Reflections on travelling

In these parts and in the months when they were travelling, the best clothing material is cotton, woven rather than knitted. But there are no ironing facilities, so wash, dry and fold neatly to pack away, so it gets more or less flat.

Cotton underwear also work better in these climates, but might take a bit longer to dry. While the cotton panties of Edgar’s have large and comfortable elastic bands, they are not well made and do not last many hand washings. The Woolworth ones are stronger but the thin elastic can dig into your sides after many hours sitting in the car.

If you can bear them, wear long sleeves; it is much better protection against sun than the creams. And they add to the demeanour especially in predominantly Muslims countries. Sleeveless attire, bra straps showing and too much of the legs appearing are not appreciated in these countries: you’ll hear men sucking their teeth at you, or vendors only pay attention to you because you will spend but will not be forthcoming. Or they might just ignore you. You might not notice it yourself though.


Avoid anything blue. Blue jeans, no matter how hardwearing, are not a good idea. Blue is the colour they use to make TseTse fly traps. So think about it. If you wear blue, you are actually attracting them. When travelling through West Africa, you are travelling through woods, forests and jungles where these insects abound, so ..... no matter how much you like the colour blue, just don't wear anything of that colour. 

Depending on the seasons, lots of food is available on the roads of Africa. One just has to have time to prepare them. Meat is better bought in reliable supermarkets or in cans. In some seasons not much might be available and cans do come in handy. It is also good to sample local food at the local eateries or if the campsite has a restaurant. It is a good way of finding out how the locals eat and what they do with their products. It is amazing to see what varieties of food are available even in the driest parts of this continent.

Visas and border crossings have been discussed in the previous texts. It is better to find out when there are elections in the countries to be visited because there could be trouble or massive campaigning that would make for traffic congestion and less than comfortable travelling experiences.

Unless the officials mention it themselves, it is better not to take pictures at border posts. Coen thinks that at some bridges also police can have objections regarding photo taking. It might not be written anywhere but one should be careful.

Then there is the issue of GPS and maps. Machines are good but not that reliable because batteries do run out and satellite signals can disappear when you most need them. Then it depends what you have programmed them with because they are just machines, yes? Ah, as for maps, any trip needs a good map. Don’t count on Map Studio, they are not reliable and their info is often out-dated. If need be, import a good map from Michelin or Reichs or some such.

Now, for making yourself understood…. Knowledge of languages helps. Many get by with only speaking French or only English but it is a definite plus if you have both and a smattering of Arabic if you are travelling north and parts of West Africa. However, speaking clearly, and often loudly is required, and slowly with simple words. Either it is a cultural thing about speaking softly being impolite or they downright don’t hear. This is quite understandable if you consider at what volume they listen to music in general – enough to make your car vibrate; makes you wonder if they can hear themselves think! Someone once said that ‘ça rend abruti’ and when you speak to some people you tend to believe it is true – they look at you and then ask ‘Eein?’ rather loudly, meaning ‘what’ not even ‘beg your pardon’.

It would be useful if you understand that a sign showing ‘Péage’ means ‘toll gate’ but ‘Pesage’ means ‘weigh bridge’. That ‘douane’ means ‘customs’ and that ‘route barrée’means ‘road closed’ and so on. If you have some latin from school days, you’d manage to read much of the stuff in Protuguese speaking countries but to speak to them or to understand them is another matter….

Money is the necessary evil everywhere and on such trips it is vital not to run out. Credit/debit cards cost but they are more secure to have than cash. All this said, it is essential to have a good source of Euros and USD. In West Africa Euros will go down better with a better rate. If you can get a supply of Euros on the way it is safer than to carry the lot from the start of the trip.

As for cards, it is better to have both Visa and Master Card even though Visa are more likely to work in most of these countries than Master Card. And then, if you have cards from a few banks, it is better than travelling on only one card. It is strange but try to change your pin code to a four digit code before you leave, try it for measure, warn your bank where you are and keep it safely – some ATM’s will not even take the 5 digits.

Many ATM’s across west/central Africa ‘speak’ both English and French. Do not be intimidated if they do not ‘speak’ the language you want, just try your best to follow the usual procedures. It is best to do two trials only because cards can ‘lock’ after the third unsuccessful trial. Then it is a bit of a procedure to access them again.

It is easy to compromise on health on a long trip overland. Hence the importance of packing a medicine box which should contain a bit of everything you think might be necessary  - plaster of all sizes, bandage, cotton wool, disinfectant, pills in case of acute diarrhoea, headaches, any aches and pains, mosquito and insect repellents for clothes and skin, sun block and after sun cream. Try to get a prescription for malaria pills (Coartem), a general antibiotic and any other medication – when asked about the medication at some border crossings, showing the prescription would make things easier.

If going far into the back country think of taking a bit more than the ‘usual’: syringes, drips and such because many times these places do not have adequate health centres or they have run out of these products. You might not need them but if you do at least you have them and they are clean.

Especially if you are planning the trip with small children, it is very important to consider the seasons in which you are travelling. Rainy seasons in these parts do not generally mean cooler climates but it makes tent camping more trying. And it is quite hard to travel the mud roads when it has been raining. Hot to very hot as in northern hemisphere summer is not fun, very burning and exhausting in general. And consider that it is holiday season for them too and places might be busy, fully booked or packed and noisy.

If travelling in cooler climes (with small children) it is best to budget for good accommodation when good camping is not available, especially because of the hot water availability. Consider that you are in Timbuktu in December when temperatures drop to 2-4C in the evenings and there are only cold water showers in the various auberges.

In West Africa, especially around Cameroon the harmatan should be taken into consideration too because when it blows it does obstruct these wonderful views of the place.

It is a definite plus if you have a vehicle that you know well and can do much of the work on it yourself. When you have it fitted for a trip of such importance do your best to be there in person when any work is done, and look into the works yourself. Try to keep electrics as simple as possible, in fact keep all things as simple as possible and as basic as possible.

There are great mechanics in Africa but you have to know what they are doing for you to know that they are great!?! It is always good to make a price with them before you start the work because you can be in for surprises when the work is done. Make sure you understand who is paying for the parts you might need, if that is included in the price or not. It might be wise to carry some spare parts in the car if the trip is long enough to need servicing on the way: filters etc.

It is essential to do some homework on the places you want to visit before starting off. The internet has information a-plenty and you have to know what to take and what to leave. Do not forget some of the travel/4x4 magazines, there could be the odd article that comes in handy too. Keep an open mind at all times and things will just come your way. 

Casablanca to Casa Nostra

The last evening together they only had tea and sweet bread. Next morning the packing was rather extensive with each car going in its different direction. They had to look for oil for the car and this was more difficult than they anticipated. The bigger towns in Namibia do not seem to be well geared to this type of activity and the people rather unhelpful.

Dinner at Joe's

Eventually they reached Windhoek where they booked for the night at the Chameleon. A small place not far from the German schule that caters for a rather ecological backpackers type. She checked in while Coen went on a search for his oil. He came back in a rather bad mood since he again met with this ‘different’ way of doing things here.

That evening they asked their way to Joe’s – a place they had wanted to patronise already 4 years ago. At Joe’s they made a good meal of sharing smoked butterfish for a starter and Oryx fillet for main course. It was a Monday evening and the place was packed with people, tourists and regulars.

They made their way back to the Chameleon via yet another Shell garage to ask about the oil. It was early, they read, wrote and discussed the road back home and then went to bed.

After breakfast, Coen went off to do the oil change and she sat at the Chameleon to write, read and rest further. The person recommended by the Chameleon did a good job but at a price – motor oil is rather expensive in Namibia.

Road to park

Then they took the road out of town. Jacky of the Chameleon said they will not make the gate of the park that day and suggested that they might want to stay around Stampriet. It was a long road through the desert of Namibia where they saw warthogs, mongoose and meercats on the roads. It was the beginning of community bird country and they saw their big nests.

dinner at Auob

Cooling down

It was still early when they passed Stampriet so they pushed on to see what they could find further. And they fell on the Auob Country Lodge. A nice place with nice managers who were willing to put them up at a special price that day. They booked in, discussed the evening meal with the girl there and went for a swim to cool down – they have a nice pool. After the pool it was a wash/bath and a nap. Later they sat in the lounge and caught up with the news, and then went to the dining room for calamari in filo pastry and eland steak. The desert was chocolate mousse, all very well presented.

Ground squirrels at border post

The lodge offered a very copious breakfast. Then they moved on to the park. At Mata Mata, they signed out of Namibia and moved into SA, the park girl there was helpful. She booked them into 2 nights camping at Twee Rivieren and renewed their Wild Card. She also gave them pointers about the park: speed limits, the hours to be spent on the road etc.

Eagle in the park

Springboks

The speed was 50km/h and they saw quite a bit of wildlife with no effort: Wildebeest, Oryx, eagles, springbok etc, and of course some rather huge community birds’ nests. Cheetas were mentioned but they did not see them. They got to camp just after 16h00 and the SA border post was closed. They set up camp when Coen noticed that the rear left tire was flat. He changed that and then went for a shower.

Community birds nest

Wildebeest

Meanwhile she was getting ready to prepare the evening meal. When Coen had sorted out all the cooking needs, he settled to put the pictures on the computer to see what they are worth. It was getting rather cool when dinner was ready, they had a relaxed dinner and looked at their pictures while trying to plan the next trip her mother wants to make to SA.

Old house in the Park

This is what they saw...

Steenbok and ostrich

The next morning they had coffee and rusks early and drove off to see what there was to see on a morning game drive. It was, at first very much the same as the day before and eventually Coen asked her to drive. 




On the detour back to camp she took the road to a view point, Coen was not keen on it, but since it was her 
driving he just shrugged and guess what?! This is what they saw …..

Driving back to camp they also saw some interesting game. Once at camp they filled the car and had lunch, Coen had a nap and she investigated the surroundings after updating her blog.

Sunset in the Kgadigadi

That afternoon they went for a game drive. There was not much activityat the waterholes but the sunset was quite spectacular. There were some rather noisy newcomers to the camp when they started preparing food: couscous with pink salmon with shiitake mushroom and olive tapenade sauce. The evening was cooling down when they settled inside the tent.

Camp at Twee Rivier

It was shortly after 6 when they woke up and started getting ready to move. Water was boiled for coffee and then packing started in earnest. Some people had already packed and driven off. They checked out of the gate and made for Upington on a tarred but somewhat uneven road.

They chose to stop and fill at Askham to be sure they do not have problems. This is a small town off the main road where there are only 2 petrol stations and the ATM is only a counter inside the shop – the cashier gives out the money. After that it was a pretty uneventful trip to Upington except for the radiator playing up and down again.

In Upington Coen went in search of radiator repair and she went to the butcher to see if she can find some fillet for Alexander. They filled the car again and moved on towards Kuruman where they intended to sleep at Red Sands. The road was now getting busier and it was Friday afternoon too.

Dinner at Red Sands

And they met with the unending roadworks and ‘virgo’ situation which made them take longer on an otherwise good road. At Red Sands, they had space for them and soon they had unpacked and seen to the car etc, had a shower and were having a short rest before going down to dinner. They chose chicken wings for a starter and Coen had the lamb shank for dinner. It was well prepared and generous. The chef came up to see if everything was ok with the food.

It was a very quiet and peaceful place in a nature reserve. They had a good night’s sleep. Breakfast was included in the bill, so they sat down and made a good meal of it before hitting the last 500+km home.

Enfin home

There again, the radiator had to be watched and there were quite a few waiting times at the road works. They made it to the house at around 16h25 and the dogs came to meet them at the gate. Then they started the unpacking of the cars – tedious affair but had to be done. Later Keith, the housesitter dropped in for a chat and to give back the keys while they were relaxing a bit. They had a light dinner of soup and bread and retired to their own bed. 

Giving thanks

On trips like these, you come to realise that you cross/meet with people who come in and out of your life for a reason – these angels who help you even in the smallest manner to get through with your journey.

We have come across a number of these such angels who have directly or indirectly affected our lives and to them we give sincere thanks. To name but a few …

Keith who has accepted to house sit for us and keep our dogs company so we could go off without constantly wondering what is going on back home.

Hayyat in Rabat who made some bookings for us and gave us sound advice. The people who helped clear the cars and the girl who piled all 6 of us in her car to take us to where the cars were stored. Fatima in Fez who housed us for a long time, Mwe Beitul who cooked for us at her place and Ahmed who was there.

All the people who helped look after the cars, repairs and maintenance on the way and those who advised what can and should be done on the cars for them to tackle the roads ahead of whom Godfried in Ghana is one of them.

The people at the camp sites and inns on the way who housed us and talked to us about their country. Those who housed us even though they had never met us such as Willem and Marjolaine, Jimmy in Libreville and Albert in Dakar, of course Rico and Liz in Barra do Dande. And Koen and Vero who opened their apartment to us and also found shelter for our friends. The shelter given unreservedly by the fathers in the various missions we stopped at: Father Immanuel in Nigeria, Father Manfred in Mamfe, Father Arnold in Bamenda and the good father in Tombocco.

The good tips given by people of the SA embassies such as Vivianne, Aisha and Derrik, Thabo and Freddy at the SA embassy in DRC who helped us at a most opportune moment on this trip – help given willingly. Oliver in Benin who went out of his way to make our journey through Nigeria a safe one. Just saying thank you may not be enough but for now that is all we can do.

And of course, those who have called us, e-mailed us and sent numerous sms’ helped to keep us in touch with the real life out there. Those who were there to talk to and to listen like Sabina and Sara in Ghana, Vero in Luanda.

Not forgetting the doctor at the mission hospital in Mamfe who help deal with the skin problem.

To these people as well as the others such as petrol pump attendants, the receptionists at the lodgings, the people we stopped to ask directions, the vendors at the markets, the kinder officials at the borders – even the nasty ones – all helped to teach us something and to help us on this journey, we give thanks.

There may be others we could have forgotten momentarily while writing this. Thank you.