Rob flew out of Bamako last night, after an 11 day trip there.

Here are my final ‘musings’ on Bamako/Mali, with four things which sum up my trip in many ways…

Above are two things I liked and two which I did not:

(i) I LOVED the Mercedes Benz 190 D’s which comprise about half of the taxis in the city. Comfortable to travel in and easy to find!
(ii) I did not like the open drains, which often stink and are a bit of an eyesore, not to mention a breeding ground for mosquitos.
(iii) I loved the music - who wouldn’t? This is the stomping ground of Ali Farka Toure and Salif Keita! Home to the kora, the balafon and various other interesting world instruments.
(iv) I didn’t like the extreme HEAT. It climbed to around 40 degrees C at midday, which was a tad warm (that’s me sweating a lot, by the way). However, the dry heat is - in my book - no more (or less) unbearable than high humidity levels at a slightly lower temperature.

Here’s a climate chart for Mali (sorry it’s in Fahrenheit - unless you’re American, in which case, great!) and here’s one for Benin. It’s interesting to note that there is a greater range of temperature in Mali - the lowest temps being lower than here in Benin, but topping out at around 40C is a bit much!

Thanks for reading. More Benin news in a while…