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.