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PUSHKAR'S DIARY
Pushkar Mana city
19 March
A new day began as it stopped raining. A night spent at the Mana city on the bank of the Mana River has come to an end. Though I could not make it to the Awala – Yalimado Beach, 22 km south of Mana, I comforted myself by listening to the stories of the famous tortoises that come to the beach in this season to lay their eggs. I reached Saint-Laurent, 34 Km from Mana, cycling in the rain for three continuous hours. Saint-Laurent is the entrance to Surinam, the south gate of French Guiana. The only bank of the city was closed. I could not exchange the American dollars I had. The post office was open. But I was informed that no tickets were going to be sold that day. God knows why! Since I didn't have any local currency, I could not get anything to eat. Hoping that I could get or exchange some money at Surinam, I went there. A few small motorboats were waiting for passengers at the Fleuve Maroni River. After paying US $5, I was taken to Surinam, the other side of the river. I exchanged US $20 for 35,000 Gulden, the local currency of Surinam. 5000 Gulden went for food, 10,000 Gulden for the boat ride and in had 20,000 Gulden remaining. Then I went to the immigration office. The immigration officer told me that I had to get a stamp certifying that I was out of French Guiana. Strange! No one told me that when I was there. I had no option left but to return to French Guiana, again paying 10,000 Gulden. On my way, my boat was stopped by French Guiana's immigration traffic boat. It so happened that they were looking for me as well. Then I was escorted to the immigration office of French Guiana for the stamps. 20 March
'My wife is really mean. She does not like socializing with people. She does not even like guests coming to my place. When we were in love, she was not like this. But I don't know what's wrong with her now. I am going to divorce her this coming year…', police officer Stephen was telling me while I was going to his place. We had dinner and today we had breakfast together. His wife Lilane seemed quite nice to me, unlike what Stephen had previously told me. Before leaving, she gave me a 1kg pack of rice, a can of beer, one can of sausage and some fruits. But she did give Stephen a mean look when he gave me a 10-dollar note. Even though the bank was finally open today, my traveller's cheque was not exchanged. Under Stephen's recommendation, I got a free ride on the boat to Albina, the border of Surinam. I met an Indian officer at the immigration office. I spoke in Hindi with him. Meeting a person who understands the language you are speaking feels like meeting a long-lost cousin. The road was bad. There were puddles of mud everywhere. Since there weren't many vehicles on the muddy road, the rain was not such a big problem. There were one or two huts in the nearby forest. There were a few houses with 'Coke' painted on the walls but the house seemed isolated. God knows why there were ads like 'Thirsty? Stop here!' painted on the walls of those isolated houses. Due to the heavy rain, I had no other option but to walk. I soon reached a place called Welbe-Dacht where bananas and watermelons were being sold. I bought a few bananas. The rain stopped as I reached a place called Tamanrejdo. Slowly a line of villages started. I ate roti and vegetables. As the rain had stopped, my cycling speed increased. I reached a place called Paramaribo at 8pm, after crossing a tall and long bridge over the Surinam River. Translated by Timila
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