"daytripper" wrote in message
...
Since riverman lit out there've been all kinds of travel-related
catastrophes
in the Congo. Hundreds of peeps killed in overloaded ferries, and now a
plane
crash. Not good.

Hope our wayward friend is alive and intact...

Hey daytripper.
All went well. I'm composing a TR as I write this, and I didn't know about
any capsizing ferry, but I was in the air at the same time that the
Antonov crashed, killing all onboard. And I was crossing the Congo river
this morning in an overloaded ferry, since we had to wait out a storm where
the visability went to nil and ended up carrying two different ferryloads at
once. We avoided getting the ferry even more overloaded by pitching in and
offering the captain $50 if he left the dock within 5 minutes. He pulled
away in 8, leaving dozens of people on shore shouting and fighting to jump
on board, so we gave him $20 instead.

Life in Congo story to come soon, but thanks for the post. I'm alive and
well, and actually had a GREAT vacation weekend.

--riverman