Ontheroad
Eric & Mike Joined: June 26th 2006
Logged in: July 3rd 2011
Logged in: July 3rd 2011
Travel Blog Posts
Well, I only have 6 minutes of internet time and Mike is waiting for me at our new favorite resaraunt so i will make this short and sweet, just like this trip has been. I awoke this morning to rain. Not exactly what I wanted for our last beach day but the sky would eventually clear enough to give me a few more hours basking in the sun. Although I think we are both quite excited qbout the new school year, I am a bit sad to leave Africa. She always has some grand unexpected event waiting right around the corner. After all this rest, I feel like heading out to explore Senegal, Gambia, and the rest of the continent. Oh well, maybe next year. Thank you all for tuning in and following along. It was ... read more
It's not the vacation that I'm bored with. It's sitting around a pool all day that is probablly very good for us both now, but it doesn't exactly suit my personality type. If we were charging round having adventures then I'd be a happy camper, but we don't have enough time left for that, and it is important we get back feeling refreshed and ready for action. I just get a little antsy just hanging around, even in a beautiful relaxing place. Call me weird, if you like, you won't be the first, and, anyway Eric is loving it, basking and turning deep brown. love mike... read more
Hey Suze, thanks for the info you sent. Just starting to get to the end of my tether with this beach business. I'll be raring to go when I get back, that's for sure. At least I've finished my books and have got back into swimming. I wonder if the pool at Tufts has hours for outsiders to swim? Anyhow, we have two more days of poolside lounging and precious little else before the flight. I hope everything is moving along sweetly for everyone. Pretty exciting opportunity for m. blonde at the Plough and Stars. We'll have to get cracking when I get back, eh? Can't wait to hear "Simple Complications" again. It seems almost a lifetime ago since we recorded the rough draft, and I can't wait to get going on the remixing and finishing ... read more
Not a bad view
After being extorted by scoundrels at Bamako airport, who lied and cheated us as we left the country - they were official immigration officers, but their uniforms belied the fact of their corrupt behaviour, we arrived in sunny Senegal. (There were six different cheats, each with a more ludicrous lie than the previous. By time we got on the plane we were saying a less than fond farewell to Mali.) I really enjoyed the excitement and unpredictability of travel in Mali, and I certainly met many nice people through the haze of my french, but there were also too many petty cheats for either of our liking, and that certainly effected our overal sense of the place, with Eric finding the place to be disappointing because of this. At the same time, we certainly had an ... read more
All Taureg-ed up and ready to ride
Well, what a time we had in Timbukto. It's a striking place, the people there are deeply proud of their heritage and, especially the Tuareg, are incredibly elegant. Where Eric left off, we had arrived in this historic, tumbledown place after our splendid boatride. The town is dusty and crumbly and, away from tourist hotspots, the people are interested and interesting. Right behind our hotel the desert begins. We are fortunate to be here during the brief time during which the desert is in bloom, so it is not the exactly the arid image that is conjured by the name 'Sahara'. Nevertheless, it is quite clearly the desert across which salt caravans of camels led by the Tuareg have travelled for centuries. We arranged for a camel safari to a Tuareg camp for a night with ... read more
The Streets Of Timbukto
Well, 3 days later, we are finally here. At times it has been doubtful that we would even attempt the journey. Once we left Dogon Country and arrived in Mopti we, on a bit of a whim, found ourselves buying tickets to board a cargo boat on friday and travel north on the Niger River up to the fabled city. We arrived at the boat around 10 am to fight for a spot to sit. The boat, a questionable vessel at best, was a double decker (pictures coming soon). The hold of the boat held bags of rice, millet, and who knows what else. The second floor of the boat, where we would fight for space, was reserved for first class passengers. The term first-class is a bit of a stretch but in comparrison to the ... read more
The Escarpment
It's great to hear from everyone again. It's me, the evil destroyer of photographs here. My dark plan to permenently delete all of our future memories of the fantastic people and places we encountered in Ghana and Burkina has come to fruition... phwharr, ha ha har. Now for my next act..... You'll be pleased to know that after a few days of what politely might be called 'the trots', or less politely 'the raving splats', our stomachs are retuning to normal function. This issue did lead to the slight abbreviation of our wonderful walk in the lands of the Dogon. I haven't yet read all of what Eric wrote yesterday, but I feel certain that the disaster of the photos might have eclipsed the fabulous walk. So here's a few of my unworthy highlights: On the ... read more
Cliff-side accomodations
Well here we are after spending the last few days walking from village to village along, and up and down the escarpment that runs through this beautiful part of Mali. Our jornuey here was absolutely one of the most interesting jorneys as of yet, both in watching the landscape change and the events of the day. Ougadougou 4:00 am, alarm sounds. The boys get up headed to the bus station to catch their 6:00 am bus. Complication 1 at 4:15 - the taxi driver has not shown up, eek! Stroke of luck #1 - the hotel security guard wakes from his position sleeping on the reception desk (yes, I mean sprawled out on top of it as if it were a king size mattress) and escorts us into the eerie darkness of a city that sleeps. ... read more
Nous sommes ici en Burkina Faso avec les plus bizarre keyboards et mon pathetic francais. Thanks Almitra for the french spelling help - where are your silky french skills when I need them? We finally actually received one of the texts you sent Suze and Gia. Sounds like a lovely night. As for us, we're in a large, fumey, sweaty, rainy city. We got our first healthy dose of french practice in the taxi from Bolgatango, when we shared with an older Parisian couple. I decided to warm up with them; They were very courteous, I must say, speaking clearly and slowly, as well as accepting my ugly butchery of their elegant language. Our driver was a lovely chap with the deepest voice you can imagine, a thumb missing from his left hand, and the most ... read more
Well, the time has finally come to head north into Burkina Faso. I am a bit sad to leave Ghana actually. It has been a tremendous few weeks. The people, the food, the nature have all exceeded my expectations. There is a large part of me that wants to spend more time here on the coast and see the few places we didn't have time to see. However, September first and our departure from Dakar is quickly approaching it seems, and if we are to make it there in time we must move on. So, farewell to Ghana. You've been great! Watch out Timbukto (there are about 8 spellings for this place), here we come! luv eric & mike... read more
