A Top Day in Dakar

. The sun is slowly preparing its glamorous appearance, sending first rays across the peninsula. Birds chatter in the branches of mighty baobab and palm trees, and a moving call to prayer rings from the nearby mosque. I'll get up as early as my lazy bones will allow me, because an hour later, Dakar will turn from a sweet song into a screeching fire ball of activity, noise, fumes and creative energy.

To ease my way into this all-sensory attack I start my day with a replenishing walk along the sandy shores of N'Gor or Yoff. Then it's breakfast time at the Lodge des Almadies, and pushed on by a caffeine rush, I'm ready to hit the city's markets.

At Marché HLM, the industrious rattling of countless Singer sewing machines numbs the mind, and the splendour of hundreds of brightly shimmering, boldly patterned and beautifully embroidered fabrics dazzles the eye. Arms full of rustling cloth, I head for the lively quartier Medina. Squeezing past kids playing football on dusty streets, past improvised street cafes and boutiques stacked sky-high, I reach my favourite little tailor shop, where Mr Diop will work his magic and turn cloth to personalised fashion wear.

Passing the mighty Mosque of Medina, I then head to central Dakar and have lunch at one of city's excellent restaurants. I then check the latest arts exhibitions at the Galerie le Manége and the Galerie Nationale, before having coffee, cake and a glimpse at Moussa Sakho's fairytale-like glass painter's workshop at the Institut Français.

Time to swap my dusty daywear for an elegant evening outfit and strut into the flowery gardens of Just 4 U, where a late dinner is followed by the sweetest dessert imaginable - the cream of Senegalese stars live on stage.

A spell of furious dancing at the Yengoulene later, I drop into bed at the cute Hôtel Cap Ouest, lulled by the sound of waves lapping on the shore outside.

Author: Katharina Kane

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