The next day we leave at 8:00, rather late and have rice for breakfast (every meal turns out to be rice) This day we manage to cover I think only 10 km. We get stuck at every bend and the boats have to be untied and separatly pushed through the shallow waters.
At 12 we got stuck so bad it takes the rest of the day to pass. Also the 3 toubabs do their best to get the boats through and their help is much appreciated. For the Irish very frustrating, they are pressed for time, but for me fun to do, although I would not have minded this was our last day of kirikiri (moving the boat back and forth, front to the left, rear to the right and viceversa to get the boat afloat again) This time an early start 5:30, but after 500 meters we are stuck, all people, except the kids, women and elderly, help out and after a good hours work we are moving again. I helped pushing the first boat and decide not to go back to push the bigger boat. Instead I go ashore to see what a village looks like from ashore. At that time I thought I better should not miss the boat, because life could be rather difficult in only my boxershorts and t)shirt. I returned to the river and swim to back to the little piroque. Unfortunately there is no shade on this boat and I am rather sunburnt when the the pinasse joins us. We get our hopes up of finally having overcome the last difficulty but this turned out in vain. Before lac Debo, some of our cargo is offloaded in two sailing piroques as the lake is even more shallow than the river. This does ofcourse help, but not enough. We have to push the 2 boats one after the other for large parts of the lake. After the lake we load back the earlier offloaded cargo and even get some extra from another ship. This really annoys us, as we already were heavy loaded. After this we start sailing again and there is hope we will sail on through the night, again idle hope, we are not allowed, we have no light. This time I try to sleep on the shore, I slept even worse than on the boat, so that I will not try again. In the morning we get stuck right away, the toubabs do not help as they are angry that the boat was loaded with extra cargo, while they knew the boats were already lying deep in the water. Without the help of the white the job gets done, so it is apparent that you can just do as well without them. Rest of the day no huge problems only stuck a few times. We see our first hippo, that is to say, a small part of his head and loads of birds. At night the toubabs go to a little village to see if they can buy some food, to eat something other than rice. We find no food but we are invited to sit with the locals. Tadhg gets even a little baby on his lap, that throws up over him and his bag. Soon after we decide to leave to another hut. There they have a radio that plays some music and I dance a while with a few girls and women. Afterwards we secretly eat pears from a can the Irish brought, delishes, a welcome change to the rice dishes. On Saturday we finally reach niafounke and the Irish go from board, I get all the remaining drinking water, as it is hard to predict how long the trip will take. At the same time a lamp is bought to enable night travelling. A new phenomenon appears, after an hour we have to stop because of to much wind. The wind creates waves and they collide with the side of the big pinasse and from there go into the lower piroque. I cover a large part of the gap between the boats at the front with a sleeping mat left behind by the Irish, to prevent the water from coming in over the side. The boat people do not think much of it and we keep on waiting. After an hour although the wind is still the same, but the water that comes in is less because of my litle screen. Gozou the guy in charge of the engine wants me to send a picture I took of him to his address, when I ask what his address is he does not know it. I am now the only toubab aboard and the boatpeople are involving me more in their affairs. I now get served tea when they have some, Seckou, who almost knows the alphabet wants me to teach him to read. I try to come up with easy French words but that is not that simple. Many are pronounced differently then they are written. Still it makes a lot of fun. I let Ba the son of the captain and his burkinese friend play with my fotocamera and they love it. I also take pictures of the crew and promise to send it to them. The 8 of them know of only 1 address I can send it to, but that ofcourse is enough.
On the last day of our voyage we encounter high winds causing our little piroque almost to sink. Again I covered the gap between the pinasse and the prioque again with the sleeping mat and an old blanket that was not used only the engine guy Gozu helped me as he desperately wanted to return to Mopti. After four hours of waiting we got going again although the wind had not seriously deminished. Still water was falling into the boat, but considerable less than before. At one stage the two boats had to be separated because tied together they could not pass the shallowness. When we left again with the boats next to each other, but without my screen a lot of water splashed in the piroque, making all the grainsacs wet. Then I had my greatest moment of the day. The captain ordered the other guys to make a screen as I had done. They left some space open at the front and when I wanted to cover that as well I got loads of help and was complemented on my work. I am curious if they will also use it in situations in the future aswell?
Finally late in the evening (Monday) we reached the harbour of Timbuctu, it is to late for me to go to Timbuctu and I decide to sleep one last night on the ship.
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