From Niamey

I arrived in Niamey last night, and it's very much as I imagined it: a sleepy town with an equally languid, enormous river running throught it.

Although there are somewhere around 1M people here, the place has an unhurried and uncrowded feel. Back streets are unpaved and everything is red from the dust. The heat, in this season, is not oppressive (35°C), and the trees are green or covered with flowers.

Nigeriens so far have been very welcoming and friendly.