HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 1

Articles In This Section:

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 1

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 2

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 3

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 4

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 5

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 6

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 7

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 8

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 9

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 10

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 11

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 12

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 13

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 14

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 15

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 16

· HERE, THERE, AND THE OTHER PLACE - part 17

The previous chapters have been devoted to definite portions of the United States or to various countries where retirement abroad is particularly suitable. Most of our case histories however are just about as applicable in one country as another, or in one section of the United States as well as another, although there are some exceptions.

But there are those of us who have no particular desire to settle down in one town or even one country. This, of course, applies particularly to the young man or woman who is unmarried and wishes to see the world before settling in one spot. Frankly, for long years I was to be counted among these myself.

So if you're the adventurous type and wish to bat around for awhile finding adventures here, there and the other place, perhaps this is the chapter that will interest you most.

CASE HISTORY No. 1. As I mentioned in my chapter on Morocco, several years ago I stopped in Tangier for a time, basing myself in the casbah for a period of almost seven months but making side trips into the interior of Morocco and once taking a six week jaunt to the French Sudan and Senegal.

It was in Tangier that I first met Gerry Rhodes, as foot loose an American as you can find. And it was with Gerry that I took my trip over the Sahara to Goa, Timbuktu, Mopti and Dakar. We'll deal with Gerry's easy going method of making a living shortly, first I want to tell you of the trip.

Early this century when the French empire was still growing, the French started an ambitious plan to drive a railroad across the Sahara to the Niger river. Starting at Oran, on the Mediterranean, it progressed for a time, even driving a few miles beyond Columb-Bechar, one of the larger military posts in central Algeria. But the sands of the Sahara were too much and today the railroad goes that far and no further.

However, there is a bus line operated by the Societe Arficaine des Transports Tropicaux, which has its main offices at 26 bis, Rue Sadi-Carnot, Alger, Algeria. Once a month, during the winter months only, this "bus line" sends a passenger carrying bus-truck across the Sahara to Gao, on the Niger. And from here it is possible to make your way up river several hundred miles to Timbuktu, considered by many to be the most remote city in the world.