From Georgetown to Tendaba Camp - Dec 5, 2005

Weather: Warm

I was up early, packed & ready to leave by 7am. As was Michel. We had to wake staff to pay our account and then we walked the couple of kilometres to the ferry in the cool of the morning. We waited in a minibus on the other side until subsequent ferry crossings had delivered enough passengers for the vehicle to leave. It wasn't full, so I was relatively comfortable.

One passenger was a German backpacker named Ulf (unsure of the spelling, but he said it translated to 'Wolf'). While the minibus delivered us to a nearby town, Ulf & Michel, both young, idealistic volunteers, talked politics while I looked out the window at the passing scenery.

Upon reaching the town, the driver decided he would go all the way to the major junction town of Soma and filled his minibus until I was squeezed between passengers with my knees pressed against the seat in front. Soma was where the three of us wanted to go, but it started an argument because the additional charge of D60 person plus D15 per bag on top of the D15 plus D10 already paid for the first leg, totaled more than what Ulf had paid previously in the opposite direction. I wanted clarification, but couldn't be heard above the shouting. I was glad I had stayed out of the argument when I determined that Ulf had made a miscalculation and paid the requested fee. Ulf's aggressive haggling earned him a small discount.

The trip to Soma was slow and uncomfortable due to a combination of the cramped conditions and a bad road.

In Soma, Michel & Ulf sought transport into Senegal and I said goodbye and sought transport for Tendaba, which appeared to be limited to an overpriced bus that looked like it would take a long time to fill. It was difficult to get my queries answered because more people spoke French than English due to the junction's importance to Senegalese traffic crossing through The Gambia. Finally I was assisted by a garage worker to find the waiting place for minibuses that would pass Tendaba as they headed towards the coast, as well as to change money (a big wad of old, dirty D25 notes in exchange for a 10,000CFA note).

There was a long wait with no passing public transport, so I went & found water (good) & food (a lousy meat roll). I returned to the waiting spot and saw minibuses, but they were all full with, I was told, passengers heading to the coast, a much greater distance & cost than Tendaba. Eventually I caught the bus that I had rejected and was charged a price (D25 ~Oz$1.25) that was cheaper than the prices quoted to me at the garage, although I was charged the same price for my backpack (D10 would've been a fair price).

The road south from Soma was worse than the road from the north and it took about 3 hours to travel less than 100km to Tendaba. There were numerous potholes in the tarmac and several sections consisting only of gravel, including tracks that ran alongside the potholed, sealed road. The dust was preferable to continually bouncing up & down.

I was dropped at the junction for Tendaba and met Kat & Stefan, a Belgian couple, who were waiting for

transport to Tendaba. I told them that if we phoned Tendaba Camp, they would send a vehicle to collect us, so Stefan offered to go to a telecentre and was led there by a local high school student.

While he was away a Tendaba vehicle stopped, but there was no room as it was loaded with supplies. I made arrangements for the driver to send a vehicle back for us, then canceled the request, including the phoned request, when we were offered a lift in a Peace Corps vehicle. The short ride in an air-conditioned cab of the utility (pick-up) was luxury.

Arriving at Tendaba Camp reception, we confirmed that the phoned request for a vehicle had been canceled and then requested rooms. The cheapest room had shared facilities and cost D250 (~Oz$12.50) per person, but we accepted the offer of rooms with private bathroom as they were only D30 (~Oz$1.50) extra per person.

I relaxed with a cold drink then took a dip in the pool, which was even colder. After a shower I collapsed on my bed at 6pm and when I opened my eyes again it was 9pm. So as to preserve my limited reserve of Dalasis, I decided it was too late for dinner and went back to sleep.