Ouagadougou to Bobo Dioulasso

Day: 35
Location: Bobo Dioulasso, Burkina Faso
Weather: beautiful
Kilometers: 350
Hours: 4
Health: feel strange, but not bad
Accomodation: Hotel Le Cocotier
Price, room: 5K room, 1K Modibo mat
Price, petrol: 558-578 CFA / lt
Price, water:
Shower: yes
Morale: 6
Total spend: 131K CFA

AW: We had real espresso and white yogurt at a street stand this morning which was pretty delicious. I had already taken my third Cipro, and my stomach and general health had already improved to the point that we could rule out Malaria. The symptoms of Malaria are pretty vague, I think: headache, achy joints, fatigue, upset stomach, fever, and vomiting. Basically, live in fear because you're not going to be able to distinguish it from a respectable hangover.

We went to the market, which had burned down in early 2003, but was due to be rebuilt very soon. In fact, the only thing that had changed is that vagrants were now using the charred structure for a toilette. While it was unlocked, the locals claimed it was illegal to enter, and that it hadn't been rebuilt because the government sucks. We treated Modibo to Senegalese food (his first time), greased the crank shaft, added oil and diesel, and drove to Bobo on more great roads.

Given that it was a Friday, we were obligated to party; Le Tharkay was rumored to be the best place in town. Sorry to say that these may have been the worst looking women in west Africa, and that's not even considering the dental side of things. It was a pretty hectic party, but the street food after (brochettes with onions, garlic powder, butter, and pepper sauce in a roll) was the highlight, at least until the heartburn in the morning.

GB: We got to Bobo after a fair but of driving, and started looking for our hotel, which we expected to find on the "place de la Revolution". Yet when asking around, we were met with looks of bewilderment, amused smiles, poor attempts at making up directions, or when we got lucky, confessions of ignorance. Only once we had been stopped by a cop for an orange headlight did he tell us that people here call the place the "place de la Mairie".

He guided us to the hotel, but only after he extracted a 10K bribe from us by threatening to impound the car. Now, we would normally not say no to an offer to park the car under police surveillance for a minor fee, especially if that would give us a chance to not give in to a corrupt police officer, but since today is Friday, the car would have been stuck until Monday. We paid the bribe and added it to Keita's tab.

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