Kpalime Auberge

Kpalime Auberge
Kpalime, Lome West Africa
Friday, March 23, 2007

I have made another Auberge change here in Kpalime, Togo. I am now in a Hotel for 3000 CFA or about 6 U.S. Dollar. I am still debating, I think it is much better, however, I need to wait for the night, when people from the night come out, to make sure the noise levels is ok.

There is competition between continents for the cheap backpacker, I do not think the backpacker or the continents know this, however to me there is a competition.

Yes, it is the next morning, Friday night passed and no swarms of drunks settled into the Hotel and all was good. I am about one block closer to the large noisy discotheques now; I can hear them in the distance. This Auberge is much better as a whole experience for me, not for everyone…

COMPETITION
The young backpackers, the University Students, the Gap Girls and all the miscellaneous groups of trendy, fashionable groups of persons who say,
- I am going traveling. -

The world is competing for this group of travelers, if they had a clue that is they would know they should be competing for them. This is a competition for tourism and whole countries are clueless on how to market tourism. (First comes the young backpackers, later comes the fat tourist dollars.)

The guidebooks do not seem to see the big picture, I have a choice, and I can go to Southeast Asia, Central or South America and call it an adventure for less than 10 dollars per night for a hotel. I can many travelers or tourist comments, explain, or talk about how much fun they had and it was cheap. There is a need for a list of cheap hotels in Africa, the Rough Guide is doing twice as good as the Lonely Planet, however, I am cheap, really cheap, and I want value for my dollars.

I am in a 6-dollar Hotel, and the room is excellent, makes all of South America look like the cockroach Hotels of the planet.

The price of hotels in West Africa can be horrendous, the cost of a Tourist Fare restaurant is worst, I have sworn off going anywhere the silly white people are going, they really are ridiculous, the must be very afraid of African people to pay that much money to have bad food.

However, there is a on a shoe string path, there is a rough guide path, there is a way through West Africa I believe that could be traveling on the cheap. The big problem is the other travelers, they buy a 4-wheel drive SUV, then spend a lives saving, live like king, then try to make you think they are roughing it. It is confusing to listen to other travelers, they try to convince you need a motorcycle Helmut for Africa and in Asia, they tell you to rent a motorcycle that are extremely dangerous, here it is mildly dangerous, there is a lot less people and cars here in Africa so safer.

I just went to visit Craig’s site of Travelvice.com and he is getting on a bus for over 36 hours in South America. Then for some reason getting in a Peugeot Station wagon with a bunch of cows for three hours is supposed to be bad. Three hours is nothing, West Africa transportation is great, get on a bus with a bunch of India people that have maybe never showered, then life is miserable or can be miserable.
http://travelvice.com/archive/2007/03/i-piss-on-pipa.php

I got some shower here with so much pressure it will not stay in the holder, weird, why?

I am trying to look for rooms or hotel that have screens on the windows while in Southeast Asia and South America they do not know what a screen is….?

I would like just a few more travelers here, so I can have a conversation occasionally in English. I would like to take the ONG-NGO out behind the shed and whip them until they bleed, do anything to encourage them to leave.

I am probably going to make a list of hotels that are cheap for this trip around in West Africa. If there is a problem in West Africa, the problem can be the owners or managers of hotels. When they are lazy, they are extremely lazy, they can be some of he worlds greediest, give me nothing for my money, taker on the planet. It is not the hotels that can be a problem; it is the owners of hotels. This is the problem on the whole planet, it is people.

My idea is this, I will take a photo of the managers, and I will say, this hotel is ok, if this person is not there, then all bets are off, the hotel may be a problem. I will also say, this is the price, if this price has changed then maybe not good.

Kpalime Auberge

More or less, I can say, if this person is working and the price is this, then I am recommending this Hotel, if the person and the price is missing, then Caveat Emptor.

I am hoping the guidebooks belly up to the bar.

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Andy,

I've never been. But previously, there were only one or two locations in Africa I was remotely interested in going to. And low on the priority list, if ever. As always, your really paving the way for budget travel in Africa.

6 dollar sleeps, now were getting close to the range where I may consider it. And you found a market with fresh produce to boot! Awesome.

Your idea about the people photos for hotels recommendations is a good one.

Thanks again,

Eric

I am trying to remember why I never wanted to come to Africa before. I think it was the idea of visiting the black culture in the USA, I equated that the culture of Africa would be the same, I was just not fascinated with the USA culture. West Africa is very different from the culture of the USA, there is almost no racial tension here in West Africa. There is the Islmamic Black against the Christian Black tensions.

I think it is natural though to travel first where it is easier to go. The cost of Airplane tikets is about double to Africa, I think I would say Thank You to the French for this problem.

I am trying to find a path of travel that is the same cost as South America, or Asia, and how to fly in and fly out cheapest.

What is wonderful about Africa is the lack of bodies, peoople, the pure numbers of people is so much less, there is lots of room and space, easier to think. Then you have the wonderful people that are happy to see you.

I think for a list of cheap hotels, I need to have two hotel choices per city.

Funny, I have been walking past a few discoteques during the day, they are often playing American Country Western songs, at night it goes into a hard semi-Africa, heavy beat something, but during the day... Country and Western is easy to find.

In a world of cool, what is cool often changes.

Interesting idea, Andy, about publishing photos of hotel owners or managers. I think the problem would be exactly that, that sometimes the man or woman in the photo wouldn't be there, and the place could be just as good, or might be in a state of disarray. The only thing I've found writing The Rough Guide to West Africa over the years is that the decent places survive. Very low BP numbers (boite postale, ie Postbox numbers in postal addresses) can be an indication that the place has been there for a long time, and is therefore a survivor, and probably good. But the kind of place you get for six bucks doesn't necessarily have a postbox address.

I'm enjoying the profusion of blogposts from HoboTraveler since you've been in West Africa. Do you think the region has given you a creative surge?

Bon continuation, as they say!

Richard

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