African Adventure

- Driving from France to South Africa and back -
- Mit dem Auto von Frankreich nach Südafrika und zurück -
10/2005 - 10/2006

Arno Mayer schreibt auf Deutsch.

18. Dezember 2005
Wir sind am Ziel. Nach etwas über zweieinhalb Monaten und 17 700 Kilometern sind wir bei unseren Freunden Dierk und Ingeborg Lempertz auf ihre Game Lodge Klein Boyali in der Nähe von Messina im nördlichen Südafrika angekommen. Ihr wunderschöner Besitz ist nur 30 Kilometer vom Grenzübergang Beitbridge entfernt, der wegen der kommenden Weihnachtsfeiertage von heimkehrenden Simbabwern regelrecht belagert wurde.

Marion Mayer-Hohdahl writes
in English.

Tausende warteten bis zu zwölf Stunden auf Abfertigung. Wir kamen mit zweieinhalb Stunden glimpflich davon,weil wir in der Gegenrichtung unterwegs waren.

Die Leute aus Simbabwe schleppten in ihren Autos und überladenen Anhängern so ziemlich alles mit, was man sich vorstellen kann: Sofas und Betten, Kisten und voll gepackte Taschen, Fahrräder und Lebensmittel in Hülle und Fülle. Bei der Ausfahrt nach Südafrika kamen wir nur stockend voran, weil die anstürmenden Grenzgänger auch unsere Fahrbahn voll gestellt hatten und die Polizei sich darauf beschränken musste, uns an der Seite der Karawane vorbei zu bugsieren.

Die Fahrt durch Simbabwe war nicht besonders aufregend, weil die Landschaft nur im Norden und streckenweise im Süden mit Bergen etwas Abwechslung bietet. Simbabwe steckt wegen der Politik Präsident Robert Mugabes seit Jahren in einer Wirtschaftskrise. Es ist eines der wenigen Länder, wo ein bescheidener Einkauf in einem Supermarkt ohne weiteres mit einer Million (simbabwischer Dollar) bezahlt werden muss. Für einen US-Dollar erhält der Tourist zur Zeit fast 80 000 Sim-Dollar.

Wegen der galoppierenden Inflation muss ständig neues Geld nachgedruckt werden. Die Note mit dem höchsten Wert ist der 20 000 Sim-Dollar-Schein, gerade mal 25 US Cent wert. Er sieht nur auf der einen Seite wie richtiges Geld aus. Die Rückseite ist so gut wie nicht bedruckt – offenbar aus Sparsamkeitsgründen.

Die Läden sind nicht einmal mal schlecht bestückt, die Preise aber saftig. Bei Verdiensten von um die 100 Dollar im Monat ist es für eine Familie mehr als schwierig durchzukommen. Wir sahen unterwegs mehrfach Dorfbewohner, die Säcke mit dem Aufdruck „USA“ nach Hause schleppten oder karrten – Nahrungsmittelhilfe aus den Vereinigten Staaten.

Wir wussten schon vorher, daß Treibstoff im Mugabe-Land mal wieder rationiert war und nahmen deshalb 100 Liter Diesel in fünf Kanistern mit. Tatsächlich sahen wir nur eine Tankstelle in Harare, wo wir Diesel bekommen hätten, natürlich nur gegen Devisen. Dennoch war der Verkehr insgesamt gesehen nicht so schwach wie wir uns das vorgestellt hatten. Offenbar finden die Bewohner des Landes immer noch Mittel und Wege, Treibstoff in den Tank zu bekommen.

Malawi hat uns auch diesmal wieder sehr gut gefallen, besonders der Campingplatz Flame Tree in Chintheche am nördlichen Teil des Sees. Makelloser Rasen, hohe Bäume und eine mit Felsen durchsetzter Strand veranlassten uns, zwei Tage zu bleiben. Allerdings regnete es zeitweise – die Bauern warum froh darum.

In Simbabwe wollten wir bei Masvingo in einem Nationalpark übernachten. Es stellte sich jedoch heraus, daß wir für den Platz an einem See hätten 50 US Dollar hinblättern müssen, obwohl man uns am Tor gesagt hatte, es koste „nur“ 30 Dollar. Wir verzichteten dankend und ließen uns die 30 Dollar wieder zurückgeben. Im sehr gepflegten Caravan-Park von Masvingo konnten wir für sechs Dollar bleiben. Auch dort waren wir die einzigen Gäste.

Das Fazit unserer Reise:

Die großartigen, weiten Landschaften Afrikas werden uns unvergessen bleiben. Manchmal fuhren wir Stunden und begegneten nur einer Handvoll von Menschen. Unsere Reise verlief viel einfacher als wir uns das vorgestellt hatten. Das einzige Problem war der Diebstahl meiner Tasche mit allen Dokumenten in Nairobi, aber auch das ließ sich mit Geld irgendwie wieder gut machen.

Das landschaftliche schönste Land war Äthiopien, auch wenn dort die Bevölkerung Fremde nicht gerade mit offenen Armen empfängt. Mit unserem Auto hatten wir keinerlei Scherereien, obwohl wir fast 2 000 Kilometer auf Sand-, Stein- und Geröllpisten zurückgelegt haben.

Der Anhänger mit Zelt, den uns unsere Freunde Regine und Peter Woeste aus Berlin geliehen haben, bestand den Härtetest von gut zehn Wochen mit Bravour. Er bekam zwar einige Schrammen ab, machte uns aber nie Kummer. Wir waren dank des geräumigen Zeltes völlig unabhängig und haben unvergessliche Nächte, zum Beispiel in der Wüste und an idyllischen Plätzen verbracht, wo eine Hotel-Reisender nie hinkommt.

Im Mai nächsten Jahres werden wir uns auf den Rückweg machen und dabei versuchen, von Äthiopien aus in den Jemen überzusetzen und durch Saudiarabien, Jordanien, Syrien, die Türkei, Griechenland und Ex-Jugoslawien nach Frankreich zu fahren. Zuerst einmal aber wollen wir uns ein bisschen in Südafrika erholen.

11. Dezember 2005
Der Weg vom Kilimandjaro nach Dar es Salaam ist sehr abwechslungsreich und landschaftlich sehr schön, immer wieder mit anderen Bergformationen im Osten. Wir entschlossen uns, etwa auf halbem Weg in Lushoto Station zu machen, weil ein südafrikanisches Ehepaar uns von einer Lodge in den Usambara-Bergen berichtet hatte, die einen phantastischen Ausblick auf das Tal darunter biete.Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts hatten sich in Lushoto deutsche Siedler niedergelassen, weil sie der Hitze in den Ebenen Tansanias entgehen wollten. Die Deutschen waren damals in Ostafrika politisch und wirtschaftlich sehr aktiv, bis sie Sansibar an die Engländer abtraten und dafür Helgoland einhandelten, das damals noch zu Großbritannien gehörte.

Der Weg nach Lushoto ist sehr kurvenreich und der Weg zu der Lodge war mal wieder eine Piste, die durch eine Reihe von Dörfern führte. Kurz bevor wir an unserem Ziel ankamen, fing es an zu regnen – Tansania hat zu dieser Zeit die sogenannte kleine Regenzeit. Die Lodge enttäuschte uns total – machte einen kalten und unpersönlichen Eindruck, so daß wir es vorzogen, in unserem geliebten Zelt zu übernachten.

Mit dem berühmten Blick ins Tal war es wegen niedrig hängender Wolken auch nichts. Dafür konnten wir das Leben in einem kleinen Dorf beobachten, das direkt unter uns lag. Die männliche Jugend vergnügte sich bei einem Fußballspiel, der Rest der Einwohner schaute dem Match zu oder stand schwatzend beieinander. Hunde bellten in den Abend hinein und Kühe muhten.

Der Manager der Lodge, ein pensionierter Major der tansanianischen Streitkräfte, erzählte uns, daß die Dörfler zwar etwas Landwirtschaft betrieben, „aber nicht ernsthaft“, was wohl soviel heißen sollte, daß sie wenig Arbeitseifer zeigten. Angesichts der beinahe subtropischen Landschaft in den Usambara-Bergen ist der wahrscheinlich auch nicht nötig, weil einem sozusagen die Bananen in den Mund wachsen.

Am nächsten Tag machten wir uns auf den Weg nach Dar es Salaam. 20 Kilometer nördlich der Haupstadt ließen wir uns in Kunduchi auf dem Campingplatz des Silver Sands Hotels nieder, der direkt an einem malerischen Sandstrand liegt. Tagsüber waren die Temperaturen auf fast 40 Grad geklettert, aber abends kam ein frischer Wind auf, der die ganze Nacht durch unser Zelt blies und uns herrlich schlafen ließ.

Am Morgen darauf brachte uns ein privates Taxi – der Freund eines der Hotelangesellten – zum Hafen von Dar es Salaam, weil wir uns Sansibar anschauen wollten. Früher dauerte die Fahrt zu der Gewürzinsel bis zu acht Stunden, heute legen Schnellboote die Strecke in zwei bis zweieinhalb Stunden zurück. Kostenpunkt 35 Dollar – für die Fremden, die Einheimischen zahlen ein Drittel.

Sansibar wird in vielen Reisebeschreibungen geradezu verklärt geschildert. Wir konnten uns diesem Urteil nicht anschließen – in erster Linie wegen der Hauptstadt Stone Town, deren Charme inzwischen so schnell bröckelt, daß man sozusagen mitansehen kann, wie der Putz von den Häusern rieselt.

Die Strände dagegen sind wunderschön. Wir quartierten uns auf Empfehlung im Mtoni Marine Hotel – rund fünf Kilometer vom Stadtzentrum entfernt – ein. Es hat einen weitläufigen Garten und serviert köstliche Pizza. Wir alten uns im Pool und genossen das Leben am fast menschenleeren Strand. Im Restaurant mußten die Gäste höllisch aufpassen, weil gefräßige und freche Raben zunächst unter das Dach flogen und von dort aus versuchten, von den Tischen zu stehlen, was immer ihnen gerade ins Auge fiel. Das Personal hat immer ein Steinschleuder parat, um die diebischen Krähenvögel notfalls zu beschießen. Die sind aber viel zu schlau, um sich davon beeindrucken zu lassen. Auf dem Campingplatz des Silver Sands Hotel stahlen sie uns eine Tüte mit belegten Broten aus dem Auto (eine der Türen stand offen) und verspeisten die Hälfte der Brötchen genüsslich. Den Rest konnte Marion gerade noch retten.

Um noch einmal auf Stone Town zu kommen. Einige renovierte Gebäude machen deutlich, wie prächtig die Stadt früher gewesen sein muß. Zu diesen Bauten gehört die frühere Erste-Hilfe-Station (Dispensary), die völlig verfallen war und von der Stiftung des Karim Aga Khan in jahrelanger Arbeit wieder hergerichtet wurde – ein Schmuckstück, das zeigt, das die Architekten der Insel einen ganz eigenen Stil entwickelt hatten, der sich vor allem durch reich geschmückte Balkons auszeichnete.

Doch viele der ehemals ansehnlichen Häuser gammeln vor sich hin. Den Bewohnern Sansibars wird nachgesagt, daß sie nicht gerade fleißig sind und alle fünfe gerade sein lassen, wenn genug zum Essen da ist. Ein Baumanager vom Festland, der gerade ein Luxushotel im Norden der Insel errichtet, drückte sich wesentlich drastischer aus: „Sie sind einfach faul und unzuverlässig. Ich beschäftige nur Arbeiter, die nicht aus Sansibar kommen.“

Es lässt sich allerdings trefflich darüber streiten, ob die Ideale der modernen Leistungsgesellschaft sich auf ein Naturparadies wie Sansibar überhaupt übertragen lassen. Vielleicht haben alle jene, die es ruhiger angehen lassen, mehr vom Leben als die Rastlosen und auf wirtschaftlichen Erfolg Programmierten.

Jeder, der Sansibar besucht, sollte eine so genannte Gewürztour mitmachen. Sie dauert rund zweieinhalb Stunden, endet mit der Verkostung der köstlichen Inselfrüchte und der einheimischen, sehr schmackhaften Küche. Erstaunlich, wie wenig der Durchschnittsmensch über Gewürze und tropische Früchte weiß, die sich auf Sansibar in ihren ganzen Vielfalt präsentieren. Ja, Nelken und Muskatnüsse wachsen wirklich auf Bäumen. Die Vanillepflanze und auch der Pfeffer brauchen einen Gaststrauch oder –baum, an denen sie sich empor ranken können. Die Jackfruit ist so groß wie zwei Fußbälle und innen so klebrig, daß man das Teufelszeug kaum wieder von den Händen bekommt. Schmeckt aber nicht übel.

Unsere nächste Station war Iringa im Süden Tansanias, wo in den nahe gelegenen Bergen ausgedehnte Tee-Plantagen zu finden sind. Eigentlich wollten wir im weiter nördlich gelegenen Mikumi-Nationalpark übernachten, aber auch dort werden Preise verlangt, die einfach inakzeptabel sind. Wir sollten 90 Dollar für das Privileg hinblättern, auf einem der Campinplätze im Park bleiben zu dürfen. Der Ranger am Park-Eingang war ganz erstaunt, daß wir dankend ablehnten: „Aber Sie sind doch reich, sie haben so ein schönes Auto.“

Vielleicht sollten die Park-Verantwortlichen anfangen darüber nachzudenken, daß nur die wenigsten Weißen Millionäre sind, die man ausnehmen kann wie eine Weichnachtsgans. Durch den Mikumi-Park führt die Fernstraße Richtung Malawi und Sambia. Prompt erspähten wir am Straßenrand eine dreiköpfige Familie der kleinwüchsigen Savanna-Elefanten, die sich das Gras am Rande des Asphalts schmecken liessen.

Der Besitzer des einen Campingplatzes in Iringa erzählte uns, daß er auf dieser Straße mit Gästen unterwegs war und ebenfalls auf Tiere stieß. Als die Touristen gerade dabei waren zu fotografieren, hielt plötzlich ein Jeep mit Park-Rangern, die allen Ernstes behaupteten, Bildern der frei herumlaufenden Vierbeiner dürften nur dann gemacht werden, wenn zuvor eine Gebühr am 30 Kilometer entfernten Park-Haupteingang entrichtet worden sei. Wirklich tierisch.

Inzwischen sind wir in Malawi, um noch einmal die Schönheit des 500 Kilometer langen Sees zu genießen, der sich durch fast das ganze Ländchen zieht. Den südlichen Teil hatten wir uns schon im Jahre 2000 angeschaut und dabei hatte ich mir die Malaria geholt. Bitte Daumen drücken, daß wir diesmal verschont bleiben. Fortsetzung folgt.

3. Dezember 2005
Nach rund einer Woche Zwangsaufenthalt in Nairobi – wenn man einmal von unserem Ausflug an den Nakuru-See absieht – machten wir uns auf den Weg nach Tansania. Allerdings hatten uns unsere Schweizerischen Freunde Hugo und Marietess den Aufenthalt so angenehm gemacht, dass wir ihnen gleich androhten, bei unserer Rückreise wieder bei ihnen vorbeizuschauen. Inzwischen waren aus München die neuen ADAC-Carnets eingetroffen und auch Visa hatte mir eine neue Kreditkarte geschickt.

Wir waren gespannt, wie die Abfertigung am kenianischen Grenzposten ablaufen würde, denn wir hatten ja weder Einreisestempel in den neuen Carnets noch in meinem in Nairobi ausgestellten neuen Pass. Doch Passkontrolle und auch der Zoll beanstandeten nichts. Offenbar war es ihnen unangenehm, daß ich bestohlen worden war.

Von der Grenze fuhren wir nach Arusha weiter und auf dem Weg dorthin kamen wir am gewaltigen Massiv des fast 6 000 Meter hohen Kilimandjaro vorbei. Wie so oft, waren die beiden Gipfel des höchsten afrikanischen Berges von dichten Wolken verhüllt. In Arusha schlossen wir erst einmal eine Auto-Versicherung für unsere Weiterreise ab, die für insgesamt 22 Länder in Afrika eine Minimaldeckung bei Unfällen bietet. In Frankreich war keine einzige Assekuranz bereit, unser Auto für unsere Reise zu versichern.

In den Ländern zuvor hatten wir zwar die obligatorischen Versicherungen abgeschlossen, allerdings ohne zu wissen, was genau wir da unterschrieben hatten, denn die Policen standen lediglich in arabischer Sprache zur Verfügung. In Kenia fuhren wir ganz ohne Versicherung herum, weil wir bei der Einreise von Äthiopien aus an der Grenze keine Versicherungs-Möglichkeit fanden.

In Arusha übernachteten wir auf dem Massai Campingplatz und trafen dort prompt ein südafrikanisches Ehepaar wieder, dessen Bekanntschaft wir bereits in Kenia gemacht hatten. Die Nacht war dann nicht so erfreulich, weil das Massai-Restaurant uns bis ein Uhr nachts mit zwar nicht übermäßig lauter, aber doch störender Musik beschallte.

Am Vormittag ging es los zum weltberühmten Ngorongoro-Krater, der rund 180 Kilometer von Arusha enttfernt ist. Früher war die Fahrt dorthin auf miserablen Straßen recht mühselig. Jetzt braucht man dank einer von den Japanern gebauten, neuen Teerstraße nur noch zwei Stunden.

Die Eintrittspreise für den Naturpark Ngorongoro sind unverschämt. Wir haben für einen 24-stündigen Aufenthalt 155 Dollar hinblättern müssen – dabei haben wir gecampt und keinerlei Hotelzimmer in Anspruch genommen. Wären wir eine Nacht länger geblieben, hätte uns das – ohne neuen Krater-Besuch – nochmals 130 Dollar gekostet. Eine Karte des Kraters in Form eine Faltblattes wird für zehn Dollar angeboten. Anderswo bekommt man eine Karte gratis mit dem Eintritts-Ticket.

Wenn die Preise weiter erhöht werden, dann stellt sich die Frage, wie viele Touristen den Krater noch sehen wollen. Die aberwitzige Preistreiberei ist auch außerhalb des Parks zu beobachten. Die Kudu-Lodge in Karatu verlangt für eine halbe Stunde Internet zwei Dollar und ebenso viel für den Ausdruck einer Farbseite. Eine Schwarz-Weiß Seite ist schon für 1,50 Dollar zu haben. Der Manager der Lodge fand das ganz normal.

Doch zurück zum Krater. Er ist wirklich sehenswert, doch angesichts der Preise und auch der Tiere, die man unter Umständen zu sehen bekommt, sollte man sich überlegen, ob sich eine Besichtigung lohnt. Angeblich leben im Krater, der stellenweise 20 Kilometer im Durchmesser misst, an die 30 000 Tiere – eine Zahl, die bezweifelt werden darf.

Wir haben in drei Stunden vielleicht 600 – 800 Tiere gesehen, vorwiegend Antilopen, Gnus und Zebras. Wir hatten allerdings das Glück, eine neunköpfige Löwen-Familie beobachten zu koennen – ansonsten sieht man in anderen afrikanischen Parks mehr. Der Krater entstand in grauer Vorzeit durch die gewaltige Explosion eines Vulkans im Rift Valley. Die Kraterränder liegen in einer Höhe von etwa 2 300 Meter. Beim Abstieg in den Krater selbst sind auf abenteuerlichen Straßen 600 Höhenmeter zu überwinden. Das Ganze ist natürlich nur mit Vierrad-Antrieb möglich.

Unser Campingplatz lag wunderschön auf der Höhe mit einem weiten Blick auf den Krater. Wir quartierten uns in der Nähe eines uralten, weit ausladenden Baumes ein. Die anderen Camper, die mit Reise-Agenturen anreisten, waren weit weg. Die Nacht war kühl, doch wir schliefen in absoluter Ruhe prächtig. Morgens vor sechs wärmten wir uns mit einem heißen Tee auf und stärkten uns mit einem Kraft spendenden Haferflockenbrei, ehe wir uns auf den Weg in den Krater machten.

Mittags verließen wir ihn wieder, weil wir uns noch die Ausgrabungen in der Schlucht von Olduvai ansehen wollten, die etwa eine Stunde vom Krater in Richtung Serengeti entfernt ist. Das britische Forscherpaar Leakey hat dort in den 30-er und 50-er Jahren Knochenreste des Urmenschen entdeckt. Etwa 40 Kilometer von Olduvai entfernt wurden durch Zufall die berühmten „Footprints“ von Vorfahren des Menschen gefunden – Fußspuren zweier Erwachsener und eines Kindes, die in Lava-Asche erhalten blieben.

Alle Straßen im Ngorongoro-Park, vor allem aber jene zur Schlucht, sind die reinste Zumutung. Aufwirbelnder, roter Staub und teils tiefe Rillen machen die Fahrerei zur Tortur. Bei Regen verwandeln sich die Pisten mit Sicherheit in reine Rutschbahnen. Man fragt sich, was mit den sicher nicht unbeträchtlichen Einnahmen geschieht, die der Park jährlich verbuchen kann.

Einen kleinen Hinweis auf die Mentalität der Politiker der Regierungspartei in Tansania mag eine Kolonne von mindestens einem Dutzend teurer 4X4 Fahrzeuge geben, die uns auf dem Weg vom Krater nach Arusha überholte. Obwohl die Straße nur wenig befahren ist, brauste erst einmal die Polizei vorbei, die uns herrscherisch bedeutete, wir sollten uns gefälligst so weit links wie möglich halten (in Tansania wird links gefahren). Danach überholte uns ein Luxusgefährt nach dem anderen – offenbar war ein Politiker mit seiner Begleitung zu irgendeinem Termin unterwegs. An die vorgeschriebene Höchstgeschwindigkeit von 80 Stundenkilometern hielt sich keiner der Fahrer. Dagegen blieben die Lenker der entgegenkommenden Fahrzeuge verschüchtert am Straßenstand stehen, bis die Kolonne sie passiert hatte.

Von Arusha aus fuhren wir über Moshi nach Himo am Fuße des Kilimandjaro weiter. Doch wieder hatten wir Pech. Die beiden Gipfel waren in den Wolken verschwunden, auch am nächsten Morgen. Wir übernachteten auf dem bisher schöensten Campingsplatz unserer Reise, der Coffee Tree Village Campsite in der Nähe des Marungo-Tores, das im Osten des Kilimanjaro-Nationalparks liegt.

Der Platz ist klein, aber fein. Wir waren die einzigen Gäste. Man fühlt sich wie in einem paradiesischen Garten voll üppiger Vegetation. Alles ist blitzsauber und äußerst gepflegt. Vergleicht man diesen Platz mit anderen, die wir gesehen haben, dann verdient er die Note eins plus.

1. Oktober - 1. November 2005: Frankreich, Italien, Tunesien, Libyen, Ägypten, Sudan
2. November - 29. November 2005: Sudan, Äthiopien, Kenia
30. November - 18. Dezember 2005: Kenia, Tansania, Malawi, Mozambik, Simbabwe
19. Dezember 2005 - 15. Mai 2006: Südafrika, Frankreich, Südafrika
16. Mai - 18. Juni 2006: Südafrika, Mosambik, Tansania
19. Juni - 25. Juli 2006: Kenia, Äthiopien, Sudan, Frankreich

In between we had some „exciting“ stretches of mountains with interesting rock formations and traditional villages. We drove about 300 km to the SA border.

We had to wait 4 ½ hours at the border. Cars, trucks, mini busses etc. as long a line as one can see. The vehicles on both sides – getting in and out of SA – were loaded with bags, bicycles, furnitures, food. The trailers were packed higher than the mini buses pulling them. Thousands of people standing in line. I squeezed by while Arno was still stuck in the car queue. I managed to get his SA visa as well which was great. As he finally reached the border, I was nearly done with all the papers. By the way, NO money to cross into South Africa. It is and will be the only country in Africa where we did not have to dish out money.

We got to our friends in the late afternoon. Klein Bolayi is in the most northern part of South Africa. Dierk and Ingeborg own about 7000 hectares of a wild game park with lodge and wellness center. It is a beautiful place to relax – especially when you have driven nearly three months through North and East Africa.

December 17, 2005 -- ZIMBABWE
We were woken during the night by two policemen on bikes. „Show your faces“ we were told which we did. I only said, why can’t we sleep – it is a camping area, isn’t it?

In the morning I asked the official about the cars. His answer „they had a picnic“. What kind of picnic is this? Without lights, no fire, dark corner???? Guess what – they had fun....

We also asked about the political situation in Zim right now. Our guy was sick and tired of the old man. Mugabe is usually refered to as old man. Many of the MDC opposition party members are behind bars. Apparently, the MDC people are not getting US AID food aid. The villagers who are from the ruling party see to that.

Yesterday we drove about 250 km from Tete to Harare and would have to go 400 km to Masvingo. We did not mind since the weather was quite warm but cloudy. We saw long lines at gas stations or no lines. Those were closed off. Many people were waiting at the sides of the roads for transport. The buses were overloaded.

On the way to Masvingo, we saw on the map a nice camping ground in the Kyle National Park on a lake and decided to stop early in the afternoon. We paid 30.- $ to get in which did not shock us. By now we were used to those prices. There was a big poster in the office why Europeans, Americans – in other words „non-residents“ – should pay double or triple the amount of entrance fees. Since WE are earning 5-7 times more than the „residents“ we should pay up. We swallowed and drove through the park to find the camping ground. That we only managed by detour since there were no signs. By the way no animals either. We eventually found an official only to be told to pay up again 20.- $ for camping – not Zim dollars, but the real stuff. We went to the park warden and demanded our money back. They can stuff it. 50.- $ for sleeping on a campground – no way.

We continued to the Masvingo Caravan Park. It was nice, quiet, clean and had hot showers. What else do you need? The price for the both of us: 8.- $.

December 16, 2005 -- MOZAMBIQUE
We drove through the Tete Province where throughout the Mozambiquan war the fighting was very strong. Renamo – now in government, before they were fighting against the socialist Frelimo party – was popular in this region. There are still many landmines. But from 5 years ago, as we last passed here, a lot of land has been cleared for fields. Here as well as in the whole of Africa, I am worried about the logging. Everywhere you see charcoals being sold on the sides of the streets. And knowing full well that they are the residue of trees, one gets a funny feeling about the state of the last forests in Africa.

We continue towards Zimbabwe. The Tete Province in Mozambique is only about 150 kilometers to cross. We went to the border, paid 60.- $ for 2 Zimbabwean visas and 30.- $ carbon tax. If they do not get you for road tax, they come up with an environmental tax. It took about 1 ½ hours for both sides of the border. In the end, the Zimbabweans send me back to declare the extra 100 litres of fuel. I told them, that nobody goes through Zim anymore, and now they have me running from one guy to another. Arno had also an experience with going from one office to another through the boom area of cars. He had passed it, but was sent back to the other side to cross the official pedestrians border crossing. Apparently he told this guy off because another official came and apologized for the young colleague. Arno was not to be appeased.

The countryside after Malawi and Mozambique was quite dull in Zimbabwe. There are fences over fences along the street – the reminder of all the large white farms. Some looked abandoned, others we saw black Zimbabweans tilling the soil with basic tools and there were hardly any cattle. It is difficult to know in what state the economy is in since most white farmers left. It would be worthwhile to check the statistics. What we did see were hundreds of people with US AID bags full of sorghum, wheat and US oil cans. It is a pity what one guy can do over a period of 23 years. Mugabe destroyed the country from the wheat basket of Africa to a starvation country. I do not know what the recipe should be, let the people starve and hopefully they will go against the government or give handouts forever. With foreign aid, the government can spend money any which way it pleases them. The people are being fed from the colonial enemies of Mr. Mugabe (Britain, EU) or his eternal ememy America.

There is hardly any traffic on the roads except around the capital Harare. No wonder since the Zimbabweans only can pay for fuel in hard currency or they get a 30-litre allowance every so often. We could not pay with US-$ or change – like in the other countries – until we came to the Coronation Caravan Park in Harare. It is a nice wooded area with ok shower/toilet facilities. Before we went into a Spar shop and could not believe it. It was stocked with everything. The first real shop since Nairobi. Great!

December 15, 2005 -- MALAWI/MOZAMBIQUE
It rained again at night. And we had music floating over from the bar at the beach until well after midnight. We did not complain knowing that is does not help. We packed up and left for Mozambique.

The Aids rate must be alarming in Malawi. In every village we saw at least one sign of an orphanage and/or HIV support groups. The country is beautiful and one of our favorites in Southern Africa. The people are very friendly, the country is clean (no garbage strewn around except in a very few places). Gasoline costs about 135.- Kwacha per liter – about 1 US-$. The roads are good. It is well worth a visit.

We decided to skip the capital Blantyre and go straight to the Mozambiquan border. It saves about 50 km. For the visas we had to pay 50.- US-$, 25.- $ for the car, 2-. road fee. Before we filled up our extra canisters – about 100 l- for the crossing of Zimbabwe.

Arno changed some dollars into Mosambiquen Meticais. He could not add up 50 x 250.000 Meticais which is one dollar. The guy showed him the amount on the calculator: 1.020.000 Meticais instead of 1.250.000.- He got about 8.- Dollar for himself. We were always warned not to change at the border, now we know why....

We stopped at the Tete Motel where we had been about 5 years before. Two other overlanders were there. One couple who was on a 13 months African trip; the other were from South Africa doing a round trip up to Malawi. For all of us we had one toilet in which was the shower as well. You do not get choosy on those trips.

December 14, 2005 -- MALAWI
We had a terrible storm at night and decided to continue driving towards South Africa. In Malawi during November and December is the small rainy period. It never gets cold, just wet. The temperatures during the day are in between 27 to 30 degrees and humid. We drove to Sengha Bay where we were about 5 years ago. It is probably the most beautiful spot on Lake Malawi. But we heard that overlanders were coming in. We still had the sleepless night in mind at Chitimba Beach. We drove on and found the Wheelhouse Marina. It was very close to where our friends have a beach house. If we would have realized that before, we would have given them a call. We will do that on our way back.

The Wheelhouse Marina is run down and not worth it. On the beach is a sunken boat. They must have bilharzia as well since the water is not moving much. Weeds are on both sides of the beach. That is where the small snails like to hang on until they find their victims. We did not go swimming.

December 13, 2005 -- MALAWI
It rained hard during the night. We decided to stick it out for another day. We had off and on rain, but went swimming anyway. The lake is very clean except on certain beaches where the water is not moving. They have the problem of Bilharzia snail in still waters. The buildings at the Flametree Lodge are run down, but the camping possibility is great. We could use one of their rooms to take a shower. The size of the cockroaches were incredible. One measured the thickness of my thumb.

December 12, 2005 -- MALAWI
We should have quit the campsite immediately after the youngsters arrived. Arno went outside at 2:30 a.m. where there were still a handful of them sitting around a bonfire drinking and listening to music. They finally called it quits at 4 a.m. One hour later the fishermen came in from a whole night of fishing. To tell the villagers that they are close to the shore, they bang their boats and sing. We could only understand the refrain which was „Viva, Viva“ every few minutes. It is a nice tradition and we would have enjoyed it if we could have had our sleep during the night. I got up and waited with the villagers for the fishermen. Their boats are dug-out tree stumps. With each wave they are rolling in like on a roller-coaster ride. Amazing.

After breakfast we left Chitimba to Mzusu – a little town on Lake Malawi. We found an internet cafe but gave up after waiting for 10 minutes just for the connection to our wanadoo-site. We bought used chemicals canisters to be used as gasoline containers for Zimbabwe. Apparently there is no gasoline nor diesel to be had.

We drove to Chintheche and passed 16.000 kilometers since leaving France. The road along the lake passes through mountain regions as well. Hardly anybody is living there. It is a beautiful ride. The region around the lake is very fertile. It seems everything is growing there as soon as you put the seed into the ground.

At the Flametree Lodge we could camp right above the beach on a beautiful spot under huge old trees. What a great place. Unfortunately, it rained in the evening.

December 11, 2005 -- MALAWI
Just relax time on the beach, swimming, conversations with other visitors, washing clothes. In the afternoon two big overlanders rolled in. Arno and I feared the worst. In the first one only three people came out, in the second truck around 17 young travellers. We thought briefly of moving and chosing another campsite but were told that they usually turn in early. We spoke with Mark from Britain who had rented a chalet at Chitimba Beach. He was in charge of surveying Lake Malawi. They have computerized „tubes“ to take samples out of the lakebed in the depth of 10.000 ft. Apparently, in Lake Malawi there were never any seismic activities and it was chosen to do research with the samples to find out more about the El Nino effects. It is amazing what kind of interesting people one meets on the way.

We went to bed early to the typical „bum, bum, bum“ music one expects with the young generation.

December 10, 2005 -- TANZANIA
What a restful night and what an informative morning. We talked to the owners who are Tanzanians. In the 70s most of the whites were kicked out of Tanzania and left for Zimbabwe. In the 90s they were asked back into the country. His parents had a big farm employing about 300 people.

Even though land was taken away from them for officials. Consequently, nothing was produced there anymore. His parents still have a smaller farm. He is investing quite a bit into the campsite building more chalets and is positiv about the stability of the country. Everyone – not black – is concerned about the way Zimbabwe went down the hill and if it might have eventually a spill-off effect. Namibia has started taking farms from whites as well as South Africa has done with one farmer who did not want to sell.

We also asked him about the millions of red crosses we saw along the road throughout Tanzania. The minister in charge of building streets had people painting red crosses on houses, mosque, churches, stands, billboard who were within 25 meters from the road. The owners are supposed to dismantle, destroy whatever and re-build with the proper registration from the government somewhere else OR pay money to officials to turn the other way. The last part of the sentence was his suggestion.

We cut the Jack fruit we had bought. It is a green oval balloon like (or twice the size of a football) prickly fruit. Inside around the seeds are yellow tubes which tastes yummy, but the middle is a white sticky mess. We had to scrap the knife with another knife to get the stuff off. Arno and I finally put on surgical gloves to eat it.

We missed, did not find (or it did not exist anymore) the camping place near Mbeya. It was again around 36 degrees and we wanted water. Therefore, we left Tanzania for Malawi and its beautiful lake which takes up 20 percent of the country.

We pulled finally into Chitimba Beach campsite. We stopped at three others before. But one was too close with the villagers. The kids tend to gather and just watch our moves. We were not up to that. Another one was being build etc. Chitimba is beautiful – also there are no other campers. We had our tent-trailer next to bougainvilla trees right on the beach. It was humid and hot but on the beach one can take the heat. We drove again over 500 kilometers. One chicken I hit but managed to duck all the other animals on the road. Forget the people who think that the road is for them.

December 9, 2005 -- TANZANIA
From Kunduchi to Mikumi . Again the countryside is forever changing through the Southern Highlands mountains. We wanted to stay at the Mikumi National Park until we saw the prices. Apparently the Tanzanian government decided to raise all the prices even more at the end of this year. They have too many tourists around Serengeti and Ngorongoro but hardly any in the Southern part of the country. But the prices in the south are as steep as in the north.

For one night of camping we would have had to pay 15.-$ p.p. entrance fee, 20.-$ for the car, 20.-$ p.p. for camping which comes to 90.-$. We decided to continue but not before asking why it is so expensive. The official told me: „You are rich. You drive an expensive car“. I did not take the time to tell him off. I just hope that eventually all the tourists go somewhere else and not to Tanzania to see animals. Kenya but more so the Tanzanians are overdoing it.

We heard the following day a story about Mikumi Park from the owner of the camp where we ended up staying instead of the National Park. He drove through the park on the only way to get from Iringa to Dar. As he saw animals, he photographed them, only to be told by a passing park official that he needed to go to the entrance of the park and pay the entrance fee since he took photos of the animals. What irony! We also filmed elephants who were grazing on the side of the road. Poor them. The trucks roared by the animals with speed. I wondered how many of the animals get killed on that road which is the only throughway from North to South.

We drove on. The temperature reached 40 degrees. Our air conditioning does not work properly any more. I guess too much dust – also for the CD recorder. It gave up playing a while back. We finally found a sign for the Baobab camp with pool. We swerved off the road, thinking about jumping in the water. There was no water in the pool and the place looked desolate. It was still 38 degrees. We left again and finally ended up at the Riverside Camping place near Iringa. It is a nice campsite under big trees on the riverbanks. They have water problems as well. It did not rain enough but we stayed because the place is well looked after. We drove nearly 500 km – too much in Africa ducking people, animals, wild drivers.

December 8, 2005 -- TANZANIA
We went on a spice tour. I know my spices but never thought about if they grew on trees (like cloves) or needed a support trunk (like vanilla) or a root (like tumeric) and so on. We were told the use of the spices like lemongrass which is used not only as tea or flavoring but also against flies and mosquitos. We also were invited to home cooking: rice with lots of spices, spinach and veggies in coconut sauce with again tens of spices floating in it.

We decided to take the late ferry back to the mainland to have more time on the beach in Malawi which is one of our favorite Southern African countries. We slept again on the beach in the Silversands hotel in Kunduchi.

December 7, 2005 -- TANZANIA
We went to Stone Town and I was disappointed. All my life I heard about the spice island of Zanzibar and Stone Town but nothing prepared me for the run-down old city. Some buildings were renovated – again with money from the outside. The old dispensary, a beautiful two story house next to the Sultan’s palace, was renovated by the Aga Khan. The apparently romantic alleyways through the labyrinth of the city was nothing spectacular. The first two streets into the old city had one souvenir shop next to another. Further in was a market with garbage everywhere, churches, mosques, narrow walkways. One is supposed to notice above the first floors the intricated wood work of balconies etc. They are all in a terrible state. In all, Stone Town might have some charm for some, but not for us. Stone Town is a world heritage site declared by UNESCO. It does have some important historical facts. It was the island from where the slaves were shipped off. It was at one time under the Germans before they swapped it with the English for the little island of Helgoland in the German North sea. The Sultan was quite powerful in every way. At one time the Harem had 100 women. The „poor“ guy had to sleep with 5 every night. For weeks he had to rotate his women and that every night....

Nowadays, no sultan with power but people trying to hook up to you with always the same questions: Where are you from? What is your name? etc. But that we are already used to.

The afternoon, we spent at the pool and relaxed at the beautiful site of the Mtoni Marine place.

December 6, 2005 -- TANZANIA
We had a drizzle of rain. Tanzania like Kenya has until the end of December the small rainy season. It is not too bad. When it rains it is still warm and does not last long. We took the taxi to the harbor in Dar es Salaam for the fast ferry boat to Zanzibar. That takes about 2 hours. One could take a dhow – the traditional boats with a sail – but it takes a whole day to get there. Again as foreigners we had to pay a lot. One way costs 35.- $ whereas the local population pays about 12.-$.

The funny thing is that the Zanzibarians think they have a different country because there is customs and passport control. We even have a stamp in our passport from Zanzibar. It kind of belongs to Tanzania even though they do not like it.

I had called the Austrian honorary consul in Dar to find out which hotel he advised us to go to. We ended up in Mtoni Marine hotel about 4 km away from Stone Town. They have different catagories: from 30.-$ for a simple room to several hundred dollars. We took one for 80.-$ in a new complex which was great. The setting of their two restaurants (with very good food) with the pool right on the beach is stunning. We loved it and I took advantage of the massage offered on the beach.

December 5, 2005 -- TANZANIA
It rained quite heavely during the night which means no view that morning neither. The only good thing about the Irente Cliff Lodge is perhaps that one is camping above the village. We just sat and watched village life going by. We drove into Lushoto to get the feeling how the Germans lived way back then. There are still some houses with distinct German flavor, but also some British style houses – otherwise Lushoto can be given a miss. It is not worth the diversion from the main road to Dar es Salaam.

The road through to Dar is beautiful through sisal plantation. It looks similar to pineapple fields. The road is good. In Tanzania the fuel is more expensive than in the other African countries we drove through. For one liter of Diesel it is about 1.- $ (1.- $ = 1.170 Tanzanian shillings). In this country one can pay pretty much everywhere with dollars. Sometimes they try to give you a bad exchange rate, but they do accept it.

We bypassed Dar to drive to Kunduchi to the Silversands Hotel where we could leave our car to take the ferry to Zanzibar. The hotel is a bit run-down but the site is lovely. We camped right at the beach.

December 4, 2005 -- TANZANIA
Just loved the Coffee Tree Plantation Campsite. We would have loved it even more if we could have seen the Mt. Kilimanjaro (just found out that in German one writes Kilimandjaro but not in English as I did before) from there but it was in clouds. We left for Lushoto through very fertile and lush countryside with baobabs and acacias. The roads were good all the way into the Usambara mountains. Some people told us about Lushoto where the Germans settled at the end of the 1900s. They wanted to get away from the hot and dustry plains of Dar es Salaam. Apparently the Irente Cliff Lodge in the Sambara mountains was a good place to camp. We followed the advice --unfortunately. The 6 km to the lodge and camping place was horrible mud road. On top of it, it rained as we got there. Before we took the wrong path and trying to drive back the car and trailer was to the amusement of the people. During the day we had around 34 degrees but up in the mountains it was easily 15 degrees and less. The lodge is perhaps quaint for fellow Africans but not for us. The restaurant was open to the reception hall. We ate under neon lights a very expensive African dish. It was expensive for local food: half a chicken in a broth with bananas and carrots for 5.- $ each. The drinks were equally overpriced. The lookout from the Cliff lodge might have been good but because of the weather we saw nothing at all.

December 3, 2005 -- TANZANIA
We had the whole place for us. Great night, hot showers – just lovely. Left for Arusha to continue towards Moshi and Himo at the base of Mt. Kilimandjaro. We passed incredible lush countryside around Mt. Meru (4572 m) and went to the Coffee Tree Campsite at the foot of Pic Uhuru, the highest of the three peaks of Mt. Kilimandjaro. We are just 1500 m away from the gate where most people – the sportive ones – climb up Mt. Kilimandjaro and it is beautiful. The campsite is a coffee and banana tree plantation and we are alone again on this really exceptional campsite. Lucky us!

December 2, 2005 -- TANZANIA
We got up at dark to be early at the crater gate, shortly after 6 a.m. The tracks down are awful. I guess in the rainy season one can forget about it. Shortly after we were at the bottom of the crater we left all the other cars and drove on one track where we saw 9 lions – females and all ages. Around them were schakals and about 6 spotted hyeanas. We turned off the car and watched the animals for an hour. They were still not settled down for the day. We had the feeling they were still looking for a bait. We saw lots of zebras, wildebeests, Thompson’s gazelles which look like impalas. We drove around for about 4 hours, then up the crater toward Olduvai gorge. Dr. Louis and Mary Leakey found at the gorge a skull from 1.750.000 BC, a year later a skull from „us“ homo habilis and in 1979 three footprints from the „Laetoli“ family.

The road to Olduvai was even worse than worse. We were thinking about where all the money goes to – definitely not for the condition of the roads in the national park which is also a world heritage site. The perfect asphalt road from Arusha to Ngorongoro was built by the Japanese. We only saw the new 4x4 cars of a whole delegation of the ruling party which had held a campaign rally. The police even wanted us to stop until all the big shots were racing by us. I drove on. Each one of the vehicles had to overtake us. Perhaps that is where the money goes.

At first we wanted to continue to the Serengeti plains but decided against it. We saw plenty of animals on this trip already and even more while we lived in Africa. We did not want to pay for another 24-hour stay . There is only one way into the Serengeti in Tanzania and that is via the crater. You pay for the visit of the crater, then pay up for the entry of the Serengeti, then again going back via the crater etc. We left for the Kudu camp in Karatu, just outside the national park.

December 1, 2005 -- TANZANIA
Well, the Masaii camp has a beautiful lounge, bar and restaurant set-up. The facilities are ok but the music was not. It went on until 1 a.m. I heard the bum, bum, but slept mostly whereas Arno had another near sleepless night. He was not in the best mood that morning. We left for the Ngorongoro Crater – 190 km on good roads from Arusha. There we really had to pay up:

30.- $ per person, 30.- $ for the car, 40.- $ for camping (2 people), 25.- $ service fee. The 155.-$ we paid was only for 24 hours. If we wanted to stay another night at the rim of the crater, it would be another 130.- $. The tip of the iceberg was the map. One does not get any information since one is supposed to take a local guide. We showed them the full car and no space. There is only one track going down and one up the crater which we assumed to find ourselves. We did not need a guide to show us the way. They wanted to have 10.- $ for a basic map of the crater . We declined.

The road up to the rim of the crater was just aweful. Before we had around 30 degrees Celsius, but the temperature went quickly down. Before the crater, there was dry bushland but getting closer all of a sudden it changed into a tropical landscape. The view from the rim at 2300 m into the crater 600 m below is great. It measures 16-19 km across and has an estimated population of 30.000 animals.

We set up camp at the Simba site underneath a lonely tree away from all the other tourists. It was beautiful. Since the temperature dropped increasingly, we crawled into our sleeping bags shortly after 7 p.m.

November 30, 2005 -- KENYA/TANZANIA
We decided to leave for Tanzania and not wait for the second credit card. Hugo will forward it to South Africa. The drive towards Tanzania goes through Masaii country, which is dry bushland. The masaiis are known to ask for money for each photo one takes. Therefore, we decided to skip it. They do look nice with the woman having a bald head with lots of beadwork hanging from their ears and necks. The men are always dressed in their red woven blankets. They have huge earholes. Sometimes the ears are decorated also with beadwork or some kind of decoration is plugged into the big hanging hole.

Arusha is only 3 hours away from Nairobi. The road is excellent.

The border crossing was no problem even though Arno did not have the necessary entry stamps neither in his passport nor in the car registration papers. Luckily the Kenyans had mercy with us.

Until now we did not have any insurance neither for the car nor for the trailer. No European company would insure us in Africa. Somebody told us about a yellow insurance card where many of the countries we are crossing are covered. At the border, we tried to sign up for the yellow comecon card. Again the dealers tried to rip us off so we just left them standing in the dust -- so to speak.

The entrance into Tanzania was smooth as well after paying up 50.-$ per person for the visas and 30.- $ for road use of the car and the trailer. A sign on the wall said 20.- $, but the officials insisted on 30.- $. Apparently the trailer – even though it has no engine – has to pay up as well. Then again the hazzle with the insurance. On this side of the border the same thing: too expensive, non-conclusive and just a hazzle. I asked one of the officials. His response was: just go to Arusha to an official insurance broker. Who knows if those guys at the border are there tomorrow or when you need them.

That is just what we did. Arusha is a bustling small city – well-known for the International Tribunal for Genocide in Rwanda. Since there is lots of tourism, there are many Western kind of places from restaurants to hotels. All the way to Arusha one is supposed to see the Kilimandjaro but we were not so lucky. The weather is cloudy and the Kili is lost in clouds. But we are hoping for the next days. We checked into the Masaii camp which is just outside of Arusha.

October 1 - November 1, 2005: France, Italy, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Sudan
November 2 - November 29, 2005: Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya
November 30 - December 18, 2005: Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe
December 19, 2005 - May 15, 2006: South Africa, France, South Africa
May 16 - June 18, 2006: South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania
June 19 - July 25, 2006: Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan, France