What should I know if I have ~3 nights here - dangers, scams and overlooked stuff? I'm brown and speak some French.
>>2647025>I'm brownKek you'll be seen as a local.
>>2647065thisthey'll just assume you're merely a poor nobody, so at least you can be not that concerned about the scams part
>>2647025>What should I know if I have ~3 nights here - dangers, scams and overlooked stuff? I'm brown and speak some French.I have two close friends who’ve spent fairly extensive time in Dakar (one was working there, and one got sent to an intensive French course there before starting a job elsewhere in Africa). Both of them liked the place quite a bit, but each had an amusing story to share.The first guy (the one working there) was really excited to be in a Francophone African country, because he spoke and wanted to be immersed in French. He quickly discovered that outside of a few government and media functions, almost nobody spoke French on a day-to-day basis. He wound up learning Wolof. That said, most people do KNOW French, so it will be still be useful. The other friend just had a slightly unusual nightlife story that I wouldn’t consider a scam, but others might. He went home with a girl he met in a bar, only to find out the next morning that she was expecting to be paid. So he paid up, a little sheepishly, and then went downstairs with her, where her mother cooked and served breakfast. So I suppose the lesson there is that you might want to confirm expectations of any especially friendly local people you might meet. Neither found the city especially threatening. Obviously exercise common sense, don’t flash valuables in dark alleys, etc., but it doesn’t appear to be an especially dangerous place.
>>2647025Not Dakar, but I spent a few days driving through Senegal (from Mauritania to Guinea) with stops in St. Louis and several small rural towns earlier this year.In places that foreigners visit, expect to have people walking around aggressively trying to sell you "art" and "souvenirs" at stupid prices. If there are other foreigners around and you've got time to waste, it can be fun to string them along. Just ask how much something costs, and then say that you're not interested. They'll start trying to throw in other things and then start dropping the price. Keep telling them you're not interested. Eventually they'll get down to like 10% of the original price and start talking about how they have a family to support. Accuse them of trying to cheat you-- "Ten minutes ago, you said the price was 100 euros, and now it's 10! You tried to cheat me!" Tell them that you don't believe they have a family, but, if they do, they should find another job, because they're shit at selling souvenirs. Ask if they'll include a night with their sister in the deal. Basically, the game is to see how abusive you can be and how much of their time you can waste before they move on.Another fun way to deal with aggressive peddlers is to just as aggressively to sell them stupid shit at stupid prices-- i.e. try to sell them a pen or a book of matches for 100 euros. They move on pretty quickly if you do this. I considered pulling out my knife and offering to sell that while waving it around, but I decided this would attract the wrong kind of attention.Aside from that, don't expect small sellers to have change if you do want to buy something. When you do get change in a shop or restaurant, expect it to be short.Outside of the big city, if you're driving a car, expect kids with hands out asking for "cadeau" to materialize out of nowhere anywhere you stop. Also, if you visit some kind of natural site (park, waterfall, etc.), expect pressure to hire a local "guide".
>>2647065>Kek you'll be seen as a local.>>2647069>they'll just assume you're merely a poor nobodylol, no. That's not how it works. The locals can tell whether you're one of them or not.
>>2647098>>2647520So tourist scams are a thing but it is not really dangerous. Bring small, exact change of west african francs... for everything? I assuming things like chains or hotels will accept credit card or am i wrong?
>>2647745>I assuming things like chains or hotels will accept credit card or am i wrong?Lots of places take cards. Smaller places no, but plenty of places no problem.
>>2647025>brown skinYou’ll probably be killed by a speeding vehicle at night as there are no crosswalks, no streetlights, and half the vehicles don’t have headlights. I’ve never felt more unsafe crossing a road. Maybe smear your face with reflective paint to heighten the contrast so drivers can see you.
>>2647025I've see the phrase "sept places" for buses you have to haggle for a spot in until they have enough passengers to depart... seems like a perfect spot for tourists to get scammed or worse?
