Bamako, the friendly city

Bamako is known for its markets and one of the best things to do is .. to SHOP. The well known market of Dibida is in the centre of town, but the best market is the one the tourists don't find .. Medina Coura. This is where local people shop for quality material, clothing, ironmongery, in fact almost anything anybody needs. People are very friendly and enjoy it if you take time to stop and talk, or even take a glass of tea. This is an experience to savour, not rush.

Quick Tips:

Learn a few greetings in Bambara, the language which most people in Bamako speak. You will be rewarded with smiles and a whole different atmosphere. Greet people with 'I ni se' (E nee chay).

Best Way To Get Around:

The best way to get around really depends on where you stay in Bamako. You will find little green buses (bachees) almost everywhere. But you have to ask which ones go to where you want to go to. The easier option for first-timers is to use a local taxi. These are yellow and registered. However, you need to choose one that is not too decrepit. You should negotiate a price for the journey before getting in the taxi. For most journeys around Bamako a price of 2-3,000 cfa is normal, although expect to pay more if you have a lot of bags or your hotel is far from the centre of town.

A large rather old-fashioned hotel built in the 1950s and renovated in the 1980s. There is a swimming pool which is among the best in Bamako. You can just go and swim and eat in the restaurant. (I think a swim is about $5) There are 84 rooms, 4 suites and 3 studios with a kitchenette, climatisés, télévision et téléphone direct.

2 Restaurants - 2 Bars - 2 Piscines
2 Courts de Tennis éclairés

There is a good range of shops outside the hotel. the bookstore which is inside the hotel lobby is excellent and has a good range of French and local language books.

The beauty parlour does a good pedicure for 6,000 cfa ($10). You can even have your feet henna'd there too.

Imagine a riot of colours and aromas. Street calls, and a jovial atmosphere. That's Medina Coura Market. You won't find this in the tourist books but this is the real Bamako. You'll also find amazing prices for wonderful fabrics. Do I sound enthusiastic? Well, believe me, this is one of my favourite places, not just to buy, but to meet people and to enjoy the sights and sounds.

You'll need to ask a taxi to take you to the market. Once there, plunge into the covered market past the fetish stalls, the ironmongery and look for the materials area. Here you will find a small selection of 'shops' selling hand-dyed material in a wide variety of colours. Rest your feet and sit down for a while and look through the materials. You are bound to find something you like. The packets you will be shown contain two long pieces of cloth. Expect to pay between 8-10,000 cfa (about $20) per packet. They are intended to be made into a long overdress and a wrap round skirt and headscarf. But they make wonderful tablecloths. When you get them home rinse them in water containing about a cupful of vinegar and let them dry naturally. This will 'set' the dye and keep the colour. Afterwards wash and iron normally. The material is really stiff to begin with but with washing it softens. The people who sell you the material are probably part of a family group who buy the material white and dye it themselves. By buying the material you are helping the local economy and encouraging a Malian enterprise.

From the city centre get a taxi out towards the zoo and ask the driver to take you to the caves near Point G. The taxi driver will probably ask 3-4000 to take you there because its way out of town. Don't go to the zoo, it's a sad sight and will only upset you. Here you will follow a very bumpy road and you will wonder where on earth he is taking you. Be patient, hold on to your seat, it will be worth it, I promise you!

The caves have been inhabited from early times. Recently attempts have been made to make them more attractive to tourists and you will find new placards telling you a little about them. Look for the wall paintings.

Spend a little time looking at the view. You will be able to see almost all the city from there. There is another viewpoint on the other side of the main road, but the road is not good and your taxi driver may not like to take his vehicle up there. For either place expect to pay 250 cfa to a guardian (think of it as a parking charge!).

One thing you cannot miss if you visit Bamako are the traffic roundabouts! Now, if you thought that roundabouts are roundabouts are roundabouts, then think again. In Bamako they are a talking point, the best way to find your way around the city, and a source of local pride. I can only give you a few in these pages, but everyone has their favourites and there are more being added all the time.

The town of Bamako combines traditional architecture, colonial and modern architecture. Apart from the modern roundabouts, which I've described in another journal page, there's lots to do and see in Bamako.

The town is surrounded by high hills. Out towards Kati (another town) there are two 'tourist roads' (la piste touristique de Koulouba). These not only take you up to the old caves but give you a chance to view the city from a high vantage point. It's also considerably cooler there and there are several very nice picnic spots.

Below the Koulouba tourist road is the Parc Zoologique.

Other sites you may like to visit in that area are: The Botanical Garden, and the National Museum

Over the other side of the River Niger (take the old bridge as its quicker) si the National Institute of Arts. Here you will find local dancing displays, Music concerts with well-known Malian players and other public events.

One natural feature not to miss is the 'submersible bridge' (la Chaussée submergée) a natural feature with a road of sorts built on it ... only accessible during dry season. It's quite stupendous. It’s marked off the Koulikoro road out of town.

The valley of Oyanko 15 kilometres out of Bamako is very pretty and worth a visit.

If you like to go to the cinema to see the latest films, there are a number of cinemas dotted around Bamako of varying degrees of comfort. Last week we went to see the new Harry Potter at the Babemba cinema here in Bamako. This cinema is a good option if you want to see one of the latest American/European films. It's not far from the centre of town, near the French Cultural Centre so you should be able to get a taxi take you there easily. The seats are comfy, although you do tend to sink into them. It's also air-conditioned. The films start in the big auditorium (500 seats) for the first week and then move to the little one (50 seats). They start from Tuesday at 9pm with the newest film. Wednesday has shows at 4pm (for kids) and 9pm; Thursday at 9pm; Friday at 4pm (kids,) 9pm, and 11pm; Saturday at 4pm, 6.30pm, 9pm, and 11pm; and Sunday at 4pm, 6.30pm, and 9pm. There are no shows on Mondays. They do produce a little booklet each month, but they're rather rare and difficult to find. The costs range from 750cfa to 2,000cfa depending on the time of the showing.

In the Badalabougou area, the Palais de la Culture shows Malian cultural films from time to time. The upcoming films are shown on posters put up around town. Some of the hotels have their own cinemas. But bear in mind that there are very few English language films shown here.

The Hotel Amitié (Sofitel) shows regular French language films and, occasionally, English films. These are advertised in the Hotel foyer.

There are a large number of local cinemas. In the commercial quarter, there are the Club, the Vox, and the Rex cinemas. These show mostly French language films. In the Oulofobougou quarter, the Soudan Ciné and the Bademba cinemas show French films. In Médina, Coura the El Hilal and the Salle Omnisport also show films. In Lafiabougou, the Banankokou shows French films and in Badialan, the ABC shows French films.

One other option if you want to see English films is to go to the American Marine House on Friday nights. The films shown are of varying quality but they are advertised in The Griot, which is an email newsletter that the American Embassy sends out. If you register at the Embassy (if you are a USA citizen) you will be told about it. Non-Americans can go with American friends. These films start at 8pm and there are happy hour drinks from 6 to 7pm. There are lots of video shops around town where you can rent videos and DVDs. DVDs are always a good option because most of the French ones have an English option.

The Republic of Mali is a completely landlocked, enormous country in West Africa. It has an area of 1.2 million square kilometers and is surrounded by Algeria, Mauritania, Senegal, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, and Niger. The population is 10.67 million, who live mostly in the south. It is mostly desert or semi-desert. The climate is subtropical and arid in the north. Most of the north of the country is desert and only nomadic groups live there. The principal ethnic groups are the Bambara, Peul, and Tuareg. French is the official language, but there are over 35 indigenous languages.

Mali is one of the most democratic of African states. People are encouraged to take their part in the political process. It's even part of the constitution. On one day each year, anyone in the country can come to parliament and ask questions direct of the prime minister and the ministers. The whole event is televised. The questioning is not gentle either ... tough talk from the 'little people'.

The security situation in Bamako has changed drastically in the past few weeks. Violent crime has increased dramatically and 40 prisoners escaped from Kati prison on 23rd July and only 2 have been recaptured. These prisoners included murderers, robbers and rapists. The Police have cautioned that these individuals should be regarded as highly dangerous and capable of securing weapons. The crime rate has escalated even more since this mass escape. The main areas affected are around the hotels in central Bamako, particularly the Hippodrome area and outlying areas where foreigners tend to live such as Badalabougou. The majority of reports suggest most of these activities occur between the hours of 2300-0600, but evidence suggest random incidents occur outside of night-time hours. The Police have confirmed an increase in gun assaults in the vicinity of Hippodrome, and have voiced concerns of a rise in these activities in the RUE PRINCESSE section of Hippodrome (street where BLA BLA and LA TERASSE are located). Police have shared reports of tourists patronizing hotels in the area have been the victim of repeated muggings in the area.

Precautions: It is wise not to take a taxi late at night, travel across town or walk the streets. Take reasonable security precautions at all times - do not wear flashy jewellery, talk on a mobile phone in the street and make sure all doors are locked.

Owing to strained resources, coverage and response times of Police personnel are severely limited, or absent in many residential areas, essentially removing the deterrent for many of these criminal elements to operate. Please report incidents to Post One: +223 222 5470 x117

Phone: +223 222 5470 x117