C'est l'Afrique

And the journey continues! We made it to Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) this morning at 2 am (3am Benin time), and collapsed into the welcoming (and air-conditioned) beds at the SIM guesthouse. I was able to give Jaimie a proper West African travel experience complete with waiting 4 hours in the midday heat for our mini-bus to fill with passengers at Tanguieta (Benin), squeezing into a full bus at the border, and icing on the cake, our bus broke down at midnight in the middle of the very dark and quiet countryside. I layed down on the side of the road with the other 60-70 passengers, and Jaimie curled up in her seat on the bus for a nap while we waited in the dark. Safety in numbers when you travel in West Africa, so no one was really all that worried or upset, a few heated arguments took place between the bus driver and some well-to-do passengers, but as my friend Mahomet put it, arguing won't repair the bus or change our situation any more quickly than just waiting patiently. I agreed, and decided to just lay back and enjoy the uninhibited view of the stars in the black night. A couple of hours later, a mechanic arrived, bus started up, and we continued on our less than merry way to Ouagadougou. The usual chaos ensued at the bus depot in Ouaga, even at 2am, the taxi drivers and various biscuit/soda vendors all jockeying for our attention, pulling us this way and that. 

Thankfully our taxi man was familiar with the SIM mission guesthouse, however the night guard could not be woken with my calls over the wall, so in my exhausted state, I decided that the approach would be to hop over the wall and hunt down the guard to get the keys to our room. I'm pretty accustomed to jumping over any sort of wall/fence/gate, so no problem, but as I landed on the other side, the sleeping night guard was about 10 feet away in his chair and he woke with a start at the sound and sight of a person jumping over the wall. Although Mr. night guard was sleeping on the job, he deserves credit for waking instantly and rushing at me with his machete (large knife/sword) in hand. I was impressed, and thankfully the sleep cleared from his vision and head as he closed the distance between us, I assured him I meant no harm, that I really was a guest here. We had a good laugh over it, as I can explained he was sleeping so soundly, the sound of my voice could not wake him, but clearly the rattling of the gate was enough to bring him to his feet. 

Oh, and an interesting side note on our trip to Ouaga, we thought we would have to spend the night at the border, since our mini-bus left so late from Tanguieta (4pm), however one of my good friends from Cotonou   (Mahomet, track athlete) just happened to also be on his way to Ouagadougou the very same day! The bus could not stop for us in the small town of Tanguieta, so I waved at him from the side of the road where we were waiting for our taxi to fill up. An hour later, he called me and said that he had convinced the bus driver to wait at the border for us, since our taxi was only going as far as the border, we really were not sure how we would make it to Ouaga or even Fada (small town with mission guesthouse) before the next day. The entire bus of 60-70 passengers waited at the border for over an hour while our little mini-bus chugged along at 60kph, and it really was a blessed sight to see my smiling friend Mahomet waiting for us at the border! :) I was not looking forward to camping in a bush village at the border. As luck would have it, we still ended up sleeping in the ditch for a couple hours, but at least it was with a full bus of other people and not just the two of us. 

That was yesterday. The weekend in Parakou went by far too quickly for me, but I am really thankful that I was able to connect with many of my soccer girls and friends around town, enjoyed afternoon coffee and visits with old friends, went for a run at my favourite stadium, cheered on some of my girls in their high school soccer tournament, and just enjoyed catching up. Best part of this trip so far has been reconnecting with the girls I used to coach, seeing how they've progressed in school, university, sports, started families, etc. 

A couple of "before and after" shots with my friend's kids, three years really is a long time!

My Parakou nephew (Kelly, as in R.Kelly), all smiles and grown up 3 years later! :)

My other nephew, he's the baby on the right in first photo, he had a great time with "Tantie's" camera. His sister was a little more camera shy, but she's in the photo below with her mom. 

Visiting more friends around town.

Hard to leave Parakou after just a few short days, especially when my former soccer kids (now grown up teenagers!) were eagerly asking what time Wednesday's practice would start, and promising to show up on time! :) A few noticeable changes in Parakou over the past 3 years, but even with the changes some things stay the same, such as the warm welcoming smiles and greetings from friends, inviting me to sit for a meal or a soda, and the endless hospitality and generosity. Achi densu mes amis de Parakou! (until next time!)

From Parakou, we took an early morning bush taxi to Natitingou, making excellent time even with the miserable "road" conditions, our driver was quite skilled at navigating the pot holes, driving mainly in the ditch. Nice visit and stay at the Litweiri (sp?) Centre on the mountain with the Baynes, there's definitely something special about the view from the mountain top. By 5:30am we were on the road with our driver and park guide, headed up to Pendjari Park to hunt wildlife with our fancy cameras. I was a bit skeptical of the sofa chairs tied on the roof of his truck, but they proved to be quite secure as we rumbled through the park, scanning for random animals in the tall grass. The only animal we didn't manage to spot was of course the main attraction, lions, but otherwise we saw hippos, buffalo, elephants, warthogs, baboons, and every imaginable species of deer, antelope, and gazelle.  

Our accommodation for the night was definitely the highlight of the park tour We stayed at the newly opened Pendjari Lodge, an eco lodge/tent on the top of a hill overlooking the park. The lodge is run by a French family, and they seem to have thought of everything with solar energy for the tents, running water (showers/toilets in the tents as well), wifi internet, cold beer, French cuisine, and lovely rock veranda overlooking the valley. I highly recommend it to anyone traveling in Benin area, much better than the other Pendjari hotel in the park. 

We left Pendjari yesterday morning and arrived in Ouaga late last night (or early this morning...) and now we're taking a couple days to prepare for the next leg of the trip through southern Burkina and northern Ghana. More wildlife parks and villages visits on the itinerary, hopefully not as many "exciting" transit stories, but "c'est l'afrique" (that's Africa) so who knows!

West Africa: Week 1

A fon gandia! (Greetings! in Fon language in Benin) We've been in Africa one week now, and it feels good to have the warm sun on my face and the gritty dust in my eyes.

I'm traveling with my friend Jaimie from Boston, and I have to say she puts my traveling experience to shame with her "minimalist" packing skills and extensive globetrotting travels. It's not often that I meet a fellow traveler who also thrives on exploring the path less trodden via any means possible, and can handle hours of discomfort riding on cramped buses, trains, and motorbikes with for me, traveling is about the journey, the people I meet along the way, both new friends and old, and the "destination" is just wherever I happen to be for the day.

For this trip, the destination is really close to my heart, because I'm in now back in Benin! My main goal is reconnecting with many of my friends and former colleagues, and West Africa is new for Jaimie, so we're taking in as many of the local cultural sights and activities along the route. 

Highlights so far include:

- Dancing and drumming on Labadi beach on the coast of Accra until far too late

- Confusing & crowded tro tros of Accra, making friends along the way (a lady tried to take us home with her)

- Peace and tranquility of the secluded KO-SA beach resort 20km outside of Cape Coast

Cape Coast KOSA beach, Ghana

- Surviving the crashing waves of West African coast and swimming in the ocean

- Fresh coconuts (coconut juice!) and playing frisbee with kids on a deserted beach in Ghana

- Exploring Lomé (Togo) with a soccer friend I met in Berlin last year (Discover Football)

- Staying with Marianne in her village in Saxwe-land (Benin), and eating at the restaurant on stilts on Possotomé Lake

- Riding on zemidjens (motorbike taxi) at terrifying speeds through chaotic traffic in Cotonou (Benin)

First zemidjen ride in Benin (going to Possotomé Lake)

- Meeting up with Parakou friends now in Cotonou

- FAN MILK ice cream and TAMPICO!! (or Fandango as Tampico is now called) 

That brings you up to speed on the past week, we have officially been in Africa 7 days now and have covered a lot of ground! Today my friend from Parakou took us out to Ouidah, a coastal town with a lot of history on the slave trade and voodoo origins. The main road to Ouidah is under construction, we had already traveled it on our way into Cotonou the day before, it was bumpy, dusty, and very unpleasant in general. My friend suggested that the "road" along the beach would be best, so off we went on his motorbike and Jaimie on the hired zem. Planned to leave early, but had to dash across town at 7am to buy our bus tickets for the next morning to Parakou, so by the time we left for Ouidah it was after 8am and the sun was already high in the sky. 

My friend Mahomet (Parakou athlete) who took us to Ouidah

Beach road from Cotonou to Ouidah

Main point of interest for us at Ouidah was the "Gate of No Return", the point where the captured slaves passed through on their way to the ships carrying them to Europe, America, and the Caribbean  According to the self-appointed tour guide, approximately 15 million slaves went through this gate, mostly to the Americas. Benin is the birthplace of voodoo, so it was from this gate in Ouidah that voodoo spread across the seas to the Americas with the slave trade in the 1500`s through the mid 1800`s. The tour guide actually did very well explaining the history, most of which I had never heard before, and then I did my best to translate to English for Jaimie (I got a bit brain-drained in the midday blazing sun, somewhat dehydrated as well).

From Ouidah we tore back to Cotonou on the red dirt road, and then headed onto the famous Ganvié fishing village on the other side of Cotonou. Covered in fine red dust, still haven't finished my morning cup of coffee, it's noon and we haven't had breakfast, but decide to head out on an open boat to tour the village on stilts in the middle of a lake in 45'C midday heat. Our tour guide was very eager, I didn't have the heart to tell him he couldn't come, so he joined Jaimie and I on the motorized pirogue (wooden canoe) and chatted away at us about the local folklore on how the village on stilts came to be.

Slightly sun-stroked and covered in a what felt like a month's worth of travel dust, we made it back to Cotonou for Lebanese late lunch, picked up our passports from the Burkina Faso consulate, sped back to our host home (couchsurf) just minutes before a lovely tropical rainstorm blew in. Cool rains definitely welcomed for our 8 hour bus trip (hopefully with a/c) to Parakou tomorrow morning, where we'll be spending the weekend before continuing north to Burkina. Excited to see more friends in Parakou, 3 days is much too short, but it will be nice to spend time with good friends even if just for a brief time. 

Until next time, maybe will update after our safari tour of Pendjari Park once we arrive in Ouagadougou (Burkina) and have a decent internet connection again. 

The Beginning of a Journey to...

Boston! 

Ok and then onto Ghana, Togo, Benin, and Burkina. Niger was a hard sell, what with the constant "travel advisories", kidnappings, scorching heat, dust, etc., So I'll wait at least until after the next coup d'etat to stop by Niger (sorry to my Niger friends!). 

Stay tuned for more stories, this trip is purely for leisure, no work, no projects, no stress. :) Looking forward to exploring the touristy side of some of my favorite countries, catching up with many of my favorite friends, and just enjoying the month long road trip around West Africa. 

A bientôt mes amis!

Travel route highlighted in blue.

L'esprit de Noël à Montréal

Santa came to town today, a little early in my opinion, but I wandered downtown to take in the parade festivities nonetheless.

 

Beautiful day for a parade, so Sainte-Cathérine Street was packed with stroller-pushing parents and hoards of children, all jockeying for a glimpse of Santa (or "the fat man in a red suit", as he is referred to here). 

The crowds didn't bother me too much, but I had a minor panic attack when I realized that an entire marching band and parade of creepy Christmas balloons separated me from my mid-day Starbucks coffee! 

Thanks to google maps, I was able to quickly navigate my way to the next closest Starbucks, and treated myself to my first peppermint mocha (grandé, non-fat, no-whip, extra shot = caffeinated Christmas perfection) of the year.  

Christmas carol jingles and Santa Claus aside, it isn't until I enjoy the first sip of my peppermint mocha that I really start to appreciate the spirit of Christmas. I'm not quite ready to put up a Christmas tree and send out greeting cards, but maybe after I try the caramel creme brulée mocha next weekend...

Merry Starbucks Mochas to one & all!

Impressions sur Montréal

Soyez bienvenue à Montréal! 

I've been here a week now and am loving it! First impressions, Montrealers are super hospitable and friendly, well of course, other than when they're driving... I think I just might be one of the most law-abiding drivers on the island, and for those of you who know how I drive, well that's saying something! No worries, I'm picking up the "appropriate" hand gestures and honking signals quickly enough. 

View through my bedroom window

Last weekend I thoroughly explored the shops of Rue Ste-Catherine downtown, and quickly used up a healthy chunk of my clothing & shoes budget for the year... Money well spent though, it felt good to start the week at my new office with an updated wardrobe, from new boots to scarves and winter hats. :)

Expecting a weekend of rain, I was thrilled to wake up to a sunny day this morning, so I decided to break in my new boots and go for a stroll down to Vieux Montreal, just 1km from my apartment. 

Lovely fall weather

Ok, so I think I live in the hood, but it's a quiet hood, so not bad.  :)

Lachine Canal

Found my way to Vieux Montreal, and stopped in at the first bustling breakfast café I spotted, conveniently at the corner of "Evans Court". :) Grabbed my café allongé (which is apparently just a slightly larger espresso) and brioche avec sirop d’érable (maple & pecan cinnamon bun) to go, and strolled down to the docks.

Vieux Ports

Bonsecour Market

View of downtown from across the canal

I walked about as far as my blisters from my new boots allowed, and then rented a bixi bike (brilliant idea Montreal!) and cruised back along the canal to pick up my weekly groceries at Marché Atwater and buy some blister patches for my feet. :( I felt very metropolitan as I cruised along the canal on my rental bike, in my knee high boots & skinny jeans, with my scarf and hair flowing in the wind. Bike helmets and spandex are for the "commoners", cyclists here are fashionistas on wheels. 

Marché Atwater

Les citrouilles!

Finished up my shopping, packed it into the little rack on the front of my bike, and cruised home just in time as it clouded over and started to rain.

Beautiful clouds

Looking forward to exploring more of Montréal, and I've already gotten myself an invite to a girls' weekly dinner club, so yaay, now I have an excuse to try out all the fantastic restaurants around town. Local hockey arena & pool just 3 min from my apartment, and the YCMA gym is just 2 min the other direction, so I'm feeling more & more at home here everyday! :)

Indonesia!

Ah, Indonesia... where to start! I've been in the country for eight days and I'm already typing in an Indonesian accent - seriously, it's hard to shake once you start. 

 

The week with my brother and family was fantastic, so good to catch up with their lives and spoil my nephews! Full week of tasting many exotic fruits & spicy dishes, making new friends, and learning how to embarrass myself in yet another new language. 

The second leg of my trip started with an overnight roller-coaster-on-speed bus ride (imagine a rag doll in a laundromat dryer... yup, that's me), a cancelled flight, a sprint through Jakarta airport, but finally brought me to Bali airport, where I was greeted by my guesthouse driver. 

I cannot really give a fair evaluation of Jakarta's airport, since I really only spent 20 minutes there, but I will say that the luggage belts in the domestic terminal are excruciatingly slow!! 15 of my 20 minutes were spent pacing between three different luggage carousels, and within the next 5 minutes I transferred terminals (walked next door), got my boarding pass and re-checked my luggage, cleared security, and sprinted to the boarding gate just in time for take-off. I've missed running through airports, it's kind of like a sport for me, or an obstacle course with the added benefit of stretching my legs between flights. I use my rugby training and "run at the gap" to squeeze between luggage toting pedestrians and wandering children (very unpredictable in their movements), and I actually find airports are almost easier to navigate at a quick run. Needless to say my poor ankle was rather sore after my little run through the terminal, but it made me smile to be able to do it again. :) 

Oh, and I found this sign particularly helpful when I went to freshen up in the ladies room. Just in case you were considering it, whatever you do, 

DO NOT STAND ON THE TOILET SEAT!!! 

Ok, I know, very petty of me to post photos of airport toilet stalls, but I was jet-lagged when I started this little photo series, and now I feel obligated to continue.

My arrival in Bali was fantastic, the zen-like quiet domestic terminal of Denpasar airport was like a breath of fresh air after Jakarta, literally. I somehow thought that this meant Bali must be nearly tourist-free, even the airport is quiet, and then I walked outside and ran into the hordes of flip-flop wearing, loud talking, camera waving tourists. Apparently most tourists travel via the international terminal, which looked to have about as much zen as a Walmart during back-to-school week. 

I was met at the airport by the guesthouse staff, and while I was skeptical booking this place online, Budha's Guesthouse really is a little piece of heaven in the middle of an otherwise chaotic part of Bali (Kuta/Legian). Who wouldn't feel relaxed staying in a place called Budha's Guesthouse?? :) Very pleased, and the staff are pretty awesome at making sure that even grubby backpacker guests like myself are treated like royalty, lovely treat to stay here. 

My first 24 hours in Bali: 

- I strolled through tourists trap along Kuta beach and Legian, 

- caught the sunset, 

 - enjoyed proper street side chicken satay

- met up with a new couchsurfing friend, who took me zipping around town on her scooter to meet up with more new friends, 

- danced the night away at Sky Garden, 

- navigated my way around the city, on a SCOOTER :)  (in search of an affordable fastboat company)       

Yaay, I've missed driving a scooter! Driving on the left is a little goofy, my brain would reset to the right side every time I turned a corner, and then panic to remember which direction to swerve away from the oncoming traffic. 

- zigzagged down to the southwestern tip of the island (on my scooter)

- climbed some rocks for a better view,

- spotted a dirt road, which led me to one Bali's hidden surf treasures,

Inspired by the surf stars, I asked if I could jump in, and they sent me down the road to another beach for newbies, but seeing as I really never have surfed, it's probably best I don't start on a cliff with coral reef to land on. 

 

Another beach with wicked rip tide along the way

- surfed for the first time ever!!!

The newbie beach was pretty quiet, and I was ready to just rent a board and give it a shot since the pros down the road made it look pretty simple. A couple of travelers from Portugal (also learning to surf) convinced me to pay the extra $5 for an instructor, and after 5 minutes of talking about snowboarding, we headed for the waves. Two hours later and I can already see myself living the life of a beach bum, nothing but surf, sun, and sand baby! I'd like to be modest, but I feel like I was born to surf, and yet it's taken me 30 years to discover this because I grew up in the Canadian prairies and sub-Saharan Africa! Sigh...

Packed day, including a minor "run in" with the local police - not cool to drive a scooter without an international license, oops... Supper with more random friends at the food market, home to Budha's to pack my bag, and off to Gili islands via speed boat this morning!

Asia influence

I am sitting in my new most favourite airport ever right now; Singapore’s Changi International airport is the bomb. Oops, poor choice of words, but it really is in a class of its own in comparison to the many other airports I’ve trudged and/or sprinted through.

I'm just over half way through my 2 day hop-scotch flight route, with 6 hours in Tokyo – most of which were spent looking out the train window  –  arrived in Singapore at 3am, and am now off to Kuala Lumpur for another 5 hours before arriving at my final destination of Indonesia!

(now in Kuala Lumpur LCCT airport)

This is my first Asia experience, and I have to say that so far, judging by the inside of airports, it doesn’t really feel much different than any other major international hub, although it is really hard to get a feel for a country from just the airport, that hardly counts. Arriving in Tokyo Natari airport, I immediately determined that 6 1/2 hours in such an airport would be rather tedious (disappointed with Tokyo airport), and a quick visit into the city seemed feasible with that much time, so I decided to go for it.

One part that I kind of forgot about in planning this trip, was Tokyo. I figured it would be fairly obvious for a tourist to figure out where to go, since it is TOKYO after all, the city of King Kong and Godzilla (or is that Hong Kong??), bustling with trendy Japanese and flashy shopping. It wasn’t until I actually exited the Tokyo Central train station in the middle of a boring downtown intersection, that I realized I know absolutely nothing about Tokyo. 

Maybe I had it confused with Hong Kong, or whatever city it is featured as the "major Asian centre” in every apocalyptic Hollywood action flick... In any case, it was not what I had expected. 6 1/2 hours turns into 4 very quickly with little things like customs, security clearance, boarding, etc., so I had exactly 30 minutes to power walk around 8-10 blocks of “downtown" Tokyo, and noted that the shops were all high-end designer stores, similar to Paris shopping in the Champs-Elysées block, not exactly the “Japanese” experience I was hoping for.

This is where I spent 3 of my 4 hours in Tokyo

See, I really am in Tokyo!

About 3 hours into my stay in Tokyo I did thankfully catch on to the driving and walking on the opposite (left) side of the road, avoiding most of the near collisions with fellow pedestrians and bikes. Now I understand why the Banff tourists always seem underfoot, like they purposely walk on the wrong side of the sidewalk just to be difficult, but no they are actually doing what is completely expected and normal in their own country!! Hm... Tokyo was a bust, but I feel that I gleaned at least a bit of enlightenment with the whole pedestrian traffic thing, and also reminded myself why it is important to research each destination on my in itinerary, so that I can make the most of my “Amazing Race”-like city tours and airport layovers.

Singapore airport was like heaven-on-earth to the weary traveler, and I’m convinced it was designed by an experienced female traveler, because they thought of everything!! I tend to judge an airport using the following criteria:

     

        1. Cleanliness –  (also applies to point #4 & 5)

        2. Accessibility (layout, proximity of terminals & city centre via train/shuttle)

        3. Services (variety of food and shopping options, hours of operation, information centres, maps)

        4. Toilets (more on this below)

        5. Comfort (lounge chairs vs hard plastic bucket seats)

I fell in love with the public toilets in Singapore, they even had a vanity mirror section with cushioned stools, like a classy restaurant washroom, so lovely. I gave them my feedback with an extra big smile – see photo from bathroom wall. Changi airport had many other things to make the weary traveler feel welcome and at ease, pictured below; it really was like a little paradise at 3am.

Vanity mirror in Changi airport bathroom.

Kuala Lumpur LCCT (low-cost carrier terminal) was exactly what it promised to be, low-cost and rather grubby in comparison to Changi’s delux comforts. It reminded me of a typical West African airport (similar level of bathroom cleanliness, or lack there of), with many more food service options though, some of the food shops were actually quite tasty (fresh fruit smoothies, hot & spicy wraps, noodle bowls, and KFC & McD’s should you so desire). I found a quiet corner in the Coffee Bean shop for a while to do emails, then wandered as far outside the terminal as I could pushing a luggage cart, to do some stretching and chill in the muggy morning sun.

My little spot of peace for yoga/stretching, with the noisy & polluting buses in the background.

The parade of toilets...

Ah...

No thanks.

I had started to notice a subtle change as I traveled from one airport to another - something which I think speaks volumes about the local culture - and that is the way in which people line up, or form queues. Tokyo was almost military-like in forming queues, and I received a few dirty looks as I strolled ignorantly up to the edge of the train platform, completely missing the orderly line off to the side. Singapore was a bit more relaxed, but it was 5am when we were lining up for the flight, and I think we were all still a bit groggy. Kuala Lumpur  involved lots of line cutting and “queue-jumping”, but it was fairly tame in comparison to some of the other pushy airports I’ve been in (Niamey, Casablanca, Kano, etc.). 

Stay tuned for more airport reviews, as I have another few new stopovers ahead  of me – why take the same route back when there are so many new & exciting airports to discover on this side of the world! 

Hm...

P.S. Road traffic here makes Cotonou and Benin roadways look tame in comparison - and I had a few moments of heart-stopping panic as my sleepy eyes would open to see us flying toward oncoming traffic on the wrong side!! My brother puts the bus drivers in Benin to shame with his rally driving skills; little sister is duly impressed (and somewhat terrified).