This travelogue is about a journey through Mali, which I made together with friends from November 17th until December 15th.
DUS - CDG - BMK - Bamako - Ségou - San - Djenné with Senossa - Mopti - Lac Débo - Niafounké - Timbuktu - Gourma-Rharous - Gossi - Hombori - Douentza - Banani - Bankass - Ende - Banani - Sangha - Bandiagara - Mopti - Bamako – BMK – CDG – DUS
Why publish this travelogue after all these years? I digitalized my handwritten travel diary and thought some aspects are also interesting to the public. Moreover this kind of travel nowadays would risk your live [1], so maybe this travelogue is already giving a historic account.
Day 25, Tuesday, December 11th, 2007 Maison Rouge
Rest at the Hotel Maison Rouge in Mopti. Lousy food. In the afternoon to Mopti for the flight tickets. Dinner again in the harbor at the same table as before when we left Tombouctou.
Strange to be sleeping in a real hotel again.
Waking up slowly and merging into the morning. Pleasant temperature, blue sky, which looked even more beautiful next to the red stone with green trees and bushes.
The doilies on the table and the napkins, which are clearly handmade.
We planned to visit the AME / Agence Diatiguí on Rue Pâtisserie Dogon and to book our stay in Bamako. Unfortunately we could not cancel the Soeurs Blanches (Acceuil).
We found Villa Soudan in Badalabougo directly on the Niger as a hotel.
Watched the shadow cast by a tree's leaves in the wind.
Death of a Cockroach -: the lizard came twice, but we were too close to it, but the cockroach kept going and when the distance to us was right, the cockroach got it (Death of a Clown by the Kinks came to my mind).
Continued lazing around.
We left in the afternoon and found the Agence Diatiguí straight away, which I didn't expect. Charles was too stunned and exhausted by the sun to say anything. Then we calmly bought our tickets at 2 p.m. sharp.
We went to the overcrowded market - especially the market with the dried fish stank. Went to the restaurant by the river. The owner of the pinnace saw that we had taken the same table. He asked about the trip. He could not have learned anything from Mohammed.
The Mopti – Bamako route was 8,500 francs by bus.
The market was full of people, loud, for example the drummer at the shoes, then the smells at the spice stands and the traders with the dried fish, also a lot of colorful plastic and things that you would need on the trip with a pinnace; loud, where MCs were sold. I found a blue pot, but I didn't find any CDs.
A car sponsored by Disabled People's Aid from Germany will take us to the airport.
Then I finally wrote the poem The Little Blue Bird [2], the original idea of which came to me about 10 days ago.
The little blue Bird
It's a little blue bird
The one that follows us for life
And if we look back
We won't see it
Ahead! Ahead!
And can't go back
Then it flies ahead of us
The little blue bird
And don't see him
Don't see him
No longer
Day 26, Wednesday, December 12th, 2007 Mopti / Bamako
Morning flight with MAE and with Captain Michel to Bamako. There to the Hotel Villa Soudan in Badalabougou. Evening scene by the river with dyers and laundresses.
Got up early because we were leaving for Bamako. A mosquito wanted to be in the backpack.
Then we were ready, but the vehicle wasn't there. Someone was sent for the disabled people's bus. Finally it started late and the journey took longer than 15 minutes and we arrived at the airport (Aeroport Mopti Hambojedge) 20 to 30 minutes late. Since there were only a few passengers, there were no difficulties. Propeller plane for approx. 30 passengers, which was not fully occupied. Some NGOs, including Americans. Michel sat in the front and waved hello to us. Nice flight, about an hour 15 minutes, along the Niger. As soon as e moved away from Niger, the landscape is very dry. Geneviève could then go to the window for a while, which was okay. I waved goodbye to Michel, when we rdisembarked. Unfortunately no opportunity to send greetings to Mme. Auer.
Then we made our way to Vialla Soudan, which wasn't easy, but we had a driver who wasn't to proud to ask directions.
Nice view of the Niger from my room, and also the bank building, which we weren't supposed to take photos of. Good swimming pool also in this hotel there were gays in service.
Suddenly things like checking in early started to go their way.
After a beer at lunchtime I felt heavy and tired.
Then I swam in the cool water -: invigorating!
I took some photographss of the magic of industry / industrial romance and then a series “Women at the River”.
Effect of a view over the Niger to the evening city like in my home town Cologne, when one looks across the Rhine River to the cathedral.
The new moon, the lying crescent, with the ashen light descended towards the Niger.
We thought of a laundry, but it was an illegal dyeing factory because dyeing kills the fish. We saw a lot of women slapping cloths on the Niger - the color probably goes deeper then into the fabric.
Eating meat was another disaster for Charles and Geneviève, but it was exactly as Nick Fiddes [3] described it, meat is never what omnivores imagines. And before that, the endless discussions about food with the cook (Fabienne comes from northern France, maybe 40 km from Geneviève's hometown). As a joke, Charles wanted to become a vegetarian. This was how Ulysses, the dog, was fed.
Then I went to bed quite early because I really had been tired.
Links and Annotations:
[1] The U.S. Department of State / Bureau of Consular Affairs for instance writes: "Violent crime, such as kidnapping and armed robbery, is common in Mali." And more risks are mentioned. Moreover it advises: "Draft a will and designate appropriate insurance beneficiaries and/or power of attorney." https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/mali-travel-advisory.html
[2] Original here: https://rheumatologe.blogspot.com/2009/04/lyrik-auf-twly.html
[3] https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/nick-fiddes/meat/
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