Trying on Airbnb (vacations)
Since May, I have been dying to get away from the city. I did not want to spend a lot of money, so I joined Airbnb and looked at homes I could rent that were a few hours outside of Dakar. At first I just wanted to get away by myself for a couple of days. However at the last minute, I decided to go with my kids, my brother and his wife.
My brother and I looked at few homes on Airbnb. Our criteria were : an hour or two drive from Dakar, a big house with a private pool, air conditioning, Wi-fi and not far from the beach and other major super markets. We found just the gem in Keur Dane and booked it for three nights and four days.
We departed on thursday after 2 pm and arrived at our destination 3 hours later. There was no traffic on the road as we took the toll. However upon entering Mbour, we stopped by Auchan supermarket - Mbour has the biggest Auchan in the entire territory- and did some grocery shopping. Keur Dane is a house located in Mbour city. It is a big house with three spacious rooms with attached spacious bathrooms, a guest bathroom, a fully equipped kitchen, a private pool, a terrace and a parking area. There is an old security guy at the door who also lives on the premises while the manager lives in the house next door.
As soon as we arrived, the kids dove in the pool while the adults unpacked groceries and clothes. There is a good size fridge inside the kitchen. And all rooms have closets where to hang clothes. The beds all had mosquito nets as well. The only problem I had with the house was the lack of a living room. We would hang by the pool or the kitchen if we wanted to sit down and have conversations. The Wi-fi was also terribly slow at times. Plus there was no TV. However we did enjoy ourselves.
A typical day would begin kind of early for me. My body is programmed to wake up early. I would clean the tiled floors a bit and start breakfast. We usually had eggs and crepes with hot chocolate. Since we took our time making breakfast, we would eat very late. The rest of the day was spent inside the pool, the boys trying to drown their uncle or vice-versa (why boys have to be so violent?!), watching Netflix or Youtube, napping, cooking and eating late lunch, enjoy the pool some more, late diner and playing cards. It was the most relaxed time I had in the longest of time. It is like time had stopped.
We went by the beach once but it was a disappointment. The beach near the house was filled with garbage. It was not a pretty sight and it did not make me feel like dipping into it. We took a stroll and went back home. Later that night, we went to have diner at Saly, which is a tourist trap. Therefore the town was crowded and lit. We had fast food and drove back home to play cards.
On Saturday, we drove to Joal which is further than Mbour to visit my aunt and her husband. On the way, we passed by the destitute Nianing hotel which brought back memories of a time spent there (and probably the first time I entered a pool in my life). My aunt and her husband welcomed us with open arms and regaled us with stories about Joal. They also gave us some smoked swordfish, that my uncle is producing and selling. It was a refreshing afternoon.
On Sunday (and our final day), we invited my cousins on my mom side, and my sis in law invited her cousins and we had a big party. We wanted to do a barbecue but since the house did not have a grill, we settle for some tacos, pasta salad, crepes and pineapple in yogurt. My Dad also came along while Mom stayed back. The house was filled with noise and laughter. People dipped in the pool, played ball, cards, ate, joked around, gossiped, took pictures. It was such a fun filled day.
We left after 7 PM, after cleaning up and settling the electricity bill. The great thing about Airbnb is that you pay before hand leaving you stress free. At Keur Dane, we had to pay for electricity only if we consume more than what was proposed. I did worry about paying a lot because we did use a lot of air conditioning. But we ended up paying peanuts. I also tipped the old security guy for he was very nice with us during our stay.
Will I go back to Keur Dane? Probably. I really did enjoy the house and the location. But for my next vacations, I want a bigger house with a lounge, and a faster Wi-fi. I also want to stay longer. Thankfully I do have a wide choice of houses to chose from in Senegal.
My brother and I looked at few homes on Airbnb. Our criteria were : an hour or two drive from Dakar, a big house with a private pool, air conditioning, Wi-fi and not far from the beach and other major super markets. We found just the gem in Keur Dane and booked it for three nights and four days.
We departed on thursday after 2 pm and arrived at our destination 3 hours later. There was no traffic on the road as we took the toll. However upon entering Mbour, we stopped by Auchan supermarket - Mbour has the biggest Auchan in the entire territory- and did some grocery shopping. Keur Dane is a house located in Mbour city. It is a big house with three spacious rooms with attached spacious bathrooms, a guest bathroom, a fully equipped kitchen, a private pool, a terrace and a parking area. There is an old security guy at the door who also lives on the premises while the manager lives in the house next door.
The entrance to terrace
The pool
The entrance to the kids room and the guest toilet
As soon as we arrived, the kids dove in the pool while the adults unpacked groceries and clothes. There is a good size fridge inside the kitchen. And all rooms have closets where to hang clothes. The beds all had mosquito nets as well. The only problem I had with the house was the lack of a living room. We would hang by the pool or the kitchen if we wanted to sit down and have conversations. The Wi-fi was also terribly slow at times. Plus there was no TV. However we did enjoy ourselves.
View of the pool
Terrace where we lounged
Small garden by the entrance
A typical day would begin kind of early for me. My body is programmed to wake up early. I would clean the tiled floors a bit and start breakfast. We usually had eggs and crepes with hot chocolate. Since we took our time making breakfast, we would eat very late. The rest of the day was spent inside the pool, the boys trying to drown their uncle or vice-versa (why boys have to be so violent?!), watching Netflix or Youtube, napping, cooking and eating late lunch, enjoy the pool some more, late diner and playing cards. It was the most relaxed time I had in the longest of time. It is like time had stopped.
The back of the house with the garage
Flowers and a glimpse of my day-dress
Watching some Manga with the kids in my room under the mosquito net
We went by the beach once but it was a disappointment. The beach near the house was filled with garbage. It was not a pretty sight and it did not make me feel like dipping into it. We took a stroll and went back home. Later that night, we went to have diner at Saly, which is a tourist trap. Therefore the town was crowded and lit. We had fast food and drove back home to play cards.
Shell "infested" piece of wood by the beach
View of the beach
On Saturday, we drove to Joal which is further than Mbour to visit my aunt and her husband. On the way, we passed by the destitute Nianing hotel which brought back memories of a time spent there (and probably the first time I entered a pool in my life). My aunt and her husband welcomed us with open arms and regaled us with stories about Joal. They also gave us some smoked swordfish, that my uncle is producing and selling. It was a refreshing afternoon.
For some reason, there was a pelican at my Uncle's house
On Sunday (and our final day), we invited my cousins on my mom side, and my sis in law invited her cousins and we had a big party. We wanted to do a barbecue but since the house did not have a grill, we settle for some tacos, pasta salad, crepes and pineapple in yogurt. My Dad also came along while Mom stayed back. The house was filled with noise and laughter. People dipped in the pool, played ball, cards, ate, joked around, gossiped, took pictures. It was such a fun filled day.
We left after 7 PM, after cleaning up and settling the electricity bill. The great thing about Airbnb is that you pay before hand leaving you stress free. At Keur Dane, we had to pay for electricity only if we consume more than what was proposed. I did worry about paying a lot because we did use a lot of air conditioning. But we ended up paying peanuts. I also tipped the old security guy for he was very nice with us during our stay.
Will I go back to Keur Dane? Probably. I really did enjoy the house and the location. But for my next vacations, I want a bigger house with a lounge, and a faster Wi-fi. I also want to stay longer. Thankfully I do have a wide choice of houses to chose from in Senegal.
Comments