My Dad Visits: A Travel Journal

Day 1: I felt really bad because I was an hour and a half late picking my dad up at the airport. The driver is a friend  who really wanted to be there to pick my dad up, but he had to take his brothers and sisters home from school before he could drive to the airport. We came to a small hotel on the beach and got right to catching up and smoking a cigar. Then we took a walk to get my bag from the Peace Corps house and stayed up talking some more while he unpacked. I neglected to put the mosquito net down when going to bed, and found a large population resting on the wall in the middle of the night.

Day 2: I brought my dad some breakfast, but he slept til 11 and wasn’t in the mood for food anyways. We left the beach and walked up to see the Peace Corps office. He got to meet the Country Director and a few other really nice people. As we were leaving the deputy chief invited us to ride with her down to the Peace Corps house to look around. We had a slice of carrot cake and club soda then went back to the beach and smoked two more cigars. We walked down the beach a bit and then got ready and went out to dinner with my friends Beth, Lizzie, and Alyssa.

Day 3: My dad slept in again while I had coffee and breakfast. When he finally rose we packed our bags for the trip the next day out of Kombo, leaving his big suitcase behind. We left the beach and had a local lunch, my dads first Gambian food was rice and peanut sauce. We walked to the countries best bookstore and drank a cappuccino on the beach. It was too early for dinner so we went to another beachside spot and watched the fishing boats going out. Then we went back to our hotel and met a small group of volunteers. We smoked cigars while the sun went down. We dropped my dad’s bag at the Peace Corps house then walked into a small neighborhood and met Alyssa for another local dinner of beans and cassava. Then we went and found sweet rolls for dessert.

Day 4: We took a cab to the bus station and got out of Kombo. We rode halfway up the country to the town of Soma, took a cab to the river and crossed on the ferry, then took another cab up to the town of Farafenni. We found a guesthouse called Eddie’s. There were two volunteers drinking soda, and we sat with them and cooled off from travel. Then we had lunch and came back and spent the afternoon smoking cigars in the courtyard. At night, Stephen and Rebecca came over and we visited with them. Then Stephen took us out and we walked around exploring Farafenni. We got bean sandwiches on hot fresh bread for dinner, and ate them in the dark sitting on the road.

Day 5: We were up close to seven and at the bus station to leave Farafenni by 8. We got off at Wassu and walked a few kilometers to the riverside town of Kuntaur. A boat from Baboon Island National Park picked us up shortly after noon. We rode back to their camp, and when we got there had juice and lunch, while the administrator told us about the Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Project. After lunch we went out on a boat ride  and saw baboons, chimps, a few crocodiles, and some hippos, and a lot of birds. After the boat ride we sat on the porch of the camp. We had dinner and chatted with another guest. My dad excused us to go up to our tent, where we sat outside on the lawn chairs smoking cigars and looking out at the night sky and the river Gambia.

Day 6: The camp brought us hot water at 7 am, and we had coffee and then went out on a walk to look at birds. We came back, had breakfast, and then caught the same boat back to Kuntaur. When we got to town, we took a donkey cart to Wassu, moved into a vehicle, and drove to the ferry crossing in Janjanbureh. There we caught a bus to Basse. We walked to the house and smoked a cigar, then my friend Lamin Sorra came over to greet my dad. We cleaned up and enjoyed having power and internet, and I made eggs and instant potatoes for dinner.

Day 7: We went to the car park and asked for a ride to Garawol . The vehicle wasn’t ready, but waiting in the car park in the few hours was really enjoyable because I had my dad with me. We rode to my village and everyone came out to meet us. Some of my favorite people in the village came by to greet my dad, and then my family let us relax in the backyard for most of the night.

Day 8: My dad and I rode up to see Garawol and buy a bag of rice. Then we came back and got to relax a little before a big group of women from the village came by to greet and dance for my dad. After the dance we rode with my uncle Salung to the riverside to watch him fish and relax a little. When we came back my dad gave my host dad some gifts from America and we spent the evening in the backyard.

Day 9: I took my dad on a big bike ride to Fatoto. I wanted him to meet my favorite people from the maket, Hawa and Bakary. We drank some cold water and ate some bread. On the way home we stopped and climbed a hill that looked out over the nearby villages. I use the hill for its phone service and it was special to be up there with my dad instead of being up there to call him. When we got home my dad fell asleep and then lunch came. In the afternoon we just went outside and sat under the shade tree. We packed up to leave early the next morning and all my host mothers brought peanuts to the room for my dad to take home.

Day 10: We left my village dark and early around 5:15. We rode to Paige’s house in Garawol and left our bikes then all went to catch a vehicle together. We made Basse around 8am and were the first group on the bus back to Kombo. We made it in aroun 3 pm and I left my dad drinking coffee to go retrieve his bags and hail a cab to drive us to Kartong. We changed cabs three times, but were delivered to our resort at dinner time. As soon as we arrived they showed us to our room and took our dinner order. There was a man sitting in the dining room with his shirt off getting a massage. My dad saw that, and then the room we were given, and agreed this place would suffice. We cleaned up for dinner, and the electrical socket caught on fire.

Day 11: We had breakfast and coffee, then went to the beach and got some sun. Our only chore was to come back and have lunch. My dad smoked a cigar while laying in the hammock. Around 5 we went down and walked the beach for a while. Then it was time to go to dinner. A very nice British lady named Pavanne came over and said hi to us, as did the owner of the resort. It turned out that the night watchman was also the masseuse.

Day 12: After breakfast and coffee we went to the beach. There were four or five other guests there as well. An hour in the sun and we went back to the room and relaxed before lunch with some more hammock and cigar time for my dad. We went back to the dining room in the afternoon and my dad had a really nice talk with Pavanne. That carried the day into the night and it was time for dinner, reading, and relaxing.

Day 13: Another coffee and breakfast morning, then to the beach for a dose of Vitamin D. It was more melancholy today as the trip was ending. It wasn’t just the three days in the resort that were a vacation, it was the whole time my dad was here. The resort was nice enough to let us spend the whole day in our room while waiting for the evening flight departure. So after lunch and some hammock time we both packed up, and walked back down to the restaurant. The taxi came around 5 pm, and the staff on hand at the resort all lined up on the sidewalk to wave us goodbye. I got out of the cab and walked my dad into the airport and said goodbye.