“Three countries and two border crossings” does have a nice ring to it but in reality we covered only about 110km. Today’s leg started at Grand Popo in the Republic of Benin, passing through the Republic of Togo and straight into Ghana. Also, today was the longest (in terms of time spent on the road) and most difficult of the three days since we left Lagos on Saturday. Not only did we lose unnecessary time at the Togo/Ghana border, but our best efforts in maintaining a good pace was thwarted by lots of road construction in Togo, a ridiculously strong head wind after crossing into Ghana and a sore bum. Suffice to say that I was very relieved when we eventually reached our destination for the day.
We left Grand Popo shortly before 7am and because the beach resort where we had stayed for the night would not wake up until about 7:30am we decided the previous night to settle our bill and leave without having breakfast. I did not have a very good night’s rest and felt a little sick when I got onto my bicycle. Thankfully that sick feeling slowly died away after about 30 or 40 minutes into the ride.
We reached the Benin/Togo border about an hour after we left Grand Popo only to find that it had just opened up for the day’s business so to speak as it has just turned 7o’clock. We had crossed a time zone and effectively left Grand Popo at 6am Togo time. Had we left an hour earlier (which is something I had considered doing) we would have waited an hour before we could have attempted to cross the border (not that it would have had any significant impact on our journey for the day as a whole). What astonished me more was the amount of goodwill by all the border officials as soon as they saw the t-shirt I was wearing and realised that I am a South African. One border official, in perfect broken English, even asked me how our Grandfather is doing – with reference to Madiba. The end result was that we crossed both sides of the border shared by Benin and Togo in a record breaking time of 20 minutes. I felt like I won a major prize and could not help but smile from ear to ear as I reflected upon our experience at the border between Nigeria and Benin. We were not going to be as fortunate at the border between Togo and Ghana...
The ride through Togo did not start off the way I had hoped. Soon after crossing the border we saw a big sign that said “DEVIATION” and you don’t need to be able to speak French to understand what that means. Yes, for the next 10km I had to cycle on a gravel road. Gravel roads are generally not known for their smooth surfaces so this is where I first used my front and rear suspension on my bicycle. However, it wasn’t so much the uneven road surface that was the issue, rather the headwind relentlessly blew dust particles into my eyes, nostrils and mouth (note to self: next time make sure you bring a dust mask and proper riding glasses). This was real energy sapping stuff.
Eventually we reached tar road again and I was able to get into a comfortable groove. And then it started all over again. 15km after reaching the tar road I saw another big “DEVIATION”. For the next almost 18km we had to negotiate a gravel road worse than the one our Togo journey started on. A stronger wind, more traffic and more dust was the story of this section. I did not enjoy it one bit and constantly had to say to myself that it would soon be over. After all how much road construction can any company be busy with at any given point in time? Eventually we reached a roundabout that signalled our entrance into Lome, the capital of Togo, and with it the hopes that we will reach the border with Ghana very soon. About 30 minutes later we stopped at the Togo side of the border, had our passports stamped and crossed into the Ghanaian side.
It is here that I have witnessed the concept of segregation of duties, manual systems and Africa time taken to a whole new level. Not that I was anxious for time or in any hurry to get going again. A little over 2 hours after we crossed into the Ghanaian side of the border we got given the green light to go again. I guess this is evidence of a system that was created with the best of intentions some years back and that no one has since asked whether or not there could be a more efficient way for things to be done. Besides it is not in a bureaucrat’s nature to ask “why” or “how can we make things a little more efficient”. Credit must be given to the Ghanaian officials though – not once did anyone do so much as to hint that they wanted any bribe and not once did we feel that they acted in an inappropriate manner. Bravo!
Now that we had our two planned border crossings for the day behind us I was excited to push ahead to our next destination which according to my calculations was only about 35km away. I also thought that after having covered the tough stretches through Togo the remainder of the day would be a walk in the park. Ever the optimist!
After about 15km from crossing the border into Ghana I started feeling dehydrated and fatigued and my mind started playing all sorts of tricks on me. It is not a good place to be in and any person who has competed in endurance events will know that this is the proverbial “hitting the wall” stage. The cure – keep on going until you have broken through the wall (which is like having to take bad medicine). This is the first time also that I started comparing the Ride for Polio with some of the toughest marathons I have run before.
By now I have fully grasped how powerful effective advertising could be. Huhh? Yes, once again I must tip my hat to Coca Cola. Almost every 5 km I would see a Coca cola sign board – this in rural Ghana. Distribution/Advertising is by far one of the most common, most costly and most difficult challenges for any fast moving consumer goods company in this part of the world. Yet Coca Cola seems to have gotten this covered better than anyone else. This did not help me in the state that I was in. I will say it again – there is nothing better than having an ice cold Coke to get your systems going again and every time I would see one of these sign boards it would be as if my legs go numb and that all I could think about is an ice cold coke! Unfortunately what happens when you drink a coke your blood sugar levels become more erratic and therefore unless you have a coke almost every 15 minutes your sugar levels are going to drop into the deepest abyss.
I eventually broke through the wall and with approximately 7 km to go we reached the edge of the largest lagoon in the Volta Delta region. By far the most beautiful sight I have seen since we left Lagos. This was also going to be the toughest part of the day’s ride. From here the road is flanked on the left by the Atlantic ocean and on the right by the lagoon. I was unable to see the other side of the lagoon and with the relatively sizeable waves created by the strong wind I could have been forgiven for mistaking the lagoon to be part of the ocean. Because there was no tree cover or buildings on either side of the road the full force of the head wind hit me and I could cycle no faster than about 8-9 km per hour. I can run faster than that. Embarrassing! I did not really care and all that I could think of was getting to our final destination.
Eventually after having to dig real deep, we arrived and a “good Samaritan” on a small motor bike spotted us from afar and agreed to show us the road to the Keta Emancipation Beach Resort (pretty interesting name). When we eventually arrived at the “beach resort” I had to force myself not to look too surprised at what I saw. There was no resort. Only a few make shift beach shelters each one fitted inside with a double bed, mattress, two pillows and a mosquito net. That was it! No concrete floor, no electricity, no running water, no nothing. However, at this point I did not have it in me to cycle one inch further and after asking the owner (an elderly guy whose name is Joe, and I am sure he smoked a few joints too many by the time we greeted him) if they have cold drinks and food available, it did not take me long to agree a price and unpack our bags for the night. Our decision to overnight at this “resort” turned out to be a very good one.
Joe is a very friendly guy and was only too happy to demonstrate his cooking prowess by dishing up a wonderful plate of jollof rice, cooked cabbage (a personal favourite) and fish freshly caught from the ocean an hour or so before we arrived. After taking a quick “bath” using a bucket of water and a bar of soap (in a little open air shelter right on the beach ) I snuggled into my little hut and fell into a deep sleep. Truly wonderful and refreshing! The next morning I woke up shortly after 5am. After going about my morning business (local style) on the rocks overlooking the ocean I was ready to get going again and all the pain of yesterday was forgotten.
The third day, despite how tough it was, is going to stick in my memory for a very long time!
No comments:
Post a Comment