A VOYAGE
Though perhaps the journey described in these pages is longer than
many tourists would wish to undertake, it is rather set out with
the idea of giving a notion of the amount that can be seen in a
comparatively short space of time and under the easiest conditions.
The trip can, moreover, be divided into separate excursions as
indicated in the table of distances at the end of the chapter. It
is better to do this journey in a private motor-car, which enables
one to rest at will, eat by the roadside, and take photographs. But
if the traveler has not the means to progress in this luxury he will
find public conveyances at moderate prices on practically every route
mentioned. Sometimes it will be the train, sometimes the motor-bus,
and though in some cases he will be obliged to travel by rather
a roundabout way or occasionally wait a few days for the bus,
his journey will always be assured in comfort.
Generally speaking, there is a daily or even bi-daily motor
service on all the main roads of North Africa; and it is only in
the far south that the bus does not have a regular time-table.
Otherwise the times of departure and arrival are as fixed as for a
train. The motor-busses are covered and very comfortable, and to the
individual who is entertained by strange faces and gay chatter about
all that is going on in the country through which he is traveling,
the motor _diligence_ is a delightful entertainment. In fact,
if the traveler is bent on studying the country and its people,
he will do so much more advantageously in the public conveyance
than in the isolation of the private car. However, if he is only on
holiday or a pleasure trip the motor is recommended, and it is with
the idea of traveling thus that this imaginary journey will be taken.
It is presumed that the period chosen for the tour will be between
December and April—January, February or March—and let it be
borne well in mind that North Africa in winter, even on the edge
of the Sahara, is not a warm country. The thermometer does not
actually drop very low, but the biting air of the mountains and the
sharp dry winds of the rolling plain or the Hauts Plateaux and the
Sahara make heavy coats and rugs essential.
Once south of Laghouat and at Touggourt the temperature is definitely
warmer than in the north, but hot days can not be depended on before
this latitude is reached. It is true that on the edge of the Sahara
the sun heat in the middle of the day makes it impossible to go out
bareheaded, but the nights are very sharp. Once into the Sahara the
nights are also cold, but in the day it is pleasantly warm, and the
overcoats and rugs can be put away; but the return journey across
the Kabyle Mountains may be done in a snowstorm. The great thing
to remember about Algeria is that it is a country of extremes. The
morning may dawn in a downpour of rain and at noon one may lunch
in the garden dressed in white. Crossing the mountains during the
winter one is practically certain to find rain, but once on the
Sersou it is almost always fine.
The Hauts Plateaux are bitterly cold, but as soon as one has come
down on to the Sahara the temperature is very pleasant, and it rarely
rains; when it does, it pours for a few hours and then clears up.
Therefore, the warmest wraps for the journey in the north, English
summer clothes (not Indian or tropical) for the south. All evening
dresses, etc., can be left in Algiers, as there is never any occasion
to dress up, even when invited by an Arab chief. It is advised to
travel light, and linen can usually be washed by the Transatlantic
hotels in forty-eight hours. The question of hotels brings me to
another point.
The hotels of Algeria can be divided into two categories—those
which belong to the Transatlantic Company and those which do not.
The Compagnie Générale Transatlantique has opened up the whole of
North Africa by their circular and inclusive tours which run into
the wildest parts of the Sahara. In order to accommodate their
customers they have built hotels in all these remote spots, and
these are certainly very well organized. In all the more frequented
places there are other hotels for the accommodation of commercial
travelers and Arabs, and though they are usually quite clean and
the food eatable, that is about all that can be said for them.
There are usually no bathrooms and there is nowhere to sit except in
the public café. Here again let it be said that for the traveler in
search of copy the hotel with its Arabs and people of the country
is a source of perpetual entertainment, but with few exceptions it
is rough—very rough, and sometimes dirty.
The prices, of course, correspond to what one gets, but to the
holiday-maker the Transatlantic hotels can not be too highly
recommended. Good food, clean beds, running water, hot baths,
perfect service, reliable information on all that can be done and
not done, seem to warrant the fairly high charge, and yet not high
when one realizes the difficulties which confront the hotel manager
in getting all this modern comfort in the wildest districts.
It is, however, recommended that one see the Transatlantic Company
in Algiers to make certain that there will be accommodation as,
if they are booked up with heavy tours, their own travelers will
naturally have preference over independent tourists.
The cost of the trip, quite roughly, will work out as follows:
1. For the private car owner staying at the Transatlantic hotels, one
hundred to one hundred and fifty francs per person per day. Petrol,
etc., in addition. If a car is hired it works out at about two to
three francs a kilometer plus the board and lodging of the driver,
which is about thirty-five francs a day.
2. For the traveler by public conveyance staying at the local hotel
fifty francs a day will amply cover his living and expenses.
Train fares are not dear, and the bus fares, though they vary,
do not exceed ten centimes a kilometer.
Equipped now with knowledge for the journey, it only remains to trace
the itinerary, which will be quite easy to follow on the accompanying
map. This information can be supplemented by the guide-book, and
in referring to the guide-book I always speak of the _Guide Bleu_
which, with the exception of a few slips, is really very reliable.
ITINERARY OF PROPOSED JOURNEY
1. _By private car_
Kilometers
1st day Algiers/Bou Saada 250
2nd day Stay Bou Saada —
3rd day Bou Saada/Laghouat 222
4th day Stay Laghouat —
5th day Laghouat/Ghardaïa 200
6th day Stay Ghardaïa —
7th day Ghardaïa/Touggourt[1] 200
8th day Stay Touggourt —
9th day Touggourt/Biskra 216
10th day Stay Biskra —
11th day Biskra/Timgad 190
(It is advisable to sleep at Batna.[2])
12th day Timgad/Constantine 190
(If Djemila, described in Chapter XXXIV, is to be visited it
can be done from Timgad via Sétif or from Constantine.)
13th day Constantine/Bougie 259
14th day Bougie to Algiers by 4 alternative routes:
_a._ Bougie to Michelet 147
and thence to Algiers via Tizi Ouzou 154
_b._ Bougie direct to Algiers via.
Bouira and Palestro 300
_c._ Bougie direct to Algiers via.
Azazga and Tizi Ouzou 300
_d._ Bougie/Tigzirt 250
and thence to Algiers via Dellys 155
2. _By public conveyance_
Algiers/Bou Saada 250
(Motor-bus takes some 10 hours.)[3]
Stay Bou Saada —
Bou Saada/Djelfa (bus) 112
(Stay the night at Djelfa, leave at six o’clock next morning
in bus.)
Reach Laghouat at nine-thirty a. m. 110
Stay Laghouat —
Laghouat/Ghardaïa (bus) 200
Stay Ghardaïa —
Ghardaïa/Touggourt 200
(The bus runs once a week [Nov. 1926]. Verify this.)
Stay Touggourt —
Touggourt/Biskra (train) 216
Stay Biskra —
Biskra/Batna (train) 120
(If Timgad is to be visited a car must be hired at Batna for
the 70 kilometers run to the ruins and back. One can sleep
at Timgad or at Batna.)
Timgad/Constantine (car and train) 190
Constantine/Bougie (bus service not regular) 259
Bougie/Michelet
(No bus service direct. If Michelet is to be visited the
train must be taken to El Kseur and thence to Tizi-Ouzou by
bus; from Tizi-Ouzou bus to Michelet and from Michelet bus
to Tizi-Ouzou and train to Algiers. If Michelet is to be
omitted there is the train direct from Bougie to Algiers.)[4]
Various alternative trips will be set out in the succeeding
chapters where they seem opportune. The distances have been marked
in kilometers as the guide-books and maps are all scaled in this
way. For the information of those who are interested in miles,
however, one hundred kilometers equals sixty-two miles.
For all details regarding routes and motors the traveler is
recommended to apply to Captain de Malglaive, at the Anglo-American
Automobile Company at Mustapha Supérieur, who is always informed
as to the state of the roads, accommodation, etc.
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 1: It is advisable to ascertain the
state of the road between Guerrera and Touggourt, as there is much
sand in this part. On principle it is wiser to start just ahead of
the motor-bus as the route is very desolate and there is no possible
means of repairing serious breakdowns.]
[Footnote 2: If time is short, Constantine,
Bougie and the Kabyle can be omitted. From Timgad one can get
to Sétif via Corneille. By leaving Biskra early one can do
Biskra/Batna, see Timgad, and be at Sétif in one day—210
kilometers. From Sétif to Algiers the road is good and
straight—300 kilometers.]
[Footnote 3: If this bus journey is thought too
excessive, there is no necessity to go to Bou Saada. The train can
be taken direct to Djelfa in one day, and then next morning the
bus lands one at Laghouat at nine thirty.]
[Footnote 4: I have not marked the number of
days for the journey by public conveyance as, being much slower,
it is correspondingly more tiring, and the traveler will probably
wish to linger longer in the different centers he visits.]