Back in Pointe Noire

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Back once again to Pointe Noire in the Congo staying at exactly the same safehouse/hotel as I was the last time I ventured here. Not much has changed in a few months besides the food which seems to have gotten much better. Maybe all the meat I was eating was tasty because it was freshly killed? Or maybe it was because it wasn't loaded with chemicals. Bah, either way the grub was good, and the fruits are still fantastic. Head down any street in the city and you will come across some vender hawking their wares. There were these tiny ugly round greenish orange things that when bitten into would blow up in a juicy waterfall, oh man were they good.

This time around though I had a few troubles along the way. Chief of which was the government seemed to have misplaced my passport. Unhuh. Well that kinda sucked. I did manage to get it back a couple days before I flew out, but still the thought of not having a passport was kinda streesful.

Speaking of being stressful, the local Air France office butchered my flight out so I missed my orignal flight. I won't go into details, but they wanted more money, like under the table money to fix it. Bah!

So in my haze of missed planes and lost things, I decided to make the most of my time and really go exploring. I hoofed it down the local beach almost everyday, and besides the minor pollution such as tires, cans, bags, and human poo, the beach was fantastic. Palm trees swaying in the breeze, an awesome surf that made me wish I had a surfboard, and beautiful white sand that felt amazing between the toes. Oh and the water was soooo perfect, like bath water I tell ya. Here at the beach you could sit down on a sand dune and sip a local beer which after three bottles would give you a massive headache, or you could lie down and let the lovely equatorial sun work its wonders. I rarely got hasseled here as well, though occasionaly a guy would pester me well items. Such is life in West Africa. My only complaint about the whole beach was out at sea were old derelic remains of once oil producing platforms. They were an eyesore and I doubt the big conglomerates will be removing them anytime soon.

Besides the beachs, I spent a good amount of time wandering downtown, buying trinkets and sampling the delightful foods. Granted there is only so much of the city you can see safely on your own in daylight. Once night rolls around the only options are the various clubs and bars. If you want a good time (read into that a little), it can be found in Pointe Noire. The clubs are hopping with good dancy music all night long, the booze is cheap, and the girls are gorgeous. I'll leave it at that. Yes I behaved, for once.

I never did get to travel much out beyond the city limits, where the vast jungles can be seen. Most cab drivers don't like taking expats on sightseeing tours it seems. The small areas I did see though were thick and almost impenetrable, so maybe I was better off not poking me head in.

Ah Point Noire is a good place to go, especially if you speak some french. It is alot like the other places I've been to in West Africa, though a tad bit cleaner. I feel safer as well walking around by myself, which probably isn't recommened most of the time. Now the airport is, how do I say this nicely, a huge peice of shit. A barn with some unfinished walls and sand on the floor where cops shake you down for the last stray bits of local currency (cause there is a *rule* they say where you cannot take the money out of the country).

Now I'm back at home, relaxing and doing as little as possible till my next trip out. It is good to be home, and I can't wait till snow starts falling!

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