A Boat Called Wanda

After almost two months in Casamance and just a week in Gambia, we are now in the Cape Verde Islands with our good friends from France, the Pérés. We are exploring the Barlevento or windward Islands which are in the north of the archipelago.

We spent most of our time in Casamance in the mangrove creeks in the Basse Casamance region. We visited some of the many traditional villages on the « islands » formed by these creeks where we felt very welcome. The people there are Diolas who also live in Gambia and Guinea Bissau. Most of them are Catholic who live peacefully with the Muslim minority, although they strongly continue their colourful animist traditions. They live simply in mud huts with thatched roofs, without running water or electricity, except for a few solar panels to recharge their mobile phones ! …and for lighting a few huts and public places. They are excellent fisherman, grow rice, and seem to live largely without money. There are no cars, they travel by dugout or larger canoes. Hospitality is part of their culture and we felt at home there.

We would wake up early in the morning to the birds – pelicans, eagles, wading birds, vultures -, and we would watch the activity of the african cows, pigs, goats, ducks, and sometimes big dolphins who come to fish among the mangroves. Then we would watch the daily life unfold along the riverbanks…children swimming, women fetching water from the well which they carry on their heads to wash clothes under the huge plane trees…it’s fascinating and beautiful to watch. Conversation is easy and going for a stroll in the village was always fun.

Despite this hectic life in the village of Niomoune (pronounced new moon), we did find time to continue work on the boat. Then we moved two creeks away to the Eringa campement (small resort), owned and run by Yves and Soso. There we moved off Wanda for ten days so we could paint her interior. In the daytime the boys stayed at the campement and played with other kids from the local villages while Martin and Caro worked on the boat. We got together at lunchtimes over delicious Senegalese meals prepared by Soso, and we passed the evenings on the terrace bar of this spectacular resort. Like at Niomoune, we were easily and naturally welcomed by the local people who showed us how they harvest palm wine directly tapped off the trees – with tastings of course ! At Eringa we were able to live in Senegalese style in mud huts, under mousquito nets, washing in the outdoor shower with water we took from the well … It was a brilliant experience and we felt safe and comfortable in the excellent company of our hosts. We recommend this place and here is their website : http://propoze.free.fr/eringa.htm

Then we were invited back to Niomoune for celebrations of initiation rites which take place only every 25 years. The initiation is the rite of passage from boyhood to manhood after circumcision, which concerns boys and men of various ages since it takes place only very rarely. They stay for a month or so in a sacred forest where they are trained and educated by the elders in the traditions of their people, all in strict secrecy. It’s a very important moment in the life of a Diola man who comes home to his village from wherever he lives when it is his time to be initiated, often with friends and family as supporters. So the population of the village exploded from 2000 to 20 000, maybe even more. The preparations and logistics were impressive and we were lucky to witness lots of dancing and rituals before all foreigners had to leave on the day they entered the sacred forest.

Then we sailed to Banjul in Gambia to reprovision the boat for our trip to the Cape Verdes. In Banjul port we anchored through an impressive storm – no real damage but stuff moved that had never moved at sea ! Then we stayed at Oyster Creek which we loved for its laid-back and friendly atmosphere. For other boats : the formalities were quick and easy and provisions and diesel were cheaper than in Senegal. We went to visit the Sacred Crocodile Pool which was astonishing because there were these 2 metre long Nile crocodiles lounging around free in a park, and we could even touch them – check out our photos.

This little week in Gambia really made us want to return after the Cape Verdes, we will see, it’s not yet decided…

Hi from Ziguinchor, Casamance.
We ended up staying four weeks in Dakar which was an interesting experience, always exciting and sometimes discouraging. We were anchored in front of the Cercle de Voiles de Dakar at Hann Plage, a lovely little yacht club in the palm trees with a lot to offer yachts including wifi and even a workshop just made for Martin. The beach is unfortunately really polluted but very pretty at a distance (from the anchorage). The people in Hann village are nice and leave you in peace to wander about and do a bit of shopping. Not at all like downtown Dakar! There we were aggressively and mercilessly harassed by the street venders and Martin was even the victim of a pickpocket in front of me and the children. Two guys selling t-shirts were talking to us when suddenly one of them touched Martin’s trousers at the knee with no explanation. It was such a bizarre thing to do and quite invasive that all of us were looking at this and didn’t notice when his mate stole Martin’s wallet from his pocket while he was bent over. We realized five minutes after they had gone. Seems obvious in retrospect, but they were good! However we did love Dakar for its culture, its colours, its crazy side streets, its markets, its greenness, its decorated buses…. And we were especially happy to have our home with us for a break sometimes.

After Dakar, we sailed directly to the south of Senegal to explore the Casamance River. There in a bolong (smaller tributary) we met up with our friends on the yacht Irini, who have two children, friends of Max and Jack. There we all finished the school year – that was a party!

So now we are on holiday on this beautiful river among the mangroves and baobabs. We swim and we fish and we really should try to finish the interior of the boat…At the moment we are in Ziguinchor, the capital of Casamance with 130 000 inhabitants. It’s a nice little city with friendly people and good markets and delicious shrimps, fish and mangos. We are anchored in front of a very posh hotel which is strangely tolerant of yachties – we can tie the dinghy up to their pontoon and use their wifi bar. Tomorrow we are going back to the bolongs where there are small villages with no electricity or internet but each one has a mast for the mobile phone network! So we probably won’t be able to read emails for a while but can be contacted on 00 221 77 309 7096…hopefully.

We are now in Dakar, Senegal, but we wanted to tell you about our little adventure in the Sahara.
Dakhla is on a sandy peninsula which extends 40 km from the coast. On one side the Atlantic and on the other side a lagoon, astonishing in its beauty. Unfortunately we couldn’t get permission to enter the lagoon on Wanda; we had to do the 25km by taxi. We were at anchor in the fishing port two or three kilometers from town. We really enjoyed our stay in Dakhla where we met some very nice people and had an excellent time with Erika, Martin’s mother who was visiting us. We made it to the festival Sea and Desert with camel races, Fantasia horse demonstrations, and where Max-Martin was invited to play football in the stadium in front of thousands of people. And his team won second place! The nights were musical – we were lucky enough to see Youssou N’Dour (a sneak preview of Senegal). I even got to see a wedding – and yes, the groom presented the bride’s parents with two camels!

And then we stayed in the desert for two unforgettable days and a night…it all started at my dentist’s with a chance encounter with Sidi, a Saharan who organises trips into the desert from his auberge beside the lagoon. Finally, we’re off in a four-wheel drive more than 200km into the interior with a nice trio acting as guide, chauffeur, cook and hunter…the road is good and sealed at first, and scenic from the start with views onto the lagoon and then desert landscape with camels crossing the road. Our guides also are exotic, we are filled with anticipation…suddenly we are off-roading, it’s fun! The landscape looks very flat but it’s actually quite bumpy up close. We stop for lunch at an ancient acacia forest which isn’t much next to a forest of oaks or kauris but it was perfect to be in the shade for a good meal cooked on a camp fire. We eat, we explore, we relax. Then we’re off, next stop the dunes. So amazing, have a look at the photos! But the problem with dunes is that they move – did you know that? The result is that in the desert there aren’t any stable landmarks so our guides spend the rest of the afternoon looking for our campsite. This means that we spot a tent or two, race towards them, our guides seem to ask directions (obviously we don’t understand anything) and then we keep on going in circles, or so we think. Sometimes we ask a camel-herd who gestures and points and off we go again. Actually it was fun, I’ve been lost in much nastier places…we start to get just a little bit concerned when, just before sundown, we arrive at a little tent perfectly situated between some particularly gorgeous dunes. So we run to play on them before the sun sets – again look at the photos! By the time we get back there is another tent pitched and our friends are preparing the meal. Max and Jack are happy in front of the fire and we watch the meal being prepared – Sahara bread and camel stew. The bread is cooked in a special way – they heat up the sand and place the bread in it, and then it cooks under a lid covered in coals. Then they diligently scrape off all the sand. Then they rip it up and soak it in the stew. It tastes wonderful. We share the meal with three camel herdsmen who arrive at 10pm with their 250 camels! The tent is in fact theirs which they share with our guides and the second tent is for us. Can you imagine the atmosphere during this wonderful meal in front of the campfire under a dome of stars?
In the morning we get up and really see that we are surrounded by camels. It’s astonishing. With breakfast we drink our coffee with camel milk. It’s very good. Then we break camp and explore the desert a bit – we visit historic places and find flint stones that may even have been sharpened into arrow heads, you never know. ..and also some nice fossils. We stop occasionally to drink tea and play dominos with the local nomads (if that makes sense). Some good memories. After another great meal under the acacias we start back towards Dakhla. But the adventure’s not over yet…our guides spot two goats under a tree and we’re after them with the four-wheel-drive, the goats running ahead. Then, to our great surprise, someone jumps out of the moving car and chases after the goats and actually manages to catch the mother by her leg. Then the others help to herd the young one until they catch it too, and then hop – two goats in the back of the car with Max and the hunter. We were very amazed. Then off to find a farm, still in the desert, where they could sell them before taking us back to the port. We return to Wanda tired, sandblasted and happy.

Highlights:
Jack: My favourite time was the evening in front of the camp fire because we had great fun and the meal was delicious.
Max-Martin: The first sand dunes because I had lots of fun running up and down them.
Caro: The camel-shaped silhouette blocking out the stars which seemed to come down to our feet.
Erika: The moment I walked out of the tent that night into the immense sky scattered with stars and the ever so long lasting comet sliding slowly to the horizon. Impressive. An impression to give us an idea how little we are and how lucky we are to experience this.
Martin: Sitting under the acacias eating couscous with camel meat.

Well, our following wind turned out to be a bit stormy so we are staying here until it calms down…I promise not to write again until we are actually in Senegal!

Just a note to let you know that we arrived safely in Dakhla, Western Sahara, today, Thursday 25 February. We had a nice sail and not too much motoring. That’s why it took us 72 hours. We even caught a lovely tuna.