Hey all, well the boat finally left Mopti at 5:15pm. But that’s really the way with everything I’ve experienced in Africa. Waiting is just a part of the culture/ It makes for a slightly strange trip though, not knowing when anything is actually going to happen. Joe and I were just talking about our trip so far. We’ve been in Mali for like 2 weeks now, and aside from our time in Bamako we haven’t spent more than one night in a single place. Even the places we meant to stop in; we always just seemed to arrive and then get ready to head out again the next day. But we are packing a whole lot into these 3 and a half weeks of travel. I haven’t heard of anyone who’s come here having time to go to both Dogon and Timbuktoo. And really in a way the travelling here is a big part of the experience. We’re moving along at the same pace as the locals. We’re meeting and getting to know Malians, at least on some level. Even if its not how I’m used to travelling or perhaps how I choose to given all the time and resources possible, its still really good.

Now we’re in Tonka; we spent last night on the boat and are now at around the ¾ mark of the way up to Timbuktoo. Our ticket on the boat ended here at this small, slightly run down looking town. We’d thought we might have to spend a night here but luckily (I hope) there’s another Pinnasse leaving here in an hour or so. This is a smaller boat and we should reach Timbuktoo around 12 hours from the time we set off. We’re paying 5 000 CFA for the remainder of the journey. It’s kinda annoying getting worked over all the time just because you’re white, but can you really blame them? Maybe not.

I think Tim’s a bit frazzled and I don’t blame him at all. He’s done such an amazing job here. His French has totally saved us every single day of the trip. Every time I try to argue prices down or get into anything more than small simple conversations I end up lost or offending someone. Its difficult arguing prices politely when you can’t remember all those in-between words. Everything comes out as a kind of demand. Its frustrating for me. But Tim has been so diligent, I’m very impressed by his skill.

And so now we’re on the shore waiting to board the boat going upriver. The rides been pretty wild so far, but relaxing too. Its cool to think that I’m travelling along such a significant river too. Hopefully the trip will continue to work out well and we’ll be in Timbuktoo by tomorrow morning.