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Visitors should dress nicely and modestly.
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Most Gambians do not expect tourists to know the greetings in the local language, but definitely appreciate it when foreigners do know some greetings in Wollof, Mandinka, or Pula
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Women must dress conservatively when outside the resort areas. Gambian women never show from their belly button to below their knees. Foreign women should do the same. Do not wear shorts or short tops, it is very, very rude and culturally insensitive.
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Sex tourism is a thriving industry here, whereby older European women come for relations with much younger Gambian men. The consequence of this is a lot of harassment of foreign women. There is the general expectation that white women are here only for sex or marriage.
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All over the country, but especially in popular tourist areas, bumsters, or young Gambian men whose job it is to make friends with foreigners, will harass you and try any means to get you to talk to them. Usually ignoring them is the best way to get rid of them. Sometimes sternly telling them to ‘go away, your not interested,’ works.
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Dress conservatively as a means to show that you are here to see the country and not here for sex. Overall, as a single female traveler expect harassment.
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