Trip Report - Benin/Togo
May 18th, 2007, 03:10 AM
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Leely: agh!! As long as I can remember, I have always wanted to be a writer and have been trying to finish up something I started writing about my afternoon in a Shi’a neighborhood in Beirut last fall. Problem is, I can easily slap together a stream of consciousness trip report of the day’s events in about 20 minutes but have performance anxiety when writing “for real.” But, maybe I’ll motivate to get cracking again on that article...
MyDogKyle – thanks – I really love taking pictures of the kids I hang out with on these trips, as those little encounters are often the memories that stick with me the longest.
MyDogKyle – thanks – I really love taking pictures of the kids I hang out with on these trips, as those little encounters are often the memories that stick with me the longest.
May 19th, 2007, 08:43 AM
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Day Six
After my morning coffee, one of the employees at the Coco Beach Hotel drove me to the main road where I would catch a taxi back to Benin. It only takes a few minutes to get a taxi to stop, however, we have a bit of a standoff as to whether I will purchase two seats so that I have the front passenger seat all to myself. Several men standing around get involved in my discussion with the driver, and everyone seems convinced that I’m not understanding how a shared taxi works and that I should buy two seats. I do another pantomime to explain that I’m ok being squished in the car (this time the pantomime is more successful that my previous interpretive dance to Bob) and we are on our way to Benin. The driver speaks a little English, and after much back and forth over why I won’t buy both seats, we agree that I’ll buy both seats if he will take me directly to the hotel I’ve picked out in Ouidah. Part of the rationale for me buying both seats was so that I could actually use a seatbelt, however, after I agreed to buy both seats I discovered that someone had ripped it out of the car.
We have a backseat full of people by the time we reach the Togo/Benin border, I breeze through the crossing (far fewer people around this time), locate my driver, and we drive around picking up more passengers to fill up the car. The drive to Ouidah was not a fun drive and made me seriously reconsider what an acceptable level of risk is while traveling. There weren’t too many other cars on the road that day, so I wasn’t terribly worried about us hitting another car. Unfortunately this also meant that our driver felt free to drive as fast as humanly possible since there were few cars to impede his race to Ouidah. Although I wasn’t sure a seatbelt would save me if we spun out of control, the lack of a seat belt was making me even more panicky. (I accidentally completely submerged the family car into a bayou back in high school (with, um, my parents and grandma in the car with me), and would likely not be here today had I not been wearing my seat belt, so I will not even drive down the block now without buckling up.)
Then, the rain starts….it’s pouring, and this car is so old that the windshield wipers don’t seem to have the extra high wiping speed that is absolutely necessary in this kind of downpour. I assumed that he would pull over – WE CAN’T SEE – but no…..we keep driving (at a very slightly reduced speed), but now it’s raining so hard and those damn windshield wipers are so slow, that we really can’t see where we are driving. In addition, the window is now fogging up, so he continually has to wipe the inside of the window while driving. He continues to pass any cars that we approach, and we are driving on a two lane road.
After about 30 minutes, the rain slows down considerably to where the driver can see where he’s going. Hallelujah. We get to Ouidah and the driver starts trying to find my hotel. (I showed him the Ouidah map, but as usual, the map just seemed to confuse things more.) I’m not sure how many people were in the backseat at this point, as I was too embarrassed to turn around and look. I’m already feeling high maintenance because I have the entire front seat to myself, and now we are making what is turning out to be a long detour to find my hotel. The people in the backseat are all headed to Cotonou and are – understandably – not happy about this detour. I knew that the hotel was a few miles off the main road, but I thought that the driver understood this…we eventually find the right road (which is a bumpy dirt road, which further slows us down) but there is an animated discussion going on in the back seat which is clearly about me. (I keep hearing “zemi,” followed by much laughter, so I’m convinced they are going to seize control of the taxi and leave me on the side of the road in the rain to find a zemi.) We get to the hotel, the driver demands $10 extra (I thought five was fair, but he wouldn’t give me my backpack), and in the interest of getting the people in the backseat on their way to Cotonou, I hand it over.
Ouidah is a coastal town and was one of the major players in the transatlantic slave trade. I’ve seen different figures, but it is estimated that over two million slaves left from Ouidah. Ouidah is also considered to be the spiritual capital of Benin thus, combined with its historical importance, Ouidah is probably the most touristy place in Benin. There is a tiny hassle factor here, but I never saw more than a few tourists a day and it was a nice change that everyone in town seemed familiar with all the tourist hot spots, so getting directions was never a problem.
I stayed at a hotel (Jardin Bresilien) located on the beach, right by the Gate of No Return. Although it isn’t centrally located, I loved the beachside setting and the staff was exceptionally friendly, helpful and many spoke English so could easily answer any questions I had. If you don’t have your own transportation (I was the only guest during my three nights there that was car-less), you have to take a zemi to get into town, so if you haven’t made your peace with zemis, this is not the place for you. My room was only $30 USD, had a/c (when the power was working), and sparkling white sheets that were definitely completely clean and set my heart a flutter. Nothing fancy but perfectly adequate. You are likely to have lizards in your room here, so this also wouldn’t be a good place for someone with a strong aversion to reptiles. (After a 45 minute standoff with a lizard perched above my bed this past January during my first night in Cambodia, I had made my peace with bunking up with lizards so this really didn’t bother me, and, it was nice that my Beninese lizard didn’t seem to invite as many lizard friends over as my Cambodian friend.)
I wasn’t looking to do much that day, so I spent the afternoon eating a leisurely lunch (they have a covered eating right on the beach), reading and waiting for the rain to stop. After the rain stopped, I took a long walk on the beach, which is lined with fishing villages, stopping to hang out with the very friendly kids I met along the way. The power finally came back on, so I went into town to check email, took a zemi home in the dark (not fun, especially on a muddy road), said good night to my lizard, and turned in early.
After my morning coffee, one of the employees at the Coco Beach Hotel drove me to the main road where I would catch a taxi back to Benin. It only takes a few minutes to get a taxi to stop, however, we have a bit of a standoff as to whether I will purchase two seats so that I have the front passenger seat all to myself. Several men standing around get involved in my discussion with the driver, and everyone seems convinced that I’m not understanding how a shared taxi works and that I should buy two seats. I do another pantomime to explain that I’m ok being squished in the car (this time the pantomime is more successful that my previous interpretive dance to Bob) and we are on our way to Benin. The driver speaks a little English, and after much back and forth over why I won’t buy both seats, we agree that I’ll buy both seats if he will take me directly to the hotel I’ve picked out in Ouidah. Part of the rationale for me buying both seats was so that I could actually use a seatbelt, however, after I agreed to buy both seats I discovered that someone had ripped it out of the car.
We have a backseat full of people by the time we reach the Togo/Benin border, I breeze through the crossing (far fewer people around this time), locate my driver, and we drive around picking up more passengers to fill up the car. The drive to Ouidah was not a fun drive and made me seriously reconsider what an acceptable level of risk is while traveling. There weren’t too many other cars on the road that day, so I wasn’t terribly worried about us hitting another car. Unfortunately this also meant that our driver felt free to drive as fast as humanly possible since there were few cars to impede his race to Ouidah. Although I wasn’t sure a seatbelt would save me if we spun out of control, the lack of a seat belt was making me even more panicky. (I accidentally completely submerged the family car into a bayou back in high school (with, um, my parents and grandma in the car with me), and would likely not be here today had I not been wearing my seat belt, so I will not even drive down the block now without buckling up.)
Then, the rain starts….it’s pouring, and this car is so old that the windshield wipers don’t seem to have the extra high wiping speed that is absolutely necessary in this kind of downpour. I assumed that he would pull over – WE CAN’T SEE – but no…..we keep driving (at a very slightly reduced speed), but now it’s raining so hard and those damn windshield wipers are so slow, that we really can’t see where we are driving. In addition, the window is now fogging up, so he continually has to wipe the inside of the window while driving. He continues to pass any cars that we approach, and we are driving on a two lane road.
After about 30 minutes, the rain slows down considerably to where the driver can see where he’s going. Hallelujah. We get to Ouidah and the driver starts trying to find my hotel. (I showed him the Ouidah map, but as usual, the map just seemed to confuse things more.) I’m not sure how many people were in the backseat at this point, as I was too embarrassed to turn around and look. I’m already feeling high maintenance because I have the entire front seat to myself, and now we are making what is turning out to be a long detour to find my hotel. The people in the backseat are all headed to Cotonou and are – understandably – not happy about this detour. I knew that the hotel was a few miles off the main road, but I thought that the driver understood this…we eventually find the right road (which is a bumpy dirt road, which further slows us down) but there is an animated discussion going on in the back seat which is clearly about me. (I keep hearing “zemi,” followed by much laughter, so I’m convinced they are going to seize control of the taxi and leave me on the side of the road in the rain to find a zemi.) We get to the hotel, the driver demands $10 extra (I thought five was fair, but he wouldn’t give me my backpack), and in the interest of getting the people in the backseat on their way to Cotonou, I hand it over.
Ouidah is a coastal town and was one of the major players in the transatlantic slave trade. I’ve seen different figures, but it is estimated that over two million slaves left from Ouidah. Ouidah is also considered to be the spiritual capital of Benin thus, combined with its historical importance, Ouidah is probably the most touristy place in Benin. There is a tiny hassle factor here, but I never saw more than a few tourists a day and it was a nice change that everyone in town seemed familiar with all the tourist hot spots, so getting directions was never a problem.
I stayed at a hotel (Jardin Bresilien) located on the beach, right by the Gate of No Return. Although it isn’t centrally located, I loved the beachside setting and the staff was exceptionally friendly, helpful and many spoke English so could easily answer any questions I had. If you don’t have your own transportation (I was the only guest during my three nights there that was car-less), you have to take a zemi to get into town, so if you haven’t made your peace with zemis, this is not the place for you. My room was only $30 USD, had a/c (when the power was working), and sparkling white sheets that were definitely completely clean and set my heart a flutter. Nothing fancy but perfectly adequate. You are likely to have lizards in your room here, so this also wouldn’t be a good place for someone with a strong aversion to reptiles. (After a 45 minute standoff with a lizard perched above my bed this past January during my first night in Cambodia, I had made my peace with bunking up with lizards so this really didn’t bother me, and, it was nice that my Beninese lizard didn’t seem to invite as many lizard friends over as my Cambodian friend.)
I wasn’t looking to do much that day, so I spent the afternoon eating a leisurely lunch (they have a covered eating right on the beach), reading and waiting for the rain to stop. After the rain stopped, I took a long walk on the beach, which is lined with fishing villages, stopping to hang out with the very friendly kids I met along the way. The power finally came back on, so I went into town to check email, took a zemi home in the dark (not fun, especially on a muddy road), said good night to my lizard, and turned in early.
May 20th, 2007, 03:44 AM
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Linda, sounds like a scary drive -- similar to my drive this morning from Almaty to Bishkek in a deluge, but we had the very fast wipers and a very safe driver. Fyi, the border crossing from Kazakhstan to Kyrgystan is much easier (no bribe!) than from Benin to Togo.
May 20th, 2007, 04:51 AM
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Michael –
Hope the ‘stans are treating you well – but on to important stuff: In my mind, everyone drinks a lot of vodka over there. Would I be able to drink my normal vodka sodas, or would I need to drink it straight to avoid committing some former soviet bloc faux pas?
Hope the ‘stans are treating you well – but on to important stuff: In my mind, everyone drinks a lot of vodka over there. Would I be able to drink my normal vodka sodas, or would I need to drink it straight to avoid committing some former soviet bloc faux pas?
May 20th, 2007, 08:43 PM
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Actually, I haven't seen much vodka, but I have been, at night, drinking kumys (fermented mare's milk) -- its worse than it sounds! I've been looking for something called shubat (fermented camel's milk), but I think they drink that out in the steppes, not near the cities. I'm leaving soon for the big market outside Bishkek, so I may be able to find some there.
May 31st, 2007, 07:15 PM
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No, I’m not…and I need to finish it soon! I am living my own little version of the “Apprentice” right now trying to get a business up and running in a week so got sidetracked but plan to finish it up this weekend. Thanks for the gentle push 
Jul 9th, 2007, 08:36 AM
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Day 7
The Bradt guide recommends two local guides in Ouidah: Martine de Souza – a descendant of Don Francisco de Souza (an infamous Brazilian slave trader in Benin), and Remi. At breakfast, I told the guys at the hotel that I was looking for either Remi or Martine, and after a quick call to Remi, he was at the hotel within 20 minutes. We settled on a price (I think I spent about 30 dollars) and were soon off for the day. You could certainly see everything in Ouidah on your own by using zemis, however, Remi is so knowledgeable and personable that it was definitely money will spent and a very enjoyable day. We saw the Python Temple, the Sacred Forest, the market, the Portuguese (slave) Fort (which houses the Ouidah History museum), the Slave Route & the Gate of No Return, with a few random stops thrown in. If you plan to be in Ouidah and want a guide, I’d definitely contact Remi in advance ([email protected]), as he works with various tour agencies and is often booked up. He also leads groups on country wide tours of Benin.
My one regret from Ouidah is that I did not take Remi up on his offer to do an “Ouidah at Night” tour (this is basically a good old fashioned bar crawl, and the cost would have been us alternating buying drinks at the various drinking establishments in town). I think he’d be up for doing “Ouidah at Night” with anyone he thinks would be entertaining enough for a night out (he had some funny stories about some other tourists he’d done this with), so if you find yourself in Ouidah, please take him up on this and report back! My only excuse for suddenly becoming lame was that I really wanted to get an early start in the morning for my last day in Ouidah, and, the thought of possibly nursing even a slight hangover in insanely hot weather without a steady supply of cold Gatorade just didn’t sound fun.
Day 8
After spending some quality time with my four legged friend at the hotel and eating a leisurely breakfast (service is slooooow, so you will get “leisurely” whether you want it or not), I headed off to the Maison du Bresil, a tiny museum on the outskirts of town. The current exhibit is excellent and focuses on the (many) roles of women in Africa.
I spent the balance of the day hanging out with kids playing in the street. As usual, the Bradt guide and the digital camera were wildly popular, however, my digital watch came in a close third after one of the little boys figured out how to make it beep. I had so many things I wanted to ask them, but alas, that language barrier…
I finally said goodbye to the kids and decided to walk the Slave Route back to my hotel. Although Remi and I driven the slave route the previous day on his motorbike, I felt like something was lost by not actually walking the road (it’s about 3.5km starting in town and ending on the beach at the Gate of No Return). My “regular” zemi driver kept appearing/stalking me during my walk though (he had latched onto me my first night in Ouidah, and, since he was clearly desperate to make a few dollars whenever possible, he was something of my personal zemi chauffeur during my time in Ouidah), but I finally got rid of him and finished my walk in peace. I did give my zemi stalker a nice tip before I left Ouidah, mainly to compensate him for the petrol he used up trailing me around town in an attempt to (understandably) make a few more dollars.
Day 9
I went high class today and hired a private taxi (10 dollars) to drive me back to Cotonou for my flight home. The drive is only about 45 minutes, and if you take the dirt road that runs along the beach, it’s very interesting to see all the fishing villages and local people along the way. The drive was somewhat marred by the piglet fatality (as usual, the driver was driving like a bat out of hell, and I am 99.9 percent certain we killed a teeny pig when a pig family had the misfortune of trying to cross the road as we came barreling by.) Although the driver did not speak English, he did appear to understand the string of obscenities that came out of my mouth after the involuntary manslaughter incident, so he slowed down considerably after that. As you would expect, the people living in these little fishing villages are incredibly poor, and I can’t even imagine how important a piglet is to them, so in addition to not wanting to see a pig die, I really did not want to be a part of knocking off their food supply.
I had been unable to get the Hotel du Lac in Cotonou to agree on a reduced rate for a day room, so I had the driver drop me off at a random hotel in Cotonou (Hotel Vickinfel) that was near the market. After comparing the Vickinfel to the second class rooms at the Hotel du Lac (the Bradt guide describes the Vickinfel as one of the better midrange hotels in Cotonou) I am convinced that the second class rooms at the Hotel du Lac are the best deal in town and were probably about ten times nicer than the rooms at the Vickinfel. All I needed was a place to store my luggage and a shower though, so I happily accepted their offer of a $20 rate for a day room.
After lunch at the Vickinfel -- huge plate of rice and four boiled eggs, which I covered in hot sauce and washed down with several cups of coffee (seemed like a good idea at the time) -- I set off for the market feeling slightly ill. It soon started pouring, and was really a wasted day. I had planned to spend all afternoon at the Dantokpa market, which is the largest market in Benin. However, after an hour of traipsing around in heavy rain, I gave up and headed back to an internet café. I ended up heading to the airport much earlier than necessary, as after the power went out in Cotonou, I started feeling a little uneasy in the now blacked out hotel.
Overall, I really enjoyed this trip – it definitely wasn’t relaxing or comfortable, but the incredibly friendly people made it very worthwhile. There is much more to see in Benin than covered in this report (the entire top half of the country, including two national parks). I remember reading an article a year or so ago about how people in sub-Saharan Africa are, according to a Gallup poll, the most optimistic people on earth. I thought of this article often throughout this trip – so many people I met had such an infectious enthusiasm for life, I could not help but leave Benin with very warm memories of everyone I met along the way.
The Bradt guide recommends two local guides in Ouidah: Martine de Souza – a descendant of Don Francisco de Souza (an infamous Brazilian slave trader in Benin), and Remi. At breakfast, I told the guys at the hotel that I was looking for either Remi or Martine, and after a quick call to Remi, he was at the hotel within 20 minutes. We settled on a price (I think I spent about 30 dollars) and were soon off for the day. You could certainly see everything in Ouidah on your own by using zemis, however, Remi is so knowledgeable and personable that it was definitely money will spent and a very enjoyable day. We saw the Python Temple, the Sacred Forest, the market, the Portuguese (slave) Fort (which houses the Ouidah History museum), the Slave Route & the Gate of No Return, with a few random stops thrown in. If you plan to be in Ouidah and want a guide, I’d definitely contact Remi in advance ([email protected]), as he works with various tour agencies and is often booked up. He also leads groups on country wide tours of Benin.
My one regret from Ouidah is that I did not take Remi up on his offer to do an “Ouidah at Night” tour (this is basically a good old fashioned bar crawl, and the cost would have been us alternating buying drinks at the various drinking establishments in town). I think he’d be up for doing “Ouidah at Night” with anyone he thinks would be entertaining enough for a night out (he had some funny stories about some other tourists he’d done this with), so if you find yourself in Ouidah, please take him up on this and report back! My only excuse for suddenly becoming lame was that I really wanted to get an early start in the morning for my last day in Ouidah, and, the thought of possibly nursing even a slight hangover in insanely hot weather without a steady supply of cold Gatorade just didn’t sound fun.
Day 8
After spending some quality time with my four legged friend at the hotel and eating a leisurely breakfast (service is slooooow, so you will get “leisurely” whether you want it or not), I headed off to the Maison du Bresil, a tiny museum on the outskirts of town. The current exhibit is excellent and focuses on the (many) roles of women in Africa.
I spent the balance of the day hanging out with kids playing in the street. As usual, the Bradt guide and the digital camera were wildly popular, however, my digital watch came in a close third after one of the little boys figured out how to make it beep. I had so many things I wanted to ask them, but alas, that language barrier…
I finally said goodbye to the kids and decided to walk the Slave Route back to my hotel. Although Remi and I driven the slave route the previous day on his motorbike, I felt like something was lost by not actually walking the road (it’s about 3.5km starting in town and ending on the beach at the Gate of No Return). My “regular” zemi driver kept appearing/stalking me during my walk though (he had latched onto me my first night in Ouidah, and, since he was clearly desperate to make a few dollars whenever possible, he was something of my personal zemi chauffeur during my time in Ouidah), but I finally got rid of him and finished my walk in peace. I did give my zemi stalker a nice tip before I left Ouidah, mainly to compensate him for the petrol he used up trailing me around town in an attempt to (understandably) make a few more dollars.
Day 9
I went high class today and hired a private taxi (10 dollars) to drive me back to Cotonou for my flight home. The drive is only about 45 minutes, and if you take the dirt road that runs along the beach, it’s very interesting to see all the fishing villages and local people along the way. The drive was somewhat marred by the piglet fatality (as usual, the driver was driving like a bat out of hell, and I am 99.9 percent certain we killed a teeny pig when a pig family had the misfortune of trying to cross the road as we came barreling by.) Although the driver did not speak English, he did appear to understand the string of obscenities that came out of my mouth after the involuntary manslaughter incident, so he slowed down considerably after that. As you would expect, the people living in these little fishing villages are incredibly poor, and I can’t even imagine how important a piglet is to them, so in addition to not wanting to see a pig die, I really did not want to be a part of knocking off their food supply.
I had been unable to get the Hotel du Lac in Cotonou to agree on a reduced rate for a day room, so I had the driver drop me off at a random hotel in Cotonou (Hotel Vickinfel) that was near the market. After comparing the Vickinfel to the second class rooms at the Hotel du Lac (the Bradt guide describes the Vickinfel as one of the better midrange hotels in Cotonou) I am convinced that the second class rooms at the Hotel du Lac are the best deal in town and were probably about ten times nicer than the rooms at the Vickinfel. All I needed was a place to store my luggage and a shower though, so I happily accepted their offer of a $20 rate for a day room.
After lunch at the Vickinfel -- huge plate of rice and four boiled eggs, which I covered in hot sauce and washed down with several cups of coffee (seemed like a good idea at the time) -- I set off for the market feeling slightly ill. It soon started pouring, and was really a wasted day. I had planned to spend all afternoon at the Dantokpa market, which is the largest market in Benin. However, after an hour of traipsing around in heavy rain, I gave up and headed back to an internet café. I ended up heading to the airport much earlier than necessary, as after the power went out in Cotonou, I started feeling a little uneasy in the now blacked out hotel.
Overall, I really enjoyed this trip – it definitely wasn’t relaxing or comfortable, but the incredibly friendly people made it very worthwhile. There is much more to see in Benin than covered in this report (the entire top half of the country, including two national parks). I remember reading an article a year or so ago about how people in sub-Saharan Africa are, according to a Gallup poll, the most optimistic people on earth. I thought of this article often throughout this trip – so many people I met had such an infectious enthusiasm for life, I could not help but leave Benin with very warm memories of everyone I met along the way.
Aug 24th, 2009, 04:23 PM
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Hi Maxwell,
I read your trip report on Benin and decided to email the guide, Remi, even though it has been a long time since you were there. Well, I received a reply from him!
We arrive by ship in Cotonou for only 1 day, and want to maximize our time there. Remi and I are now communicating, thanks to you.
If you can suggest a 1 day itinerary, I would be most appreciative. I asked Remi what he would charge for the day...do I accept his price or bargain? We do want to pay a fair fee for his service.
Les
I read your trip report on Benin and decided to email the guide, Remi, even though it has been a long time since you were there. Well, I received a reply from him!
We arrive by ship in Cotonou for only 1 day, and want to maximize our time there. Remi and I are now communicating, thanks to you.
If you can suggest a 1 day itinerary, I would be most appreciative. I asked Remi what he would charge for the day...do I accept his price or bargain? We do want to pay a fair fee for his service.Les
Aug 24th, 2009, 05:17 PM
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Les - That's great to hear!! Remi was delightful.
I didn't bargain with him on the price - I can't recall what he charged me, but I remember thinking that I thought it was fair. (I'm thinking the price he quoted might have been close to something I saw in the guidebook that mentioned him or printed on something at the hotel.) If you are docking in Cotonou, I would assume he'll have a car to take you around & outside of Cotonou, so I'd expect this to be more expensive.
He'll be full of good suggestions, but perhaps he could show you the market in Cotonou if you wanted to see that - it'd at least give you a glimpse at Cotonou mayhem (I would put this low on the priority list though), and then go on to Ganvie, which is right outside of Cotonou (the stilt village dubbed the Venice of Africa), and then on to Ouida, which is only about 45 minutes away if my memory is correct, where you could walk the Slave Route and see the other things of interest in the town (it's a small, relaxed place so it's easy to zip around and see a lot in a short amount of time.) It would be a busy day, but it'd be doable if you had a full day.
Were you the one going to Sierra Leone too on your cruise? (Someone on this board was going to visit the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary and I am dying to hear about that).
Please post back if you can after your stop in Benin - will be curious to hear how it goes. I know you'll love Remi!
Linda
I didn't bargain with him on the price - I can't recall what he charged me, but I remember thinking that I thought it was fair. (I'm thinking the price he quoted might have been close to something I saw in the guidebook that mentioned him or printed on something at the hotel.) If you are docking in Cotonou, I would assume he'll have a car to take you around & outside of Cotonou, so I'd expect this to be more expensive.
He'll be full of good suggestions, but perhaps he could show you the market in Cotonou if you wanted to see that - it'd at least give you a glimpse at Cotonou mayhem (I would put this low on the priority list though), and then go on to Ganvie, which is right outside of Cotonou (the stilt village dubbed the Venice of Africa), and then on to Ouida, which is only about 45 minutes away if my memory is correct, where you could walk the Slave Route and see the other things of interest in the town (it's a small, relaxed place so it's easy to zip around and see a lot in a short amount of time.) It would be a busy day, but it'd be doable if you had a full day.
Were you the one going to Sierra Leone too on your cruise? (Someone on this board was going to visit the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary and I am dying to hear about that).
Please post back if you can after your stop in Benin - will be curious to hear how it goes. I know you'll love Remi!
Linda
Aug 24th, 2009, 05:22 PM
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Les, I just looked back at my report and now recall I might have got him to knock 5 dollars off his first quote but then tipped him of course. 30 bucks was definitely reasonable for the amount of time he spent with me, but we were in Ouida the entire time and were on zemis, rather than a car.
Aug 25th, 2009, 07:18 AM
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Hi Linda,
Thanks so much for your reply. We will not be going to Sierra Leone. Our ports in W Africa are Dakar, Banjul, Tema, Lome and Cotonou. I have only been to Southern Africa, so this will be very different and exciting.
Leslie
Thanks so much for your reply. We will not be going to Sierra Leone. Our ports in W Africa are Dakar, Banjul, Tema, Lome and Cotonou. I have only been to Southern Africa, so this will be very different and exciting.
Leslie
Aug 25th, 2009, 05:36 PM
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Les- What ship will you be on? Max and I did a 6 week cruise through W. Africa, S. Africa, Namibia, then on to Brazil and home, in 2006, 7 countries for W. Africa, on the Prinsendam. What an incredible trip. It was absolutely the best cruise that we've taken. We also visited Cameroon and Gabon. After the ship being held for ransom in Cameroon, and some of the passengers being arrested in Gabon, I don't think any passenger ships will call at either country again. I know HAL won't. It is an absolutely awakening experience and the memories still feel fresh. Good luck. Liz
Aug 25th, 2009, 05:42 PM
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Maxwell- Wow! You are one very brave person. On our cruise through W. Africa I told Les about above, I never could have imagined the cultural experience it would offer. The site where slaves were sold was burned in my mind. I'll have to say Benin was our favorite of the 7 countries we visited in that part of the trip. I loved the Magic Forest, Ganvie,and Ouidah. In some of the countries we had police escorts front and back and I still can't believe how you made it through. My hat is off to you. Your photos are incredible and I will again read every word of your report. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Liz
Aug 26th, 2009, 05:30 PM
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Hi Liz,
We'll be on the Tahitian Princess which is a former Renaissance ship. I've only been to countries in southern Africa...quite a few...but this will be different. My friend that I'm traveling with lived in Cameroon for the Peace Corp in the'8o's, She wasn't surprised when I told her that your ship was held for ransom there!
Leslie
We'll be on the Tahitian Princess which is a former Renaissance ship. I've only been to countries in southern Africa...quite a few...but this will be different. My friend that I'm traveling with lived in Cameroon for the Peace Corp in the'8o's, She wasn't surprised when I told her that your ship was held for ransom there!
Leslie
Aug 29th, 2009, 01:58 PM
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Linda,
Hi again. Remi has become quite the businessman...he wrote back and said that his charge for the day would be $100 + $150 for a car! (I did tell him that we could use a private taxi). I'll write him back, but unless he suggests a fair price, we'll have to "wing it" and get a taxi at the port to take us to Ouida. If we do "make a deal", I'll let you know.
Leslie
Hi again. Remi has become quite the businessman...he wrote back and said that his charge for the day would be $100 + $150 for a car! (I did tell him that we could use a private taxi). I'll write him back, but unless he suggests a fair price, we'll have to "wing it" and get a taxi at the port to take us to Ouida. If we do "make a deal", I'll let you know.
Leslie
Aug 31st, 2009, 07:04 PM
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Leslie,
You could just grab a taxi and meet him in Ouida (I am guessing (but really have no idea) that both the taxi drivers by the dock and the tour guides probably up their prices for the people in port for the day, so I'd be curious what they try to charge you for a taxi to Ouida).
You could also print out the Lonely Planet Benin chapter on-line and wing it yourself. (I used the Bradt guide so have no idea how good the LP one is - it's just 17 pages but would imagine it covers Ouida fairly well.)
In any event, I'll be very curious to hear how all your stops go in West Africa! When will you be there so I have a trip report to look forward to?
BTW, Martine de Souza was the other main guide in Ouida that was doing day tours - I just found this by googling -
http://home.online.no/~annekie/
if you click on the "Martine's CV" link along the top she has 2 email addresses listed. This was a piece NPR did on her a few years back
http://tinyurl.com/lj22c3
You could just grab a taxi and meet him in Ouida (I am guessing (but really have no idea) that both the taxi drivers by the dock and the tour guides probably up their prices for the people in port for the day, so I'd be curious what they try to charge you for a taxi to Ouida).
You could also print out the Lonely Planet Benin chapter on-line and wing it yourself. (I used the Bradt guide so have no idea how good the LP one is - it's just 17 pages but would imagine it covers Ouida fairly well.)
In any event, I'll be very curious to hear how all your stops go in West Africa! When will you be there so I have a trip report to look forward to?
BTW, Martine de Souza was the other main guide in Ouida that was doing day tours - I just found this by googling -
http://home.online.no/~annekie/
if you click on the "Martine's CV" link along the top she has 2 email addresses listed. This was a piece NPR did on her a few years back
http://tinyurl.com/lj22c3
