Joelmeeker's travel blogs:
|
|
  | |  |
Arrival in Abidjan
Entry 3 of 25 | show all | print this entry |
The flight from Paris to Abidjan was smooth. Our flight path took us down through my old pastorate in the South of France, and since the weather was clear I could recognize a few places on the Mediterranean Coast, both on the French and the Spanish sides of the border. The weather over the Sahara was mostly clear too. I always find it fascinating to see the immensity of that desert; the mountains, the sand dunes, the tiny isolated towns and villages connected by the precarious white lines of roads. It takes about three hours to fly across the Sahara it is so large. Several times we flew through dust clouds whipped up by winds, and we were six miles high!
In between cat naps, I read one of Steven Pressfield's historical novels. He's my new favorite historical fiction writer. I read Gates of Fire some time back; a novel about the great battle of the Spartans against the Persians at Thermopylae. The book is required reading at some US military institutions, and some unit commanders in Iraq are requiring new arrivals from basic training to read it as well. I found it outstanding and overwhelming. As soon as I finished I ordered all the other novels he's written. I will dose them out on my trips: one each time I come to Africa. Now I'm reading The Virtues of War about Alexander the Great. It is excellent.
As we flew over Mali, I saw on the flight map on the screen on the seatback in front of me that we were flying almost directly over Timbuktu, that old trading crossroads in the desert. The fierce Tuareg, a white tribe who live in that area are still known to sometimes practice slavery. They know the location of ancient sea beds in the Sahara. They still go in camel caravans and cut huge slabs of salt from the ground, pack them to Timbuktu and then transport them on boats on the Niger River to other trading center like Mopti, where I have seen the slabs and tasted the salt from those ancient extinct seas. It is a strange kind of time travel.
As we approached Abidjan the sun was setting and the air over the city was heavy with dusty humidity. It seemed we were descending from clear twilight into a ponderous gloom. Arriving in sub-Saharan Africa I brace myself mentally. I will have to be on my guard against the special challenges of the place: police corruption, con-men and other thieves, the dangers of travel on the roads, the health issues. I mentally hold my breath; I won't totally exhale until the plane taking me back to Europe goes wheels up in a few weeks.
Immigration and custom formalities are much quicker and better organized in Côte d'Ivoire than in other West African countries. The level of education and development here is several notches higher. It's sad that in spite of that the country has gone through a civil war that set it back many years. Clearing the arrival area I catch the hotel shuttle to the plateau area of the city, the business and diplomatic heart of the nation's economic capital. On the way into town, my fellow passengers are from France and Switzerland. The Frenchman next to me seems new to the region. He cranes his neck and looks around nervously when we drive through a military checkpoint. A squad of soldiers armed with automatic weapons is checking vehicles entering the city from the east. They check papers and open trunks searching for weapons or contraband. This is a somewhat unsettling experience the first few times one goes through it.
Two French businessmen behind me are old hands. They know the city, and discuss the current situation. The city is less well lit by street lights, they observe, than the last time they came. That is not a good sign of how things are going for the government. One tells the other that he doesn't want to be walking alone in Abidjan any more; a French national was abducted off the street recently around Christmas and still hasn't been found. He probably won't be. The French embassy sent a text message and e-mail to all registered French nationals informing them of the development. The businessman laughs, his mother-in-law found out about the abduction and told him he really shouldn't go to Abidjan; it was too dangerous. His wife told him so also.
After half an hour we arrive at my hotel, the Ibis Plateau, where I check in, put my bags in the room, and eat roasted chicken with local hot pepper sauce for dinner. I call home to let my family know I have arrived safely and now will call it a night.
Latest Comments (2)
|
hey dad! (reply)
Jan 25, 2008 12:52 EST by fmeeker
Reading through your entry on Cote d'Ivoire, it was very reassuring to remember that you've been there plenty and that you know how to take care of yourself in Africa!! Otherwise I would've been pretty scared, especially reading about the abductions. But knowing that you do God's work and that He'll keep you safe is also reassuring, so I'll just make sure to keep you in my prayers!! Love you lo... show all
|
|
Hello Joel (reply)
Jan 22, 2008 14:27 EST by rc45
I am following your trip as you travel. I hope you are able to safely see all of the brethren that you are scheduled to visit. Be safe and take some pictures if you get a chance to upload them, that will be an added bonus.
Reggie and Sandy Warren
|
 Post a new comment |
|
If you like this entry, search for other entries by joelmeeker, from Cote D'Ivoire or try a new search. |
| |
Back to Entry - Back to Home
|
10 votes 
