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I crossed the land border from Djibouti to Somaliland at Loyada. Arrived in the morning and was told that the border from Djibouti into Somaliland does not open until 4 PM. Only the reverse crossing was allegedly possible in the morning hours. I used a tour operator who arranged private transport in Somaliland (quite pricey but well worth it) whom I called for help. The immigration officer who usually works the border was not there the day I was crossing and that is why I ran into some minor problems. Allegedly, foreigners are exempt from the official timing of the border – well then – not a lot of Westerners cross this border so that’s why there was some confusion. One of the Somaliland immigration officers eventually came over to the Djibouti side to get me and all worked out smoothly until they wanted the receipt for my Somaliland visa which I had gotten in Addis. I actually never got a receipt. The minister of tourism and finance were called and all was worked out while I was waiting outside in a “holding area/no man’s land” visited by plenty of goats – loved the entire experience. Drove to Zeila and spent the afternoon and night there. I really enjoyed Zeila. The place seems to come alive in the late afternoon – don’t get me wrong – it is a very small settlement. People are friendly and mostly curious. The place has a nice and somewhat sleepy feel of a forgotten town – a frontier town that is very small with some ancient ruins. Humongous coastline – very quiet and peaceful feel!
Drove from there to Berbera in one day – not via Borama but close to the coast which you will eventually see. There are only sand tracks that at times seem to disappear altogether. Probably not recommended when it rains as the sand tracks are very soft – probably turns into the worst mud you could imagine. I loved the ever changing landscape – keep in mind that photography is my hobby and therefore I may see things a little different. There are some small settlements along the way, lots of camels and beautiful desert landscape. I wish I had stayed in one of the small settlements for another night or two to get more of a glimpse into local life.
Berbera is a nice place. Unlike writers of previous posts – I found the town to be very charming. Old buildings in various pastel colors with beautiful colorful paintings on the outside walls/advertising the kind of business that’s being run. Again – unlike other posts, I found the people to be very friendly. I was visiting on a Friday and several women invited me to their prayer session complete with drumming and singing. If that is not hospitable – I am not sure what is. Let me clarify something though. I am a female traveler but always respect the local dress and customs. I wore dresses I had bought in various places around the world while traveling – Djibouti, Ruanda, Vanuatu and India – all the dresses are very conservative – they are long, very roomy and colorful. I also completely covered my head – my hair did not show. Well – I was invited by multiple women to enter their homes to meet the family and some women even offered me lunch – I received many compliments on my dress as well. So my experience may have been very different from others.
Drove to Sheik, Las Geel and eventually Hargeisa. I felt very safe the entire time I was in the country. I was able to take pictures of some people but they are not too keen to have their picture taken. If you want to take pictures of people you have to allow for plenty of time to first get to know them by talking and spending some time with them (like you would have to do in pretty much any place). A couple young people wanted to take my picture; some young women allowed me to take their picture as long as I was in it too. So – things changed a bit once you take the time to get to know people, laugh with them and sit down – I even helped cut some veggies they were preparing for their lunch. Exited the country via Ethiopia border at Wajale.
Overall I had a most precious time and only wished I had stayed longer and visited more of the countryside with its small villages – I only stayed 4 nights. I would return in a heartbeat – hopefully I will get a chance to do so!!! Definitely my kind of travel
Source: https://www.lonelyplanet.com