Sudan 11/9/07
Friday is a holiday in Muslim countries, and Sudan is no different. I spend the day making calls, preparing to face the crushing bureaucracy of Khartoum, and learning an important lesson about Sudan. It’s one of those details you’d think I would have come across in my research and conversations with others who have traveled to Sudan, but somehow it didn’t. I decide to change hotels, and therefore have to pay the bill for the night at Bougainvilla. When the woman adds it all up, I ask her which cards they take, and she tells me they don’t take any. She points out that Sudan I under a variety of sanctions and blockades and there are no credit cards in the country. This creates a problem. It takes all of my Sudanese and American cash to cover the bill, and I am now facing the prospect of a week in Sudan with absolutely no money. I check into my new hotel and figure I’ll come up with some sort of a solution. I get online and do some research. I learn that Western Union operates here and that’ the best way to get cash. I call the office and the staff completely steps up by emptying their pockets and getting $300 on the way to me. Ok, initial crisis solved, although I will need far more cash than that as the week progresses.
