As I mentioned in my summer earlier posts, I came to the GAMBIA!!!!!!!! For those of you who may not know, I was fortunate enough receive full funding for my research project. So, I’ll be staying in Gambia all summer long to do a couple research studies and also travel around!
As you might have guessed, there are just so many things that are different from America or western countries. Every day is full of unexpected surprises. Since so many things happen on a daily basis, I thought blogging chronically isn’t the best idea. Instead, I’ll blog based on each topic, such as food, culture, electricity/internet issues, places to travel, etc. As an intro, I’ll just go over basic information about the Gambia.
For those of you who live in places that use the Central Time Zone, Gambia’s time zone is 5 hours ahead. That isn’t much of a time difference, but due to the long flight schedule, I was pretty much dead the first several days and it took me about 3 days to finally adjust to African life. Let’s start talking about the geographical location of the Gambia! 
The Gambia is located in West Africa and is surrounded by Senegal. It is the smallest country in Africa. Therefore, even if you driving from the west end of the country to the east end of the country, it will take less than 5 hours.
Banjul is the capital of the country as well as where the airport is located (well, the actual location of the airport is slightly outside of Banjul, just like how the Chicago airport is not exactly in Chicago). There is a really long river that goes through the Gambia. At Banjul, this river flows into the Atlantic Ocean.
I’m staying in Bijilo. It’s one of the tourist areas, which is about 15-20 min from the airport. It’s right next to the beach, so you can walk down to the beach in about 2 min.
The hotel that I’m staying at is amazing. It has a balcony with a gorgeous view of the sea and palm trees, a full bathroom in each room, an electric heater for warm showers, AC and mosquito nets in all bedrooms, laundry services, a cozy garden, free wifi, and amazingly friendly staff members. A single room costs 1300 dalasies/night (~$29 USD), and a room with 2 beds costs 2000 dalasies/night (~$45. *NOTE: This might vary depends on the exchange rate.). FYI, the bed in a single room is big enough to fit 2 people. Here are pictures of the hotel that I’m staying at:
Since I’m currently still staying at this hotel, I’ll let you guys know the name of the hotel after I leave.
Feel free to comment down below if there’s anything about the Gambia that you’d like me to discuss!
Whats your research project about if you don’t mind me asking? 🙂 x
this is so cool! I hope you have a lovely time and please post about some of your research findings? I would love to know what you’re researching!
Wow! This is truly amazing. I can’t wait to read more about your research project and unforgettable journey. PS: The hotel you are staying at is simply beautiful and oh em gee SO ridiculously cheap!!
Xo. http://www.sonamnaiducreative.com
Gambia looks amazing! Looking forward to more post 🙂
I’ve been to Gambia too on a holiday! I really liked the vibe and the people. All so nice 🙂
That’s so awesome! Do you have any suggestion on where I should visit?
I was staying in Banjul. We met a couple of guys who showed us around. We hired them as our private drivers for the day. They also took us to their village where they came from. But it was a while ago I don’t remember the name. We also met a guy who was working in a restaurant where we sat down. After he was done working he offered to take us to a local market in another village taking the local bus. So cool! Afterwards we gave him something for his effort. My advice would be to talk and mingle. The local people, the real Gambians are so nice and honest! There is also a monkey forest, you have to bring peanuts so you can feed them. And there is another forest/zoo with crocodiles. You can take a picture with a crocodile;) There are so many places which are run by foreigners. I really suggest eating, drinking and booking trips with the locals. They are the ones who truly deserve it! Oh and I also booked a day excursion to Senegal which was also nice 🙂 Hope you enjoy your time there!
Lovely! Thanks for sharing your experience in Gambia!