Fear.

Last week I was discussing an upcoming speaking engagement with a client when the topic transitioned to my presentation and how I could help my client with my speech to my real-life experiences on the road. The topic quickly folded into a subject that most people I speak with tend to share the same curiosity. […]

How To Get Out of Tanzania and Into Rwanda

The votes were tallied and the verdict was delivered — from the taxi driver, bus boy, ex-pat mining executive from Australia, the bus driver and the prostitute at the bar of the Talapia. It was unanimous. To get to Rwanda if not going by ferry boat, then the road to Shinyanga then Kahama to Ngara […]

Making My Way Through The Serengeti

My eye seems to be a bit better today. Still blurry but not so much itching or soreness. I think it’s turned the corner. As for my teeth and bones? The roads through the Serengeti perhaps are best spent in a 4×4 rather than a loaded motorcycle. I was worried about Simon’s break-neck speed through […]

The Land Goes On Forever: Serengeti Safari

I sure hope the eye is getting better. But I’m having self-doubts that I’ll ever see clear out of that eye again. Fear. “You’re not afraid of riding alone through Africa?” Ben or others would ask, “No. But I’m afraid I’ll never see right again.” Thanks to the helpful reminders of Ben, both Simon and […]

Getting Close To Wildlife. Or Wildlife Getting Too Close To Allan?

There’s no question that visiting Tanzania’s world-renowned national parks is an expensive proposition. While budget travelers like me can camp and cook our own food, there’s no escaping the high cost of park fees. At fifty dollars for each twenty-four hour period or faction thereof, it’s easy to rack up a couple hundred dollars in […]

Lake Manyara National Park – Tanzania.

Sitting between just 300-600 feet above sea level and bordered by the western escarpment of the Rift Valley, Lake Manyara National Park is home to perhaps one the largest selection of bird species in Tanzania. We arrive at our campsite, which sits atop the escarpment looking over the valley, lake, and national park, a couple […]

Practicing Swahili in the Lands of the Masai

Leaving perhaps the last bit of civilization I’ll see in a week I ask Simon to stop at a supermarket where I can buy some water, savory and sweet treats and a couple bottles of wine. Yes. You can find decent South African wine here in Arusha. Later I learn there is no corkscrew. Never […]

When Strangers Become Friends Forever.

So it seems that things are coming together. I only wish the pinky finger on my right hand would see some reduction in swelling and pain. Why is it that the smallest appendages cause the most pain? At least I will have some reprieve from throttle twisting while bouncing around in a Land Cruiser crossing […]

On The Horizon: The Endless Plains.

While nursing my bloody eye at El Jacaranda in Arusha wondering if I’ll ever see clearly again, I decided to get a second opinion. Another trip to yet another medical clinic where the promise of a German ophthalmologist turned out to be a local doctor and her giggling assistant. Lying on a grey examination table […]