Driving times had drastically lengthened , so that we got to the entrance of the park just before 6pm , barriers were already being closed , only to be opened at the discretion of the guards . If they opened we had no hope of crossing the park in the dark .
“ Either you spend the night here or we ’ ll give you a pass to that part of Guinea ,” they explained . We took the pass in the hope of finding a Marabout 3 who had the ability to cure , I knew not what . He was to be found on this road in the Guinean territory . We found this holy man and ate at his house until late .
We continued our trip and unfortunately ran through a military checkpoint that I hadn ’ t seen . We were chased and forced to turn around , we needed none of the tension , especially as the soldiers were all drunk and heavily armed . At least we can say we have experienced the drunken Guinean Green Caps at Youkounkoun .
Guinea , for the little I ’ ve seen , is very pretty with a more central- African feel compared to Senegal . Guinea straddles the Sahel 4 , with its villages under big trees , milder climate , plenty of water and fruit , and with people of lighter skin and smaller build .
We returned to Senegal from Kundara , having been stopped four times since the border and had to spend the day between the police checkpoint and the customs office , because I didn ’ t have the ‘ required ’ visa . Once the bureaucratic storm had passed , we remained on the asphalt and headed towards Tamba , where we spent the night on the same terrace as two days prior .
The following day we tried the roads near the Gambia , arriving in Saloum and later Dakar . Given
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