Tanji
3 december 2022
Today I travelled from Albreda to Tanji village on the Gambia coast. This involved a succession of transport legs as follows:
Albreda to Barra by shared taxi D20. I sat next to an accountant working in the government offices of Banju, who had been visiting family in the village that morning. He talked with me about the 'projects' that were running throughout the Gambia to develop life for the people. He felt strongly that "god will reward you for helping the poor in this country"
Barra to Banjul by ferry D25. I joined by companion on one of the two main ferries which crosses the mouth of the Gambian River to Banju. There was a hold up at the ferry destination so we slowly inched our way into the port. In the river was the powership from Turkey, anchored there to provided additional electricity to the Gambia grid supply. Banju seemed smaller and calmer than I'd expected. There were old colonial buildings scattered along the main streets - it felt very similar to parts of Kenya.
Banju to Lamin D20. I planned to visit Lamin Lodge and sty there the night before moving on to Tanji. However, Lamin Lodge turned out to be a restaurant built on stilts over the mangrove swamps and proved to be a wonderful place to rest for a few hours. Here I saw my first colony of monkeys close up. I got the distinct impression that Lamin Lodge is really a place for the European sailors to hang out - their yachts were all moored in the river close by.
Lamin to Tanji via 'the traffic lights' and 'the turntable'D20. This journey introduced me to the main interchanges of the routes around the coastal area of Gambia. The traffic was heavy, the roads bumpy and dusty due to a lot of construction work and new road building. We eventually arrived at Tanji fish market junction.
It was dark now, so I took a taxi to the Tanji Kairoh Garden Guest House and arrived to an oasis of calm, serenity and beauty in the back streets of Tanji. Run under the same management as the Kairoh Garden Guest House in Kuntaur, I was offered a lovely room with hot water for D1200 with breakfast and a menu choice for dinner.
