I left the wide streets and crazy architecture of Yamoussoukro and headed south to Abidjan, the financial and everything-else capital of Ivory Coast.

Abidjan is a metropolitan city with a cool vibe, and a skyline that looks like a north American financial center. It’s also extremely expensive, not just in African standards. With that in mind, my friend and old Africa hand Chloe suggested I stay in nearby Grand-Bassam instead. I took her advice, and after a long day messing around in and out of various completely chaotic bus stations, managed to find a little hotel in Nouveau Bassam.

Grand-Bassam is interesting and (mostly) charming. It was the French colonial capital from 1893 to 1896 before a yellow fever epidemic forced everyone to move elsewhere. Nowadays there’s a new section – Nouveau Bassam – and an old section – Ancien Bassam, the two sections divided by the Ebrie lagoon.

New Bassam is pleasant and bustling, though not at all unlike other Ivorian towns. Old Bassam, however, was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2012, and is charming and exotic in a faded, crumbling sort of way. Much of it is like a ghost town, with large sections abandoned and fallen into disrepair. It’s a fascinating place to stroll (hot and humid though), with atmospheric corners and pretty residential areas.

The former French settlement is right alongside the beach facing the Gulf of Guinea, and there’s some lovely surf and sand. Many of the fancier colonial buildings have been restored and are now hotels and upmarket restaurants. I loved it, but was happier in my modest little place in the new part of town.

I back-and-forthed to Abidjan a few times, but sadly fell ill with aches and a fever and a good old fashioned dose of malaise, and eventually returned to Yakro where it was determined – again – that I had malaria. This time around it was worse than the first so I decided to head back to London for Christmas where my friends Chris and Namie took me in, treated me to a few pints & pies by pub fires (and a lovely home-cooked Christmas meal), then eventually sent me on my way back to Africa once I was recovered.

Abidjan and Grand-Bassam are really interesting places, and the section of country between the two cities would be worth exploring. Not with malaria though, so I left it for another time and went to Uganda after I was finished recovering in London.

So, for next blog it’s off to Uganda.

Stay tuned!