Day 2: Waking Up From The Dream

After a long night of many vivid bathroom-related dreams, I finally decided to get up and use it (i.e. the side of the boat). At this point, I had been stirred from my tortuous slumber by noises. I opened the tarp to go outside and was greeted by a magnificent sunrise that I had never seen before. I hopped on the roof and my eyes had a feast on the skies.

Breakfast was not a feast. In fact, it was rice with fish. We started to realize that our 10,000CFA per person food price was going towards paying everyone’s meals. There is nothing wrong with feeding others (who ate for free), but this was ridiculous, especially after the many promises made and all the haggling that was done. When Joe complained to the captain, fresh bananas and pawpaw appeared out of nowhere.

The morning started out well, travel-wise and the river was full of life, with pirogues (small Venetian-style boats) full of fish and goods traveling up and down, mut-hut villages (and a lovely mosque) and cattle grazing on the banks. It appears that, random fridges on the banks aside, life on the Niger appeared to be similar to what it must have been like long ago.

The Niger, with the distinction of being the third-longest river in Africa (After the Nile and Congo), also is the lifeline of the countries of Mali and Niger – without it, they would be hostile and unforgiving deserts with nomads and subsistence farmers. The land below it is Sahel, or semi-desert and the land above turns into desert after a short while, especially at the river’s apex at Timbuktu. The Niger shapes the life of millions of people and without it, they probably wouldn’t exist.

We were stuck again at 1 and stayed that way for two hours. Joe assisted the workers in dislodging the boat (and probably got bilharzia in the process), which helped somewhat. We were stuck again on the banks in no time. Many left the boat on a pirogue to chill on a nearby island. Jan Il, Pete and I stayed on the boat near the shore.

On the upside, this gave me the chance to explore the countryside. I went for a walk through tall grass, moist ground and the odd cow patty. I realized it was like being at home and walking through the farmer’s fields! All I needed was my trusty sidekick Dorothy to run around and chase the birds… there were large flocks of starling-like birds that seemed to weave and bob as a group, like a giant piece of cloth being tossed about in the wind. Taureg-herded cattle moseyed about in the background. Mali around the Niger felt like being in a giant empty savannah-like playground. Isn’t this the essence of Africa to the West? The stereotypical image of grasslands and baobab trees, where gazelles graze, hippos bathe, lions sleep and giraffes walk about awkwardly. I saw none of those animals, but I sure felt like I was in the middle of nowhere in an empty paradise – and happy to be there.

In the midst of another superb sunset, as the earth was bathed in a warm glow, I sat on the roof, reading Jan Martel’s Life of Pi. They say it is a story that will make you believe in God. Already having those convictions, I felt even more spiritual in that place.

We ended up staying on the banks for the night. It was clear that we were not going to make it to Timbuktu the next day. Dinner was rice and fish again – but aha! Ross had brought along a shaker full of black pepper! It became quite the lifesaver. We ended up having the rice as well as some unmarked bottles of wine on the roof, beneath the stars. As frustrating as it was to be stuck, I was content to be stuck where we were.