Cycling on the Nubian Desert

Eric and Amaya have been cycling through Africa for over two years. They’re on the final leg of their journey and have made it to Egypt from the Sudan. During their 48,000 km haul, they’ve rarely come across such great hospitality that has been shown to them by ordinary Sudanese people. Their latest report covers their 1000 km cycle through the harsh Nubian Desert. Here are some excerpts from their ride…

Relishing the stretches of smooth tarmac and slogging determinedly through the sandy and rocky portions of road. Cursing the truck drivers who left me covered in a thick veil of dust. Breaking into a smile when the sandy track skirted along the lush banks of the Nile, passing through sleepy villages of mud brick houses hidden behind high walls. Rejoicing when a settlement suddenly appeared on the horizon and speeding up in anticipation of finding a little roadside restaurant serving up a hearty dish of foul and glasses of sweetly spiced tea.

A young man passing in a battered Toyota pick-up pulled over to present us with a bag of fresh pita-style bread. Two smiling guys in a delivery truck offered us containers of yogurt. Shopkeepers refused payment for biscuits and soft drinks. An old Nubian man on a donkey handed Eric two tomatoes, quite a treasure in the desert.

Egypt is something of a shock coming from Sudan. Aswan’s main thoroughfare is crammed with touts and hustlers keen to empty the pockets of the hordes of aging European tourists, many of whom trail behind their multi-lingual guides clad in bermuda shorts and capri pants despite the chilly weather.

Read the whole journal entry here, and find out more about the charity they’re doing it all for. The next stop will be a cruise down the Nile and a visit to Cairo, Egypt, their final African country.

Written by Anouk Zijlma, About.com Guide to Africa Travel since 2005