September 6th, 2011
Strong coffee out on the terasse and a pastry for breakfast in yet more bright sunshine. Nice to see the sun again for more than several hours straight. The plan is to head out to the Mauritanian embassy to see about getting a visa. You can’t get one at the border and I’ve read that people who try are turned back and have to come all the way back up to Rabat, which is some 3 days travel each way. Lonely planet says that consular hours are until 3pm. So head out there about 11am, and manage to find the Mauritanian embassy tucked away down a leafy side street in the southern part of the city. It is entirely deserted!!
Manage to find a gatekeeper who talks out of a small hole in the wall about head height who informs us that we have to be at the front gate in the morning at 8.30am as they only hand out the application forms then. So much for getting a quick visa. Spend the rest of the day doing bits n pieces like having my boots resoled, as I discovered a hole in them. Although they’ve seen plenty of action on just about every bike trip I’ve made since 2008. A shoe repair guy in the Medina lends me a pair of the most untrendy sandals ever while he repairs my boots, all done in about a half hour, not bad service I reckon! Checked out the Medina and the harbor overlooking the ocean. It’s not a huge city really, but it’s difficult to navigate around without a map or in my case GPS and google maps. Went back to “Le Grand Comptoir” restaurant for dinner and another taste of their excellent French cuisine. And off course a Pastis at the end of the day. Also spent some time repacking as I hadn’t packed very efficiently in Europe.
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