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 Debo - Niafounké - Timbuktu - Gourma-Rharous - Gossi - Hombori - Douenza - 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 7, Friday, November 23rd, 2007 Embarkation in Mopti
Mohammed arrives in Djenné. Ride in the rust bucket taxi to Mopti. Tire bursts. Dinner in the harbor restaurant. Mohammed forgets bread and knife. Late departure, bad camping. The Bouzous fish everywhere.
The slowness that affects one. In the heat, Geneviève puts on a fleece jacket from Jack Wolfskin. After a hot coffee I sweat for a moment, but I'm immediately dry again – so it must be true, drinking hot beverages in hot climates cool you down. First we wait for the journey to continue, then we take a ride in a scrappy taxi that is almost falling apart and I think it had burned out at one point.
At the ferry a little girl wants to exchange 5 Euro, but I'm supposed to pay extra for the favor - then why should I. In a boat across the river. Souvenir stalls. We can see a hippopotamus. Charles had sent “warm greetings from the heat of Africa to cold Europe”. Here you are not only welcomed with open arms but even more so with open hands. ccording to Charles, Stanley [2] began his expedition with a 200-meter-long column of porters, which quickly dwindled with the distribution of gifts. Rice fields, then also cattle herds of the Peul [3].
At Somadougou we encountered a familiar sound: a tire has burst, but is quickly replaced. Meanwhile, I took a photograph the herd of cattle passing by.
Arrival at the port of Mopti, where pinnaces are loaded to the edge of the board. Sheep are washed for “La Fête de Mouton”; next to it, below the restaurant, a man washes himself naked in the stream. I pay the fare in a dark corner of the ship. But Mohammed pocketed 200,000 francs for himself, an outrageous amount.
I went to the post office. Right outside the restaurant there were things offered that I didn't need. However, this is not the case in the market and on the way.
The hustle and bustle on the river. The air is pleasant. At the table next to ours, people ordered two beers from our ship owner and are surprised that the beer never arrived. When everything was done, things didn't start right away.
I was sitting on the roof of the pinnace overlooking the Niger, we past villages. In a village, little girls wash themselves, their siblings and cooking pots. One goes fishing and even catches a fish. You dock and things are taken care of in the village; our crew had forgotten some things, for example knives and bread, and they didn't get them. The boat was casually steered with your foot while standing - Yamaha Motors. The Niger had a pleasant smell and is similar in color to the Rhine, i.e. olive green, I was expecting a sewer smell. Investigated in two villages more, but there was nothing to buy.
Then we looked for a place to spend the night. People crossed the river. Fish passed by the shore. Charles is surprised that the river hadn't been fished empty yet. The moon was already quite high. Mosquitoes buzzed around us. After dinner we took first and second tea, very strong green tea with sugar and foam crown made of sugar and the tea protein (thé africain; I mean it's a thé à la menthe, but without mint).
In the tent it was hot at first, then pleasant, then cool and then quite fresh towards the morning. The outer tent was already wet. The almost full moon shined brightly.
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] Sir Henry Morton Stanley GCB (born John Rowlands) lived from 1841 until 1904. He explored Central Africa and is famous for his words: "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?" - which he might never had said. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Morton_Stanley
[3] Peul is the French term for the Fula, Fulani or Fulbe. This ethnicity are spread across the Sahara, the Sahel, West Africa and other regions. They make up the largest nomadic pastoral community in the world. I use the French term as my friends are francophone and we used the petit futé as a guidebook. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fula_people
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