Catching Up

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It has been a very busy couple of months. For those of you interested in more pics, please see my Picasa site. Being without a computer of my own, it is just too much to be getting them up in multiple places every time...

To catch you up: St. Louis... not much there, but it is greener. Then on north to the Senegal River -- on the other side is yet another country and passport stamp. We went on through the bird park and along the river eastward to Richard Toll. On the way back, a stop at the Desert Encampment, and another stop at Lac Rose and the Tortoise Village... Along for the ride were a young Dutch couple and an American living in Spain the past few years.

When I got back, I began to give serious thought to the idea of opening a youth hostel in Yoff/Dakar. We are working out the details now, building the website, etc., for Dakar Hostel. Beds will start at 10 Euros per night, including free airport pickup and a light breakfast of coffee or tea, fresh bread, butter and jams. Also available are meals at the Senegalese partner's grill (restaurant) and excursions in the Safari-mobile. I will provide guided tours, during which you can see monkeys, monitors, camels, eagles, falcons, vultures, griffons, warthogs... all manner of wildlife. We will stop for photo ops, and have a really good time along the way!

So it looks like I will be here for a while. I will still blog, and provide some pics... so check back, and stay in touch!

A plus tarde,

JT

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Photos

Vultures and Griffons
These guys were chowing down on roadkill. We stopped to take some pics and video...

Brute
This big boy was kinda pushy at the dinner table. Carrion eaters aren't my first choice, but ya have to admire the colors and power and flight of these eagle-sized critters!

Warthogs
This group met us near a hotel at the entrance to the national bird park north of St. Louis, at the northern edge of Senegal.

Jackals
Look closely... the one on the left is a baby. Their den was in the side of that raised area, which is actually a levy that keeps back the Senegal River when the waters rise, and provides an elevated roadway.

Camels
These guys were running around, free-ranging. A couple of them showed signs of having been saddled at some point in their lives, but most looked to be wild. While they weren't worried about us, they weren't letting us get any closer either.

Pelican
There were several of these guys fishing in a large freshwater pond out in the middle of nowhere and nothing. They were just some of the many water birds at that spot...

Herder
This guy was taking his cattle for a walk along the road.

Hostel Digs
Where the hostel is going... Please visit http://DakarHostel.com to see more. The site is under construction, but if you are visiting Dakar, we have a bed or room or suite available for you!

Comments

[mich]

re: catching up
Hi, sweetie! GREAT pics! The last set of your new friends, your travels together and the animals are all wonderful, and really give a sense of the daily adventure of living where you are. And I'd love to hear about the development of the hostel, best of luck. What a great way to meet different people and network and enjoy. Things are fine here - I'm working at the Fairmont Miramar (not exactly a hostel, but a gorgeous view of the ocean, I'm not complaining!) I'm in the catering dept., dealing with people who have way too much money to spend on weddings and bar mitzvahs. But a good group of people to work with, in the dept. and the hotel itself. And discounts on their hotels, including San Francisco...can't wait to hear more of your adventures, mine aren't as exotic (-: Love you, Mich