Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Guinea-Bissau
245 / POP 1.5 MILLION
Why Go?
For a country that consistently elicits frowns from heads of state and news reporters,
Guinea-Bissau will pull a smile from even the most world-weary traveller. The jokes here,
like the music, are loud but tender. The bowls of grilled oysters are served with a lime
sauce spicy enough to give a kick, but not so strong as to mask the bitterness. The buildings
are battered and the faded colonial houses bowed by sagging balconies, but you'll see
beauty alongside the decay.
Here, bare silver trees spring up like antler horns between swathes of elephant grass, and
cashew sellers tease each other with an unmistakably Latin spirit. Board a boat for the Bi-
jagós, where you can watch hippos lumber through lagoons full of fish and spot turtles
nesting.
Despite painful wars, coups and cocaine hauls, Guinea-Bissau buzzes with joy, even
when daily life is tough and the future bleak. There must be magic in that cashew juice.
When to Go
Dec-Feb
The year's coolest months, when sea turtles emerge from their nests.
Mar-Jul
Hot, humid and sweaty; travel with plenty of water and sunscreen.
Aug-Oct
Batten down the hatches or dance in the rain; the rainwater will just keep fallin'.
Best Places to Eat
»
Oysters on Quinhámel beach (
Click here
)
