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Sénégal
Dec 4, 2016 17:36:28 GMT
via mobile
Post by amboseli on Dec 4, 2016 17:36:28 GMT
Hi all, I'm in Sénégal right now. Such a wonderful country, with the kindest and the most beautiful people. Elegant women, handsome men, cute children. It's our second time here and probably not our last. The weather is terribly hot (upto 39°C) but the ocean and the pool keep us cool. Excursions are made in the morning or the late afternoon. Living the good life here! Pictures will follow after I'm back home.
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Post by bixaorellana on Dec 4, 2016 18:13:09 GMT
Ha ha, Amboseli ~ you make it sound like Lake Wobegon! (sorry, US reference)
You are in a country that has long interested me and I can't wait to hear your report on it. Yes, that temperature is very high, but are there breezes from the ocean? Enjoy yourself!
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Post by lugg on Dec 4, 2016 18:26:10 GMT
looking forward to your photos. in the meantime have a great time .
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Post by Deleted on Dec 4, 2016 18:32:39 GMT
I only went to Senegal once and thoroughly loved it. But it was so long ago that I'm sure that your photos will be a complete eye-opener.
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Sénégal
Dec 4, 2016 18:51:37 GMT
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Post by amboseli on Dec 4, 2016 18:51:37 GMT
Kerouac, we were there in 1999 and not much has changed. They have a motorway now (with péage!) but village life is still the same. Only the main roads are asphalted, the rest is piste. The people haven't changed. Still very kind and helpful.
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Sénégal
Dec 4, 2016 18:52:42 GMT
via mobile
Post by amboseli on Dec 4, 2016 18:52:42 GMT
Bica, no ocean breeze unfortunately.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 4, 2016 18:59:11 GMT
Back when I went (early 1980's) I was stopped on a trumped up speeding charge between Saint Louis and Dakar. Buying peanuts from a woman who ran up to sell them and also a small 'friendship gift' to the policeman who stopped me solved all problems.
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Sénégal
Dec 4, 2016 19:37:56 GMT
via mobile
Post by amboseli on Dec 4, 2016 19:37:56 GMT
Maybe that still works nowadays Kerouac ...
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Post by lagatta on Dec 4, 2016 20:20:15 GMT
Senegalese certainly are very elegant indeed. I'm glad to hear that it is a pleasant country to visit.
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Post by amboseli on Dec 11, 2016 23:50:40 GMT
Back home and missing the African life already. They say that Africa gets under your skin, which is so true. From the first time I set foot on (black) African soil - in 1996 - I felt the need to go back. We have been back a few times (north, east and south) but our last time was in 2004. Too long ago! So we decided to go back to Africa, Senegal once again. We were greeted at the Dakar airport by Mamadou who safely drove us to our hotel in M'bour, 80 kms south of Dakar. Traffic was hectic and chaotic and many roads are in very bad condition. Add this to the crazy driving style and you get the picture! But Mamadou did a good job and we felt pretty safe in his old dented but indestructible Toyota Camry. So we immediately booked him for a few excursions. We had seen most of the tourist 'attractions' in 1999 and the main reason for this trip was sun, sea & pool/beach. The hotel (Neptune, FYI) we stayed at was really good: small size, with some 20 rondavels in a beautiful lush garden with a lot of cocotiers and exotic flowers. But even better than the comfy room, the large pool and the excellent food, was the staff. Such very nice people, always helpful and smiling. They went out of their way to make us feel happy. Nothing was too much trouble. As I told before, Mamadou took us on a few trips. First one was the fishing port (fish market) of M'bour in the late afternoon when the fishermen who are on the sea during the day, return to the shore in their colorful pirogues. Interesting! Literally dozens of boats arrive at about the same time while hundreds of women (it's the women who buy and sell) are waiting to get the best catch of the day and children are playing on the shoreline. A colorful and noisy spectacle. Another trip was to Joal-Fadiouth. The island Fadiouth is special for two reasons. First of all, the soil is of seashells (also the older houses are built with seashells) and secondly because on Fadiouth 90% of the inhabitants are catholic (only 5% in the rest of the country) and they live happily together with the 10% of muslims. Even their cemetery is mixed catholic/muslim. We were there on a Sunday morning during High Mass and it was nice to see how devoted the Senegalese catholics still are. Of course we also walked in 'our' village. We remembered from before that once you leave the hotel, you are accosted by Senegalese men who want to be your guide or try to sell you things at 'de très bons prix'. They are very polite but rather sticky and 'non, merci' is not easily accepted. The weird thing is that they recognize you from far (all Senegalese men look the same to me) and will attempt over and over again. After three days of 'non, merci', they finally understood that it was useless to keep trying and they looked for other 'victims'. But they would always be friendly and greet us with enthousiasm. I don't have to tell you that Senegal is a very poor and underdeveloped country. Foreign investors have been building more or less luxury apartments in the tourist city of Saly, which was not far from where we were, but tourism has decreased a lot in the past few years, so we were told. Such a pity. Here's a link to my pictures. It's easier than having to export all of them. Enjoy! www.flickr.com/photos/104652852@N02/albums/72157673686924794
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Post by Deleted on Dec 12, 2016 8:03:30 GMT
Wonderful photos. It's true that it looks very similar to what I saw almost 40 years ago. I hope that the beautician is better at hairstyling than the sign shows.
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Post by amboseli on Dec 12, 2016 8:07:21 GMT
Thank you, kerouac.
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Post by amboseli on Dec 12, 2016 17:49:02 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Dec 12, 2016 18:09:19 GMT
These are wonderful, Amboseli! I know about being busy as I have to admit I haven't made it through all your pictures on the Flickr sight yet. Thanks for posting these here, making it easier to scroll back and forth.
Your written details are most interesting. I am fascinated by Africa, but know next to nothing about it. What was your favorite part of the whole visit?
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Post by fumobici on Dec 13, 2016 2:37:18 GMT
I can understand why those photos are your favorites. Super!
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