We’ve had occasional e-mail contact with Sheldon Cooper since we went our separate ways in Dakar, so hopefully he and Ahmed the Finger will find their way to our hotel at some point today. Other than another visit to the cheap and cheerful schwarma restaurant across the road we don’t stray too far from our hotel, preferring to sit in the shady garden and read and get the diaries up to date. Having noted yesterday that the orange drink at the schwarma restaurant looked lethal, I stupidly drank the noxious fluid today and my intestines confirm my suspicions. They rebel violently and persistently, which is not the best preparation for exploring a country as wild as Mauritania.
Sheldon Cooper (sporting a big, fat cheesy grin) and Ahmed the Finger (looking altogether more serious. In my limited experience the Tuareg never smile) arrive in the early afternoon, which is a relief. Sheldon Cooper is a man of perpetual motion and says he wants to visit the fish market and leave Nouakchott today for the oasis town of Terjit in the Adrar region in northern Mauritania. This is the most touristic part of Mauritania (which isn’t saying much), and also well away from the outstretched fingers of Al-Qaeda.
After a brief reprise of yesterday’s visit to the fish market, we turn to the thorny issue of the detailed itinerary and more importantly the cost. There is a lot of head shaking and rueful smiles as Sheldon who (by virtue of his near-perfect French) outlines our (mostly his, in fact) desired itinerary with the French and Tuareg-speaking Ahmed. There are some weighty issues to be debated. First, Ahmed has hired a Toyota Hilus 4WD with interior roll bar, which is a very uncomfortable fit for three people (Ahmed the Finger only guides and does not drive so he will be sitting in the front with Mahmoud, our driver). Apparently it is possible to organize a Toyota Land cruiser, but it will take time and an additional 300 euros – so no basically. Shrewd these Tuareg. Ahmed also appears disinclined to feed and accommodate us, allowing a total of only 50 euros (US$70) per person for the entire 7 days of the trip.
We renegotiate the deal: previously it was a total of 1150 euros for 7 days; now we all agree to 1000 euros (US$1400) for an 8-day trip and Sheldon, Christi, and I will take care of our own food and accommodation. We also get the itinerary we want. This begins with the long drive out to the Adrar region. We don’t leave Nouakchott till 5 pm. Nouakchott is a low-slung city, dominated by small box-like buildings that lies on an equally flat landscape. Consequently there is nothing to stop the Sahara invading the streets, which it does whenever the wind blows. And even in the suburbs of the capital there are tents erected and camels grazing beside them. It’s all a bit surreal. Our progress to Terjit is slow because there are police checkpoints every 50 km and the officers insist on copying down all the details in our passports (even though I’m sure none of them actually understand English). We reach Terjit at 11.30 pm and it takes some persistent banging on the corrugated iron gates of the Auberge de Caravans before we are allowed in. Christi and I collapse into bed near midnight. It is clear that traveling with Sheldon Cooper is going to be exhausting.
Blog post by Roderick Phillips, author of Weary Heart – a gut-wrenching tale of love and test tubes.
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