The Casamance river

Then entrance to the Casamance was not quite relaxing. Waves coming from the East were crashing loudly on the reefs. At one point, we came very close to giving up and going back out at sea so we could wait for a more quiet time. The best time is actually two hours after low tide. However, we put the engine on full power and managed to make it through. On the other side of the reefs, everything becomes quiet. We later learned from some fishermen that they considered the sea to be particularly bad that day. Bruno and Elise from Lakatao were waiting to show us the first anchorage in front of the village of Kochiouane. By the way, somebody told them on X-mas eve that we had already left Dakar and would arrive on the river X-mas morning. They headed towards Kochiouane so they could greet us but on theway they got stuck in a sand bank. After working for a couple of hours to get out, they anchored because it was too dark to move on. So they spent X-mas eve next to the sand bank listening to the festivities in the distance. In the mean time, we were still in Dakar enjoying the X-mas party at the CVD. Oups! :(
It's difficult to decide what to write about this part of our trip because the culture is so different from what we are use that we could write pages and pages. Let's start with we managed to stay 3 weeks in Casamance without being eaten by crocodiles, being robed, catching malaria from insect bites, being attacked by rebels or dying from eating fruits and vegetables. We did however meet interesting people called Diolas who mostly believein sacred woods, sorcerers, fetish, ... and are adorable. They are interested by st rangers particularly the men. They will come and introduce themselves as soon as you walk on land. Some hope that you will give them a beer or a cigarette but most just like to share. We were introduced to many celebrities like Julius Cesar, Moses, Spirit and Sheriff.
They are poor however. The lucky ones have a small solar panel and a battery which might be enough to charge the cell phone, play the radio and light a bulb. Some villages have generators that they use only for special events if they have gas. Running water is very rare. Most get the water from wells or they dig in the fields. Everybody shares the same meal that is served in one bowl using their fingers or a spoon. A typical meal would be fish on rice with onion sauce. On special occasion, they might eat other meats. For example, we were invited in a family for New Years Eve and were fed chicken on macaroni. The also have mango, lemon and orange trees and of course, the monkey bread. More fruits and vegetables are available in towns but are too expensive for the average family.
For the people from Quebec, sailing around the small rivers of the Casamance is kind of like going around the Sorel Islands but much bigger. In each small chanel, there are villages to visit. In Kochiouane, we were invited to a baptism. Gaston showed off dancing. We shared their meal and drank some bunuk. Julian showed us close to Sifoka how he climbs palm trees to gather the sap which will become once it has fermented the light drink called bunuk. In the village, we were greeted buy a bunch of children who like to follow the alouloumes (white in Diola) around while holding them buy the hand. They love to have their picture taken and then watch themselves on the LCD screen. Note that bringing candy is optional but well worth it when you see the expression in their face when they see you pulling it out of your pocket and the dance they do when they have it in their hands. After, we went to visit the women in the rice fields. It's hard work to collect the rice in the burning sun! We stopped by Elinking to buy some fruits and vegetables. Since this is the place where they put out tons of fish to dry, the smell doesn't inspire to stay for very long. When we arrived in Niomoune, we picked up 3 little hitchhikers who were looking for a faster way to get to the village than their row boat. On New Years Eve, we were invited by Anouk (French woman living in Senegal for 5 years) and Justin (from Senegal) to a party in the dark. Everyone brought their Musical instrument. It was more noise than music but still we had fun. Two days later, Gaston and Bruno fixed a solar panel set up that wasn't working at the school. We had many small visitors on the boat in this village. They are very curious. We then visited Kamobeul, Enampor and Seleki were the village camps (African hotels) are built with impluviums. To the roof, they add a cone that goes towards the inside and is open in the middle to let water and sun come into the garden underneath. From Djilapao, we took a ride on a pirogue to go and buy some vegetables in Ziguinchor. We watched as they worked on making bricks that they will use later to build latrines. Gaston caught a barracuda. We finished the trip by going to Zinguinchor were we went to a few music concerts and we bought everything we needed before leaving for Brazil. To see our trip in pictures, you can look on the web site at http://bidule.micro.org/Bidule/Senegal.html.
Many Diolas are disappointed that the rebel activity in the region has scared away the tourists. Some depend on the industry to survive. In the past few years, the number of visitor has gone from 8 milion to 2 milion a year. In general, the rebels are further in land than were we visited but it's a good idea to check before visiting. Ideally when arriving, one would take the first channel on starboard making sure to avoid the sand bank on the port side and anchor in front of Kochiouane. There you can go to Chez Papi and discuss the situation with Moussa the barman or Sheriff. We used a guide called "West Africa" written by Steve Johns and the Royal Cruising Club Pilotage Foundation. It's old but it's better than nothing because you can't follow the electronic maps. They will put you on land most of the time. If you would rather visit by plane, an interesting plan would be to arrive in Dakar. Then take the ferry boat to Ziguinchor. From there take a taxi to Enampor where Moses would be very happy to great you in the village camp. If you stay a few days in each location, you will get a good feel for Senegal life. I chose Enampor because it is the only camp we have seen with running water and electricity. If you don't need those comforts, the owners of all the other camps we have met were also very nice.
On January 19th, we left Kochiouane to exit the Casamance River and head for the ocean. This time the sea was quieter and the less impressive.
Our trip on the Casamance was a rewarding experience. We are surprised of the impact it had on us even weeks later.