We arrive at the out of town bus station in the heat of the day, and have to wait another hour or so until there are enough passengers to fill the bus. When we do finally get going we stop for fuel, at least twice for prayers, and once for roast goat. It's late in the afternoon by the time we get to Segou. I wander down to the river in time to order a beer and watch the evening "rush hour" as canoes ferry commuters across to the other side. Despite la poussière obscuring the setting sun, Segou is so much prettier than Bamako, a town I remember fondly from my overnight visit in 1997. Later we bump into Cliff and Sue, the English couple from the train, and join them for dinner.

Thu 11 Mar
The next day Stefan and I board the bus for Djenne ("Jenny"). By coincidence, at the last moment, Cliff and Sue catch it too. From the Djenne junction there are enough of us to fill a shared taxi so our journey continues without delay. Again, we have dinner with Cliff and Sue, this time at our hotel; another pleasant evening.

Fri 12 Mar
In the early morning we take a guided tour on foot around the ancient town; built almost entirely of mud. It also has the largest mud-built mosque in the world. It's very pretty but also in desperate need of basic drainage. It’s great to see people living by the water in much the same way as they have for the past 1000 years.