(ANOTHER) WORD OF ADVICE

Some extra notes in addition to our post-Mongolia-post last year:

Stick to low-tech, reliable 1990s Japanese cars - they really work.

At borders it might be slighty more difficult to play the Dumb Italians, as everyone speaks French. What worked wonders for us half of the time was to sent our Resident Football Experts to talk, well, football, followed by small gifts such pens or cigarettes.

Pack superlight, you can do the whole trip with just one pair of pants, one of shorts, very few tshirts and a windbreaker. Weather ranges from warm to blow-drier hot, and rain is minimal, even further south. Leave your hiking boots at home.

Tent? There are plenty of budget accomodations along the way, and in a lot of countries it is not advisable to camp anyway.

Another item you can leave behind is a jerry-can. One petrol station is never to far, even in the middle of Wester Sahara.

Last but not least: do not carry US dollars, they are useless in all of Francophone Africa, not even banks will change them. Quite a satisfaction for Euroland supporters.

LAGOS - NIGERIA

Despite all the nay-sayers, we made it to Nigeria, currently in Lagos with the first of many rounds of Star beers. We will never find enough words of thanks for our good friend Shola, who spent hours, naira and patience negotiating with more or less genuine authorities.

We did our fair share of borders, but this was the ultimate madness experience.

GRAND POPO - BENIN

We might have left our beloved Nissan in the very capable hands of Father Antonio, but our overland journey is not over yet. Took a taxi to Benin, and despite having been ripped off by immigration officers, we are loving the place- all palms, sandy beaches and big waves.

GODJENME - TOGO 18 KM (TOTAL 10167 KM)

TABLIGBO - TOGO 422 KM (TOTAL 10149 KM)

Mission accomplished, literally - we are now at our final destination, hosted by a very energetic Father Gaetano.

We managed to reach only late in the evening, as this final border was a proper, problematic and busy crossing - after which Togo welcomed us with all its noises.

CAPE COAST - GHANA 249 KM (TOTAL 9727 KM)

And so we are approaching the last day, and which better way to spend it that having the a few beers and Atlantic lobsters by the beach?

Yes, we are back on the seaside, in this old colonial city, which used to be the adminstrative center back then.

Paid a visit to the castle bearing the same name, one of the main transit point during the slave trade. A well-worth stop, like most UNESCO sites. It goes without saying that it was also really moving.

KUMASI - GHANA 383 KM (TOTAL 9488 KM)

To reach the Ashante capital we had only one problem - one road work site after another. On a positive side, waiting was never an issue, spent chatting with other drivers, buying bananas from the local stalls or simply looking around. The desert is just a distant memory, we are now just around the corner from the Equator, surrounded by the tropical jungle - and, much to Loris' displeasure, mosquitos.

TAMALE - GHANA 472 KM (TOTAL 9105 KM)

And so we finally entered the New Hope of Africa. After a very touristic stop, spent feeding chicks to crocodiles, we made it to this northern town. Ghanaians do get out of their way to help, from driving you to your destination to guiding you to the only open restaurant in the city. A special thank to Hardy & Wisdom for their help tonight.

KOUDOUGOU - BURKINA FASO 338 KM (TOTAL 8633 KM)

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Full tour of Bobo, including the old city and a free sampling of deep fried centipedes - nutty, literally.

On our way out of the city we had our Good Samaritans moment, as we stop to help a van driver with a flat tire, who was also helping a guy that just fell on a motorcycle. Ended up taking care of the wounded and lifting the other with our indispensable inflatable car jack.

BOBO DIOULASSO - BURKINA FASO 560 KM (TOTAL 8295 KM)

After another quick and easy border crossing - this part is proving to be considerably easier than last year. Further tropical turn in landscape, and some massive, feet stomping, unforgettable drums concert in the evening.

BAMAKO - MALI 0 KM (TOTAL 7735 KM)

Whole day in Bamako for some much-deserved R&R - another round of beeers, another round of brochettes.

We got our visa to Burkina, which are easily available and released on the same day - a useful note should we decide to come in the area again.

BAMAKO - MALI 443 KM (TOTAL 7735 KM)

Music, music and some more music - the real sounds of Africa are finally with us, everywhere.

Here for a day at least, trying to sort out visas for the onward journey, and changing one of the team members. Andrea is flying back to the real world, with another friend coming onboard in just a few few hours.

Great roads by the way - all joint EU projects, development aids in the right direction.

Nissan Serena is proving to be a hit locally, were stopped and offered money to sell it on the spot.

NIORO - MALI 412 KM (7292 KM)

Bumpy roads, and the first flat of the trip. Another first- rain, which has a whole new meaning after 5000km of sand. Had even a greater meaning for the locals. Border crossing took no time. Now in Mali, greeted by music and mosquitos.

KIFFA - MAURITANIA 890 KM (TOTAL 6880 KM)

Sahara no more. Down south, finally into the Sahel, first sparkles of green, roaming cows and suicidal donkeys. Drove basically for the whole day, surviving on a banana and water diet.

BANC D'ARGUIN NATIONAL PARK - MAURITANIA 240 KM (TOTAL 5990 KM)

And so we discovered we can cross the desert, and get stuck in the sand, with a 2wd too! Camping in a Mori tent by the sea, nothing more than stars and silence, simply stunning.

NOUADHIBOU - MAURITANIA 423 K (TOTAL 5750 KM)

Border crossing was a breeze, apart for a no man’s land in between scattered with car wrecks, lost in what used to be minefields.

Met along the way a convoy of Bergamo-based Senegalesi, fellow countrymen on their way home. We stopped and trade stories on crooks Moroccan policemen and the ups and downs of living in Northern Italy.

DAKHLA – WESTERN SAHARA 759 KM (TOTAL 5327 KM)

One lone stretch of tarmac, desert on one side, cliffs and the sea on the other - this is Western Sahara, technically indipendent, but still controlled by Morocco.

Had one ecounter too many with the local police, couple of perfect stops by the beach, way too much tea.

TARFAYA - MOROCCO 748 KM (TOTAL 4586 KM)

Final turn of landscape, started with real desert, and the most breathtaking type, a stretch of tarmac running along the Atlantic.

Spending the night in Tarfaya, a town that is known for the last flight of Saint-Exupery, and that should be known for the best fish tajina of the entire trip.

AGADIR - MOROCCO 350 KM (TOTAL 3838 KM)

Crossed the Atlas on our way south - an excellent idea by our resident mountaineer, Andrea, and finally made it to Agadir. We expected a Berber town by the sea - we got the equivalent of Rimini (or Costa del Sol or Port Dickson if your references are different). Crowded, noisy and, alas, fully-booked.

MARRAKECH - MOROCCO 195 KM (TOTAL 3488 KM)

Marrakech! One can be partial to overly touristic places, but this town has something despite the multitudes of visitors - maybe the main square and the incense sellers, maybe the authentic Berber character.

Took today as a chance for a quick pit stop: we need a solution for a custom-made rack for our jerry can, plus an extended sump guard for the unknown-but-most-likely bumpy roads ahead.

BENI MELLAL -MOROCCO 530 KM (TOTAL 3293)

Decided on an inland detour to reach Marrakech, which looked excellent on paper but took us the whole day and left us a good 200 km behind schedule. Can't complain much, as we also came closer to a whole set of smaller towns, tea houses  and a taste of real Morocco.


CHEFCHAOUEN -MOROCCO 182 KM (TOTAL 2763)

Short trip? Well, consider that half of them where spent on wild goose chase for an elusive - and unavailable - insurance certificate. Afternoon (as it is tradition) by the beach, and a stunning drive through the Rif valley. Camping, much to everyone's suprise, on a hill overlooking Chefchaouen.

TETOUAN - MOROCCO 723 km (2581 total)

Finally on African soil, time for the real WWOOA! to start. Short and easy customs clearance (well, compared to our previous experiences in the 'Stans), now in the middle of the souk, in a grand and crumbling palace full of carpets, cats and chandeliers.

MADRID - SPAIN 621 km (tot 1858)

Just a bit more than 24h and we have done almost a fourth of the journey. A bit rushed? You have to excuse us, but we can't wait to start with the real deal, once on African soil. Point is, how long it will take, as there are a few millions people driving south and waiting for a Morocco-bound ferry tomorrow.

Spending the night in Madrid, special thanks to Michele for dinner!

BARCELONA - SPAIN - 1237 km

The Overnight Serena Express never stops - got to Barcelona after a 14 hours drive, stopping for lunch to visit our Spanish/Italian friends. Thanks to Bea, Piero and Ricard for the jamon break!

On to Madrid, final stop for tonight R&R.

Ready Set GOOOOOO!

Just a few hours left, with the usual last-minute packing, heated debates over what to bring (one case of Grappa or one case of pasta?), minor glitches like jammed side windows and loose nuts, but that's well within the norm.

Andrea, Renato, a hide-and-seek Loris and Dino are ready to leaaaaaaave!

One week to go

This year we took a Zen-like approach to the entire trip.

Main rule this time around has been less-is-better, so no more overspending on tune-up, no more over planning, and zero overloading. Spare parts? Tools? Just a set of spanners, one screwdriver, couple of spark plugs and one extra tyre.

The rest, we are sure, will be easily available along the way.

But we could not leave without good-luck charms!

PIMP MY NISSAN

yes, we got the car some time ago, and yes, it is as unsuitable as our old R4.

Let me introduce you our 1993, 1.6, no air-con Nissan Serena, the car of choice for the Real Soccer Mom (back in the '90s).

Luckly we got the luxury of two electric roofs - one already jammed.