Surfacin9: Exploring West Africa: The Gambia (Part 8)

Exploring West Africa with Silversea's Silver Explorer, starting in Accra, Ghana on 10 April 2013 and ending in Dakkar, Senegal on 26 April 2013.

April 22^nd, 2013

Population of The Gambia (2017): 2 million

Population of Banjul, the capital city (2013): 31,300

Currency: 50 GMD (dalasi) = US$1

Demonym (people from The Gambia are called): Gambian

GDP per capita (PPP 2017) = US$ 1,686 (in Kuwait it’s $69,669)

HDI (2017): 0.452, ranked 173rd.

Schoolgirls of The Gambia

The Gambia is a tiny slither of a country on the coast of West Africa surrounded by Senegal. The name of the country comes from Gambia River, and the country basically surrounds the river. I don’t remember much from our stay in The Gambia, except that it was really crowded. You had to push your way through in the markets, and most people in the city didn’t pay much attention to us as tourists. Sort of like New Yorkers, they give you that look, “f***ing tourists”, and move on with their lives. They’re really nice if you intend to buy something from their stall, otherwise you get the attitude “I ain’t got no time for you!” It’s refreshing to be treated in this manner, because throughout this trip it’s all been wide African smiles and polite hellos.

Albert Market

A woman from Gambia

The cultural evolution of the urbanite around this river seem a bit different to the modern culture of other coastal West African cities. I can’t quite pinpoint what this difference is, but it stems from the pride of the people. It’s an aura about them that says “We are Gambians!” It’s in their work ethic, and the honor they have in keeping traditions, yet at the same time you see their flexibility in adapting to changing times —like a river that is always there despite the changing water. You see this Gambian-ness in their music, their textiles. I wish I had more time to spend in Serekunda, the largest city in The Gambia, to get to experience the vibes of the city.

35C/95F

A color splash

River Gambia was a key factor for the Portuguese slave trade (mid 15th - mid 16th century), and like the other countries of West Africa, it was the Muslim merchants and scholars in the 9th and 10th century who established the trans-Saharan trade routes, leading to a large export trade of local people as slaves. Gold and ivory were also exported, and other manufactured goods were imported.

Smoked fish and vegetables

The staple food of West Africa: palm oil and grains

In 1588 the Portuguese sold exclusive trade rights on the Gambia River to English Merchants.

As many as three million people were taken as slaves from this general region during the three centuries that the transatlantic slave trade took place. It is not known how many people were taken as slaves by intertribal wars or Muslim traders before the transatlantic slave trade began.

The Gambia achieved independence in 1965 as a constitutional monarchy within the Commonwealth, with Elizabeth II as Queen of The Gambia, represented by the Governor-General.

Mosques tend to be the most prominent structures around West Africa because of the religious funding received from Arabian Gulf states. I wish this kind of money was poured towards healthcare and education.

In 2015, Reuters reported that The Gambia was declared to be an Islamic state by the country's president, Yahya Jammeh. Islam is practiced by 95% of the country's population. However, it is unclear to what extent indigenous beliefs, such as the Serer religion, continue to be practiced. As mentioned in my previous post, it's very common to see people in West Africa belong to an Abrahamic religion, yet continuing to practice ancient rituals held sacred since before colonization by the East or the West.