La reserve est a une petite demi-heure d’Effiduase mais avant d’y aller il faut passer par le bureau du “Department of Wildlife” de Kumawu, un village entre Effiduase et la reserve. Au bureau, on va chercher un guide forestier et on part a la reserve avec lui. Pour visiter la reserve c’est indispensable de venir ave une voiture ou un taxi loue pour la journee. On a paye les frais d’entrée au retour, 5GHc/pers. Cette reserve est reputee pour abriter de nombreuses especes: mammiferes, oiseaux et crocodiles! On a fait la visite a pied avec notre guide arme d’un fusil.

Mais on n’y est pas alle a la bonne periode. C’etait encore la saison seche et on n’as pas pu voir grand chose a part des empreintes d’antilopes et un crocodile (sur le coup j’etais trop surpris et j’ai pas eu le temps de prendre sa photo qu’il avait deja plonge dans l’eau).

 
Sur le chemin on a vu ce gros rocher en forme de lion:

Apres cette experience, je pense qu'il y a quelques trucs a ramener/ faire avant de visiter une reserve, entre autres:

- Se renseigner sur la meilleur periode de l'annee et du jour pour voir les animaux sauvages

- Avoir bien mange avant et ramener de l'eau (beaucoup d'eau!) et un encas.

- Avoir un cheche pour ne pas etre gene par les mouches et se proteger du soleil.

After a great week-end at Lake Bosomtwe, we went back to Kumasi by the same means used to the lake: taxi and trotro. We were refreshed and ready for the next step of our trip. We spent the night in Kumasi at the same backpacker lodge where we were 2 days ago. We looked for a restaurant listed in a travel guide but it was closed. On our way to that restaurant we passed by a Ghanaian fast food. So we returned there. That night, they were serving fried rice and fried chicken. But when we arrived there was no more rice so the fast food joint operator had to cook some again purposely for us. We waited a little while (not so fast for a “fast” food), it was worth it though. Quite fatty but very delicious. We then entered a bar/night club next to the fast food place where Seb and Elisa did some steps. Me, I was too full to dance or even to try to. Eventually we walked back to our lodge and had a good night sleep.

I woke up early to go to an internet café before we left Kumasi for the next chapter of our adventure ^^. I found the internet café on my travel guide, I knew the street where it was, I could picture it because we passed several times by this road. I followed a sign even though I had some doubt about the way it was showing: a narrow, dark corridor where I had to turn right and opened a door. The door led to a court where children were playing, a teenager was doing her laundry and an old man was sleeping on a mat on the floor. I felt like I had entered into someone else’s house without permission. At first sight, I thought I was lost so I asked the young woman whether she knew a place to browse not far from here. She said that the internet café was upstairs. I was actually on the right track! She directed me to the stairs. I went to the first floor, worrying about what was awaiting me up there.

When I reached the front door of the internet café, I couldn’t believe what I saw. The place was neat, a dozen of flat screens, brand new desktops, well equipped with a big multi-task printer and headsets available on demand.  I was even more surprised by the internet speed (a real high speed internet) and fee rate (80 Pesewa/hour). This place was even better than some internet café in Paris! I realized that day how complex and contradictory this country can be.

After checking my e-mail and account balance, I joined Seb and Elisa for breakfast. On the road, I bought bread and eggs (prepared with onions, pepper and red pepper) for about GH cedi 1,50. Next, we went to the trotro station en-route to Effiduase, a small town ideally located in the Ashanti region to learn about the Ashanti culture (shrines, Kente and Adinkra cloth and so on). It was the same lorry station where we took the trotro to Lake Bosomtwe but a different corner. We planned to go to a budget hotel named Panama on my travel guide; however we actually found out that there was no hotel in Effiduase named Panama but one was called Zanamat and this is where we went. Never trust the spelling in a travel guide…

GH cedi 1 = 0.5 Euro

1 pesewa = GH cedi 0.01

  (Album photo du lac ici)

Le lendemain matin tres tot (5h15) j’ai ete reveille par la radio, transmise dans tout le village par un haut-parleur!! J’etais vraiment degoute mais j’ai pu profiter de se reveil matinal force pour prendre quelles photos et video:

Tres tot les pecheurs partent sur leurs planches de bois, pagayent pour s’eloigner du ravage et chercher du poisson:

J’ai ensuite rejoin Seb et Elisa qui avaient passé la nuit au bord du lac.

Ce matin la, on a rencontre un Jamaicain (au centre de la photo) qui ne revait que d’une chose: venir vivre au Ghana, pour lui, ici c’est le paradis.

Duo au diabolo de Seb et Kofi: Kofi se debrouille pas mal seul, a 2 c’est autre chose (je fais pas mieux…).

Une equipe de tournage est venue filmer une scene d’une serie locale. Silence annnnnnnnd Action!

On a fait un tour dans les environs du lac et on est passé par deux villages dont l’un ou la musique jouait a fond, un peu surprenant.

Je ne peux pas faire un article sur le lac sans parler d’une chose: la pollution. C’est désolant de voir des bouteilles et sacs plastiques dissemines a la surface du lac. On en est pas encore a nager au milieu des dechets mais dans quelques annees ce sera peut etre le cas si les riverains et les gens de passage ne changent pas de comportement.

(Album photo du lac ici)