30th and 31st of December, 2017.
Liz arrange a lift for me to Senegal. Two girl who were going to pass one night in a Natural Park outside Mauritania and the New Year’s Eve in St, Louis, Senegal, and then they would return to Mauritania. Me and Moulay were waiting for then in the morning of the 30th of December, at 8 o’clock.
They are late. I use the time to buy some bread, yoghurt and fruits. When they finally appear, just the girls and not the Mauritanian guy who suppose to come along, I am kind of happy because they have a nice pick-up truck and I think it will be nice a trip just with girls.
I definitely have to start to pay attention in my instincts, any kind of them does not matter how small they look like, and then get my eyes open and be alert.
The first thing that sounds wrong, it is the fact they do not liked my music and keep passing most of them. I mean, if I ask for somebody’s phone to hear some music I will at least show some respect and keep most of the songs. And some of them were African melodic songs, which looked like a lot with those ones they put later.
On the way, they pick up some people from the road (what is nice) but them they ask for my camera and started to take a lot of photos, of everything, just like those tourists I hate.
Before the entrance of the Natural Park we stop to eat. Bread, fruits, juice and cheese.
At the entrance, surprise: the girls do not need to pay because they live in Nouakchott, but I do. I get a little upset because the “guard” did not even ask for any paper of confirmation, he just made the questions and they answered. I knew I would have to pay but until that moment we had not seen anything that interest, you know? Just a few boars far away and the same to all the birds, some cows (who need to pay to see cows?) and camels. Plus I got pretty upset because the “guard” it was clearly a jerk but the girls kept playing nice with him. They would change their minds soon enough.
At the camping nothing special also. We are staying in a traditional Mauritanian tent. It is nice and interest, warm and clean and the mattress are really nice. But I do not like of the guide since the beginning. Instinct.
We go for a quick walk before dinner and even that we have some good moments and good conversation, it is just that and the day would be over? I mean, I pay a lot of money just to see some animals far away and a small walk and that was it?
The dinner suppose to be just Tahini and French fries. Talking with the guide, the girls arranged some cous-cous and vegetables and not the Tahini. At the end, Marie eats just the French fries and give me her vegetables. I thought it was weird but I would discovery the real reason just on the following day.
I could barely sleep. The drastic change of weather (it was pretty dry) made my nose get crazy and I could not breath.
The breakfast it is the best part: black coffee, fresh bread, soft cheese, jam and even some chocolate spread with hazelnut. I eat also my yoghurt with some Muesli. It is when the girls start to talk about natural food. They are complaining about the chocolate and how “not natural” it is, and the same about my yoghurt. I mean, I also do not like those ready food, which obviously are full of sugar and are not healthy, but I cannot afford (at least not anymore) always the most natural and pure and organic food. I would love to! But I cannot. Maybe in the future I will get some courage and start to recycle food like the guys from Vivre sans argent but for now I still will buy the cheapest food.
We take all our stuff (not all of it because later I would realize, for my completely devastation, that I forgot my lantern in the tent) and leave for a small tour before hit Senegal. We suppose to go until the beach, maybe have a bath, hiking a little and try to see more animals. At the end, the girl get lost (and I do not understand how they could not get some good information if they speak French!) and do not want to risk be unable to return (so why you came to a Natural Park anyway if you do not want to take any risks?) so we come back to the road and just do a small walk (again).
Coming back, the shock: the same guard from yesterday stop the car and tell the girls they need to pay. It looks like they would not need to pay is we remained at place we were yesterday, near the camping, but that last small hour we passed in the other side would coast them the payment. Obviously it is a plan to get their money. Or any tourist money! Even I, who do not understand French very well, knew it that he did not tell us that the other day, and if I was one of the girls, I would keep repeating that and not pay at all. But I think they are more rich than they told me so they just discussing a little with him and that was it, they paid.
Another reason for this it could be because we did not accept the guide from the camping, Ahmed, to be our guide that morning. Of course we did not, it would be stupidity! What he could tell us? The name of the animals? The plants? It was a simple Park with a small road, not one of those big ones in Tanzania where you can track the big five or something. So, anyway, when we get back to the camping (Stephanie need to make a call), I am surprise in how Marie treats Ahmed normally, as nothing had happened. How people can accept be explored and do nothing about it? Again, later I would discovery that this kind of reaction could be even worse.
Have I already told you how horrible the roads were from Nouakchott to the Park? Horrible! Just that would be a good point to not pay anything. Luckily, from the Park to Senegal the roads are OK.
At the border, just a few quilometres later, more shocks! First a guy, with no credentials at all, is asking for some money which supposedly should be for the bridge. The girls just argue to make the price smaller (they pay half at the end) but do not even think about not to pay. Of course it is not a regular thing! The guy do not give us any receipt or something. He just decide, buy luck, how much he would charge from everyone. Ridiculous corruption in a world where the main habitant is made of shit. I am already really pissed off.
Trying to get our “leaving Mauritania” stamp, another problem: The car it is not in the name of Stephanie but in the name of the Company for which she works. The problem? She do not have any proof of her relationship, like a contract work, with the Company. For someone who say already had travelled a lot, this is a stupid mistake. It cost us a lot of time in a small cabin with the responsible to release us. He sounds like a nice correct guy and I could see he is believing us but also, and I really think this is the reason he extended so much our release, if anything bad happened to us in Senegal, when people check the details, he would be the first one to be guilty for let us pass in first place. At the end, his trustful in us spoke louder and we get our stamps. By the records: in any moment he try to ask us for money but that also make me think: if he is a correct person, why he let the corruption just a few metres from him keep happening? Or at the end he is involved with the whole thing and that is the real reason he did not ask us for more money?
Next step: get in Senegal. I am already concerned about not having any proof on me that I have been to the Senegal Embassy in Nouakchott and there they told me I do not need a Visa. So when the guy from the border says do not know about Brazilian nationality, I could not know if I am happy or more concerned.
After a phone call, for my relief, they stamp my entrance without the Visa, which now I know for sure do not need.
Last step: another arrangement with the car. OK, here I have to say that I do not know what was going on. They need to pay another amount of money but this time there is a kind of paper and receipt on it. So at the moment I am, of course, even more pissed off, but now (and after finally finished the book Vivre sans argent) I know that you have to pay a small tax to get in some countries. I do not agree, of course. I think is something ridiculous that the Government created just to get even more money of the outsiders.
At this point, I heard something really stupid from Marie’s mouth: “You cannot just questioned everything!” Excuse me? I cannot what? Yes I can and yes you should. Unless you are just another play of the society, yes you should to question everything and always. How someone who claim to work for NGOs in name of the best for the Planet could say something so stupid? Listen, you are reading this from someone who always admit have some contradictory moves but not in my principles, you know? I will fight against the system and to question everything until I have no more air in my lugs.
After all those long steps to get in the Senegal country, another disappoint moment. The girls are trying to exchange their money but they knew I also would need to exchange mine, we had spoken about this before. But when they are doing the arrangements, me in my already known for you way of not try to disturb anyone and always wait the best moment to talk or act, do not say anything until they finished the transaction. The problem is when they finished, they start to prepare to leave. When I said – oh oh, and what about me? – they are surprised and say they are so full of stuff in their mind that they just forgot about it. I felt abandoned! Once more I experienced the feeling of give everything and in exchange get nothing as the same when I looked back to my life in Brazil. They try to talk with another guy and negotiate a good price for my poor small amount of money. The one who exchange for them, for a good price, now refuse to make the same for me, just because it is a small quantity. It did not matter if they try to say to him that it was just five minutes ago, if we had put all together would be the same, no. The demoniac influence of the money transform the soul of the people. Luckily, there was this nice guy who were around us since the beginning and Stephanie call him. He asks for another guy who make a good price. Not the same one, but a good one. We finally could leave. After all, Stephanie apologized for what happened and promise me a glass of wine later. I am already broken again and there is no alcohol in the world that could fix that. I keep doing my best on the rest of the travel. But for me nothing would be the same again.
