Our days in Egypt have passed and we are leaving with almost exactly 1000km of Egyptian roads cycled. We are now entering a new country: Sudan.
Sudan is of particular importance for several reasons. Personally, one of my best friends is from Khartoum (the capital). In hour long conversations I have listened to him telling about his home country, creating a sense of familiarity without having ever been there. More generally, Sudan is the “longest” country of the TdA with ca. 3 weeks to be spent there. The border crossing was experience definitely worth mentioning. We departed from our Aswan camp and cycled past the Aswan low dam (impressive: lake on the left, little trickle feeding the lower Nile on the right) and Aswan high dam (even more impressive). Unfortunately, these are considered military institutions and taking pictures is strictly forbidden. Boarding the ferry was quicker than expected. We were all set by noon and departure was scheduled at 16.00. In the following hours, in what was complete chaos in our eyes, boxes, suitcases, carpets, printers and any other imaginable item (apart from alcohol) was lodged onto the ship. One pickup truck after the other arrived, each one loaded to triple its height. Stairs and passages became narrow aisles amidst the cargo and eventually disappeared altogether, requiring passengers to (literally) climb over various items in order to pass.
Due to the crammed and chaotic conditions, our guide books strongly recommend taking a private cabin and for this reason the Tour d’Afrique booked all available rooms on the ship. These were 25 in total, accommodating 50 people in total. Unfortunately, there are 62 people participating in the TdA and space was allocated according to age (NOT beginning with the youngest). Bad luck for me, as I was left sleeping on deck. By 20.30 I was asleep, while the cargo was still being loaded (remember scheduled departure: 16.00).
The first couple of km to camp in Sudan, it became apparent that road slicks are not suited for the sands of the Nubain desert (who would have thought).
Sudan is of particular importance for several reasons. Personally, one of my best friends is from Khartoum (the capital). In hour long conversations I have listened to him telling about his home country, creating a sense of familiarity without having ever been there. More generally, Sudan is the “longest” country of the TdA with ca. 3 weeks to be spent there. The border crossing was experience definitely worth mentioning. We departed from our Aswan camp and cycled past the Aswan low dam (impressive: lake on the left, little trickle feeding the lower Nile on the right) and Aswan high dam (even more impressive). Unfortunately, these are considered military institutions and taking pictures is strictly forbidden. Boarding the ferry was quicker than expected. We were all set by noon and departure was scheduled at 16.00. In the following hours, in what was complete chaos in our eyes, boxes, suitcases, carpets, printers and any other imaginable item (apart from alcohol) was lodged onto the ship. One pickup truck after the other arrived, each one loaded to triple its height. Stairs and passages became narrow aisles amidst the cargo and eventually disappeared altogether, requiring passengers to (literally) climb over various items in order to pass.
Due to the crammed and chaotic conditions, our guide books strongly recommend taking a private cabin and for this reason the Tour d’Afrique booked all available rooms on the ship. These were 25 in total, accommodating 50 people in total. Unfortunately, there are 62 people participating in the TdA and space was allocated according to age (NOT beginning with the youngest). Bad luck for me, as I was left sleeping on deck. By 20.30 I was asleep, while the cargo was still being loaded (remember scheduled departure: 16.00).
The first couple of km to camp in Sudan, it became apparent that road slicks are not suited for the sands of the Nubain desert (who would have thought).
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