Surf's Up!

After our excursion to Kindia, we were all rather tired, so we took Sunday off and rested. Some of us read or played cards, while others walked around the neighborhood or went shopping. Some businesses are open on Sunday but many are closed, although there still are a lot of people out on the streets. In the afternoon some of the drum teachers joined together for an impromptu concert in the gazebo in our patio. They sang and played traditional instruments. Then a rumor of a trip to the beach surfaced. Amara said we could go over by his mother's house, to a nearby beach.

At around 4 pm, after the usual couple of false starts, we walked to the road and caught taxis to the beach. About ten of us went along, including security guards, students and drum teachers. We went towards downtown Conakry, then turned off the main road onto a couple of side roads, ending up on a dirt road that dead ended into a large gate, which was the entrance to the beach. They charged a small entry fee, and we walked in and caught our first sight of the beach. We were on the north side of the Conakry peninsula, a little east of downtown, and looked straight out to Kassa Island, where we visited last weekend. There were no waves in the water and very few people swimming. None of us wanted to swim as it seemed the water was likely very polluted. The sand on the beach was black and there were rocks running across the beach that also were dark black in color. At the back of the beach were small kiosks selling food and drinks. We walked down to a bar that had tables out on a covered platform over the beach. We sat alongside the platform; the owner brought out some chairs and a table for us. We ordered beers and soft drinks and enjoyed the sun, which was fairly low in the sky out over the water.

They allowed cars to drive out onto the beach, and several were parked behind us. As the afternoon carried on, many more cars arrived and drove up and down the beach, and many parked in front of the bar.

The beach was alive with activity. No one wore swimsuits, opting instead for attire that varied from shorts and shirts to very fancy dresses. Women and children walked up and down the beach selling various items ranging from cookies and candy to hard boiled eggs, which they carried on their heads. There were several other Americans on the beach as well, outside the U.S. embassy, the first I have seen in two weeks here. Many young men were playing soccer, displaying their skills at ball handling in small circles. A group drew a large circle in the sand and began doing capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian martial art/dance that involves a lot of acrobatics as well as drumming and singing. A crowd gathered to watch, but soon were distracted by another group of jugglers. Three guys began juggling pins and attracted a large crowd, mostly because one of them also did contortionist moves that were astounding and creepy. This was the second contortionist we have seen; apparently it is something valued in Guinean culture.

We watched the jugglers for awhile, and then the sun began setting. There was a nice set of clouds above the horizon and there was a nice sunset. After the sun went down we headed back to the house. An interesting and relaxing afternoon in Conakry.