Articles in Travel
Guinea 017
Monday, December 25 8:30 a.m.
Christmas Day in Guinea begins with the usual long, involved discussion about breakfast of which I understood nothing. Part of the problem is my poor understanding of spoken French but most has to do with something I still don’t understand. The way I’m perceived as a foreigner perhaps. Or a Guinean habit of mentioning things that don’t need to be mentioned, …
Guinea 016
Sunday, December 24 9:00 a.m.
To my horror Conde wormed his way back into my life and into my thoughts yesterday. It was spectacularly bad timing because I had plans to leave Conakry this morning. I’d had my laundry done. I was saying my goodbyes to Sundar, Bob, and the family at La Vina, and I was looking forward to a pleasant afternoon of tinkering with …
Guinea 015
Saturday, December 23
The build up and the walk to the cinema was certainly more entertaining than the movie itself which was a standard conspiracy flick with corruption going to the highest levels of government. Ivory Keenan Wayans was the fall guy and fought back and won only because of his commando training. Oh yeah, and he got the girl.
The atmosphere was much more subdued and …
Guinea 014
Friday, December 22 9:00 a.m.
I seem to have been unusually lucky in terms of the police. I’ve ridden my bike all over Conakry and haven’t been stopped once by anyone for an ID check or bribe scam. Angie was very surprised to hear this. She won’t even go to the Madina market because she is harassed every time and counts herself lucky to get away …
Guinea 013
Thursday, December 21 9:21 a.m.
I did eventually find the mysterious SPG that sold newspapers. I walked down the main road quite a distance looking for the letters SPG and popping into all the stores that in the West could be expected to sell papers. Most places treated me with disinterested brusqueness. I was about to give up when I saw a large sign for the …
Guinea 012
Wednesday, December 20 10:25 a.m.
My cold has arrived full force and I spent a difficult night dealing with a runny nose, a hotter-than-normal night, and a sudden increase in the mosquito population. Actually I don’t think there were more of them but being awake and miserable I tended to notice them. They’re a fast breed of mosquito, impossible to slap against the wall, totally silent …
Guinea 011
Tuesday, December 19 10:00 a.m.
A deep fatigue settled over me yesterday. I stayed in bed till ten in the morning and then did very little throughout the day, returning often to La Vina to lie on my bed and search the shortwave bands for intelligible sounds. And last night I slept deep and hard. It could be the heat, a cold that I feel coming …
Guinea 010
Monday, December 18 10:30 a.m.
Taking this room and staying in Conakry an extra week has had the desired effect. I’ve ceased to obsess about getting on the bicycle and “go, go, going.” I’ve relaxed and slipped another notch into what I’m beginning to think of as a Guinean pace of life. And even loading up my bicycle with my four pannier bags and cycling the …