My Experience

First of all I would like to thank everybody who kindly donated to the two charities I was supporting. Also to everybody who helped make this trip possible. The support from friends and family was been fantastic, especially my wife Hazel. I would also like to thank the many people I met on my journey especially Preben and Hendrik and the many people who gave me support and encouragement, Craig,Graham, Hendrik (the Doc), Migo, Mark, Geoff, Robin and everybody at The Ashanti in Cape Town and Chamelion Backpackers In Windhoek. 

Well what can I say? This trip has been the experience of a lifetime even though I didn’t cover as many countries as I wanted. The problems with getting a visa for Angola were frustrating but I always new there would be problems somewhere because the continent of Africa is a unique and unpredictable place. I will always feel cheated about missing the central part of Africa but maybe that was meant to be.

Many people questioned my sanity in taking on this adventure, but to be honest, it was a lot easier than I expected, whether I was just lucky I don’t know.

I knew it was only a matter of time before I would meet up with other travellers, and the two Danish guys Preben and Hendrik who I met in Namibia were great companions. The three of us got on well and were about the same level when it came to the rougher parts of off-road riding, i.e. absolutely no experience at all. Hendrik was perhaps a little less experienced at motorcycle riding as he never really ridden bikes before, in fact he didn’t even have a licence to ride a motorbike and forged all of his documents. This of course was a constant source of amusement for us when we got stopped at checkpoints. (I wouldn’t recommend this approach)

Travelling in Africa

The parts of Africa I travelled through are not particularly difficult or dangerous but a certain amount of common sense and a lot of patience is needed. The people are generally friendly, honest and very poor. Nothing was ever stolen from me or my bike but, as with anywhere in the world, be security conscious. If you leave something lying around unattended it will disappear in the blink of an eye.

Being poor does not mean Africans have no self respect, but they have large families and have to feed them somehow. For this reason they will ask for money, and in a lot of cases it is hard to resist, especially the children. I found that keeping some coins or sweets handy at fuel stations or where I stopped for a break was good, as kids would appear from nowhere, cheap ballpoint pens are also a good idea but a bit more bulky to carry.

Most African cities do not have street names and there are very few signs to tell you which way to go. Stopping the first local and asking directions will get you nowhere as they will not speak your language. If they do understand you and don’t know the answer they will send you just about anywhere they can think of to ‘save face’ and if there is more than one person the situation will descend into a farce. Petrol stations and sometimes police are the best sources of directions. Ask cops as a last resort, they just love answering questions as it’ll be the most interesting thing they’ve done all week, but don’t expect a quick answer as they’ll want to chat to practice their English(unless their arresting someone).All the police I came in contact with were extremely helpful and most spoke some English.

A good attitude and respect will go a long way in this continent, even with officials, a smile and an attempt at communication will get you out of just about any situation (unless you have killed somebody). On the road there is always assistance if you need it, from people on pushbikes to lorry drivers, it might cost a little money but it’s worth it. Tipping is another way of helping people and being a little overgenerous will get you great service. The tourist industry in most of these countries is virtually nonexistent so when a foreigner turns up it is a big deal. Everybody will know about you in minutes and will come for a look, you also get the beggars but they are usually also there to look at the white person. Giving money to people has to be done with care, give to one and they will all want some and it can become very expensive and could escalate into a dodgy situation very quickly, as a general rule don’t.

As for bribes (presents): don’t give in, say NO! (Sometimes easier said than done) I was fortunate and was only asked once (it cost me a pen) but it is a problem and the best excuse is that you have to go to the bank to change UK or even better Scottish currency because that’s rarely accepted (even in England) and Africans have no idea where Scotland is. Giving in to bribes only encourages those who ask for it, and makes life more difficult for the next traveller.