Spiffor goes to Mali

[Last Conformist]

King Fahd bridge? That King Fahd?

[Spiffor]

I suppose he has sponsoored the bridge. There is quite a bit of money that comes from Muslim fundraising. Also, Iran is a significant business partner (though Mali's main foreign investors are France, China and Lebanon).

[Spiffor]

A propos Mali and the Muslim world, I arrived during the Hajj, which meant that my plane (from Tunis) was full of pilgrims dressed in white. The plane was also full with huge luggage from Mecca, which is why my own luggage got lost during the transit (I had to buy my clothes upon arrival - I found my luggage 10 minutes before boarding the plane returning me to Paris).

I find it interesting that Bamako renamed its largest street, the Koulikouro road, into the Al Qods avenue (Koulikouro is a provincial town close to Bamako - Al Qods is the Arabic name of Jerusalem).
If the commitment of Mali for the Palestinian cause wasn't clear anough, here is what you see whenever you enter the Al Qods avenue:


While I'm thinking about it, I mlight as well show how I look like with local clothes (I forgot to add that I didn't buy local socks - I kept the same socks during those 9 days. Even though my feet don't smell, I must still admit that it was a great pleasure to finally change socks, in Tunis Airbport before my final flight to Paris )

[Last Conformist]

Surely, not even in Bamako can a few extra pairs of socks cost anything to speak of?

[Spiffor]

Yes, but I forgot about them the day I did my shopping, and after that, my days were packed until the end of the trip.

Besides, until the two very last days (which weren't planned: I missed my plane on tuesday, and only came back on thursday), it was really not that bad. As said, my feet don't smell.

[Last Conformist]

I hate you.

[Skanky Burns]

Looks like you had fun.

[Imran Siddiqui]

I kept the same socks during those 9 days.

That's ok, you smelled like the rest of the French

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

I kept the same socks during those 9 days.

That's ok, you smelled like the rest of the French

I spend hours scanning my pics and writing my posts, and this is the only matter you react to?

[Provost Harrison]

Sheesh, if I wore the same socks for 9 days, they'd smell like a gorgonzola factory

[GeoModder]

You were in warm africa. Why wearing socks at all? Just bare feet in sandals would surely be enough?

In any case, the place looks much more greener then I expected, but I suppose that outside the city and river area things look dustier.

[Provost Harrison]

It depends on the part of the country - I think the part to the south around Bamako is fairly fertile, it is the more Northern part that is desert...

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by Spiffor
I spend hours scanning my pics and writing my posts, and this is the only matter you react to?

I'm American, it's ingrained .

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by GeoModder
You were in warm africa. Why wearing socks at all? Just bare feet in sandals would surely be enough?

Most of my friends did that, and their feet were waaay dirtier than mine. During the dry season, there's red dust everywhere in the city. Especially on the feet.

[Provost Harrison]

Sounds like Mars