Quote:
Originally Posted by worth
After seeing tis weeks episode does anyone else feel the need to travel to some of these countries?
I've always really really wanted to go to egypt as well as Tunisia and Morocco, and I'd love to go to Libya and Sudan seemed really interesting as well.
Anyone ever done a trip like that before? Just seems like such a change from our lives here and everything seems so much more simple over there. Seems like something I could long for.
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Late response as I've just read this thread but anyways .......
I sure have. In 1996. It was always one of my life's ambitions to see Africa so saved up like hell and travelled throughout there for a year, mostly tenting it and cooking on a trangia stove. Got about by bus, train and hitching (mostly pick-up trucks) where we'd tip the driver.
We flew to Cairo and the plan was to go overland the whole way down but were advised to forget about Sudan as it too dangerous at the time. So after a month in Egypt flew to Nairobi and started sub-Sahara from there. On hindsight we found out that it was possible to hitch a ride from the red sea coast on a boat/ship to Eritrea or the Somalian coast.
Anyways ....trip basically consisted of Kenya, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Malawi, Mozambique (tete corridor), Zimbabwe, Botswana, South Africa (Xmas in Cape Town), up to Namibia, back to Capetown, Botswana, Zimbabwe and flight back from Harare to London via Egypt for some more Red Sea diving before leaving the continent.
All in all the best year of my life and a totally amazing experience. If that can't make you appreciate what you have then nothing will. People were warm, friendly and overall non-threatening the whole trip. Only one small incident and was mock charged by a cow elephant as we were waiting to hitch a lift one day from a game reserve in Malawi.
So many stories but all I could say is go for it although Zimbabwe sadly appears to have been completely desolated by Mugabe. Also ... if doing a safari is on your list of things to do in life then I can't advise enough to ensure that you do it in the Okavango delta in Botswana. To do a walking safari, camp in the bush and hear the noises so close to your tent at night and realise that you are part of the food chain is something else. We (3 of us and a gunless guide) had the pleasure of meeting a male lion on foot at about 100 metres.
Total cost for the year was ~ 6-7K