IT’S NICE TO BE NICE

When faced with the doom and gloom of Britain in mid February the holidaymaker will inevitably consider a week away somewhere warm and if financially possible, somewhere tropical.
Unfortunately towards the end of March there are limited countries to visit where the temperature is a ‘sweater-free’ 25 degrees or more without flying tot he ever-disappointing Canary Islands or all the way to the Caribbean or Middle East. That is, of course until you discover The Gambia.

Enjoying an average of ten hours of sunshine a day at a temperate 28-32degrees The Gambia is fast becoming the long haul destination a short haul away.

Before you even climb on the plane you are sure to have bought a rough guide to the country and most of them will inevitably inform you of the good and bad things to watch out for when visiting The Gambia for the first time. Some will even stress the bad things more than the good but until you visit and make your own mind up you just won’t know how great the country is.

Only five and a half hours away from Gatwick and in the same time zone, Banjul, the country’s capital, will be your first port of call and the Gambian spirit will immediately embrace you. Grinning from ear to ear, the smiling porters will carry your luggage the short wander through customs to your awaiting coach and a couple of dalasi or the always-welcome US dollar will be a sufficient tip for their efforts.

The unique juxtaposition of The Gambia means it is almost entirely enveloped by neighbouring Senegal leaving only the 50mile coastline exposed to the Atlantic. This is naturally where the majority of the country’s hotels are and they run south from the capital past Fjara, Kotu and Kololi to Senegambia. Around the Senegambia area the hotels are set back from the fabulous beach that runs the entire coastline of the country to the southern border with Senegal. The hotel facilities in The Gambia are known to be basic but they are clean and comfortable and provide the visitor with everything they require.

The main tourist district of the country is the Senegambia Strip where numerous delicacies await your palate. As you would expect in any tourist area ‘the strip’ is awash with extra-enthusiastic waiters and waitresses persuading you to sample their culinary delights and are well worth accepting their invitations. The restaurants vary considerably from traditional West African cuisine to more recognisable Italian, Indian and Chinese food to name but a few. The most popular dish in The Gambia is Ladyfish served in a peanut sauce. Ladyfish can be best described as a white fish with a beautiful fleshy, moist texture similar to that of cod or monkfish but with a slightly milder flavour. Peanuts are one of the country’s main exports and are prevalent in many dishes.

A scout through the guides available on the shelves at your local travel bookstore will have convinced you that The Gambia isn’t the most sophisticated or developed country and in all honesty it isn’t. But that is exactly why you go to far slung corners of the world isn’t it? The cities of UK and Europe are gradually blending into one and it’s a revelation to arrive in Western Africa after such a short flight and be greeted by local shops purveying their local goods. You'll struggle to find a McDonald's or a can of Coke in The Gambia - just the way a holiday should be.

The travel guides put the fear of god in you when it comes to the locals who will befriend you as soon as you step out of your hotel. They are known as ‘Bumsters’ and have an extremely poor reputation especially around Senegambia but if you give them a friendly handshake and have a brief chat you may find them to be really informative, helpful and above all – nice. There’s no reason to be afraid of them either. The Gambia is a poor country and the ‘bumsters’ are poor people who live close to the poverty line but are merely trying to make a living for themselves by showing you around the country they are so clearly proud of. Unlike the poor in the UK you will seldom see someone asking you for money for nothing in The Gambia - they are a hard-working race that believes in honesty and integrity from an early age and this you’ll see as you get to know them. And I suggest you do or you’ll miss out on The Gambian experience.

The guidebooks will also tell you to stay out of the yellow taxis that cruise up and down the streets but there really isn’t any need to. They are, supposedly, reserved for the locals and the tourists should use the green taxis specifically designed for them. The truth is they are more expensive as they are predominantly in better roadworthy shape than their yellow counterparts. If you ask a green taxi for a ride to Banjul from the Senegambia strip for example you could end up paying 200 dalasi when the yellow drivers will only charge you around 100. You may even find a taxi driver – as we did - who will bend over backwards to show you his country.

When we were there in March we wandered out of our hotel in Senegambia and knowing roughly what we wanted to do for the day approached the nearby taxi rank and were immediately inundated with varying different offers from the awaiting drivers. The haggling was fun and when we finally agreed a price for a green taxi a great big guy called Hasan wandered up and said he’d do it for almost half of the agreed rate for a trip south and we jumped in his car. Scarcely recognisable as a Renualt 9 anymore the car looked as though it had been in the breaker’s yard for years and stripped of everything of any value and then sold back to Hasan as a relatively bare shell that still ran. Just.

We drove down to Paradise beach in the south and had a great day knocking back a few of the local brew - ‘Julbrew’ - and enjoying the perfect weather. We were shown around the fishing village by Hasan and the locals and watched as the handmade boats were dragged in after a morning’s fishing expedition. We were talked through every type of fish they caught and watched as the women boned and de-scaled the catch before drying them. The boats are painted in a thousand colours and the scene up and down the beach made you reach for your camera every minute - quite beautiful.

The whole day Hasan patiently waited for us and when we were ready to head back we jumped back in the car and drove the 45minute journey home again. We only parted with the equivalent of about £11 for Hasan’s day and bought him lunch and a few bottles of local pop but all in all a cheap way to visit exactly where you wanted to go with your own personal guide.

From then on we called upon the services of our new best friend every other day and even went all the way to James Island with him. The journey took us into downtown Banjul and onto the ferry to the northern side of the country. We then changed car and thanks to the negotiating skills of Hasan headed down the road to the northern shores of the Gambian River.

James Island is a fascinating place accessed only by a visit through the fishing village of Juffureh on the northern shore of the Gambian River. The locals will guide you around their town and through the museum. It’s a very sacred place in The Gambia and although slavery has long since been abolished, the recognition of their forefather’s suffering is evident everywhere.

We chartered a little boat and headed off to the place which marked the beginning of the African Slave Trade.
During the short ride over to the island and the accompanying guides will have you singing Bob Marley songs about freedom and emancipation throughout the half hour sail. Our guide showed us around the World Heritage Site and described the conditions and procedure for the sale of the slaves to the United States in a heartfelt, emotional manner that left us all with a tear in our eye and feeling a little guilty for the behaviour of our forefathers.

Hasan had lived in The Gambia all of his life and had never visited James Island so it was fascinating to see his reaction too. It was a touching tribute to the people of West Africa and well worth the visit.

There’s so much to do in The Gambia too - take a sail through the mangrove waters; visit the Crocodile Park; have lunch on floating restaurants deep in heart of the River Gambia and if you’re lucky be invited to Hasan’s house for dinner with his family.

The Gambia is the closest place you can go if you want to explore and discover the real Africa. The people are friendly and love their country passionately. The country’s history is something the nation is extremely proud of and maintaining its integrity and welcoming newcomers to their shores is top priority. The weather is superb, the food is fresh and exquisitely prepared and the atmosphere is fun, lively, sincere and you’ll love it.
The key phrase in The Gambia is, ‘It’s nice to be nice’.

Say no more.

visit www.visitthegambia.gm for more information

Chris Keeping