At the customs and immigration office in Gallabat, Sudan I learned two things. First, nothing happens quickly in Sudan. Second, the Sudanese are in the running for the most hospitable and friendly people in Africa. The large uniformed man with a scary scar on his forehead took my papers, carnet and passport and asked if […]
As the birds started singing their morning songs I dragged myself out of bed and took a hard look in the mirror. Yeah. I looked tired alright. I convinced myself I felt better. I did feel better. A few of my neighbors were up and quizzing me as I loaded tied my Ortlieb bag to […]
I think I’ve got malaria. I want to just sleep. I’m shivering. I can’t eat. At the Belegez Pension I’m curled up in my small cozy room while I can hear my new friends chatting, milling about and making phone calls. I guess bad news came to Gareth & Helen. Seems the brake caliper was […]
Situated in the highlands of northwestern Ethiopia at nearly 9,000 feet above sea level in the Lasta Mountains is perhaps the most spectacular collection of buildings and architecture in all of Africa. To be sure when one thinks of the great shrines of Christianity and and its history, Jerusalem, Greece, Italy, the United Kingdom and […]
While I love riding and experiencing through all my senses the sights, smells, changes in geography, geology, architecture, faces, landscapes and more when riding my motorcycle, perhaps the most fun is off the bike and walking through these small towns and villages. The good thing is that they’re usually small enough that hoofing it is […]
It’s blissful riding through the heart of Amhara country toward Gonder and the Simien Mountains. In many ways, this is what I always dreamed sub-sahara Africa would be like outside the ubiquitous wildlife and roaming wildebeest of the south. Having yet been to Sudan and Egypt, but safe to say that Ethiopia is the ultimate […]
Eager to explore some of the islands of Lake Tana and seek the source of the Blue Nile, I arranged a boat with the folks at my hotel and headed out over what looked to be a calm and blissful lake. The first mistake I made for this journey is not exploring more options. The […]
I haven’t had any decent amount of real crisp U.S. dollars in some time. Sure, I’ve had a stash that I had to tap into on a few occasions to pay for visas by countries who wouldn’t even accept their own currency for payment. Imagine that. But I’ve learned that in Sudan and Khartoum international […]
There are a few things rattling my brain as I stroll the palm lined streets of Bahir Dar and gaze out at lovely Lake Tana. First, is I forgot to note the commotion that I and my new found Aussie friends riding toward Addis created in that small town yesterday. As the pictures illustrate we […]
With a visa allowing me seven whole days to visit The Sudan taking up a full page in my passport, it was time for me to make a move toward the Nile: this time the source of the Blue Nile, which sits in Ethiopia at Lake Tana, a good days ride from Addis. I stopped […]
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