Create your Trip Journal [click here]The beginning of the trip, Fly from Cleveland to Washington DC, made my connection to over night flight to Dakar Senegal on South African Airways.
Early this morning arrived at the Dakar airport, I very busy place where everyone offers to help, but it comes with a price, I find the shuttle to the Hotel where I meet up with Mitch, Valerie and Don. Mitch and I take the ferry to Gorree Island to the history of slave trade in Senegal, this is point from which they were loaded on ships and taken to North America. Every where here you meet people who want to talk to you and help you find your way, the biggest issue is they want you to pay them for there help even when you do not need it, but that is easy to overcome and enjoy the city. Met Don and Valerie for lunch back in Dakar, Pizza, and then found the dock and boarded our ship the Pegasus. Dinner on board and we set sail at Midnight.
This morning we reached the Saloun Delta in Senegal where we anchor off the villiage of Djiffere and start out over the road to Joal Fadiouth, along the way we see cattle farmers and men collecting salt. Joal Fadiouth is a island of Shells there are everywhere on the ground, in the buildings, the people are very friendly. We visit a cemetary where people are buried in the shells. We have lunch in the village and then go to see a giant Baobab tree, that is hollow and you can climb inside then return to ship by Motor pirogue and sail to Banjul, the capital of The Gambia. Tonight is Fisherman's Night on the ship, seafood buffet for dinner and docked in Banjul.
After breakfast on board, we start exploring Banjul, we drive thru the streets of the capital and stop at Arch 22 which makes the coup d'etat in 1994. We then head to the villiage of Bakau where we visit Katchikally, the sacred crocodile pool, it is believed that barren women can drink or swim here to help them have childern. We are allowed to touch a Croc here, amazing. We then go to beatiful beach and have a refreshment stop and then head off to the botanic garden. Next stop is the National Museum of the Gambia, very interesting and small but you learn alot about the Gambia, and no visit is complete without seeing the Stanley Market, very busy place where you buy almost anything. We return to the ship have lunch and set sail to Kunta Kinteh Island, another of the islands used in slavery, this one made famous by Alex Hailey, Roots. We explore the ruins of the buildings and old cannons on the island then return to the ship, we anchor off Tendaba for the night, Greek night on the ship, wonderful dinner and Greek dancing.
After breakfast on board we board pirogues to explore the Baobolong reserve, we cruise the bolongs (Creeks) as we see so many birds can not report them all but Herrons, Eagles, vultures, Kingfishers are amoung them, we saw a Marsh Mongoose, but the highlight is the Fish Otters who came running to river bank to see us out on the pirogues, was a very cool experience and a great 3 hours!! Then back to ship for lunch. We go ashore in Tendaba and take a swiss army truck ride to Batelling and have a refreshment stop and visit with the villiagers, before setting off on a 5K hike back to Tendaba, along the way we saw over 30 different birds, Rollers, Weavers, Doves and Parrots amoung them and also saw a red Colobus Monkey. Then back to the ship and dinner onboard.
This morning we sail upstream to Kuntaur, along the way we see dolphins, we relax on board for the morning, the crew is great and the ship is very nice. After we arrive in Kuntaur in the afternoon a large motor pirogue picks us up and takes us on a 3 hours cruise in River Gambia National park, we are meet by park rangers and cruise along Baboon Island, We see Hippos, Baboons and even a quick look at a chimp that is part of rehabilitation project on the island. Once again we see birds, It is what the Gambia is know for. We return to Kuntaur where a local dance group performs for us, it includes the Kankurang, which is said to dispense justice and ward off evil spirts, back on board the ship we have another great dinner.
After breakfast on board we travel by bus to the ferry and then take the ferry acrossed the river to Jangjanbureh, formerly called Georgetown, We explore Jangjanbureh on foot seeing the local sights, governers house and the local market before taking the ferry back across the river and boarding our bus to Lamin Koto, where we visit a local school that the cruise line supports and is building them a new building, the childern sing for us and let us visit them in their classrooms, from here we travel by bus to Wassu to see the mysterious stones circles believed to be a burial ground thousands of years ago. We return to the ship and set sail to Kaur, where we dock and go ashore to take a walk in the villiage, we see the local women working the Rice fields and the local childern join us and follow us on our walk, we return to the ship and spend the night docked here. We had a wonderful dinner on board for the Captians night.
Early this morning we set sail to Banjul, we enjoy a nice day on board the ship with a lesson in the local langauage from our guide. we arrive in Banjul in the afternoon, just a couple of hours here and we do not leave the ship.Our entertainment is a Kora instrument concert while in port. Dinner tonight was Gambian food. We set sail for the overnight trip back to Dakar, we are now in the ocean so it is a bit rougher and ship is rocking a bit.
This morning we arrived in Dakar, Had breakfast on board and then we disembarked the ship and took a taxi to the Hotel, left the bags and headed out for the first Mall ever built in Western Africa to explore the local shopping, We are doing the inside things today as a sand storm is blowing in from the Sahara leaving a haze in the air. We had lunch there and then took Mitch to airport to catch his flight, went back to rest at the hotel, then out to dinner at a local place, Valerie's nephew, who lives in Dakar took us to a place we would never find on our own, had a nice dinner and back to the hotel, Don and Valerie leave to catch there flight to Paris. At 11:30 pm I check out of the hotel and walk to the airport.
Just after Midnight I check in for my flight home, the plane is over an hour late and do not take off until 3:15 am, arrive in Washington DC and make my connecting flight home. This was a great trip. Meet some very interesting people and had a great time on the Pegasus, she is a great small ship. Senegal and The Gambia are great places to visit, The Gambia was great for the people and wildlife.
