it turns out they didn't have the stamp either. I was informed they weren't a frontier post either, and didn't have the correct stamp. I didn't really care about the correct stamp at this point, just something that said "Burkina Faso" would do. They wouldn't do it. They did call up the office in Pama and talked to them. I think they said I could go, and just get a stamp at the next embassy I passed. Fine, whatever. I now needed to find the path to Benin. At first they said I would have to go 100km down the road to the next crossing. I wanted to go between the two parks though. For a bit they said it wasn't possible. Finally the police said I could talk to someone at the forestry office. I would need to wait for a bit though.
I took this opportunity to get some food. One of the guys hanging out in front of the police station took me to a place he knew. Actually I think his sister was running it. I had a small plate of rice and sauce and all it cost me was 50 CFA. This is about 10 cents. What a deal. I was just finished when the guy from the forestry office came.
When I got to the forestry office there was a dusty collection of (I am not kidding) muzzle loading guns in one corner. Apparently poachers still use cap and ball rifles. How would you like to hunt for food with a 200 year old musket?
When the boss came in, we chatted about the guns and I explained my trip. So I thought things were going well. They said I could go through the bush the next day. It was too late in the evening now. I would need a guide to take me. Actually, two guides, so that they could come back as a pair. I would need to pay for gas and so forth for their motos. Fine. The price wanted 20,000 CFA. That was just ridiculous. I realized they were scamming me. I stormed off and said I was going back to Arly.
I didn't make it that far. I got back to Djabouni just before sunset. I didn't really want to risk going over the hills through the bush at night. So I asked another cyclist going with me if he knew a place to stay. He said he could help me out. Of course this was in French, and he only spoke a little. I just got the impression he wanted me to follow. So I went to his compound first. Then to his girlfriend's house. I think he thought she spoke better French. When I spoke to her though, she kept saying she didn't speak English. I may not speak much French, but I do know how to say I need a place to sleep, thank you. Finally she got it and explained to my guide that I just needed a place for my tent. So my guide to me over to the market. I am not sure why really. He asked me to wait for a minute while he rode off somewhere. After a few minutes he came back and told me to come along.
He took me over to a compound that looked like most in the village. Just a collection of mud brick huts. The patron there welcomed me and tried to show me a room. I just wanted a place for my tent. It ended up in what I think must be their barn. They were nice enough to sweep out the goat poop for me though. I also got a bucket of water and a place to shower. They even feed me dinner. More to, which is awful. The chicken in the sauce was just amazing though. I think it was the best I have had since being in Africa.
-Dravis
Arly - Day 261
Date: May 6th, 2010
Distance: None
Country: Burkina Faso
I was going to get up and leave today. I wasn't sure if I was going to try and head back to Pama, or possibly risk going through the bush to Benin. I didn't have much food, so that was my biggest concern. I didn't know if I could get anything on the Benin side. When I got up, the chef told me that there was a lady who sells food down on the other end of camp. There are a lot of herdsmen who pass through the area, so that is most of her clientèle. He also said I could rest here if I was tired. Frankly, that would be great. The four 100+ kilometer days had taken it out of me.
I found the lady selling food and had some riz graz. For the rest of the day I was pretty sedentary. I read some and tried to nap a bit (it was too hot). I watched the baboons roam around camp. Actually one of them stole my mangoes when I wasn't looking. There were also some warthogs that wandered through camp in the afternoon.
The guys also told me about a lake not far away with lots of hippos and elephants. It was late in the day, but I wanted to see that. I had also heard there was a bicycle safaris here. I tried to ask one of the guides there to take me. He needed to get approval from the chef first. That turned into a whole big hassle. It was too far away to walk or bike. So I would need to hire a moto. I would also need to pay for my guide to borrow a gun. Finally the cost for the guide was set at 4,000 CFA. That was for the whole day, but since most of the day was gone, it didn't really make sense. I was hoping for a simple ride or hike, but it didn't turn out that way. So I scrapped the idea.
I was invited to dine with the forestry agents later that evening though. That was really nice. It was just rice with a simple sauce. Plus fish. I have mentioned before that I don't like fish. It has bones and I worry about how fresh it is. They said I should try it. It wasn't bad actually. Tasted a lot like chicken. The head was the thing that got me. It had a hard shell like a crab. The rest of the fish was soft though. Still, I couldn't eat much of the head. I tried, but it was too strange.
-Dravis
Distance: None
Country: Burkina Faso
I was going to get up and leave today. I wasn't sure if I was going to try and head back to Pama, or possibly risk going through the bush to Benin. I didn't have much food, so that was my biggest concern. I didn't know if I could get anything on the Benin side. When I got up, the chef told me that there was a lady who sells food down on the other end of camp. There are a lot of herdsmen who pass through the area, so that is most of her clientèle. He also said I could rest here if I was tired. Frankly, that would be great. The four 100+ kilometer days had taken it out of me.
I found the lady selling food and had some riz graz. For the rest of the day I was pretty sedentary. I read some and tried to nap a bit (it was too hot). I watched the baboons roam around camp. Actually one of them stole my mangoes when I wasn't looking. There were also some warthogs that wandered through camp in the afternoon.
The guys also told me about a lake not far away with lots of hippos and elephants. It was late in the day, but I wanted to see that. I had also heard there was a bicycle safaris here. I tried to ask one of the guides there to take me. He needed to get approval from the chef first. That turned into a whole big hassle. It was too far away to walk or bike. So I would need to hire a moto. I would also need to pay for my guide to borrow a gun. Finally the cost for the guide was set at 4,000 CFA. That was for the whole day, but since most of the day was gone, it didn't really make sense. I was hoping for a simple ride or hike, but it didn't turn out that way. So I scrapped the idea.
I was invited to dine with the forestry agents later that evening though. That was really nice. It was just rice with a simple sauce. Plus fish. I have mentioned before that I don't like fish. It has bones and I worry about how fresh it is. They said I should try it. It wasn't bad actually. Tasted a lot like chicken. The head was the thing that got me. It had a hard shell like a crab. The rest of the fish was soft though. Still, I couldn't eat much of the head. I tried, but it was too strange.
-Dravis
Pama to Arly - Day 260
Date: May 5th, 2010
Distance: 107km
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: Unemployable - Pearl Jam (For the anniversary of my getting laid off.)
I got up early to get out on the road. I knew the day was going to be pretty tough. Getting off the paved road is usually a bad idea. Matt had also said the road might be terrible. Lots of sand and so forth. Still, that was the plan. My getting out early plan didn't work quite as well as I wanted though. I did end up taking a bit of time having breakfast. That was another important strategy. I needed energy.
It was 20km down the road to the turn to the park. That that was alright. No big problems there. Once I made the turn it was just another dirt road. Nothing too bad. A bit sandy in places but I could generally ride through it. Any time the main road was clogged with sand another, or many other, local bikers had made a side path that was better. Plus I was getting a bit of a tail wind which was nice.
It was out there. Really not much in the way of population or infrastructure. I did start to see more wildlife. I got some video of a snake killing a lizard. I wish I had left the camera running for just 10 more seconds. At that point the snake decided the lizard was dead, it picked up the lizard like a kid with a new toy and slinked off into the bush. Ah well.
About 30 km down the road to Arly I came across a Safari camp. This I saw as an expensive place to stay. Still, I thought they might have some of the little sachets of water. Cold water. Well, they didn't. The manager of their restaurant was awesome and gave me a bottle of ice. It doesn't sound like much, but ice means having cool water for a while. Sadly it only lasted about 2 hours. It did help in the heat of the afternoon though.
There was one village before Arly itself. I stopped and was able to get some food. Spaghetti. Oh, that was so good. I even had seconds. Only 100 CFA for the two plates. It seemed like all the little kids in town were watching me eat as well. There was a hotel in town, and I did think about staying, but I wanted to press on to Arly. I really wanted to see if I could do four days of 100+ kilometers.
That wasn't as great a plan as I had hoped though. It was about 5km farther than I thought. So I ended up coming into town after dark. Nothing like riding through the bush at night. Nothing will keep your senses tuned like the fear of being hunted by some member of the Panthera family.
I did get into town okay, and it turned out there was less of a town there than I had expected. In fact, it was really just a forestry camp. I asked about food and loging this is were things got a bit heated. James had told me the hotel was only 4,000 CFA a night. You could also camp at the forestry office for free. The hotel was asking for 10,000 CFA for a room with no electricity or running water. It was 2,500 CFA for any kind of food. I just wanted more spaghetti and they wouldn't change their price. Even to camp they wanted 3,000 CFA. The last straw was when they said they were going to charge me 5,000 CFA to use the road to Benin. I lost it. I told the guys where they could shove it. I said I would rather sleep out in the bush than here. They said the price was set in Ouagadougou, and me trying to change it was akin to corruption. They also informed me that it was illegal (and unsafe) to go out into the bush at night. Finally after thinking it over for a bit, the chef stepped in. He said that I had been given bad information and that I could camp for free. I could also use the Benin road without paying. I just had to tell anyone else coming along that the prices were set in Ouagadougou, and they couldn't change them.
I felt better after that. I was able to set my tent up without any problems. They even offered to get me water for a shower. I didn't really have a dinner though. Just some bread and honey. Still, I didn't want to think about it. I just went to bed.
-Dravis
Distance: 107km
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: Unemployable - Pearl Jam (For the anniversary of my getting laid off.)
I got up early to get out on the road. I knew the day was going to be pretty tough. Getting off the paved road is usually a bad idea. Matt had also said the road might be terrible. Lots of sand and so forth. Still, that was the plan. My getting out early plan didn't work quite as well as I wanted though. I did end up taking a bit of time having breakfast. That was another important strategy. I needed energy.
It was 20km down the road to the turn to the park. That that was alright. No big problems there. Once I made the turn it was just another dirt road. Nothing too bad. A bit sandy in places but I could generally ride through it. Any time the main road was clogged with sand another, or many other, local bikers had made a side path that was better. Plus I was getting a bit of a tail wind which was nice.
It was out there. Really not much in the way of population or infrastructure. I did start to see more wildlife. I got some video of a snake killing a lizard. I wish I had left the camera running for just 10 more seconds. At that point the snake decided the lizard was dead, it picked up the lizard like a kid with a new toy and slinked off into the bush. Ah well.
About 30 km down the road to Arly I came across a Safari camp. This I saw as an expensive place to stay. Still, I thought they might have some of the little sachets of water. Cold water. Well, they didn't. The manager of their restaurant was awesome and gave me a bottle of ice. It doesn't sound like much, but ice means having cool water for a while. Sadly it only lasted about 2 hours. It did help in the heat of the afternoon though.
There was one village before Arly itself. I stopped and was able to get some food. Spaghetti. Oh, that was so good. I even had seconds. Only 100 CFA for the two plates. It seemed like all the little kids in town were watching me eat as well. There was a hotel in town, and I did think about staying, but I wanted to press on to Arly. I really wanted to see if I could do four days of 100+ kilometers.
That wasn't as great a plan as I had hoped though. It was about 5km farther than I thought. So I ended up coming into town after dark. Nothing like riding through the bush at night. Nothing will keep your senses tuned like the fear of being hunted by some member of the Panthera family.
I did get into town okay, and it turned out there was less of a town there than I had expected. In fact, it was really just a forestry camp. I asked about food and loging this is were things got a bit heated. James had told me the hotel was only 4,000 CFA a night. You could also camp at the forestry office for free. The hotel was asking for 10,000 CFA for a room with no electricity or running water. It was 2,500 CFA for any kind of food. I just wanted more spaghetti and they wouldn't change their price. Even to camp they wanted 3,000 CFA. The last straw was when they said they were going to charge me 5,000 CFA to use the road to Benin. I lost it. I told the guys where they could shove it. I said I would rather sleep out in the bush than here. They said the price was set in Ouagadougou, and me trying to change it was akin to corruption. They also informed me that it was illegal (and unsafe) to go out into the bush at night. Finally after thinking it over for a bit, the chef stepped in. He said that I had been given bad information and that I could camp for free. I could also use the Benin road without paying. I just had to tell anyone else coming along that the prices were set in Ouagadougou, and they couldn't change them.
I felt better after that. I was able to set my tent up without any problems. They even offered to get me water for a shower. I didn't really have a dinner though. Just some bread and honey. Still, I didn't want to think about it. I just went to bed.
-Dravis
Fada-Ngourou to Pama - Day 259
Date: May 4th, 2010
Distance: 106km
Country: Burkina Faso
Matt came by early in the morning. He had to pick up the key to Krista's apartment. He also took me out to a place for breakfast. That was nice. They had some great yogurt. Yum. He also warned me that the road to Pama was bandit country. So I had to be somewhere before dark. There was a police crackdown, but that may just mean more attacks during the day. The good thing was that on a bike they would probably just pull up in front with guns. This is better than their tactic for stopping cars, which is to shoot the driver. Ah the joys of travelling in Africa.
From there I was off down the road. It was another hilly day. It seems like Burkina is a country shaped like a bowl. The center is flat and low, while the edges are hilly. Then again I could be wrong. I was also running into a bit of a headwind. It was coming out of the south west. I hope tomorrow it will push me along. For today though, not so great. Another long day.
When I got into Pama, I was tired and hungry. I was looking for a place with rice or spaghetti, but going from one end to the other I couldn't find it. Finally I found a place that said they had it. Then the lady came back and said they were out. They did have antelope soup. The antelope was quite good. The soup was to salty. This is coming from a guy who has lines of salt crystals forming in the drying sweat stains on my clothes. Africa, you need to cut back on the salt.
-Dravis
Distance: 106km
Country: Burkina Faso
Matt came by early in the morning. He had to pick up the key to Krista's apartment. He also took me out to a place for breakfast. That was nice. They had some great yogurt. Yum. He also warned me that the road to Pama was bandit country. So I had to be somewhere before dark. There was a police crackdown, but that may just mean more attacks during the day. The good thing was that on a bike they would probably just pull up in front with guns. This is better than their tactic for stopping cars, which is to shoot the driver. Ah the joys of travelling in Africa.
From there I was off down the road. It was another hilly day. It seems like Burkina is a country shaped like a bowl. The center is flat and low, while the edges are hilly. Then again I could be wrong. I was also running into a bit of a headwind. It was coming out of the south west. I hope tomorrow it will push me along. For today though, not so great. Another long day.
When I got into Pama, I was tired and hungry. I was looking for a place with rice or spaghetti, but going from one end to the other I couldn't find it. Finally I found a place that said they had it. Then the lady came back and said they were out. They did have antelope soup. The antelope was quite good. The soup was to salty. This is coming from a guy who has lines of salt crystals forming in the drying sweat stains on my clothes. Africa, you need to cut back on the salt.
-Dravis
Zorgho to Fada-Ngourmo - Day 258
Date: May 3rd, 2010
Distance: 117km
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: Poets - The Tragically Hip
Another long day in the saddle. It has been a while since I have done two back to back 100+ kilometer days. Let me tell you, it isn't easy. After doing a long day yesterday, I was out of a lot of energy. The morning was a real struggle. Plus the wind wasn't helping. It was coming north while I was going east. Still, I pushed on. I was stopping every 20-30km for water or Coke. Sugar and caffeine really help you keep going.
Nothing much to see out on the road. The terrain has remained fairly flat. There isn't any really wildlife either. Lots of goats and cows, but nothing wild. It does seem that the trees are getting a bit more green though. I have lost the thorny trees for something a little more inviting. The ground is still parched red earth though. The red earth is the one common thing through basically all of west Africa. Maybe one of the geologists out there reading this could explain why...
In the afternoon I did get another cramp. This time it was my right calf though. I don't have a clue what is going on. It got worse when I would stop for a bit. Cranking that pedal would be excruciating for a time. Then after a little while the pain would dull and I could go on without too much trouble.
I did eventually get to Fada. James and Krista had given me a contact there. So I called up Matt and arranged to meet up. He lives on the edge of town, but gave me the key to Krista's weekend place that is more central. Afterward we headed out to a restaurant for dinner. We both had salad, which may sound wimpy, but is amazing after a hot day and needing 7 liters of water. I did need a bit more though. So I ordered a steak as well. It came with an onion sauce and a loaf of bread. The food was great, and not expensive. It pays to know a local.
Matt was also fun to talk to. I guess he has been here almost two years, and like me is looking forward to going home. He did have a few wild stories about the life and culture here. It was a lot of fun hanging out. Then the bill came. Actually we had to ask for the bill, and that is when things got complicated. It turns out the drinks came from the bar, the steak was from the kitchen, and the salads were from the lady next to the kitchen. So paying took two waiters and three different transactions to complete. It was the most complicated bistro math I have ever seen where it was the establishment that was screwing everything up. Sheesh. At least I was now well fed and ready to sleep.
-Dravis
Distance: 117km
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: Poets - The Tragically Hip
Another long day in the saddle. It has been a while since I have done two back to back 100+ kilometer days. Let me tell you, it isn't easy. After doing a long day yesterday, I was out of a lot of energy. The morning was a real struggle. Plus the wind wasn't helping. It was coming north while I was going east. Still, I pushed on. I was stopping every 20-30km for water or Coke. Sugar and caffeine really help you keep going.
Nothing much to see out on the road. The terrain has remained fairly flat. There isn't any really wildlife either. Lots of goats and cows, but nothing wild. It does seem that the trees are getting a bit more green though. I have lost the thorny trees for something a little more inviting. The ground is still parched red earth though. The red earth is the one common thing through basically all of west Africa. Maybe one of the geologists out there reading this could explain why...
In the afternoon I did get another cramp. This time it was my right calf though. I don't have a clue what is going on. It got worse when I would stop for a bit. Cranking that pedal would be excruciating for a time. Then after a little while the pain would dull and I could go on without too much trouble.
I did eventually get to Fada. James and Krista had given me a contact there. So I called up Matt and arranged to meet up. He lives on the edge of town, but gave me the key to Krista's weekend place that is more central. Afterward we headed out to a restaurant for dinner. We both had salad, which may sound wimpy, but is amazing after a hot day and needing 7 liters of water. I did need a bit more though. So I ordered a steak as well. It came with an onion sauce and a loaf of bread. The food was great, and not expensive. It pays to know a local.
Matt was also fun to talk to. I guess he has been here almost two years, and like me is looking forward to going home. He did have a few wild stories about the life and culture here. It was a lot of fun hanging out. Then the bill came. Actually we had to ask for the bill, and that is when things got complicated. It turns out the drinks came from the bar, the steak was from the kitchen, and the salads were from the lady next to the kitchen. So paying took two waiters and three different transactions to complete. It was the most complicated bistro math I have ever seen where it was the establishment that was screwing everything up. Sheesh. At least I was now well fed and ready to sleep.
-Dravis
Ouagadougou to Zorgho - Day 257
Date: May 2nd, 2010
Distance: 110km
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: On Down the Line - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
So I was trying to get out early today, and ended up failing miserably. I woke up late and then decided to make a big breakfast. I was up in Rene's old apartment, and he had left some food behind. So I cooked up a great breakfast of sausage, eggs and buttered toast. It was filling and fantastic, but didn't help me get out any faster.
After breakfast I packed up, but I couldn't find my shoes. After running around for a bit, I realized that I had left them downstairs in James' apartment. I didn't want to bug him, because a) I knew he hadn't had that much sleep the night before, and b) he had a hot date the previous night. I ended up waking him up anyway. Oh well. Sorry man. It did give me a good opportunity to say goodbye. James, best of luck with everything. Thanks for letting me stay with you. Keep in touch.
I did finally get on the road just before 11:00 AM. Not a really great start, but that was my fault. I would just have to suffer through the hot part of the day to make it to Zorgho. A few days ago my sister e-mailed me and said she was wishing me to have cloud cover and tailwinds. It seems to be working. At least a little bit. The cloud cover was scorched out of the sky before I was able to get on the road. I did have a bit of a tail wind though. Nice and cool too. So that really helped get me down the road.
After 25km I stopped to eat and stretch. A group of young boys came up and were watching me. When I started stretching they followed along. It was quite amusing to watch 8 young boys all reaching for their toes. They thought it was hilarious.
Cycling through the hot part of the day was still not a great idea. It worked out okay, but I don't want to make a habit out of it. It just makes it a struggle. Oh, and the terrain here really is quite flat. A few little hills here or there. Maybe a couple of rocky outcrops. That is it. Otherwise it is just Sahel. After you have seen your thousandth thorny tree, they begin to blur together. So the next couple of days may be a bit boring. After that I am heading to a national park which should have great scenery and lots of wild animals. So I am looking forward to that. (A big thanks to James for the tip on that one.)
Just before Zorgho, I got a big cramp in my right thigh. I don't know, but I think I must have pulled a muscle. It was bugging me earlier but it was so painful I could hardly ride. I spent a couple of minutes massaging it, and that seemed to work. At least it got me to Zorgho. I will have to see how that works out over the next couple of days.
-Dravis
Distance: 110km
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: On Down the Line - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
So I was trying to get out early today, and ended up failing miserably. I woke up late and then decided to make a big breakfast. I was up in Rene's old apartment, and he had left some food behind. So I cooked up a great breakfast of sausage, eggs and buttered toast. It was filling and fantastic, but didn't help me get out any faster.
After breakfast I packed up, but I couldn't find my shoes. After running around for a bit, I realized that I had left them downstairs in James' apartment. I didn't want to bug him, because a) I knew he hadn't had that much sleep the night before, and b) he had a hot date the previous night. I ended up waking him up anyway. Oh well. Sorry man. It did give me a good opportunity to say goodbye. James, best of luck with everything. Thanks for letting me stay with you. Keep in touch.
I did finally get on the road just before 11:00 AM. Not a really great start, but that was my fault. I would just have to suffer through the hot part of the day to make it to Zorgho. A few days ago my sister e-mailed me and said she was wishing me to have cloud cover and tailwinds. It seems to be working. At least a little bit. The cloud cover was scorched out of the sky before I was able to get on the road. I did have a bit of a tail wind though. Nice and cool too. So that really helped get me down the road.
After 25km I stopped to eat and stretch. A group of young boys came up and were watching me. When I started stretching they followed along. It was quite amusing to watch 8 young boys all reaching for their toes. They thought it was hilarious.
Cycling through the hot part of the day was still not a great idea. It worked out okay, but I don't want to make a habit out of it. It just makes it a struggle. Oh, and the terrain here really is quite flat. A few little hills here or there. Maybe a couple of rocky outcrops. That is it. Otherwise it is just Sahel. After you have seen your thousandth thorny tree, they begin to blur together. So the next couple of days may be a bit boring. After that I am heading to a national park which should have great scenery and lots of wild animals. So I am looking forward to that. (A big thanks to James for the tip on that one.)
Just before Zorgho, I got a big cramp in my right thigh. I don't know, but I think I must have pulled a muscle. It was bugging me earlier but it was so painful I could hardly ride. I spent a couple of minutes massaging it, and that seemed to work. At least it got me to Zorgho. I will have to see how that works out over the next couple of days.
-Dravis
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Whatzit - Part 3
Part 2 - Odd Mound
You can see these things all over west Africa. From Senegal through Guinea and Mali. The example here comes from northern Sierra Leone. I am fairly sure they they are home to some kind of insect. I just have never seen anything coming out of them. No ants or wasps. Maybe it is the wrong season though. In a few places I have seen hundreds of these covering a field like giant mud mushrooms. Whatzit?
You can see these things all over west Africa. From Senegal through Guinea and Mali. The example here comes from northern Sierra Leone. I am fairly sure they they are home to some kind of insect. I just have never seen anything coming out of them. No ants or wasps. Maybe it is the wrong season though. In a few places I have seen hundreds of these covering a field like giant mud mushrooms. Whatzit?
Ouagadougou - Day 256
Date: May 1st, 2010
Distance: None
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: Use Somebody - Kings of Leon
Okay, I was supposed to take off today. Instead I slept in. Which was probably a good plan since James and I didn't get back from the airport until after 3:00 AM. So it felt good to sleep in until noon.
James, who somehow woke up hours earlier, came back around then. He had been running errands. He was going to help clean up what was left of the stuff in Rene's apartment. So I helped out with that. Mostly it was throwing things away, and putting all the clothing in a pile to be sold of at the local marche.
After the cleanup was finished, James took me out for some pork. This has been a rare commodity, as most of west Africa is Muslim. So it was a nice change of pace. James also invited a couple of girls who lived in Ouaga (pronounced Wa-ga). I think they were both Fulbright Scholars or something. So I had a good time telling them about my crazy trip and learning about what they were doing in Burkina Faso.
All too soon we had to leave though. James had a date with the girl he picked up at the bus station the day before. He was also hoping to get in a nap before leaving. (See, I knew you can't really work on that little sleep.) It didn't turn out that way. The water heater in the bathroom (I don't even know why that is necessary) was half falling off the wall when we got back. It turns out that it was only held on by a stupid plastic washer. So we had to run around and find a metal washers. While putting it up, one of the cheap hoses to the thing snapped and started spraying water everywhere. James had to run downstairs and shut off the water to the whole building. Still, we did get everything back together eventually, but there wasn't time for a nap at that point. Sorry man.
Still James was able to clean up and get ready for his date. Me, I went out and found a little dinner, before retiring early to work on this blog. James has internet at his place. Oh, how I have missed limitless internet. Okay, limited to 512kbps, but still. I hope you enjoy the updates.
-Dravis
Distance: None
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: Use Somebody - Kings of Leon
Okay, I was supposed to take off today. Instead I slept in. Which was probably a good plan since James and I didn't get back from the airport until after 3:00 AM. So it felt good to sleep in until noon.
James, who somehow woke up hours earlier, came back around then. He had been running errands. He was going to help clean up what was left of the stuff in Rene's apartment. So I helped out with that. Mostly it was throwing things away, and putting all the clothing in a pile to be sold of at the local marche.
After the cleanup was finished, James took me out for some pork. This has been a rare commodity, as most of west Africa is Muslim. So it was a nice change of pace. James also invited a couple of girls who lived in Ouaga (pronounced Wa-ga). I think they were both Fulbright Scholars or something. So I had a good time telling them about my crazy trip and learning about what they were doing in Burkina Faso.
All too soon we had to leave though. James had a date with the girl he picked up at the bus station the day before. He was also hoping to get in a nap before leaving. (See, I knew you can't really work on that little sleep.) It didn't turn out that way. The water heater in the bathroom (I don't even know why that is necessary) was half falling off the wall when we got back. It turns out that it was only held on by a stupid plastic washer. So we had to run around and find a metal washers. While putting it up, one of the cheap hoses to the thing snapped and started spraying water everywhere. James had to run downstairs and shut off the water to the whole building. Still, we did get everything back together eventually, but there wasn't time for a nap at that point. Sorry man.
Still James was able to clean up and get ready for his date. Me, I went out and found a little dinner, before retiring early to work on this blog. James has internet at his place. Oh, how I have missed limitless internet. Okay, limited to 512kbps, but still. I hope you enjoy the updates.
-Dravis
Whatzit - Part 2
Part 2 - Strange Tree
I had seen a few of these trees when I was up in Morocco. These two come from the highlands of Guinea around Mamou. I also saw a few more biking through southern Mali. They have a strange Dr. Seuss like quality to them. The branches are very strange. They don't seem to get more than about 30 feet tall either. Whatzit?
I had seen a few of these trees when I was up in Morocco. These two come from the highlands of Guinea around Mamou. I also saw a few more biking through southern Mali. They have a strange Dr. Seuss like quality to them. The branches are very strange. They don't seem to get more than about 30 feet tall either. Whatzit?
Ouagadougou - Day 255
Date: April 30th, 2010
Distance: None
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: Where is My Mind? - The Pixies
I woke up early and headed to the embassy for Ghana. They said come back at noon, but I figured it would be ready early. When I got there they looked at me like I was insane. I guess when they say noon, they mean exactly noon.
I headed back and hung out with James for a while. He is a cool guy. He is running this sesame seed exporting business here in Burkina Faso. He works with the local farmers all over the eastern part of the country. Training them on how to produce a product to western standard, also how to measure it correctly. Frankly, this type of business is probably more effective at promoting growth here than most of the NGOs put together. Giving food aid or building infrastructure, while generous and with good intention, teaches nothing. It is by interacting with western business that the local people learn ways in which to improve their lives. In other words, they change their mindset about what is possible. So good luck to James in his business venture.
James also gave me a ride back to the Ghana embassy. Rene came along for the ride as well. They were right, my visa was ready at exactly noon. After that we headed over to the Burkina passport office. It is where you can get a visa for 5 partner countries, Burkina, Benin, Togo, Cote D'Ivoir and Niger. I already got Burkina, but I will be going through Benin and Todo, so it would be good to get that out of the way. While we were there, James started helping out a group of VSO volunteers from Ghana. They were here for a bit of vacation, and lived quite close to the Ghana and Burkina border. So they wanted to get a 12 month visa, so they could head to Burkina when they were feeling bored in Ghana. They were having a hard time getting what they wanted. What was available and the time it would take kept changing. James stepped in and talked with the passport officer, who he knew, and talked the guy into getting everything ready by 4:00 PM. That was when my visa would be ready.
Now that we had time to kill, the whole group of us went out to lunch. It was a lot of fun talking with everyone. Travel is wonderful for all the strange encounters you find yourself in. I even got an invitation to stay if I was ever in nother Ghana.
After lunch the group broke up. James had to pick up a girl at the bus station. Rene went to wander off around the city. It was his last day in town. I went with the guys from VSO back to the passport office. Everything was ready, so I am set for visas all the way through the rest of my trip through west Africa. I said goodbye to the people from Ghana and headed back to James place.
I hung out with James for a bit. When Rene got back, we headed upstairs to his place to help him pack. Almost nothing was ready. Then again, a lot of stuff was staying. (Why would you bring crappy forks home?) Rene was being pretty scattered. We had to push him to get stuff together. Get everything going in one pile, and everything staying in another.
By 11:00 PM, most of the stuff was together, but Rene was pacing around. He said he couldn't go without finding the title for a novel he wanted to write. He couldn't describe what the novel was about, but did decide the title should have two words. A few minutes later he asked us to give him some time alone, so he could finish. We were happy to oblige.
Things went well for about an hour, until Rene came rushing downstairs. He was almost ready, but had lost his passport. It didn't take long for James to find it though. From there we got all the stuff into the car and took off for the airport. We said our goodbye's to Rene and made sure he was able to get on the plane. Rene, good luck man! Have fun back in Puerto Rico. I hope a bit of time back home is what you need to relax.
-Dravis
Distance: None
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: Where is My Mind? - The Pixies
I woke up early and headed to the embassy for Ghana. They said come back at noon, but I figured it would be ready early. When I got there they looked at me like I was insane. I guess when they say noon, they mean exactly noon.
I headed back and hung out with James for a while. He is a cool guy. He is running this sesame seed exporting business here in Burkina Faso. He works with the local farmers all over the eastern part of the country. Training them on how to produce a product to western standard, also how to measure it correctly. Frankly, this type of business is probably more effective at promoting growth here than most of the NGOs put together. Giving food aid or building infrastructure, while generous and with good intention, teaches nothing. It is by interacting with western business that the local people learn ways in which to improve their lives. In other words, they change their mindset about what is possible. So good luck to James in his business venture.
James also gave me a ride back to the Ghana embassy. Rene came along for the ride as well. They were right, my visa was ready at exactly noon. After that we headed over to the Burkina passport office. It is where you can get a visa for 5 partner countries, Burkina, Benin, Togo, Cote D'Ivoir and Niger. I already got Burkina, but I will be going through Benin and Todo, so it would be good to get that out of the way. While we were there, James started helping out a group of VSO volunteers from Ghana. They were here for a bit of vacation, and lived quite close to the Ghana and Burkina border. So they wanted to get a 12 month visa, so they could head to Burkina when they were feeling bored in Ghana. They were having a hard time getting what they wanted. What was available and the time it would take kept changing. James stepped in and talked with the passport officer, who he knew, and talked the guy into getting everything ready by 4:00 PM. That was when my visa would be ready.
Now that we had time to kill, the whole group of us went out to lunch. It was a lot of fun talking with everyone. Travel is wonderful for all the strange encounters you find yourself in. I even got an invitation to stay if I was ever in nother Ghana.
After lunch the group broke up. James had to pick up a girl at the bus station. Rene went to wander off around the city. It was his last day in town. I went with the guys from VSO back to the passport office. Everything was ready, so I am set for visas all the way through the rest of my trip through west Africa. I said goodbye to the people from Ghana and headed back to James place.
I hung out with James for a bit. When Rene got back, we headed upstairs to his place to help him pack. Almost nothing was ready. Then again, a lot of stuff was staying. (Why would you bring crappy forks home?) Rene was being pretty scattered. We had to push him to get stuff together. Get everything going in one pile, and everything staying in another.
By 11:00 PM, most of the stuff was together, but Rene was pacing around. He said he couldn't go without finding the title for a novel he wanted to write. He couldn't describe what the novel was about, but did decide the title should have two words. A few minutes later he asked us to give him some time alone, so he could finish. We were happy to oblige.
Things went well for about an hour, until Rene came rushing downstairs. He was almost ready, but had lost his passport. It didn't take long for James to find it though. From there we got all the stuff into the car and took off for the airport. We said our goodbye's to Rene and made sure he was able to get on the plane. Rene, good luck man! Have fun back in Puerto Rico. I hope a bit of time back home is what you need to relax.
-Dravis
Ouagadougou - Day 254
Date: April 29th, 2010
Distance: None
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: Santeria - Sublime
Went to the Ghana embassy this morning. Things went pretty well there. They did want 4 passport photos though. Sheesh. Still, I got all the paperwork turned in and it should be ready tomorrow.
After that I headed back to James' apartment. He has to work, so I headed upstairs to talk with another guy, Rene. Rene was working for James, but is heading back home to Puerto Rico for a bit. I think he is a little burnt out here. I guess the two of them have been living in Burkina for almost 4 years. So he was a little scattered, but still a lot of fun to talk to. We spent most of the afternoon together talking about life in Africa, religion, and Philosophy.
After work, James came over and hung out with us. We cooked some mac & chee (lovely western food) and watched Wonder Boys. Actually it took three laptops before it could play right on the screen and speakers we had. Once it got going though, it was a fun evening.
-Dravis
Distance: None
Country: Burkina Faso
Song of the Day: Santeria - Sublime
Went to the Ghana embassy this morning. Things went pretty well there. They did want 4 passport photos though. Sheesh. Still, I got all the paperwork turned in and it should be ready tomorrow.
After that I headed back to James' apartment. He has to work, so I headed upstairs to talk with another guy, Rene. Rene was working for James, but is heading back home to Puerto Rico for a bit. I think he is a little burnt out here. I guess the two of them have been living in Burkina for almost 4 years. So he was a little scattered, but still a lot of fun to talk to. We spent most of the afternoon together talking about life in Africa, religion, and Philosophy.
After work, James came over and hung out with us. We cooked some mac & chee (lovely western food) and watched Wonder Boys. Actually it took three laptops before it could play right on the screen and speakers we had. Once it got going though, it was a fun evening.
-Dravis
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