Mali
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Visas, Embassies & Border Crossings
Mali visa: I bumped into a guy on the bus from Burkina Faso who had been a tourist guide for years and we became friends. So, once at the border, he spoke with the police (because I had no visa) and I had my passport stamped for just a US$1 tip. But on my way out, at the Senegal border the police recognized that there wasn't any embassy stamp on it and asked: "What did you do? It's not possible to get a visa directly at the border! You have to pay US$35 to me". But my friend spoke with him and I got out of it with just a US$5 tip for the policeman.
Patrizio Luntini, Italy (Feb 03)
It is possible from Mali to obtain the Visa (until five in the evening) and hence go to Burkina at the border in Thiu, that can be reached via Bankass (which is also nice to visit). The permit is valid for one week. The Visa can be extended in Ouaga at the Suretè early at seven in the morning.
Claudio Brigati, Italy (Sep 02)
Travel Tips
I personally liked Timbuktu, though three days was plenty. The best part is just walking, though some of the streets have the sewer running through the middle. Many of the houses have interesting features. The mosques, however, are dark, dingy and not worth the money except maybe for a specialist in early Muslim architecture.
Robert Patterson, USA (Apr 03)
Moving About
I flew from Senegal. I met many Senegalese as well as backpackers who visited Mali by bush taxi and hated it. As fewer people use bush taxis between Dakar and Bamako, the quality of service has declined drastically. The poor reputation isn't providing any incentive to improve business. The train isn't much better. The day after I arrived in Bamako, the train showed up and about a quarter of the passengers had caught malaria on the train. It was a big stink around town for a couple of days. The airport also had its problems. Lost or delayed luggage is quite common. When I returned to retrieve my pack late the following day, there was a 12 foot pile of luggage waiting to be claimed. The airport's official response is to ignore the problem. Passengers are expected to return to the airport at their own expense to get their luggage. Delivery into the city is unknown. Even a phone call to the baggage claim at the airport produces only vague answers.
Robert Patterson, USA (Mar 03)
Bus transport from Bamako to Mopti is CFA7000. It happens that the bus driver makes you pay an extra CFA500 for the luggage. In order to avoid a very long discussion, it is often better to pay it even if it is not right.
Taxi brousse from Djenne to Mopti is about CFA1000 and then......good luck. The journey is little more than 100km but it can take 4 hours to get there.
For a taxi brousse from Sevarè to Mopti the right price is CFA220. Tourists always pay more but the real price is CFA220! A taxi is about CFA1000 instead.
A bus from Bandiagara to Sevarè costs CFA2000 per person (this is the tourist price, I still don't know what the real price is). The bus goes when full so they will probably tell you it will leave in 10 minutes but after 5 hours you can still be there waiting for it. It is better to take a taxi. It costs the same price and in 45 minutes maximum you can be in Sevarè.
Chiara Trapani, Italy (Feb 03)
The best way to get from Bamako to Dakar (saving money and time) is not taking the whole train route but getting to the border by the 12 hour train trip for CFA12,000 then going through customs in Kadira and taking a taxi for CFA10,000 to Dakar. If you decide to buy a train ticket go there early in the morning, otherwise some guys buy all the tickets to re-sell them. The journey on the train is a mystical experience in itself. There are frequent stops with passengers walking into the local markets and running behind the train when it leaves again with a thick cloud of dust everywhere. The taxi driver was supposed to drive much faster but he just stopped every time he felt like it, using the strangest excuses. All the guys in the taxi forced him to stop at a police roadblock and he was rebuked by a policeman. In the end I needed another 12 hours to get Dakar.
Patrizio Luntini, Italy (Feb 03)
Bamako to Dakar: When we went to buy our tickets for the Wednesday train (which by the way is NOT air-conditioned) on the Tuesday, we were told they were all sold out. This turned out to be untrue and just another scam to get you to purchase black market tickets. When we went to the station on the Wednesday morning on the off chance there were plenty of tickets. However, the only sure-fire way of getting a ticket is to get a man to buy them for you - don't worry, they'll find you! However, we were very wary and only handed the money over at the last minute once he reached the ticket window. It's a huge crush, but would appear to be the only way to get through. We allowed them to keep the change (7,500 CFA between 5 of us, but they actually wanted us to make it up to 10,000 CFA). We refused, as they hadn't agreed it with us beforehand, they got quite aggressive and followed us onto the train.
The journey actually took 44 hours due to breakdowns and having to travel very slowly due to poor track conditions. Highly recommend taking a water barrel on board so that it is possible to wash - everyone else but us did.
Karen Espley (Jul 01)
Scams & Warnings
Having passed through Bamako, where there is currently a preventative medicine-resistant (including larium) malaria epidemic, three of my party fell sick. We visited the Timbuktu hospital for the usual malaria test. Unfortunately both the doctor and the lab technician used this as an opportunity to by-pass the hospital's payment system, both charging 10 times the normal rates. If the medical staff are using visits by white patients to "supplement" their wages, can we rely on the integrity of their advice? Unfortunately we were too sick to raise this with the hospital at the time.
Adrian Carr, UK (Feb 03)
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