Radisson Hotel Bamako

... was that a complete stranger let us into his home and he was probably jet-lagged and exhausted, but he took time to receive his childhood friend as well as us. then he played, and we played and sang and danced with him. there was no judgement, it was just about being together and fun, and music.

in Mali if you are the head of the family, it is your responsibility to provide for your brothers, sisters, mothers ...

... after all)! So after going round the actual exhibitiony bit of the museum, I strolled until I was just a little bit lost (note - Rough Guide maps are useless. Take a Lonely Planet!) then got a taxi back to le centre d'accueil. I had some dinner in a little vegetarian cafe opposite (so much for having to eat meat...) and sat there for a while with the owner, his friends and a Bangladeshi man drinking shots of ...

... by the pool, exploring the town of Bamako (which is a bit boring) and washing clothes. On one of the nights we cooked a goat on the spit and organised for one of the local bands to come to the campsite and play for us. Later that night we went out on the town, by about 11pm it was a blur for myself and several others.



Now its time to make our way to the ancient towns of Djenne, Mopti and the iconic town of Timbuktu.

... parched. I could only sip the water other wise it would come straight back out again. I found at optimal seating position - table down, a cup in each hand on the table, head leaning on headreat in front. I finished one cup and had one full cup to go. By this time it was about 5 in the morning and I was struggling to stay awake. My eyes were very heavy. The next thing I knew, I was waking with a start, my ****** was very cold - damn it had I just ******* myself? OH NO?! I looked ...

... arrived back unscathed... I'm not sure who won... although of course I would say us. The bar magically opened with be**s upped in price so some went off to continue the festivities whilst I and oth**s wisely opted for bed. My goodness Bamako is a long entry!!! SORRY! Final day in Bamako and I headed into town whilst Oliv** stayed at camp. Our taxi was stopped by police and the driv** had to pay 1,000 CFA - due to the fact he was carrying a bunch of ...

... new country just fills you with so much joy and excitement. Love it. Driving with Mike's hour of power music on, the sides and beach rolled up, sitting on knees facing out. It had grown less deserty with much less sand and more trees scattered around. Unlike Mauritania with their spread out villages Mali seems a lot more tight packed - wall with tiny huts, stables and communal areas within. First thing that struck me about Mali was ...

... commencent à faire gaffe à la quantité de sucre et de huile qu'ils consomment chaque jour, les diabètes et le cholestérol (même si pas toujours visible de la façon dont on imagine être ses répercussions sur l'organisme humain) frappant particulièrement ce pays magnifique. Deux fois par jour on m'annonçait que le sceau d'eau m'attendait dans le lavoir et c'était toujours un immense plaisir de me laver, me sentir frais avant la coupure du carême et après m'avoir levé, ce qui ...

... s vivante et très charmante et les gens qu'y habittent sont super relax. La seule chose qui peut agacer un peu des fois, selon l'état d'esprit du jour, ce sont les petits qui se mettent à gueuler TOUBABOU, TOUBABOU (le blanc, le blanc) à chaque fois que nos chemins se croisent. Je suis seul depuis le troisième jour, mais je me suis fais plein de nouvelles amitiés, dont je vous en parlerait ulterieurement. Bamako va me prendre encore minimum ...

... lets just say the 11 hour bus ride was not fun and I was unable to get visas anyway as the prices had increased (will get on Monday now) was a stressful time... Africans are generally not known for their careful or slow driving so the bus trip was certainly quite scary in places. I am well although bone-tired most of the time. We are having about 6 days of bushcamping before getting to Dakar where this leg of the trip will end and the last leg begins. Hope you are all well. Take care

... stops in Mali changed. Women's heads were now piled high with mangoes, coconuts, tomatoes, plaintain, sweet potatoes. Just before dusk, we arrived in Kita, the last big stop before Bamako. The train stopped for over an hour, as we waited for the other train (coming from Bamako) to pass us. By this stage, we were happy for any delay, just to be sure we didn't arrive in Bamako before the morning.  Eventually, at 9am on Monday morning (that's 47 hours after we ...