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You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced...
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Dec 02, 2004 07:00 PM Red Sea stories...
To get from the capital city of Djibouti to the old settlement of Tadjourah you can either take a "qaat boat" departing almost every day from "Escale" or crowded minibus from airport road. Both cost 1000 francs. Nobody knows - they said "pas de bateau ajourdhoui" when I came with my heavy backpack to the jetty - so I turn to the bus...
The 4-hours voyage is very picturesque - the views of Tadjourah Bay are most impessive. And Tadjourah itself remains small coastal settlement hidden far from the world: narrow streets, small mosques, dirty cafes... People are nicer then in the capital where I had problems with taking pictures...
The moviemakers just picture there "The secrets of the Red Sea" using local people as a background.
The village is open to the Red Sea - with quite a lot of people walking along sandy corniche after the sunset... They are very friendly and helpful but you must speak french... Pleasant day!
It was my last day in Djibouti - I am flying to Eritrea tonight...
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Nov 30, 2004 07:00 PM Djibouti's biggest tourist attraction
Djibouti - the capital has ten or more internet cafes... They charge only 1.5-2 USD per hour but the connection is slow and to send few messages I am spending more then hour in front of the screen... Africa... Heat, sweat, mosquitos... and computers...
I just returned from my 2-days expedition to the interior. Lake Abbe lies on the border with the Ethiopia - more almost 200 km from the capital, half of that is sand, gravel, stone - access only by 4WD vehicle. But it is worth the effort. Camel caravans on the route... The Lake itself is nice with thousands of flamingoes. But the main highlight of the tour are limestone chimneys - up to 70-meters high located by the nature on the coast of the lake... It is something very different from the other landscapes I saw around the world... Hundreds of them are there... I spend the night in the camp /in traditional rondavel/ and saw both sunset and sunrise there - unforgetable!
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Nov 29, 2004 07:00 PM Clean shirt, stock of film, medicines - just lovely!
Yes, the junk Il-18 plane from Mogadishu with friendly Russian crew landed yesterday on time. After an hour I was in Djibouti airport. I had a lot of stress there. It is Africa - nobody knew about my luggage announced to be send here from Nairobi. Finally after few telephone calls they found it - safely stored in the BA agent`s office. Yes, now I am smart again... I have the charger for my video camera, stock of film and anti-malaria drugs...
Djibouti taxi drivers are also smart. The fare from the airport to the town is 600 francs. If you do not know that they will charge you up to three times more... There is no money changing facility in the Djibouti airport, so bring with you small denominations of USD! 1 USD is worth 177 local francs...
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Nov 28, 2004 07:00 PM Somali - close to the last frontier...
Seventh day without my luggage.Morning in Hargeisa - the capital of Somaliland. Blue sky, strong sun, pleasant wind. I do hope that twice-a-week junk plane will come in the afternoon and will take me to Djibouti - closer to the world... I I do hope that my backpack is waiting there for me...
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Nov 27, 2004 07:00 PM Somaliland - with armed escort to Berbera...
It was pre-wedding ladies party yesterday... Somali ladies are very pretty. In their colorful clothes they look like black butterflies... I was sitting alone and separated at the end of the hall and enjoying their music and dancing... Soft drinks were served outside - in the garden. Lovely...
I wanted to see Somalian interior. They do not allow whites to travel alone. I got two soldiers with AK-47 as escort: it takes full day to go from the capital -Hargeisa to the coastal Berbera and back. Check points at every large village. Nice desert and mointain landscapes on the route. Some interesting rock formations. Camels, monkeys, dik-diks. Berbera is a port and has some old architecture - there ia more old architecture then in Hargeisa. Mosques, the market and dusty streets. The beach is located quite far trom the town. I did not swim in the Red Sea - my swimming suit is far away in my lost luggage.
Hot and tiring but enjoyable day...
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Nov 26, 2004 07:00 PM Hurrah! They found my luggage!
Africa. My fifth day without luggage. No spare film, the battery in the camera is almost dead... (You say: why don't you buy new one? - Do not forget that I am budget traveller and any extra spending means: I will see less then I expected, or I will eat less). But I got a message via internet: my backpack probably already arrived to Djibouti - one hour by air from my present location. No flights today and tomorrow. I plan to be there on the day after tomorrow. I hope they will not send my pack back to Poland in the meantime... I am invited to join the party of the local people tonight. My only shirt does not look impressive. Anyway - I do not want to miss the chance to see how do they partying without any beer...
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Nov 25, 2004 07:00 PM The only tourist in Somaliland...
Hargeisa. Ambassador Hotel where I stay is beautifuly located on the hill just 1 km from the airport and 2 km fron the city center. The hotel is almost empty. - I am the only guest who can't speak local language... The staff is very friendly: the strongest drink you can buy in the bar is coca-cola (do not forget: it is conservative islamic country). I do not care... In the morning I took a tour around the capital city. It was badly damaged during the civil war. Can you imagine working traffic lights at the crossing of two sandy and bumpy roads? A lot of dust, donkey carts carrying the barrels of water. Heat. Men chewing qat. Women dressed in bright colors... Looking at me at first they are courious, then most of them smile... I did not see today any other white person on the streets of Hargeisa. Am I the only tourist in Somaliland?
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Nov 24, 2004 07:00 PM To the state which does not exists...
Poor, destroyed by civil war Somalia is divided now into 3 parts. The northern one - Somaliland is doing best. Very few people know how does it look like... I decided to go and see...
Exciting adventure! Since Somaliland is not recognized as a state it has no embassies abroad. I got the scan of my visa via internet - it was arranged by Ambassador Hotel in Hargeisa - the capital city of Somaliland.
After 45-min flight on a junk Il-18 plane I landed today in Somali. My first impessions: blue sky, dry heat, noisy crowd in the tiny airport terminal. Before you go to the immigrations you are forced to change in the bank window at least 50 USD on official rate (1USD=3500 Somaliland Shillings) minus commission. While the market rate is 6500!!! Then be prepared to pay 20 USD of immigration fee. Then you will get your stamp. Doors will open. You are in Somaliland. There must be a country like that!
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Nov 23, 2004 07:00 PM Deepest depression of Africa...
Still no message about my luggage... I spent last night in Auberge Sable Blanc - small pension located few blocks out of the central Blv Republique. I do not waste my time: today I took full day trip to the Lac Assal - very picturesque salt lake announced to be the deepest depression in Africa: 153m below the sea level. It is located about 100 km west of Djibouti City. No local transport. I rented a car with a local guide-driver: Houmed Loita (french only, please) his mobile ph: 82 22 91. - he is worth to recommend. The lake itself surrounded by dormant volcanoes is very impressive. Two days after walking on the white snow in Poland I walked here on the waste area of white salt! Locals collect this salt and export it - mostly to Ethiopia...
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Nov 22, 2004 07:00 PM Did you see my luggage?
The airline staff in Frankfurt issued new ticket for the route: Frankfurt-London-Nairobi-Djibouti (this was my final destination) They also promised to send my backpack the same way. Uff... 8-hours long Kenya Airways flight to Nairobi
was half empty so I layed down on the 3 seats until 5 am. In Nairobi I changed the plane. It was 11.45 am when I landed in Djibouti... Bon jour! (limited knowledge of english here since the beginning). When they brought all luggage to the terminal I recognized: there were no my backpack on the plane. Africa.
Heat, high humidity. I have heavy, snow-resistant clothes on me, no shaver, no toothbrush, no messages... No forms to fill - just write your name on the piece of paper. Ask tomorrow - maybe... Djibouti - the capital still has strong French military presence. Local people are friendly and streets are safe. One baguette cost 20 francs, an hour of slow internet - 250 francs.
1 USD is worth 177 francs... But were is my luggage?
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