Zigzag to Timbuktu

As an eighteen year old, Nicholas Bennett was somewhat dissatisfied with European culture, and wanted to visit Africa to examine African culture, and see how much of it was likely to survive.

This book is published in 1963, so I expect the travel occurred in the few years before. This would place it just after Ghana's declaration of independence, and had it under the rule of first president Kwame Nkrumah. Countries around Ghana were also new to independence, making it an interesting period in history for those countries deciding their own futures.

The first half of the book takes place while the author is working part time as a maths teacher at Prempeh College in Kumasi, from where he makes numerous long weekend trips around Ghana, spending time with the locals and making a fairly thorough examination of the country.

The second half of the book covers his onwards travel, with the goal of Timbuktu at the forefront, and obviously giving this book its title. Heading north in Ghana, he next crosses into Upper Volta (now Burkina-Faso) before crossing the border into Mali. In Mopti he is told he must return to Upper Volta to obtain the correct visa, which is when we are submitted to the ‘entitled 18 year old' for the first time. Setting out with insufficient money for his journey, the author presumes to impose himself on lorry drivers to let him travel for free. When they refuse he stomps off up the road, and 4 times out of 5 public pressure means the lorry drivers relent. Given the very poor nature of the countries in which he is travelling this is pretty poor form in my view. To make things worse the other people on the lorry inevitably end up buying him food and drinks too, which I consider pushes the boundaries for a European travelling in a poor area of Africa.

So despite taking steps to avoid getting a visa (to avoid the visa fee) he sulks and advises he will travel on to the capital Bamako to resolve the visa issue. He does this - a trip of some 400 miles in the wrong direction, and after initially being ordered out of Mali, manages to obtain his visa (by some clever deceit). Returning, he sets off for Timbuktu, travelling on the Niger river.

From Timbuktu (where he is put under house arrest due to the political issues of the time - the majority Bambara were attempting to subdue the Tuareg tribesmen - not something they wanted to become a high profile) he travelled onwards on the Niger river to Niger itself and further onto Nigeria. Still travelling for free, he is forced to part with the vast majority of his pitiful savings to obtain the Nigerian visa, and perhaps this is why the last 800 miles to Lagos is described in one short paragraph:
I was in a hurry to get to Lagos. There was plenty of traffic on the road from Kano; I covered the last 800 miles in two days: faster than I could have done it by train.”

The last chapter is the authors conclusion. It is not unique, and obviously the words of a young man, but nonetheless a good summary of why missionaries with the best intentions and westerners imposing their own moral intents are damaging to African society and community, who should be given medical and infrastructure support in measured ways. The Africans with their communal lifestyles, their polygamy, their pre-industrial towns and villages are suited to their environment, the available livestock and the wealth (lack thereof) are being upset by education of all children - meaning that they now see farming as below them, and forcing a migration of youth (males in particular) to the towns and cities. Also Christian pressure to remove bride price from girls means the fathers are less inclined to look after their daughters so well with no pay-off at the time they leave home.

As I say, a bit simplistic, but these are the genuine thoughts of a young man.

A fast and enjoyable read. 4 stars.