TDA cyclists rode into the dusty city of Khartoum in convoy yesterday, marking the end of the first of eight sections of the full Tour d’Afrique. Pharaoh’s Delight is now officially something of the past and riders have already notched up almost 2000km on their odometers. One down, seven to go and things are still running smoothly.
It has only taken two short weeks to change riders’ perspectives about themselves, their fellow riders and about Africa and with almost 18 weeks to go, it is safe to say these participants are going to return home different people. In less than a week a 100km day became known as an “easy” riding day, the value of a good shower has increased exponentially, friendships have been formed and most have learnt to not only respect and appreciate a fellow rider but to support them… the saying, never leave a man behind, comes to mind.
Through Egypt roads were flat and smooth. Legs were fresh and times were improving as everyone’s muscles became accustomed to the everyday hammering of long days on the road. The Egyptian way of doing was different than anything most of them ever experienced and most realised that patience was going to be a valuable commodity on this trip. Everyone began to appreciate that they need to expect the unexpected because this is, after all, Africa.
Crossing over into the Sudan the friendliness of the people was the first thing everyone noticed and thanks to the welcome we received it didn’t take too long for most to decide this was their favourite country thus far on the trip. The days spent in Sudan has accentuated the value of slow travel as riders have been invited into locals’ homes for tea and bread and got to experience this country that many don’t know a lot about. The differences between Egypt and Sudan are subtle but very apparent, thanks mostly to the subtle changes in landscapes and the vast differences in people. The thought of getting to experience eight more border crossings and seeing how things keep changing as we head ever further south is an exciting prospect.
Though most are proud of themselves for getting through the first section, and rightly so, it is important to stay humble and also realise that it still is early days in this trip. We still have a long way to go to reach our final destination. This was a good introduction, now to get down to business. It’s time for unpaved roads and hills… Bring on The Gorge.
-- Catharina Robbertze
The other day while riding sweep I caught up with rider Ian who stopped on the side of the road to talk to some locals. The man’s name is Abudi and he invites us into the village for a cup of tea. We are only a couple of kilometres from lunch and it’s only 12:30 – the general rule is that riders need to aim to be at the lunch truck by 1pm.
We wander into the village and inside the concrete buildings the temperature is surprisingly much cooler than outside. Abudi was born in the village but now lives in Khartoum, and has returned for his brother’s wedding which was the day before. The village normally is home to 14 people but because of the wedding, the day we are invited in there are many more.
Abudi brings us a huge plate of Nubian cornbread and we sit on the mat on the floor to eat it. We meet the prince of the village, and all of Abudi’s family. He takes us for a tour to meet the women who congregate in a separate building to the men. Some of them are busy cooking, others are busy resting, all of them are very pleased to meet us.
By the time we have finished meeting the entire village it is 1:30 and we are running late for the lunch truck! Abudi gives us his phone number and makes us promise to give him a call when we get to Khartoum so he can show us around!
This my third visit to the Sudan and each time I am amazed at the genuineness of the hospitality offered by the Sudanese people.
- Claire Pegler
This is the first in a series of reports from our bike in Africa -
Cinelli. More to follow. We hope you enjoy them...
I had always dreamed of visiting the pyramids. Growing up in Italy I found myself yearning for distant lands, when the opportunity came to join the Tourd’Afrique I rolled right into it.
Flying to Cairo in the cargo bay was a bit scary, and cold, but when we touched down it was warm and hectic. My first stop was the customs office where I was held up for days and interrogated for long hours. Finally Mr. Brian, my savior, bailed me out, not only did he do this for me but he would also be the one pedaling me through Egypt!
Not to get too far ahead of ourselves; the picture above is me at the Pyramids in Giza. It was a crisp morning and I’m very photogenic as you can tell.
The roads in Egypt are similar to home, Mr. Brian steered me everywhere I needed to go and made sure I arrived in camp each night safe and sound. The other bikes aren’t as pretty as me but they have their merits, I usually got locked up for the night with a few of them and we’d chat about what adventures the next day might hold in store for us. At this point, the adventure continues and we have entered Sudan!
My next report will hopefully come from the Dongola Zoo…
Njabulo will be driving the Land Cruiser once we get to Sudan. He has years of experience as an overland driver and cook and he will also be helping out in the kitchen to serve us delicious food with a local flavour.
“When I heard about the opportunity to be a part of TDA I grabbed it because I wanted to see more of Africa.
I’ve been as far north as Kenya but never beyond that. I can’t wait to explore places I’ve never been to before. Mentally it’s going to get very tough when people are tired and expecting a lot from you but my smile will always be there!”
Noah is in charge of the lunch truck on the trip. He will drive the truck, pick up weary cyclists who can’t carry on from the halfway mark and help to prepare lunch for 50 famished cyclists every day.
“I’ve known about TDA for about five years and always wanted to work for them. It’s my first time north of Malawi and so far it has been very interesting. My experience with the cyclists have been fun, they’re really different from the people I usually worked with. Hopefully when the Tour d’Afrique is finished I can also work on some other tours. I would love to do the Silk Route because I’ve always wanted to see the East. This is an adventure like no other!”
Big man Justin is in charge of the big dinner truck on tour. He will have to deal with some pretty horrid roads on our way south and still make it to camp on time every day to set up camp before the riders arrive.
“I have been looking forward to this trip for a long time. The transit up north was fantastic. It was the first time I experienced such nasty roads but I managed to get through without getting the truck stuck. If it doesn’t rain when we go back the truck shouldn’t get stuck as well, but if it rains when we are in Kenya we might have some difficulty. The secret is same gear up, same gear down. I want to see the whole world and this is just the first step.”
When in Egypt the experience of being haggled by taxi drivers, shop owners and many others on street can become a lot to handle at times. However, sometimes, when you’re lucky you get to experience real Egyptian hospitality and all the bad experiences start to disappear for a while. One of the full tour riders, Michael Paull from Canada
, was lucky enough to be on the receiving end of one such experience and shared his story with us.
Hello, my friend By Michael Paull This saying is very common in Egypt, perhaps too common. Wherever you go, the people greet you this way. Sometimes it comes of nicely, other times it sounds aggressive. In Luxor
- where we had our first day off - that saying was everywhere and aggressive. At night, one of the other riders, Herman and I wanted to go for dinner, so Mohammed, our horse-drawn carriage-taxi driver, said he would take us to a very nice place. We also used him so we wouldn’t be bothered by everyone else on the streets while getting to the restaurant.
We had a great dinner and when we came out, Mohammed was there to take us back home. The next morning when I left the campsite Mohammed was there so we could walk together. We went to the local market, and after, to his house for a cup of tea and so I could meet his two daughters (age three and five), his wife, his mother and his brother. After, we went to the tourist market. From there he took us to the Luxor temple, then lunch (sugar cane) and then back to the campsite. When I told my story to other TDA riders they all asked how much this had cost me. It didn’t cost anything because Mohammed was my friend.
