Previous country: Morocco
27th October 2023 – A great nights sleep after ridiculous border crossing. Had to drive in the dark for 50 kilometres to find where we were staying (not easy to find in the dark either). Had to let the tyres down to get through the arch! When we arrived they were just serving supper which was really welcome. Went on a boat trip with Victor the (eccentric) Dutch owner of Villa Maguela to an island of pelican and flamingo. Really beautiful place.
Some kind American overlanders (unusual – I have never seen a US overlander in Africa and nor had they!) have loaned us their Starlink satellite internet connection (the Elon Muskynet thing!). We are just chilling here and recharging our batteries after the horrible border crossing yesterday. It is the United Nations here (American, Dutch, Spanish, British, Belgian, German, Kazakhstan, Swiss, Australians (originally from Yorkshire!), a Venezuelan and some Africans from Mali). We suspect other travellers who we left in Dakhla will attempt the border crossing today. There was talk of the owner going into town today but it seems to have evaporated for the time being. Some people staying have been on the infamous iron ore train and arrive filty and wearing ski goggles!
Tonight’s full moon over the beach:
Fantastic sea trout for dinner caught and cooked for Victor by a local fishermen who caught 60 kilograms of fish in a short time (2 hours). Also Spaghetti Bolognese or vegetarian option. Victor was handing out Ricard Pastis which I had not expected but is probably a hangover from French colonial times.
28th October 2023 – Managed to get a Mauritel SIM card for 400 local currency (£8). Expensive here as in short supply. 12GB data 200 (£4). First seller tried to get 5,000 from us but we walked away in absolute disgust!
Desert conditions and seriously hot on the way today passing camels. Road surface OK but potholed in places. Driving skills are dreadful here. Red lights seem to be optional (they stop but then get bored!). Lots of cars in really bad beaten up state with panels hanging off and doors that don’t close. Feels much more like Africa now! Long route through the desert today to the capital Nouakchott. It was 40 degrees on the way because we were away from the coastal sea breeze. Way too hot and uncomfortable but we are getting acclimatised.
However now sitting having dinner of fresh fish overlooking the beach. As it is the weekend there seem to be lots of Mauritanians on the beach enjoying themselves. Beautiful onshore breeze which is so welcome after the stifling heat of the desert. There is a large fleet of small wooden fishing boats and we are looking forward to visiting the fish market tomorrow.
29th October 2023 – went into the city to get money. The Mauritanians are tall people and their ATMs are 6 inches higher than ours, poor Rachel had to stand on tiptoes! Usefully some Italians we met explained about the new versus old currency- there was a devaluation by a factor of ten but people still use the old – super confusing. Money changers in colourful djellaba’s set upon us on arrival. We bought fresh bread from a street vendor selling it on a wooden board on his head, still beautifully warm. It has a groove down the middle and you can buy a half or whole bread.
We bought fresh fruit from the sellers barrows – apples, pears, bananas and oranges. The owner here has been very helpful with advice about where to visit in Mauritania (he is clearly proud of his country). He has been advising the Italians (who are tracking bird migrations in West Africa) regarding the broken coil spring on their Prado (cost, where to buy, name of a good mechanic etc). We told the Italians about the Americans successful use of Starlink and they intend to get one shipped from Europe because they are dealing with large volumes of sound and video data in their project.
Just saw a pod of Dolphins off the beach here – beautiful. A Mauritanian explained that we are close to a national park. Incredibly someone just drove their Mercedes saloon at high speed along the beach however!
We visited the fish market (the biggest in West Africa).
There is an abundance of fish coming in from 2 to 5pm on small colourful traditional boats:
Sunday evening and the beach is full of Mauritanians enjoying free time. Playing football and beach volleyball. It is absolutely packed. Walking down the beach there is no hassle. Some locals say a respectful Bonjour or Ça va? but there aren’t the annoying touts that you can get elsewhere. A lot of visitors complain about Nouakchott but we quite like it. It is not like a capital city. Good place to chill and enjoy the beach, seafood and cooling sea breeze.
30th October 2023 – Leaving Nouakchott at rush hour was interesting. So many old Mercedes taxis that look like something out of a mad max movie. We decided that to be a taxi here it is a prerequisite to be unroadworthy! Some cars has obviously rolled and were still being used tied together with whatever comes to hand! Some had glass missing or a metal plate welded in instead. Lots didn’t have mirrors at all, long since smashed. They stop anywhere to pick up fares and don’t care if they are blocking the road. Sometimes tempers flare but mostly it is just good natured chaos. Local taxi:
Had an interesting encounter when we stopped for lunch under the shade of an Acacia tree in a village. Lots of local kids came.
They told me that it wasn’t good to shave, wanted me to say Allah Akhbar (floored them when I was happy to do so!) and complained that Rachel was putting the crumbs from the bread out of the window which was not Haram in Islam! It was all good natured fun though. They showed me their English exercise book from third grade. Carefully written out in red and blue ink (which looked very neat but I think added little to their learning). They were very cheeky and great fun! They covered their faces with their exercise books when I tried to take photos!
We stopped later for a pee behind an Acacia. The trees were full of huge locusts! There have been serious plagues of them again in recent years.
We saw Monitor lizard and warthogs in the national park close to the border:
Massive river delta national park. Crocodiles here but we didn’t see any. However lots of birds such as herons, egrets and fish eagles.
Return to Mauritania
Return
22nd February 2024 – arrived at Terjit vacances in Nouakchott where we stayed before. A very dusty 309 kilometre drive part of which is an awful road through a national park. So much drier than 4 months ago. The border crossing on both sides straightforward, got the Visa, Passavant and third party insurance on the Mauritanian side. All formalities in about an hour.
I fitted an air horn to George years ago, it stopped working in the Nouakchott traffic, just the wrong moment with lunatic drivers. I check the fuse which was fine. The tube from the compressor had become detached on the terrible corrugated road from the Diama border!
23rd February 2024 – 462 kilometre drive from the capital to Atar. Through sand dunes and arid desert. Some stunning monumental rocks near Atar (reminds me of the route South from Er-Rich in Morocco):
Mauritanian men wear traditional clothes called a Boubou – Decorated with golden and white embroidery, a Moorish boubou or Drâa is a kind of long sheet with a hole in order to let through the head, with two large opened sleeves in each side. In summer time, when it is very hot, sleeves can be rolled up to the shoulders. Pockets are sewn in each side to allow men to put their personal effects in. Boubou can be worn on top of a saroual and/or a tunic.
Stayed at an auberge run by a 79 year old French lady and her Mauritanian husband. They are very kind and super helpful. 3 course dinner for 400 Ouguiya (£8) and hot showers too!
24th February 2024 – drove from Atar to Chinguetti (medieval trading centre and UNESCO world heritage site). Road badly corrugated in places so poor George was being badly shaken (as were we!). Saw some rock paintings on the way (a bit faint but there):
Strange marks made on a rock:
Signs of past sea here:
Cave made by a past river:
Stunning monumental rocks:
Carved footprint:
Amazing views across the desert:
There are medieval manuscripts here in Chinguetti that we hope to see later.
25th February 2024 – visited a library, they are private family owned. The manuscripts especially the illuminated ones are amazing. They cover science, geometry, mathematics, and islamic studies. Some date to the 8th Century.
We visited the mosque and old town in Chinguetti:
Beautiful ancient doors made from Acacia wood:
We found Chinguetti old town a bit disappointing for a UNESCO site. It looked rather over restored with poor workmanship.
We visited Terjit oasis on the way back to Atar. Stayed at the French ladies auberge again. Her cook made Camel meatballs with vegetables and couscous. Delicious.
26th February 2024 – drove the 462 kilometres back to Nouakchott. Plan to go to Nouadibou tomorrow to stay at Villa Maguela again for 2 nights. Then we will cross to Morocco. This evening it is 24 degrees and we are feeling cold!!
27th February 2024 – 500 kilometre drive to Villa Maguela in Nouadibou. Some French and Swiss staying here too. 1,500 kilometres in the last 7 days so we will stay here 2 nights to recover before we have to do many kilometres again through the Western Sahara. Really windy in the night.
28th February 2024 – went to visit the Nouadibou harbour. Literally thousands of fishing boats. How a fishermen ever finds his boat let alone gets it out who knows!
