A funny thing happened on the way to Albreda: A travel story

Here's just a funny example of travelling in The Gambia. Even when you think you're travelling in style, anything can happen.

This past week I went to a workshop in Albreda to talk about one of my favorite subjects: Cashews! Albreda is a really nice village on the North Bank, with lots of history (it's where Alex Haley traced his Roots). But, like any nice village on the North Bank, you have a heck of a lot of travelling to do to get there since there are no bridges in this country (okay okay, there are two, if I must be accurate). I wasn't too phased by the thought of travelling though, since Jeff was also going with an IRD vehicle and they said I could just go with them.

Around 2pm, I met a very annoyed Jeff with the IRD car. In theory, the car should have gone to the ferry in the morning, since they can fit many people on one ferry, but not so many cars. Usually a car has to wait for at least 2 ferries to come before it can get on, whereas people on their own can just cross right away. So we were supposed to meet the car on the other side, but now we were all going together.

When we got to the ferry, Jeff and I decided to do a little shopping in Banjul and get some snacks. We bought umbrellas and smoothies and headed back to the car. A ferry came, a ferry went... Around 5:30, we decided to stop waiting for the car and cross to the other side. That way we could watch the World Cup game at a video club, relax, and when the car got across we'd all move together.

Well, we crossed. And just as we got to the other side the thunder, lightening, and wind started. It's going to rain. No problem, we'll just head for the video club to watch the game. So we did. It begins to pour while we're in the little dark room, and when the game is over it's still pouring, the car is still not across, and oh, did I mention we left our brand new umbrellas in the car?

By 9pm, there is still no car. Jeff is grumpy from not eating and has managed to lose his sunglasses. I really have to pee. We find a spot where he can get a chicken sandwich, but there are no bathrooms around and I don't really want to leave the protection of the small corrugate iron hangover to go traipsing about in the dark and rain. So I hang in there... Until I can't anymore and find a "hidden" spot to pee. I pray that there will be no lightening. And I also manage to pee all over one leg of my jeans. Great. At least that man who walked by didn't turn his head in my direction.

The car finally arrives around 9:45. We are all very grumpy. Olu, one of Jeff's co-workers, who is running the workshop, grumbles in the car. 9:48.... 9:51.... Ugh. We manage to get lost several times on little dirt roads before we finally make it to Albreda, where everyone has gone to bed early and the lodge has put off their electricity. Better late than never.

World Cupo

As you might have guessed, it has been world cup fever over here in The Gambia, and in all of Africa. I've been trying to keep up with as many games as I can, and it's raised some interesting issues, especially: Electricity! How do you watch the most popular sporting event in the world in a place with no electricity? The Answer: Video Clubs.

When I'm in Fajara, I've watched some games in cushy restaurants, where we can eat chicken or hamburgers and watch on nice TVs while sitting in comfy chairs. The first US game, for example, we all high-tailed it over to the British High Commission, where they have a bar and a swimming pool (no fair!) and did our country proud. Even the US Ambassador came.

In village, it's another story. Since the world cup started, a whole host of video clubs have popped up. With no electricity, this means that someone has to invest in a TV, a satellite, and a generator to power the whole set up. Then they charge the crowd 5 or 10 dalasis each to come watch the game. This means sitting in a hot, crowded room with little air circulation and small hard benches for 2 and a half hours. But it's worth it, and you can't beat the team spirit (unless you're the only person rooting for America, like I was during the Ghana game).

Even when you watch a game in a nice restaurant, you can't be guaranteed the electricity will be on your side. We've had several power outages that have left us on edge for 20 minutes at a time. Or when it rains, the satellite is done for. In those situations you rely on GRTS, the fuzzy local network, and that's also got it's up-sides. Mainly, a scroll bar that you can text in to, in theory, say which team you support. There have been some pretty good times with that, sending each other messages and in general pushing the boundaries of what should probably get aired on TV...

Even though I'm not in South Africa, I have to say watching the World Cup on African soil this year has been pretty special, with lots of African pride.