< letzter Bericht| nächster Bericht >

Ich habe eine sehr amüsante Reisebeschreibung gefunden und möchte sie Euch nicht vorenthalten. Sie beschreibt eine Fahrt auf einem Viehtransporter im Norden von Kenya. Sie ist in Englisch verfasst, doch es kommt gut rüber, was die Leute beschreiben wollen. Als ich das so gelesen habe war ich wirklich froh dass wir dieselbe Strecke nur mit dem Fahrrad machen dürfen!

Thinking about moyale to isolo overland? Think very, very hard about it, we just spent 30 hours on top of a keyan cattle truck and the word "hell" may not be strong enough to describe it. Some highlights:

Obviously, there is no public transport, so you have to ride on any vehicle going south. This will most likely be a cattle truck-- they're the most plentiful. They leave in a "convoy" every (??) morning (about 9- 9:30 am) in the center of Moyale, Kenya. The local mafia controls the passenger traffic, and you are at their mercy. They are all lying thieves -- every last one of them. They will try to charge you an exhorbitant amount -- anywhere from 500 to 1500 to isiolo or maybe just Marsabit, ON TOP of a truck or the back of a "landcruiser" (really a pick-up with lots of baggage). Locals pay 1000 to Nairobi, although they will be too scared to admit it to you. We ended up paying 600 to Isiolo, but only by literally occupying the cab of a truck and refusing to leave until we could negoiate with someone other than the "godfather." Such screaming! Many hysterics! Near-fisticuffs! We ended up negotiating 600 to Isiolo, on top of the truck, with the driver. I do not recommend this approach, because they really try to scare you -- calling the "police" and military and calling you all sorts of names. Trust me, though, this is still the least scary part of the trip. When you ride on top of a cattle truck, plan to sit on the frame -- a metal pole, with 10 -15 others, and 20 cattle below. You may get a small peice of a luggage platform. The road is impossibly rough, it is always hot and sometimes pouring rain. You must constantly hold on with a great deal of strength -- it gets really tiring and it hurts. You can delude yourself that you will sit in the cab, but they save those for wealthier women and others. If you do land such a spot, plan on paying a lot more (I don't know how much -- probably as much as you can pay. It would be worth it. I think the trip would be a lot better sitting inside.)

If it's a cattle truck, the driver will be in a hurry, driving straight through to Nairobi without stopping for the night in Marsabit. You will not sleep, unless the truck breaks down in the middle of the desert in the middle of the night, as ours did. Truly a blessing, except it rained -- there is no shelter. You could get off in Marsabit, sleep and catch a truck the next morning -- if there is one, if there is room, and for whatever price the Marsabit mafia wants to charge (someone coming the other direction told us similar stories), knowing you are pretty much theirs. Better to stick with the devil you know. Breakdowns are expected -- they changed the tires on our truck about every 2 hours (50 kms) between Moyale and Marsabit. It was better the next day. Sometimes I think they changed the tires just for practice. Our longest breakdown was 6 hours. Is it safe? They don't have armed guards anymore, but someone told us it was because the guards took off at the least sign of trouble. Drivers are not supposed to travel at night, but they do. It seemed pretty safe to us, until we heard there had been a gun battle over cattle in the village in which we stopped for breakfast, less than one hour's drive from where we sat all night, out in the open, tossing and turning on top of the truck. Cattle are currency in these parts, and, as if it's possible to forget, you are riding in a truck full of cattle.

You also have to watch for low hanging, thorny acacia branches. They really hurt when they whack you across the neck. Getting one across the face would really hurt. At night, you can't see them. After all of that, there's something to be said for travelling 15 feet up, in the open air across stunning scenery. We didn't see that many animals, but some, and it was just beautiful -- and even enjoyable for the first 12 hours. The last 18 were not pleasant. We also met some great fun people who made the trip light in its darkest moments. I've heard going north is better. The trucks at least are full of people or goods, rather than cattle, and they do stop at night. The road is just as bad, though. If you do this, bring food and water with you. You can get water (sometimes bottled, or treat it yourself) at most villages, but the food is pretty much goat gristle and chappati. Buy it before you get farther south than Dilla, Ethiopia (or Awassa, or better yet, in Addis). Kenyan food is horrible, compared to Ethiopian. bring sunscreen too. You will fry.

Now, I have to go try and get the smell of cowshit out of everything I own. I am sure, with some distance, this will be a good story to tell over beers. But it nearly broke me.

< letzter Bericht| nächster Bericht >