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When choosing the next destination, not many people immediately think of Gambia. This is a shame because it is not far to fly, the weather is perfect and there are many great things to do. Go watch monkeys, sail through the mangroves, visit a school, go shopping at the local market or visit a traditional fishing village. We have written these must do’s for you on a blog, so that you can have a good time in The Gambia.
BIJILO FOREST PARK
Do you want to spot monkeys and beautiful plant species? That is possible! Visit the Bijilo Forest Park for that. Different monkey species live in this park which is about 54 hectares. The monkey species that live there only live in The Gambia and the surrounding African countries. Gambians will want to sell your nuts, but this is officially prohibited. It makes the monkeys also very cheeky.
In addition to monkeys, the animal kingdom of Bijilo Forest Park includes lizards, termite mounds, about 100 bird species, squirrels and large spiders. Most of the excursions include a guide. If you want to visit Bijilo Monkey Forest on your own, you can go on your own. At the entrance of the park you ask a guide to come with you. You’ll pay for it, but you get a lot of information in return and you are guided along the 4.5 km long hiking trails.
Bijilo Forest Park can be reached on foot from the town of Kololi. The park is located near the Senegambia Strip.
FISHING VILLAGE TANJI
You have to visit the fishing village of Tanji. Every day around 4 pm the local fishermen return from the sea. Their catch is collected by the Gambian women and children. With large empty plastic bukcets on their heads, the women and children walk into the sea where the boat is located. The fresh fish is thrown from the nets by the men into the plastic trays. This is a beautiful ritual to see. During your visit you will see many freezers. A Gambian can rent a freezer to save the catch. The catch is sold immediately, dried or stored in one of the freezers that are on the beach. Some also go for export to Senegal. I was warned about the strong fishy smell. I do not eat fish myself and in the Netherlands on the market don’t like the smell. It is wonderful to see how the locals catch and prepare the fresh fish. You stand here among the locals and you should not miss this piece of culture. Do you love other cultures and do you want to get in touch with the locals? Read my blog ”Get in touch with the locals”.
THE SERREKUNDA MARKET
Experience the real Gambia and visit the Serrekunda market. About a 20-minute drive from the hotel zone, the taxi driver will take you inland. Poorer villages are seen during this ride. Once you arrived at the Serrakunda market you will see that you are one of the few tourists. The Gambian does the groceries here for a bit. Of course they will make you pay more. Therefore the advice to take your taxi driver with you, so that you’ll pay a fair price. Buy a live chicken or some cashew nuts. Sugar cane, vegetables, fruit, shoes and a colored dress, everything can be found here.
DISCOVER THE BEAUTIFUL NATURE
From Gambia you can take a day trip to the Fathala game park in Senegal. We have heard that this park is very set up and you don’t spot many animals. Since we want to preserve the real safaris for future trips, we have chosen not to do this. In addition, the excursion is very pricey.
We have done a 4×4 drive through Gambia in combination with a mangrove tour. The 4×4 drove us through the beautiful nature where we came across a small villages. Children were happy when they saw us coming and ran quickly to the road to get in touch with us. They are so happy when you wave back at them.
The mangrove tour is an absolute must if you are a nature lover. During this ride you are completely one with nature and there is a wonderful peace. Out of the blue a crocodile appeared on the shore. A little further we saw a flock of pelicans. Very cool!
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