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Well I had a mad idea about getting up at 6.30 to watch the sunrise over the ocean, (un)fortunately both spirit and flesh were weak so I ended up getting up at 9. It was a lazy morning, reading, learning Spanish and a little exercise. After lunch the West African coast appeared and we watched the ship approach Dakar. There were lots of small dugout-canoes with 1 to 5 fisherman buzzing around the ship. The Dakar skyline is quite built up with several high rise blocks amongst the low rise buildings. Just outside the harbour was a small sombre island where slaves were held before being taken to the new World.
Our berthing caused quite a fuss, with tradesmen setting out their wares on blankets by the side of the dock and lots of men milling about. We were advised by the captain that it wouldn't be a good idea to go ashore (especially at night) so I elected to remain on the ship. Claire was very keen to see what Dakar had to offer, but I decided not to go which put the dampners on the evening. After dinner we watched the crew haggling with the tradesman for various items, trading clothes and shoes for presents to take back to Italy.
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