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ROAD TRIP<br />
Nora Musa brushes up on her<br />
French then spends two weeks<br />
in Senegal, kicking off her trip<br />
in Dakar where she checks<br />
out beaches, cafes, markets,<br />
neighbourhoods, art and more.<br />
Dakar<br />
As I arrived at Blaise Diagne airport, I felt<br />
excited for the two weeks ahead.<br />
For this trip, I was prepared for the fact that<br />
not many people in Senegal speak English<br />
and had therefore tried to brush up on my<br />
very basic French. Fortunately, I found the<br />
Senegalese to be really patient people, and<br />
they appreciated the effort. I was staying in<br />
Mermoz, a middle class residential area. As<br />
we drove along the beautiful Dakar Corniche,<br />
I realised that I was only staying ten minutes<br />
away from it. The Corniche is where the<br />
whole city seemingly converges for open air<br />
circuit training, zumba classes, a run or walk<br />
at sunset.<br />
Breakfast and brunch<br />
As someone who loves to linger over<br />
breakfast and a nice cappuccino, I checked<br />
out cafes and brunch spots online in this city<br />
where new, trendy eateries are constantly<br />
popping up. I headed for Lulu cafe, a<br />
ten minute walk from my Airbnb, passing<br />
older people dressed in brightly coloured<br />
traditional dress. One thing I love about<br />
Africa is the embracing of colour. At Lulu’s<br />
I ordered the breakfast special, and the<br />
food and decor had me sitting there for far<br />
longer than originally planned. As the space<br />
is divided into different sections, it’s also a<br />
place where you could go and work. Other<br />
great breakfast and brunch spots in the<br />
Mamelle and Mermoz area include Melo<br />
cafe and Simoni cafe. Downtown, there<br />
are lots of options for breakfast such as La<br />
Galette and Press Cafe.<br />
Beaches<br />
Being on the western tip of Africa, you won’t<br />
struggle to find beaches in Senegal. The most<br />
well known is Saly on the Petite Côte where<br />
you’ll notice a large French and Belgian<br />
presence, and Cap Skirring in the Southern<br />
region of Casamance. Even in Dakar,<br />
however, you’ll find some beaches, and<br />
these were some of my first stops- places to<br />
unwind and catch up on some reading before<br />
heading into town. One option is Mamelle<br />
beach, a ten minute taxi ride from where I<br />
was staying. If you do a lot of solo travel, taxi<br />
drivers can be a great way to source for local<br />
recommendations, get tips for prices and<br />
practise the local language. This ride was<br />
no different - a fun exchange of elementary<br />
French, Wolof, English and Arabic.<br />
Mamelle beach is small but very<br />
charming, backed by lovely little eateries<br />
and places to get umbrellas or mats to lie on.<br />
When I got there at about 10.30am, it was<br />
just me and three young boys alternating<br />
between playing football and jumping<br />
into the water. As I was about to leave,<br />
the people working in the cafes came and<br />
introduced themselves; new friends made for<br />
my next visit. In the mid to late afternoon,<br />
this place gets busier with more tourists but is<br />
still a nice respite from the city. If you want a<br />
bigger beach, head to the lively Yoff about<br />
30 minutes away and you can learn to surf<br />
there too.<br />
Almadies<br />
This neighbourhood in the north of the city<br />
is where some of the nicest sea-facing cafes,<br />
hotels and night spots are. Some allow you<br />
to go down and join the surfers or get your<br />
feet wet. I met up with a friend at Chez Fatou<br />
where we snacked, caught up and took<br />
some pictures with the incredible sea view<br />
behind us. I spent other sunsets and evenings<br />
in Almadies at Sharkeys, Jet cafe among<br />
others. Many of the places with sea-facing<br />
terraces also had sun loungers so you can<br />
still get work done or read a book while<br />
sunbathing.<br />
DAKAR HAS BECOME<br />
such a creative hub that last year, a specialist artist<br />
residency called Black Rock Senegal was set up to much<br />
fanfare and an opening party that included creatives<br />
from all over Africa, Europe and the US. Set up by<br />
Kehinde Wiley, the artist who was commissioned to<br />
paint a portrait of Barack Obama, it’s an exciting<br />
addition to the local art scene. A browse through<br />
Instagram will help you connect with many creatives<br />
doing great things here.<br />
Medina<br />
I’d read online about the old part of the<br />
city called Medina becoming a hub for<br />
street art, so I reached out to a few local<br />
creatives to accompany me on a walk<br />
to make it a little more informative. One<br />
of the first to respond was a talented<br />
internationally accomplished photographer<br />
and filmmaker called Abdoulaye. He met<br />
me at Soumbédioune beach early in the<br />
morning to watch the fishermen bringing in<br />
their night’s haul, as others went out to sea<br />
to replace them. We talked to them and took<br />
photos of the colourful pirogue boats then<br />
headed off into the Medina with a pit stop<br />
for a street baguette and omelette. While<br />
it is a residential area, many of the locals<br />
have allowed the walls of their homes to be<br />
painted with beautiful murals by local artists.<br />
Islamic influence<br />
Dakar is home to some beautiful mosques<br />
and I decided to visit my favourite, Mosquee<br />
De La Divinite. It’s set down from The<br />
Corniche against the sea, and the dramatic<br />
setting combined with its stunning green and<br />
white colour is truly a feast for the eyes. I<br />
was greeted by the guardian, Mohammed.<br />
His uncle had founded the mosque and was<br />
buried in front. Another delight? The mosque<br />
was only open during prayer time but he<br />
opened the green shutter windows to show<br />
me the inside and told me that men had one<br />
floor downstairs but the women had two<br />
floors. This is something you’ll see across<br />
Senegal, women are actively welcomed to<br />
pray. Dakar may not have as many mosques<br />
as say Cairo or Istanbul but at prayer time,<br />
people will pray anywhere; while waiting to<br />
be served in markets and when waiting for<br />
taxis, if it is time, the prayer mats will come<br />
out, then they continue with their business.<br />
Markets<br />
You cannot visit Dakar without visiting<br />
a market or two. Located downtown,<br />
Sanadaga is so big that taxis will ask you<br />
which part you want to go to. Fabric?<br />
Jewellery? What do you need to buy? I<br />
was determined to get something made<br />
for myself and therefore decided to find a<br />
market insider. I was connected to Ibrahim,<br />
a friendly tailor, salesman and market guide.<br />
He greeted me wearing a bright yellow<br />
thobe (bou-bou) and equally bright smile.<br />
I scurried along behind him as he took me<br />
up the steps of a building in a busy market<br />
intersection, full of different rooms with<br />
fabric. He left me to choose a design and<br />
material I wanted, and this was followed<br />
by a little price negotiation. Sewing is<br />
usually done in a few hours but I returned<br />
the following day to pick them up. Other<br />
than Sandaga, HLM is good for markets,<br />
while on a smaller scale Marche Artisanal<br />
Samboudine is where you can get jewellery<br />
and crafts.<br />
Landmark<br />
The African Renaissance statue is of a<br />
man, woman and child facing the sea,<br />
and is the tallest in Africa. Built in 2010<br />
to commemorate independence, the long<br />
flight of stairs leading up to this statue adds<br />
to its drama and is a prime spot to take<br />
photographs. It is always worth a visit even<br />
just for the fabulous views over Dakar. It was<br />
not without controversy when it was built<br />
due to the cost, the short skirt the woman<br />
is wearing and the fact that it overlooks<br />
the mosque. However, people now seem<br />
to have warmed to it, and whether or not<br />
you visit, you’ll most definitely drive past it<br />
at some point. I actually love the statue...<br />
to me it represents strength, family and<br />
independence.<br />
NOMAD MAGAZINE 2020 39