Day 3: Niamey to Malanville (and Giraffes!)
6am – Sam wakes up with eyes swollen shut from mysterious and invisible bugs. Dione: “Well, is it better now?” Bevin: “I don’t know, I didn’t put my glasses on to check.”
6:50am -- Man with bus who's taking us to Malanville is, confusingly, 10 minutes early. He's also brought 3 extra men with him, one of whom is wearing a ski mask. The van has bars on some of the windows. Briefly wonder aloud if we're being kidnapped, then get in the car anyway.
9:13am -- Arrive at entrance to giraffe park! Get cameras out and practice our action shots while taxi man negotiates with guide. Also buy omelette sandwiches -- you can't be a National Geographic-quality photographer on an empty stomach.
10:30am -- After driving around in the bush (like on sand and stuff -- we had to get out once or twice because the bus got stuck) for an hour plus, the taxi man tells us that there's a pretty good chance we won't see giraffes because of the season. The guide, who's riding on top of the van, talking fast in Hausa, and pointing at things with a stick agrees. Try to be tough and not cry, despite crushing disappointment.
10:36am -- Bevin, who is not riding on top of the van, speaking in a local language or carrying a stick, spots a giraffe on the horizon.
10:42am -- We get out of the van and take pictures of a pregnant giraffe! Trip is ruled an automatic success. Also, giraffes are determined to look/move a lot like dinosaurs, based on our highly qualified opinions.
11:37am -- Leave park. Super-professional taxi man announces that he'll leave us here, but we're in good hands with his driver. We depart for Malanville.
12:03pm -- Driver stops van on side of road to tell us that he won't take us to Malanville, but to a city in Niger on the border. He also tries to add more people to the van, which we've spent extra money to have all to ourselves . This begins a series of arguments over the next three hours that leaves everyone angry and headachy.
2:30pm -- Finally get to the border, pay the *$^&$% driver a reduced fee. Discover that it's actually easier to cross the border without the mandatory WHO Card than with it. Rosa is almost refused entry into Benin, thanks to the visa that the Nigerien embassy filled out incorrectly. Rosa sweet-talks the border guards, and we make it to Matt's house alive.
5:30pm -- Decide we're starving, make a massive pile of spicy eggs and breakfast potatoes for dinner. Share life plans (Lissa determines that she should probably have a life plan). Roll out mats on cement floor, and go to bed early, content to be "home" in Benin.
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