Abidjan

Abidjan

If we hadn’t been unnerved by the UN people carriers and troops in a range of camouflage uniforms, the appearance of a sheet of A4 on the windscreen of our STC coach with the words ‘Securite Convoi Humanitaire’, probably did it.

Dan and I had decided that our last trip before leaving Ghana should be to Abidjan. We stayed in Accra last Thursday night so that we could take the 4 am bus to Abidjan on Friday morning. The bus left at 5:10, we were in Cape Coast two hours later thanks to almost deserted roads and Takoradi by 8:30. We then had a long delay waiting to merge with a bus from Kumasi but we reached Elubo on the Ivorian Border in the early afternoon.

Of Ghana’s immediate neighbours, Cote d’Ivoire has seen the greatest change in fortune. For twenty years the economy grew nearly ten per cent annually, based largely on cocoa and other agricultural produce. It was easily the most successful country in West Africa and the high rise skyline of Abidjan, capital in all but name, is testament to this. The world recession in the 1980s and the death of Felix Houphouet-Boigny, the country’s first president in 1993 started the country on a downward spiral, ultimately leading to civil war and the intervention of French and UN troops.

When I arrived in Ghana in 2007, the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office was discouraging British nationals from entering the country at all, putting it in the same category as only one other country, Somalia. Since then, the fighting has reduced, but democratic elections postponed since 2005 have still not taken place. They are now scheduled for the end of 2009. In January 2009, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution which would keep UN troops and police in the country until the end of July 2009, at the earliest. The Council cited human rights violations and the need to enhance the country’s capacity to manage a democratic and transparent election as reasons for staying. In May 2009 there were more than 9,000 uniformed UN personnel in the country, most in the north and west.

Nevertheless, the F & CO has relaxed its warnings. The north of Cote d’Ivoire should still be avoided but Abidjan can be visited with caution. It suggests that the biggest risks are not violence but street crime and scams.

We were at Elubo and Noe its Ivorian equivalent for a couple of hours. Abidjan is only 122 km from the border, but a lengthy customs inspection west of Aboisso meant we did not arrive until after 8 pm. The hotel receptionist took us along the road to a place where we could get tasty grilled chicken and chips and we shared a beer with him.

Abidjan is occasionally referred to as the Paris of West Africa but at first glance, New York would be a more appropriate comparator. The city is divided into distinct areas by the Ebrie Lagoon. The various districts are linked by a modern, efficient and frequent ferry service. We stayed in Treichville, a broad promontory with docks on its west bank and inland a mix of housing, shops, bars and mosques. On Saturday morning we walked to the lagoon, stopping at the well stocked, Chinese built market on the way. From the Gare Lagunaire we could see the skyline of Plateau, the central business district (second from left in collage). We spent the day exploring Plateau. The cathedral of St Paul was the highlight, the tower a stylised representation of the saint himself and the church itself taking the place of flowing robes (far right). Unfortunately we could only glimpse the vast and colourful stained glass windows. As usual we marvelled at the quality of food and the service in restaurants – a hallmark of the former French colonies.

On Sunday morning we went in search of washerwomen near the Parc du Banco, a spectacle recommended by Lonely Planet. Maybe we were in the wrong place or maybe they do not work on Sunday. We did find a policeman at one of the ubiquitous road blocks. He wanted ‘cafe’ money. We also saw a very striking building on the top of a ridge (third from left). We did not hang around, partly because escaped convicts were rumoured to live in the area. We were welcomed enthusiastically by the craft stall holders in Cocody Market. We had a couple of Flag beers, with complimentary coconut and peanuts at the Hotel Ivoire, once West Africa’s premier hotel and now a vast scruffy shell (far left). The pool was long drained and the thatch on the night club was balding. We returned to Treichville and sat in a bar sharing the local drink of choice – a box of Argentine red wine. We ended the day with substantial burgers and cokes at a Lebanese restaurant and took cake back to the hotel. Dan would want me to point out that I sat on the cake box, miraculously squashing his cake but not mine. Maybe my recently purchased Baoule power stick protected mine.

On Monday morning we walked to Gare du Bassam for transport back to Ghana. On the way we found the most impressive omelette sandwiches we had seen in West Africa – French bread with a layer of tinned peas, onion, tomato, mayonnaise, Magi sauce and the omelette itself flavoured with a little crumbled chicken stock cube. Lonely Planet in 2006 reckoned 5,000 CFA was a good price for the fare. We found an empty car and were offered seats for 6,000 CFA, or the whole car for 24,000. We were happy to wait for two more passengers to turn up. The driver didn’t say much but the hangers on were keen we buy the other seats. We paid for our two and then the driver decided to leave anyway. He asked for a ‘cadeau’, so we gave him another 1,000. We couldn’t understand why he had left without a full car, denying himself half his potential income. He bought petrol for 7,000 which was enough to get us to Noe but not back again. He had said he was a policeman when we got in and quickly showed us an ID card. He was certainly known at the checkpoints and consequently we were only stopped twice and then only to show his papers and not ours. We picked up another passenger from a broken down bus and made it to Noe by noon, in less than three hours. In relief and gratitude we each gave the driver another 1,000 CFA. The border formalities were swift and our early arrival encouraged us to try and get back to Koforidua within the day rather than spend a night in Western Region. We found a tro to Accra. We were at the Kaneshie station by 6:30 but it was nearly 8 pm before we left Circle for Koforidua.

Not unsurprisingly we think we only saw two other tourists during our weekend. Abidjan is unlikely to make it as a tourist destination even when peace returns but it provides a very striking contrast to anything in Ghana.