You are outside, the tablecloth is crisp, white, and a bottle of chilled wine is sitting just at the center.  The sounds of castellano  surround you, mixed with French and English accented Spanish - other languages dance in your ears from more distant tables.  A saxophone adds its melody to the cacaphony of the evening.  The wine confuses the senses, is this Zona Rosa, ¿Dónde estoy? Où suis-je? Onde estou?  Ah, another Friday in Bissau at TaMar. 

Varela - pizza and the beach

About 4 hours from Bissau on the seafront border with Senegal is the charming beach village of only decent get-away from Bissau that requires neither a boat nor a passport.  Do not be fooled, Varela is, for all intents and purposes, a shabby village that is not on the beach but actually a couple of kilometres inland.  It has exactly nothing to do, nowhere to go, except for (1) the beach and (2) Chez Helene, run by you guessed it, Helene Fatima, and her Italian husband.  Which is a major reason to come here.

The rooms are, well, a half-step above camping.  The guests are all people you work with in Bissau.  But the pizza crust is - actually real pizza crust.  Done in a wood-burning oven (as much due to necessity as to a tradionalist approach to baking), the fresh bread in the morning and the pizza for lunch/dinner are the best in the country - and this from someone who lives in Italy (They also have seafood, which was nowhere nearly as good as at "the Senegalese" in Bissau).  Oh, and their pasta is cooked al dente.  But still, have the pizza.  And who cares if your shower was cold. 

PS - say hi to the cows on the beach. 

Rubane - as good as it gets in GB

Just a few hours by boat from Bissau, just across from the island of Bubaque in the heart of the Bijagos Archipelago sits the island of Rubane.  So what, you say?  Were it not for Solange that might be the appropriate question, but as it stands she has brought more stars to accomodation in Guinea-Bissau than you would think possible.  The Ponta Anchaca is an oasis hidden away from the rest of the country - one wonders if many of the guest actually know where they are, given that she brings in most via Senegal (she has years of experience as a hotelier running  La Maison Bleue in Cap Skirring, Senegal).  For the fishers among you, this is your destination.  For the Francophones, you too will be pleased.  Gourmands will be pleased at some meals (the langouste is wonderful, the poulet roti stunning mediocre).  Technophobes, you may be the happiest of all - there is no internet access and spotty mobile coverage.

The bungalows are the most comfortable accomodation in the country, although the prices reflect that.  Be warned of the low tides, however, when your stunning waterfront view becomes a scene of some 1/2 kilometre of mudflats between you and the water.  Beautiful, yes Rubane is.  One of our favorite beaches?  Not by a long shot (Sunja, Playa Blanca in Islas del Rosario, Parque Tayrona, Johnny Cay, Lokrum, the Cyclades, Maratea, Porto Selvaggio... need we continue?)

That said, if you are in need of a boost of luxe, & can't make the flight to connect through Lisbon, this is your best (only?) option.

Hotel Lodge Ponta Anchaca
Ile de Rubane
Archipel des Bijagos
Tel (Senegal) +221 33 993 5161
lamaisonbleue@orange.sn