...:::Brunei Trans Africa:::...

Sudan

Still Tuesday 14-08-07

Over the bridge down to the first office: Sudan custom. Three officers inside. "Salam..." We brought cold water and an apple juice
too, that created a friendly atmosphere, we were drinking coffee together they did not check anything in the car.

   After a while, questions became more personal:" Do you have children?" an officer with the size of Bud Spencer asked. "NO" we had
   to say. He was surprised. It was beyond his comprehension.
   After a while, he pulled Harun on his hand out, looking first left and right, he closed the left hand to a loose fist and and
   with the right flat hand clap a few times on that hole, asking:
   "You not do? "
   Harun: "Yes I do" with the same gesture.
   He again: "Many?"
   Harun: "yes many"
   "But no baby; you know how to do?"
   "Yes I know"
   "Sure?"
   "Sure!"
   Then he decided: "Not worry, baby will come."

    We were on our way in Sudan. And hit soon the asphalt road coming from Port Sudan, the main connection to the outside world.
    Trailers, one after the other. Such a road train consisted of 2 x 40 ft container trailers. Double the length what is allowed in Brunei
    That would be plenty business here for our efficient freight forwarders.
    Since the war with Eritrea, even fuel for Ethiopia North, comes via the Sudan port.

Through flat land we rolled towards Khartoum. Somewhere when evening came, we slept in a 1 star hotel but cost us US$ 50.-
another rat hole but no choice. It was one of two Sudan rip off.

high Tec in a village yes we are in Sudan

Wednesday 15-8-07

     Very early we were up and drove until a secluded spot at the roadside for a deserved breakfast. Just enjoying it, we hear a "tuck
    tuck", the engine of a lorry which drove into the vicinity. Thinking nothing bad, with coffee smell in the air we felt happy. But what
    was this?

    "Gurgle Gurgle" and a stench of 1000 manholes drifted with the early wind toward us. I stood up. Oh, no! There was the sewage
   tanker discharging the 5000 liter load. If you have seen the soundless black and white first films of the 30thies, that is the speed we
   packed out from there.

this moment a fine breakfast the next comes the stinky tanker

    Sudan the largest nation on the African continent has a population of about 25 million. Living in an area of 2.5 Mio sq km. North- South
   one travels 2500 km and is still in Sudan. The climate varies from 2000 mm rain p.a.in the South, to 0.1 mm p.a. in Wadi Halfa.
   Temperatures, are a bid milder along the Nile but otherwise in summer it is hooooot.
   Sudan is rich on minerals, chromium copper and - oil.
   That is why hectic activities are under way, every one wants to get a foot into the door to "help" in Darfur the western province. That is
   why the government is reluctant to allow the UN in. Fearing to loose control over it. However, the Chinese are here already, building
   roads.

In the middle of trailers upon trailers we drove towards Khartoum. We worked our way to the center, hired a taxi to direct us to the
Saudi Embassy. They will see if the can give us a transit visa. "Leave you telephone number we call you".

Buildings and mosque details in Khartoum

     In Khartoum the white and blue Nile join and do what no other river does. It flows north crosses the Sahara desert to the
   Mediterranean sea. In Heat and without a tributary he set his 3000 km journey out of Sudan and through Egypt. Geological formations
   forced him, to turn south in Abu Hamed but it directs itself North again later, falling over several cataracts during his course.
   The agriculture land on both side is seldom wider than 2 km. Arriving late, we checked into a camping ground the "Blue Nile sailing
   Club" and went to sleep. It had 38 degree C at 7 pm evening. Please do not ask how we got through the night.

On the Nile our home for 3 nights, the Blue Nile camping

Sleeping under the net, with plenty mosquitoes around. Yati coming during sleep with the arm to the net, got in this night 107 stings!

Thursday 16-8-07

   Early up and went to town to change money. It is very hot. Traffic is terrible. Using a taxi without Air-condition.
   Harun purchased a second hand air-condition fan which was needed as ours made the wire hot, at the price of US$ 75.-. It was
   the second rip off.
   The law requires to register in the aliens office which we did. Waiting 2 hours in the sun to pay for the registration, with many others
   Harun went to the boss and only then we got our passports stickers. And guess whom we met too? Two middle aged lipstick Filipinas.
   How did you come here?" I asked. "By tourist visa"
   "What are you doing???" "Working....." Poverty runs people down; as far as to Africa.

   The night we climbed up again under mosquito net, thousands insects on the net outside. By 12 am sharp I woke up!
   A Thunder storm was blowing, bending the tree branches to breaking point, our JAMBO was shaking. It rained, cooling the ever hot
   air a bit.

Friday 17-8-07

   We had hoped for a transit visa trough Saudi Arabia and perhaps if possible, thank Allah for his protection on our journey doing a
   small Umbrah and met the Embassy officials, submitted our forms. But all efforts were in vain. We waited 3 days but no result was
   forthcoming from the Embassy in Khartoum. We drove on and called from Wadi Halfa, thinking we might return if an answer is positive.
   The man on the phone said, they did not even had send our papers to Riyadh.

architectural marvels around Khartoum

   While driving out of Khartoum, we run into another rip off attempt by the guy on the Shell station. He did not put the counter to zero
   after the previous customer fueling of 40 liter. "Did you start with zero?" I asked. He pretended not to understand. And wanted to stop
   after a few liters, claiming 46 liters from us. We insisted to fill the tank to the top. the guy started sweating.108 liters went into our
   tank where 60 liter were missing.

   Now Harun shouting loudly like a market call out: " Here this man is cheating the tourists" and demanded the boss and police.
   (just for show)   A crowd had gathered, one man talking English came to settle the issue.
   "Yes he will report him (or not, it did not matter to us) and please pay only what you think he fill in." So we paid 52 liters , the crowd
   clapped and we left.

converted air-condition gas tanks to mix 2 stroke fuel Khartoum bridge over the Nile

200 km away, we stopped at the Meroe royal city. Meroe was since Alexander the Great, the southernmost center of the
Mediterranean civilization.

Pyramids at Meroe

    And the Romans reached here around 20 B.C with 10.000 soldiers, Meroe became a friendly nation of the Roman empire. In 297
    A.D. the Romans left and in no time other tribes challenged the authority of the now weak Meroe. The kingdom was doomed.
   The king of Axum was it, telling of his triumph on a stele : "...they broke their vow, beat up my envoys, so I took revenge, ransacked
    their towns, took all possessions, burned down their homes, and drove the enemy into the Nile..."
    We left this gruesome place and headed further north, to reach Abu Hamed by evening.560 km from Khartoum.

Our "Hotel de la JAMBO" we parked on the Nile a fine location for the overnight stop.

" sleeping in a palm groove on the Nile...."

The wind was hauling all night, blowing cool air from the Nile. We, although in a village were never disturbed by anyone.
The Sudanese are so friendly and so different to the Ethiopian. Not much richer though but polite and thoughtful, respecting privacy.

The wakeup caller looking now so innocent!

     However not so this rascal!. We were slumbering into the raising day, and it must have been around 6:am when in my dream eating
   fine Laksa and beef Rendang my favored food a terrible sound ended this enjoyment abruptly and made me to shoot up like a spring
   just to hit my head on the ceiling. "Bang". "Au!" Holding it in pain I turned to the window and there was a horrific something. Right
   there starring at me! "Haaaaruuun!' My husband snored!" Haaaaruun," I shook him and he woke. meanwhile I hide myself under the
   blanket and stammer: "There, there is a ghost" I pointed to the window. He looking but saw nothing. "You were dreaming" he said and
   laid down again. Slowly I open the blanket to look, with one eye first, and true there was nothing. "What a relieve" I thought and turned
   to the other side, just to get a bigger shock! There this creature was again on the open window with the wire mesh. He open his ugly
   big mouth, to swallow me perhaps, I saw the teeth then came a "IIIIIIIIIAAAHHHH followed by another IIIIAAAHHHH,IHH,IHH, IHH, IHH
   so strong that the mesh bowed inwards. Then the creature was gone.

   Now was time to investigate. We switched the outside halogen lights on all sides on and lured out. It was a donkey! This no good
   beast of burden thought he has to wake us. He stood there as if nothing had happen. Was it a little revenge for all the beatings he got
   from his master? "Hey you! are you crazy disturbing our sleep and shock me?" He did no answer. There was no mood to sleep
   anymore and none for breakfast. We wanted to move. In the petrol station we had filled JAMBO to the cap the evening before, stored
   two jerry cans of water and were ready to cross along the rail line to Wadi Halfa.

   The map shows a distance of 369 km of pure plain hot desert and the wind was blowing.
   Driving out of the little town along the rail line, we soon came into the full force of the westerly sandstorm which blurred the vision,
   sometimes to 200 m, others to 5 meter.

Fata Morgana, there is no lake

leaving Abu Hamed the telegraph posts as orientation

The dashboard thermometer, aircon. on

Seeing nothing in the sandstorm and driving 50 km/h not to get stuck in the sand, that was hard work. the Polaroid sunglasses
helped only as such that now with them on, we could see that we see nothing.

   Honestly, praiseworthy reader who spend his time on our story, we had to have the windows closed and the air-condition on full blow.
   what came out of the four ventilation holes had little, almost no effect. Moreover we had to switch it off at a later stage as motor
   temperature was rising. 43 degree in the car! The ventilation had to blow otherwise the vacuum of the car interior will suck the dust in.
   Out came hot air, comparable with four hairdryers in full blast. Norhayati took bearings with the compass when we lost the telegraph
   poles in the storm.

Norhayati giving the direction in an unbelievable strong sandstorm; no poles to be seen anymore

Sometimes when we crossed a rock plateau, there was better visibility, so we could drive carefully over sharp rocks. But in sand
you have no choice, as to drive as fast as you can!

Easy going over rocks, but watch the tiers!

It went on for hours. we stopped at a station to check the car. JUMBO was fine, we drove on.

the sand is burying slowly the station

From there on we climbed the rail bed and drove on it for a 160 km. Oh boy, one has to be careful not to make a mistake,
otherwise you roll down on a side and the journey is over. The railway sleepers had sharp edges too. It was no easy driving.

Sometimes the rails were buried in sand barely visible.

Harun got on this 7 hour journey to Wadi Halfa surely one more grey hair. We met no one on the whole distance, as every driver
waited the storm out. By 430 pm we had reached the village on the Nile.

No more paint on the number plate. Driving in the sandstorm took it off

     In front of the Nile hotel were two land cruisers parked from South Africa. In the "foyer" a passage, hiding from the storm two men
   and two women. Greeting them, one said: "Welcome to Wadi Halfa the first chamber of Hell". "What temperature we have here" I
   asked. He looked at the fancy watch he was wearing an said; "almost 50°C.

From Abu Hamed along the rail through the Nubian Desert, North North West. It was tough driving in a sandstorm

We waited until nightfall, drunk 3 liters of water and slept on a mattress in the open.

The entrance and the "starlight suite"

Saturday 18-8-07

The morning was fine, no more storm. Here we present you with some photos of our 3 days stay at Wadi Halfa's best hotel.

Sleeping was done outside, the only place cooling down to 30 degree at night. Rooms warmed up during days radiated the heat in
the night just as a baking oven. The rooms have no fan, they are only holes with a door.

     When you distinguished reader pity us now, please wait there is more. The mattresses used on
   these beds are full with -guess what? With flees and bugs. waiting long for an extraordinary meal at night. We only recognized the
   problem the next morning when looking at the bites on the body.

   A half tin of insecticide went over the mattress. Either they had jumped off or escaped into the interior, because in the night they were
   there again. Nothing helped. All mattresses were invested with these bugs, which jump easily a meter from bed to bed for an Asian
   meal.

A small market and flat buildings scattered over the desert, that is new Wadi Halfa. The old one sunk into the floods of the lake.

Restaurant with chairs for the evening TV show Buildings are just scattered without a proper road

The "water tanker" supplying to restaurants On the Nile flats, storks and fishermen side by side.

     Morning activities happen in town until 10:00 am, afterwards all works actually stop and people wait out the heat in the shades or
    sleep, until around 600 pm, when the town awakes to life again. Then the Sudanese are in coffeehouses, play games or watch TV
    sitting on chairs lined up in front of a restaurant.

Sleeping is the best way to wait the heat out. One cannot read, cannot think, cannot do anything, it is just too hot.

We drunk an average of 6 liters water a day.

Sunday 19-8-07

The only way out of this furnace was a ferry which departs on Wednesday to Aswan in Egypt, but she do not take cars.

     In Khartoum we met Brits with a big truck, which drive in Africa around, they had hired a barge for themselves and would have still
   space for a few vehicles. We immediately booked and this barge was to leave on Monday, to arrive at the same time or before our
   ship in Aswan. That was also the reason why we came early. The two south African planned go on the same barge. While waiting,
   all sorts of worries come into the mind. will the ship be punctual? Will it come at all. Sometime it is late a week.

Monday 20-8-07

     The barge had arrived and we could complete our customs formalities. There is one guy in Wadi Halfa who helped against small
   fees with all the papers. He run from one to the other office, settle payments here and there. He is " Mazar Mahir" a Nubian living
   there. His contact E.Mail: mashansharti@yahoo.com.   Every tourist in and out uses him. He is just a tremendous help.

on the right the problem solver of Wadi Halfa This guy, Johan a South African was waiting to get out too

By 2.00pm all customs formalities were done and we drove to the port here,

we are already happy as we had loaded JUMBO together with the other vehicles.

"We need your keys", insisted the captain. No choice we gave them, but locked the vehicle compartments. By, by, JAMBO, see you
in Egypt again.

Tuesday 21-8-07

      The toilet conditions are just appalling. They are simply not useable. The desert man using sand and his left "dirty " hand could not
   get used to flush or wash the "things" down. Water is too precious for them. We always went late afternoons into the desert where
   no one was, to wash ourselves. When JAMBO was gone, we hired a tricycle to go out into the desert to do what all have to do. It was
   expensive. US$ 5.- for a relieve journey.

An endless place to be by yourself

When the driver realized why we hired him, he did not understand the world anymore and held his head with two hands.

   Today came also the Train from Khartoum. which could be another delay factor. Why ? You see, if the train breaks down or a
   sandstorm delays the arrival, the ship will not sail either. They will wait for passenger. Who comes to Wadi Halfa from the South has
   only one reason, to get out to Egypt. There is no other border crossing or way to Europe. It is a bottleneck on a journey.

   Arriving from the station, the people stormed for a place in our hotel with all the accompanying loads. The manager was smiling.
   A bundle cash in hand already, he collected more and more, his helper directed the guests into the yard, women and men separate.
   Kids sleep with mum.

The hotel yard in the morning three Nubian sister which did not slept so well

The restaurant had extra food prepared, more goats lost their life and fridges run on max. cooling. Falafel fried in the hot oil, was

   readily available, the restaurant with the TV lined up another extra two rows of chairs, for the people to sit and consume, the taxis
   tricycle were busy carrying people, the donkeys got extra whip just to be faster with the load. From Tuesday afternoon until
   Wednesday noon, that is the time to make money in Wadi Halfa. Business is booming. Before and after it sinks back in to a sleep.
   And there is another thing:
  "Why" we asked: "is it that the Nubians here do not plant veggies or trees along the lake?" Mazar answered:" The water level fluctuates
   up to 4 meter here. What we plant today is maybe flooded tomorrow." True it was as we had seen watermarks.

That high the Nile can rise, one see the marks our last sunset in Sudan, Wadi Halfa

     So what does Sudan benefit form the lake Nasser stretching far into their territory ?" I asked him.
   "We had been promised electricity, but it never came. But we are building our own dam now'. I did not found that fair and concluded
    the dam benefits only the Egyptian. "Yes" he said. "and the Israelis."
   "Why? " "You see, if in a war with Egypt the Jews drop a small nuclear bomb on the dam, the dam will burst, the lake empties and
   billions of cum meter rush towards Cairo taking everything with it. Egypt is flushed into he Mediterranean sea. it might create
   tsunami waves which reach every shore in Europe and erase the towns. So, Egypt is forced to be a friend of the Israelis, they cannot
   risk that."
   "That is true Armageddon scenario" I thought. The yews have to watch out too, as Israel is not far away. But who knows what military
   planners are up to as a last resort.

Wednesday the 22-8-07

     Today is the day we leave. By 900 am we had packed all already and waiting, by 3 pm we checked through immigration and
   went onto the ship. 1st class we had booked and got a small cabin with bunks ,covered with red dirty mattress, but it was cool. The
   locals slept on deck. By 500 pm the engines reversed and slowly Wadi Halfa disappeared in the distance.

The port in a distance We are leaving......

The evening greeted us with splendid colors and when darkness fell we went into another flee bunk for a sleep. The machines run
monotone and well.

Slowly she sinks behind the horizon coloring the water; first in white, later turning red

Thursday 23-8-07

The morning as every day was without clouds, and yes we were in Egypt territory, by 11:00 am we should arrive at the port

Green algae The First class, Kutu( flee) bunk

The Capitan see the opening on the left, it is the Aswan dam

While the sun send its first hot rays over the water, the captain was steering the ship along markers which
directed the course. In the back, nervousness among the passengers, they were eager awaiting the Aswan port.

And when the ship sailed slowly into the harbor, we could see our JAMBO waiting for us.

In Aswan port, JAMBO on the ferry

     Onto the barge, by the turn of the key, the engine run. We felt it was as if we had found a dear friends again, lost for some time.
   Through immigration. It was Thursday, and Friday the offices are closed. We start Saturday with the clearing procedures, which
   are by themselves another story.
   Distinguished reader we are sorry for the delay. as all the way there was only internet unusable for
   our page loading. From now on we will be like newspaper again, updating, whenever there is chance.

Promoting Brunei we did, but Ethiopia and Sudan are poor countries and if a person has the funds to go by taxi, he will eat instead
and walk on foot. But, yes in Egypt we will beat the drum again.

After 21,547 km we arrived in Aswan

If you click Egypt, it is there where the wondersome journey continues.