It all started by taking a taxi from our hotel in Dakar to the train station. This station was not the one in the centre of town where we bought the tickets, but was a few km up the line. Our taxi driver dropped us by a level crossing and told us to walk up the track and wait there! Thankfully there was the shade of a big tree to wait under. When fellow passengers started turning up (we were very early...) we knew we were in the right place.
The train turned up about an hour after its scheduled departure time, and departed about 30 minutes later when the world and his goat had finally boarded. We were in 1st class - so thankfully no goats there, but the general concensus of our fellow international travellers was that it was the grimiest, most decrepit train that any of us had ever encountered!
We passed the time chatting to our fellow travellers, watching Africa go by (Mali was much more interesting than Senegal), and venturing to the 'dining' car. The food was ok, but getting from one carriage to the next was a bit hair raising!
Just over 48 hours later, we arrived in Bamako (the capital of Mali); glad to be here, but REALLY looking forward to a shower and clean clothes.....
