Guinea-Bissau

[Neddy69]

I had the same problem in November 2017 while traveling on the GPTC bus from Bissau to Banjul. One of the Gambian counternarcotics officers waiting next to the bus took me and two Bissau Guinean ladies back to their office for a search of the hand luggage. After failing to find illegal drugs they started searching through my prescription drugs, comparing the names on the boxes with a list of banned products they had (the "Sanofi" brand on one of the boxes made them suspicious, they told me). After they failed to find anything, the agent told his superior that he had found a second (EU) in my bag and they claimed that I should have to been charged EUR 50 for a visa by immigration, even though I had already paid CFA 1,000 for the entry stamp in my ECOWAS passport. I stood my ground and after I long delay they let me go.

Same experience. Came from Dakar Landborder with Gambia. Capt. Ousman my friend. A-Hole. They pestered me because of my prescription drugs. Wanted to see a prescription. Haehh?? He imperiously wanted to impound my drugs?? Blablabla. You commited an offence. Yeah sure. After some BS he let me off the hook. Because I am a resident. Yeah sure. Than he was brazen enough to ask for money for attaya, the local green tea. 200 Dal. And. If that were not enough. When I stepped from the ferry in Banjul another of these anti drug goons stopped me and wanted to see my prescription drugs AGAIN?! Told him to F. Off. The hilarious thing is. I know some not so well to do Britons smuggling 1000's of Viagra back to the UK. No issues at the Banjul airport. Just slip 500 Dal to customs.

Neddy.

Who has never been ask for a bribe in East Africa.

[BusyBunny]

Friday, I left the hotel at 8:45 am and was heading for the bus stop "la Parada". A car just left and finally I started my journey at 10:30 and I arrived at Serekunda / Gambia at 17:15 by using 2 cars. Nice music in the car: Justino Delgado. Some unpleasant experience when crossing the border into Gambia. I finished all my passport stamps when a man dressed in a T-shirt stood next to my suit case and told me he wants to control my luggage! I was reluctant but he showed me an ID and explained he is from the "narcotic control"! "Do you take any medication?" and he looked firm in my eyes. "Yes" I said, "I was healthy, but now age comes, I get all kind of medication!" he tried to daunt me, he looked like in a movie with his dark eyeglass. After 5 minutes of search he seemed to get lazy and he told me to repack my suitcase. I think he was also confused by my homeopathic pills, he was not sure what to do with such kind of pills! I arrived at 6 pm at Serekunda.

I had the same problem in November 2017 while traveling on the GPTC bus from Bissau to Banjul. One of the Gambian counternarcotics officers waiting next to the bus took me and two Bissau Guinean ladies back to their office for a search of the hand luggage. After failing to find illegal drugs they started searching through my prescription drugs, comparing the names on the boxes with a list of banned products they had (the "Sanofi" brand on one of the boxes made them suspicious, they told me). After they failed to find anything, the agent told his superior that he had found a second (EU) in my bag and they claimed that I should have to been charged EUR 50 for a visa by immigration, even though I had already paid CFA 1,000 for the entry stamp in my ECOWAS passport. I stood my ground and after I long delay they let me go.

[XXL]

30 000 CFA = 45 euros.
10 000 CFA = 15 euros.

To start with my thanks to Neddy for keeping me on a lifeline of precious practical tips right before and during my trip.

Getting there

The electronic visa procedure presented no major difficulty. For passport pic I uploaded a crude selfie. The scan of my passport was rejected on the first run, either because it was a PDF or because it was too big, so I resized it and converted it to jpeg. The visa was issued right after credit card payment (63 euros).

I flew with TAP. Lisbon airport is very easy to navigate but you get WiFi for a limited time if at all. Time from Lisbon to Bissau was just under 4 hours but the seat was non-reclining and had no headrest. Good to get hold of a window seat and bring along one's own neck pillow!

This Thursday night our plane was the only plane in sight on the Bissau airport (airstrip would be a better word). Carriers of visas were led to a side room where the visa got ink-stamped on the passport and completed by hand. This didn't take too long. No hassle or fishing for bribes.

Taxi to Pensao Creola was 5 000 CFA.

Unpacking and off to the disco

Pensao Creola was next door to Club Balafon, one of two or three expat discos (as opposed to other discos patronized by locals). The 3000 CFA was convertible into drinks and beer was at 1000 CFA. The disco was tiny, with 20 or so seats and standing room for another 20. No more than 15 girls Inside, about the same number of men, two or three foreigners at the most. To say girls in Bissau were not pushy is an understatement. I hate girls holding my arm and not taking no for an answer but here I could have done with some female attention. All the same, I managed to get hold of Sunaime, a tallish skinny girl with a model-like figure. Outside the disco I mentioned 50 euros all night whereupon she at once insisted on 100. She did a good BBBJ but grew restless when I fucked her for too long in the same position. She also seemed to know better than I did which positions were best: nothing like it to kill my erection. She wanted to go home after a hour but she stayed the agreed LT after having me confirm I'd give her 100 E. I first diagnosed her as what the Germans call an "Optikfick" ("optical fuck") not yet knowing she would in fact turn out to be my least poorly skilled girl on this trip.

On Friday night the first girl I picked from Balafon proved the deadest fish ever to land on my bed. She lay like a corpse with a half-smile, unwilling or unable to adopt any posture reminiscent of sex. No Portuguese, no English, no French. What was a girl like her doing on the game? I sent her on her way with 20 000 CFA, then off to Saburo and Bamboo, two discos catering to local crowds. By then it was already about 2 am and those places were uncomfortably full. M/F ratio 4 to 1. Difficult to assess the girls in the crowd. I didn't feel like elbowing my way to a girl and whisking her away under the local guys' nose. Back to Balafon which was quite empty at around 3 am. The time window for girls was quite narrow considering action only starts at 1 am. I intercepted Titiana, a smaller and overall less spectacular looking girl than Sunaime. We agreed on 30 000 CFA. In the room she upsold me to 40 000 CFA as soon as I wanted to go down on her.

Bad surprise on Saturday night: streets even emptier of traffic than usual, no nightlife, the government had declared a 3-day national mourning after a bus accident killing 18 people. WTF. Wasn't the daily power outage from 8 pm till 8 am enough of a national mourning already?

Given the week-end curfew, on Sunday morning I thought I might as well call back Sunaime in spite of her having fallen short of expectations on Thursday night. I half expected her not to turn up so I didn't dare take the Viagra. She turned up, albeit one hour late. In hindsight I should've taken the Viagra. One lesson I re-learnt: if you didn't have fun in bed with a girl it's no use repeating however good-looking or promising she looked. Not that she was a frigid cow. She insisted on my fingering her, telling me to use two fingers instead of one. Some kind of orgasm ensued. I asked her if she liked to be beaten up and she said yes. There was obvious erotic potential there. Had I been the 25 year-old hunk of her dreams, no doubt hot bareback nasty sex would have taken place, with lots of sweating and moaning on both sides. But I was a tired 58 year-old bachelor in need of a skilled and proactive performer. Gone are the times when I got a kick out of girls' own sexual satisfaction.

The streets

Even with the "national mourning" over on Tuesday not all discos had reopened. Tabanka, another expat disco, only opened Thursday to Saturday. It was obvious Bissau was not a place for the disco lover. There were few discos, they were tiny and they only operated part of the time.

I didn't check the street scene until 8 pm but I surmised it might get going right after dusk. There were a lot of people along those streets so girls did not stand out as they would if the streets had been deserted. Cab drivers charged 5000 CFA an hour for cruising around town. Girls on the game would be dressed somewhat sexier than bystander women but not exaggeratedly so either. Their would often carry a small handbag and/or a handphone. All under 30 as far as I could tell, no MILFs. Most closer to 20 than to 30, which the cab driver seemed proud about. "They can do do everything already you know", he said, "as well if not better than their elders". Some girls would shout "boleia", which is Portuguese for "lift" in "to give a lift", but most would stay passive and wait for the client to make a move. The main districts are Bairro Antula (often pronounced "Tula") all the way to the junction, the strip between Mercado Badim and Mercado Caracol, and Bairro Militar, the latter being the most extensive but also the furthest away. Some girls would also stroll around or sit on benches on the big square in front of the Presidential Palace (Praa do Imperio) situated within walking distance from Pensao Creola. Here they would be easier to spot later at night after the common people had cleared.

The taxi led me to a brothel next to the Caracol intersection. Going rate 2500 CFA. Very low-level. Mattress on the floor, 3 used condoms strewn around. A plate on the floor had a spoon resting in a liquid and a fish bone emerging from it. It looked like something I would hesitate to feed to my cat. The girl squatted almost immediately we were in, raised her blouse and took my dick into her mouth before my trousers had time to hit my knees. She sucked deftly without using her hands. Something for the blow-job enthusiasts maybe.

Being anything but a night owl, I had a try at picking up girls in daylight on the market (Mercado Badim). They ignored me or sent me packing. On some views, this could be because they were ashamed to be seen hooking-up with strangers. I don't think this was the case. I was waving from a cab and the action could be construed as simply boarding a public taxi. I think those girls were genuinely not interested. They had their own frame of reference and trading sex for money was simply not on their agendas. These girls and the ones emerging in the slums after nightfall were two different pools. Nor do I think white men are are such a rarity in Bissau. This country produces nothing and lives from handouts from the international community. ONGs are all over the place as this excerpt from Wikipedia shows: "The United Nations Country Team (UNCT) in Guinea Bissau, is coordinated by the Deputy Special Representative / UN Resident Coordinator, includes the following agencies, funds and programmes resident in Guinea Bissau: FAO, UNWOMEN, OHCHR, UNDP, UNFPA, UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP and WHO non-resident agencies: ILO, OCHA, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNODC, UNOPS, UNHABITAT. UNAIDS, UNODC and UNHABITAT also have project offices in Bissau. " Note this is only the UN. Added to this are the myriad bilateral cooperation outfits. A lot of potential high-earning sugar daddies there for a town of no more than 400 000! The pressure on an already cryptic housing market must also be enormous. Any plans to live or retire in Bissau had to take such facts into account.

The last 3 days of my trip I developed flue-like symptoms with a touch of dysentery. This may have been caused by my sticking my tongue too liberally between female thighs, or to the food. If the latter it was unfair considering I tended to go hungry very often. I found no more than two "restaurants" in which to have a decent meal. Senegal was quite appalling in this regard but it had been due to my distaste for onions and garlic. Here it was the sheer lack of alternatives. I bought biscuits in the evening for carbohydrate remediation. Like much else, the biscuits were of abysmal quality. The bread served at breakfast at Kalliste Hotel next to Pensao Creola was so fluffy as to be weightless. The ham was more fat than red meat and tasted funny. The food at the Hotel Imperio terrace was hardly better and getting served at all was especially difficult for breakfast because there would only be one waiter. So much for low-wage countries being blessed with overstaffing.

Time I put Africa on a back burner?

Bissau had some redeeming features. The locals are a peaceful lot. I never felt threatened walking at night. I was not bothered by police once. Taxis were plentiful, cheap and didn't scam.

Still, I didn't fill a single condom during my stay and by that I don't mean I went bareback: sex with all the girls ended up in my calling it quits.

Of course the 3-day curfew and my falling ill were independent strokes of bad luck. All the same, the girls I was able to fit in didn't deliver. This may have to do with the girls or the setting. The disco girls' somewhat greedy attitude wasn't offset by outstanding skills. The street girls were gentle but passive. On another note, female circumcision was not new to me but I again realized how ruefully detrimental it was to genital aesthetics. Seen from a doggy angle a girl's pussy appears as little more than a vertical slit. What a waste on such perk bubble-butts!

I don't regard myself as a luxury creature but I think the 70 euros or more I saved daily on accommodation by staying at Pensao instead of one the big 100+ E places came at a price. Luckily, the lack of air-con was bearable as this was the right time of year when outside temperatures dropped to 20 or even 19 degrees see at night (while staying at 25 or so inside). I can't think how I'd have fared had this been hot season. The bed was no better than Pattaya soi 6 beds. It swayed at the least impulse and creaked continually. Sound-proofing was nonexistent: how do you handle moaning, groaning and slapping with children playing right next door? I'm not old-fashioned but some settings are just plain awkward. I ran a sleep deficit owing to lack of comfort, mosquitoes one night, and the chorus of shouting voices every day as from 9am. My sex-drive is very sleep-dependent.

Of course I can't blame girls or other circumstances for getting old or my having been spoiled rotten all these years by what has been on offer in German FKKs. All the same, girls from the street may price themselves at 20 euros LT in Bissau but what is it to me if I end up not getting laid?

[Global John]

Bom DIA. Thats good day to you in creol. Sitting in Kalliste breakfast. Viewing mass in TV? Last night was rather good. Went househunting to the Barrios. Very enlightening. Had a look at some apartados. Besides huge empty villa. Small pool. Local guys entertain some Chicas in the pool in bikinis. WOW. Went to CT container toni. Saw petite Chica walking past. Tight leggins perfect African bunda promising tetas. Took digits. Paid beer. Told her I ll call her later. Around 11 pm went out to Lenox which is a big outdoor convention place. Big party. 12th anniversary of radio nossa. All local singers live on stage. 1000 cfa cover.

Dirt cheap. Around 1 am went to Saburo. They have a first floor too. Guess who I met there. My Chica I previously chatted up at CT. These Chicas KNOW how to party. Raunchy. WTF. Paid her and GF cervejas. Again total party cost ridiculous. Spent maybe 5000 cfa on taxi, cover and drinks. Chica started to grind her perfect tiny ass against my crotch grinding my dick down for half an hour. A small spliff was passed around. The beer flowed freely. WTF these Chicas Party until sunrise.... After having a hard-on for around 2 hours. Called it a night around 4 am. Chica initiated price negotiation. Used mobile. She types 20 I type 10 she types 18 I type 15. Bono. Let's move. Kicked out my mate and his GF. Ripped off her cloth. Perfect body perfect bunda sweet see cups tetas. WOW. When I DATYd her she went off like a firecracker. Than cowgirl sucking on her perfect tetas. Had a blast and shot my load. Perfect. As I had no change gave Chica for outstanding performance 20.000 cfa and taxi. She s a keeper. These Chicas are the toughest party girls. Sleep in before 1 am club's empty. That said I probably could have pulled her already in CT and do her in one of the ST rooms. Anyway pensao creola deserves special mention. The Swiss owner is an old African hand. So he knows the game. As long as you are discreet no issues to take Chicas to the room.

Neddy.

Bissau is a hard party destination. Wow. And rock bottom booze prices and cover charges means you can enjoy yourself for rock bottom prices.

It seems you was fucking all the time there! Congratulations!

[Neddy69]

I left on a Wednesday morning from Cap Skirring (Cassamace) Senegal to Guinee-Bissau. Nice music in the Car: Sidiki Diabat. I took a car from Cap Sk. At 8:30 and I arrived at 16:30 in Bissau using 2 cars. Thanks from advise from Neddy69 I could well plan my travel!

At the border of G. Be. The immigration officer looked at my visa and asked me this question " Is this a visa for Guinee Bissau?" I pointed with my finger on the writing " VISA for GUINEE BISSAU" ! My stay in Bissau remembered me on my visit to Brazil, the country side behind Recife and Fortaleza.

I stayed in Pensao Creola. 18.000 CFA a night which is cheap for be. Breakfast at Restau / Hotel Kalliste next to. I had only 10 days left for the wild travel Gambia / Senegal / Guinee Bissau. So I had to make my plan for tonight. The Swiss owner of the Pension sent me to "Lenox", a kind of a dance or beer hall with concerts on the weekend. It was completely empty at 9 pm. How to kill time until midnight if you don't know the town? But few people speak French or English in be. And my Portuguese is very limited. Taxis are cheap 500 CFA = 0,8 Euro and the drivers don't cheat normally. A waiter indicated me to move to "Saburo". Of course another dead place at 9:30 pm. So I returned at midnight. Still dead, at 1 am a few girls entered I talked to 2 slim ones of them and it was obvious that they were not interested to talk to me. I was nearly deciding to return to Gambia next day!! (Later I was told that school vacation started and many girls are decent girls who hardly go out except on vacation).

At 1:30 the place finally filled up with young people and I talked to A. It looks like that flirting with eyes and a smile is unknown to them, but dancing with them did warm up the connection! At least with A. And her 2 friends. We danced until 2 am and I told her that I want to return with her to my hotel. A. came with me but it took a lot of words to convince her. The girl was 19, she asked me about my age? I asked her to guess- which she did not dare. She was not caressing me in any way but she like to lean her shoulder on mine, she refused my question for sex. After 1/2 hour she wanted to return to Saburo Club. I was not so happy and just before going she jumped on my lap and she seems to be curious to feel my prick! She quickly undressed insisted to switch of the light and she started wildly riding on me, wanted my cock even without condom! But I insisted. I was not too hard and we moved around in all kind of funny und unhappy position and my prick did not keep well in her tight pussy. She also had an unpleasant pussy smell. I just hoped her bacteria did not jump to my skin. She had no tits at all, just nipples but she wanted me to suck them hardly all the time. Not easy while pounding her as I am tall and she was not. Jesus Christ at the end I even lost the condom and we stopped. She wanted to return to the Club and I left her with 10.000 CFA. She promised to return next afternoon at 2 pm. Strange experience, but at least king of girlfriend sex. In the afternoon she showed up and started sleeping in my arms. But then when waking up- surprisingly real good sex started, compared with the night before. She was riding me on top again, seems to be classic here. Again she asked for "sin camesina". I wondered what makes a girl wishing this?

* I was not coming yet, maybe she thought it goes better for me without?

* She wants to get pregnant?

* She wants the "real" feeling even with risk?

* She is just birdbrained and uneducated?

We took a shower and I licked her on the 2nd round, but she was not amused about this. No blow job of course too. She left and wanted to see me at night again. I left her with 10.000 CFA for "taxi money". She put a sanitary napkin in her slip. I asked her if she got her period? She said no, but told me all kind of other things in creole, or was it Portuguese? I was just disappointed that I did not understand anything what she told me. I decided not to continue with her- I hate not to be able to discuss things with a girl, also because of her pussy smell, also because she disliked condoms, also because she wanted to pay me her school fees.

At night I was sitting with some Europeans, I asked one of them who spoke well creole to phone her and to tell her that I got an unexpected lift back to Senegal early next morning. I was also afraid that if a girl knows that I am leaving- she would steel something from me during my sleep. But on the other hand I was sad leaving her in this sneaky way.

At 6 am I took a taxi to see "Priso de Mar" a famous bar at the harbor, but it was a quiet dirty and empty place in a dangerous (-?-) area. I continued to "Container Toni" in Barrio Andula. Nice place, open air, music, food, lively. I slept early as I intended to return to Gambia next early morning.

Bissau: a nice relaxed and quiet place, nobody disturbs you. I think for one night and one day I experienced the place to its best. I was also proud to make all the way by dusty bushtaxi. But speaking some Portuguese should be a kind of a must!

Friday, I left the hotel at 8:45 am and was heading for the bus stop "la Parada". A car just left and finally I started my journey at 10:30 and I arrived at Serekunda / Gambia at 17:15 by using 2 cars. Nice music in the car: Justino Delgado. Some unpleasant experience when crossing the border into Gambia. I finished all my passport stamps when a man dressed in a T-shirt stood next to my suit case and told me he wants to control my luggage! I was reluctant but he showed me an ID and explained he is from the "narcotic control"! "Do you take any medication?" and he looked firm in my eyes. "Yes" I said, "I was healthy, but now age comes, I get all kind of medication!" he tried to daunt me, he looked like in a movie with his dark eyeglass. After 5 minutes of search he seemed to get lazy and he told me to repack my suitcase. I think he was also confused by my homeopathic pills, he was not sure what to do with such kind of pills! I arrived at 6 pm at Serekunda.

Ok story will continue under the Gambia section.

John.

Travel time schedule from Cap Skirring to Bissau:

09.30 11:15 Cap Skirring Ziguinchor (1300 CFA + 500, (priv taxi: 5000)).

12.20 16:0 Ziguinchor Bissau (arriving at border 12:40) (bus 3500 CFA + 1000, or car 4000 CFA).

-I-.

Travel time schedule Returning from Bissau to Gambia: (total cost 9000 CFA 14 Euro).

10.30 13:45 Bissau Ziguinchor (4000 CFA + 500, arriving at border at 13:00).

14.00 17:15 Ziguinchor Brigama (arriving at border 16:00) (2500 CFA + 500).

17:20 18:00 Brigama. Serekunda (1000 CFA or 65 the. + 20 luggage).

Good report. I think I had exactly the same A. Hole checking me on the Gambia border. I found a cheaper place for sleeping. But only PM. Same experience in Bissau. Takes time for girls to thaw them. Loads of chicas. Not only in the clubs. But you have to spend a couple of weeks there an learn some basic creol to realize full potential. I didn't have problem with pussy smell.

African transport is surprisingly well organized. And the distances involved are not that great. If you break it up travelling gambia casamance bissau can easy be done. The key is leave early. Be at the station 8 oclock in the morning latest. This winter i am planning conakry and sierra leone. Its time that these underreported places get some love and attention.

In autumn I ll return via Ethiopia Uganda and Rwanda.

Neddy out.

Planning the great EA shag tour.

[John Auro]

I left on a Wednesday morning from Cap Skirring (Cassamace) Senegal to Guinee-Bissau. Nice music in the Car: Sidiki Diabat. I took a car from Cap Sk. At 8:30 and I arrived at 16:30 in Bissau using 2 cars. Thanks from advise from Neddy69 I could well plan my travel!

At the border of G. Be. The immigration officer looked at my visa and asked me this question " Is this a visa for Guinee Bissau?" I pointed with my finger on the writing " VISA for GUINEE BISSAU" ! My stay in Bissau remembered me on my visit to Brazil, the country side behind Recife and Fortaleza.

I stayed in Pensao Creola. 18.000 CFA a night which is cheap for be. Breakfast at Restau / Hotel Kalliste next to. I had only 10 days left for the wild travel Gambia / Senegal / Guinee Bissau. So I had to make my plan for tonight. The Swiss owner of the Pension sent me to "Lenox", a kind of a dance or beer hall with concerts on the weekend. It was completely empty at 9 pm. How to kill time until midnight if you don't know the town? But few people speak French or English in be. And my Portuguese is very limited. Taxis are cheap 500 CFA = 0,8 Euro and the drivers don't cheat normally. A waiter indicated me to move to "Saburo". Of course another dead place at 9:30 pm. So I returned at midnight. Still dead, at 1 am a few girls entered I talked to 2 slim ones of them and it was obvious that they were not interested to talk to me. I was nearly deciding to return to Gambia next day!! (Later I was told that school vacation started and many girls are decent girls who hardly go out except on vacation).

At 1:30 the place finally filled up with young people and I talked to A. It looks like that flirting with eyes and a smile is unknown to them, but dancing with them did warm up the connection! At least with A. And her 2 friends. We danced until 2 am and I told her that I want to return with her to my hotel. A. came with me but it took a lot of words to convince her. The girl was 19, she asked me about my age? I asked her to guess- which she did not dare. She was not caressing me in any way but she like to lean her shoulder on mine, she refused my question for sex. After 1/2 hour she wanted to return to Saburo Club. I was not so happy and just before going she jumped on my lap and she seems to be curious to feel my prick! She quickly undressed insisted to switch of the light and she started wildly riding on me, wanted my cock even without condom! But I insisted. I was not too hard and we moved around in all kind of funny und unhappy position and my prick did not keep well in her tight pussy. She also had an unpleasant pussy smell. I just hoped her bacteria did not jump to my skin. She had no tits at all, just nipples but she wanted me to suck them hardly all the time. Not easy while pounding her as I am tall and she was not. Jesus Christ at the end I even lost the condom and we stopped. She wanted to return to the Club and I left her with 10.000 CFA. She promised to return next afternoon at 2 pm. Strange experience, but at least king of girlfriend sex. In the afternoon she showed up and started sleeping in my arms. But then when waking up- surprisingly real good sex started, compared with the night before. She was riding me on top again, seems to be classic here. Again she asked for "sin camesina". I wondered what makes a girl wishing this?

* I was not coming yet, maybe she thought it goes better for me without?

* She wants to get pregnant?

* She wants the "real" feeling even with risk?

* She is just birdbrained and uneducated?

We took a shower and I licked her on the 2nd round, but she was not amused about this. No blow job of course too. She left and wanted to see me at night again. I left her with 10.000 CFA for "taxi money". She put a sanitary napkin in her slip. I asked her if she got her period? She said no, but told me all kind of other things in creole, or was it Portuguese? I was just disappointed that I did not understand anything what she told me. I decided not to continue with her- I hate not to be able to discuss things with a girl, also because of her pussy smell, also because she disliked condoms, also because she wanted to pay me her school fees.

At night I was sitting with some Europeans, I asked one of them who spoke well creole to phone her and to tell her that I got an unexpected lift back to Senegal early next morning. I was also afraid that if a girl knows that I am leaving- she would steel something from me during my sleep. But on the other hand I was sad leaving her in this sneaky way.

At 6 am I took a taxi to see "Priso de Mar" a famous bar at the harbor, but it was a quiet dirty and empty place in a dangerous (-?-) area. I continued to "Container Toni" in Barrio Andula. Nice place, open air, music, food, lively. I slept early as I intended to return to Gambia next early morning.

Bissau: a nice relaxed and quiet place, nobody disturbs you. I think for one night and one day I experienced the place to its best. I was also proud to make all the way by dusty bushtaxi. But speaking some Portuguese should be a kind of a must!

Friday, I left the hotel at 8:45 am and was heading for the bus stop "la Parada". A car just left and finally I started my journey at 10:30 and I arrived at Serekunda / Gambia at 17:15 by using 2 cars. Nice music in the car: Justino Delgado. Some unpleasant experience when crossing the border into Gambia. I finished all my passport stamps when a man dressed in a T-shirt stood next to my suit case and told me he wants to control my luggage! I was reluctant but he showed me an ID and explained he is from the "narcotic control"! "Do you take any medication?" and he looked firm in my eyes. "Yes" I said, "I was healthy, but now age comes, I get all kind of medication!" he tried to daunt me, he looked like in a movie with his dark eyeglass. After 5 minutes of search he seemed to get lazy and he told me to repack my suitcase. I think he was also confused by my homeopathic pills, he was not sure what to do with such kind of pills! I arrived at 6 pm at Serekunda.

Ok story will continue under the Gambia section.

John.

Travel time schedule from Cap Skirring to Bissau:

09.30 11:15 Cap Skirring Ziguinchor (1300 CFA + 500, (priv taxi: 5000)).

12.20 16:0 Ziguinchor Bissau (arriving at border 12:40) (bus 3500 CFA + 1000, or car 4000 CFA).

-I-.

Travel time schedule Returning from Bissau to Gambia: (total cost 9000 CFA 14 Euro).

10.30 13:45 Bissau Ziguinchor (4000 CFA + 500, arriving at border at 13:00).

14.00 17:15 Ziguinchor Brigama (arriving at border 16:00) (2500 CFA + 500).

17:20 18:00 Brigama. Serekunda (1000 CFA or 65 the. + 20 luggage).

[GoodEnough]

Obrigado to all my fans. I will continue to report from odd places. Like Eritrea.
@ zimzam. I am happy to bring back memories. Even now Bissau rocks. But little activity in the port nowadays.

If you do get to Asmara, please write a detailed report. I'd be quite interested to know if much has changed since I spent much of two years there about 15 years ago. I had a great time then, and I wish you the same should you get there.

GE.

[Neddy69]

At Neddy the Adventurer:

If you have the opportunity to visit the Cameroons by all means do so. What you describe about Bissau is close to what I remember from my stays in the Cameroons (especially Douala).

Thanks.

Spoke to a German guy in Bissau. Kribi supposed to be good. It's on my radar. But on the backburner. Next plan great east african shag tour.

[XXL]

At Neddy the Adventurer:

If you have the opportunity to visit the Cameroons by all means do so. What you describe about Bissau is close to what I remember from my stays in the Cameroons (especially Douala).

[John Auro]

Hi Neddy,

I will be arround in Banjul from Sat. 1. April on for 10 days.

Have even a visa for Bissau.

But not sure I will take the hardship to go from Cape Skirring to Bissau and back to Banjul by bushtaxi (Lest see how days in Cape Skirring an Banjul develop. ?

Are you still around in this time?

Have no Hotel booking yet 4 all these days. Recommendations.

PM me.

John.

[Neddy69]

Neddy,

You deserve our compliments for your great and informative reports. Let's hope there will be 72 slutty girls waiting for you in the afterlife.

Obrigado to all my fans. I will continue to report from odd places. Like Eritrea. zimzam. I am happy to bring back memories. Even now Bissau rocks. But little activity in the port nowadays.

[Junior]

Neddy,

You deserve our compliments for your great and informative reports. Let's hope there will be 72 slutty girls waiting for you in the afterlife.

[Neddy69]

Just found a pic of the hotel, it's "Penso Central".

This place is closed. Donna Berta died. Her daughter went to Portugal. Either pensao creola or TaMar in velho. All other places very expensive.

[Zimzam]

There was a large hotel along one of the main boulevards, run by an old Portuguese woman, named Bertha. It had incredibly large rooms, but not self-contained.

Just found a pic of the hotel, it's "Penso Central".

[Zimzam]

I visited Bissau twice, but that's more than 30 years ago.

First time I traveled overland, via the long route from Kolda in Senegal and that meant traveling 65 km. A day, living on peanuts & bananas only.

Traveling in the Bush every now and then you reached a village, constructed with grandeur by the Portuguese, 4-lane boulevards etc. Lots of cappuccino-machines left over, but none of them working anymore.

Bissau was a quiet, friendly town those days.

I remember eating some shellfish which was given to you in a large wooden tray, together with a hammer to crush the shells.

There was a large hotel along one of the main boulevards, run by an old Portuguese woman, named Bertha. It had incredibly large rooms, but not self-contained.

Every morning and evening, if you were on the street, after a trumpet sign you had to halt when the flag was risen or downed. And it was not wise to come near the president's palace.

As far as I remember mongering was easy, I went to some clubs, but I don't remember the names, also because of plentiful alcohol consumption those days. I also remember a bar near to the port and the old fort, mainly a place for sailors, always some girls around there.

However, mostly there was a permanent shortage of beer those days. I remember sitting and waiting on a terrace, sipping a softdrink, until the rumour spread that some crates with beer were delivered somewhere, so everyone would rush to that place. Of course the few crates were finished within minutes. (same with bread).

The second time I went by plane from and back to Gambia.

It involved a lot of waiting and going up and down to the airport until we finally flew back to The Gambia, where our arrival came as a complete surprise for the airport staff, air-traffic controllers (if any) , customs and immigration at Banjul airport.

I believe I must be one of the few people in the world who have actually boarded and flew with an "Air Bissau" flight.

Attached are some collector's items from the flight.