With the French finally blowing out of the Horn, the new millennium finds Djiboutians more than a little wistful. The injuries of the civil war have only recently begun to heal, and none of the continuing strife beyond the country's borders makes that process easier. The population has been inflated by tens of thousands of refugees from Somalia and Ethiopia, and the disaffected along Djibouti's national boundaries threaten at least to relieve travellers of their cameras, at most to reignite the war. The French military withdrawal has taken much-needed cash out of the country, and Moody's are not about to give the economy an 'AAA' rating anytime soon.

Part of Djibouti's appeal, though, is that it does not see many travellers. Dawn over a desolate lake full of flamingoes on the wing is unforgettable. The black lava fields, weird natural chimneys blowing steam and the burning, endless plains are deserted. Diving and snorkelling around Red Sea coral reefs is fabulous. The town of Djibouti is a boisterous blend of colonial French and modern Arabic, and what it lacks in major attractions it makes up for in buzz. The city is crowded with Arab and African cultures jostling each other's prayer mats, and travellers are often regarded as curios and treated to traditional African hospitality.