Sudan

1 June – Khartoum SUDAN

What an incredible few days! I can’t really believe that we’re here but in the end it was pretty painless. On Saturday 29 May we finally did pull into Wadi Halfa and the actual paperwork on the boat was quick and easy but then we had to wait for a guy with a stamp and then it took quite a while to get the cars off the boat. From there it was off to customs. What a change – we drank tea and waited while they filled in the forms and did the work! Everyone was friendly but it was a pretty slow process. After that we went to immigration where everything was already done for us, we just picked up our passports! The customs guy, Ahmed, is also the Tourist Officer, and he was great. He led us through all of this and then, rather belatedly, realised that no currency declaration had been done. It was off to someone’s house to get a person and stamp, back to the customs office, fill in the forms with no one actually checking them and then back to the house we started at where we had tea. It was all a kind of charmingly disorganised process as if they don’t get to do this very often and are not 100% sure of the process to follow. It was quite nice but very time consuming. By this time it was around  4pm but we still had to go off to a shop, change money (black-market) and buy coke, bread and eggs. We got 25 000SD for 100USD. A coke cost 100SD – about 40US cents. Same for 10 breads. Not too shabby. Next was off to Ahmed’s house to meet his family and pet crocodiles! He led us all the way to the start of the railway line which we would follow for almost 400km through the desert.

Wadi Halfa is a true dead, desert, dump of a town. Sandy, windy and nothing there. Ahmed showed us some photos of the town in the days before the dam and it was a thriving place - full of tourists, Nile Cruises and really buzzing. What a tragedy it is, all of that is lost and now it is a nothing place with no immediate prospects of change. It is a tragedy for the people there too – they are all very friendly and desperate for visitors but very few pass through here and even fewer spend any time. Real tragedy all round.

The people in the region are Nubians and very proud of that. They pride themselves on their friendliness and hospitality and it is very true. I would have loved to have stayed on but we needed to reach Khartoum in 3 days to register. From all accounts it would be a tricky journey with our friends in the Kombi.

The journey took two long, full days. We only made about 10km on the Saturday before the Kombi got stuck. We got it out and made that our stop for the night. Sunday we were up at 5am and on the road soon after. We did about 370km driving until 7pm so it was a long day. The road following the railway line has 10 stations along it, we stopped at most to shake hands with the 4-5 residents and had tea with a couple too. It’s a weird set-up, there is no access to these stations except by train or 4WD so I guess that they really exist to keep the line maintained and free of sand, The train definitely doesn’t stop there though! The guys who live there really have nothing and I feel terrible when they offer us water to drink and we refuse. We are rejecting all that they have to offer us but what do you do? Drink up and risk illness? We took the tea.

The next day, yesterday, we drove another approx. 200km in the desert to Atbara and then another 320km to Khartoum. We were up at 4:30am (!!!) and arrived in Khartoum at about 10:30pm. Hell. Now the question is, why did it take us so long? Well, it was a desert track marked only by the occasional concrete marker and nothing else. At times we were riding over really soft sand and at others over rocky ground. Our car did great and cruised the whole way without a problem. We did get stuck once on the Sunday but that was our fault – we went straight into a hole! The problem was the Kombi. It slowed down our average speed and also got stuck many times. Sometimes we could tow them out but other times there was no surface nearby that we could tow from so it had to be pushed, pulled and manhandled through. We worked like dogs both days but especially yesterday. Next time someone says that they crossed the Sahara in a Kombi or some other totally inappropriate vehicle, we will ask them who towed them through the tough bits!

The rush was because we had to get to Khartoum in order to register today (within 3 days of arrival in the country). We couldn’t register in Wadi Halfa when we arrived – office closed and were encourage to head straight for Khartoum rather than waiting in Wadi Halfa for a day to register. I’m not sure that it was really such a good idea but we’re here now and fully registered. It was a pretty painless process even though it did require a mad dash back to the hotel to get a stamp on our form but with that done, the registration took 5 minutes. We then applied for travel permits. We had to take them to a police station for a stamp but got so lost trying to find it that we went back to the registration office and got a taxi to take us there. They told us to come back tomorrow – hopefully to get the stamped forms which we will then have to take back to the registration office. No wonder we couldn’t find this police station ourselves – the main entrance hall is an old container!

However, all of this paper chasing fades into insignificance next to the blow we got at the Ethiopian embassy. All four of us arrived to do visa applications only to be told that the border is closed and no visas are being issued for land entry into Ethiopia. We were totally floored, in all my disaster scenario imaginings, this never crossed my mind. We had been hearing all about good relationships, wide-open borders and new friendships. We are still in the dwang but thanks to Scott’s persistence we have an 11am appointment with the First Secretary tomorrow. I am not sure what it will mean but we are hoping and praying for some good news here. If not, I have absolutely no idea what we will do. Short of returning to Egypt, there is trying to find a boat from Port Sudan to Djibouti. Shit, I really thought that getting into Sudan would be the trick, not getting into Ethiopia. We have already paid one boat fee – our budget did not expect to have to pay two. After this, the disasters piled up. The visa application, if we can ever make it, requires a letter of introduction from your embassy. Guess what – no South African Embassy in Sudan. We have been told to go to the Kenyan Embassy tomorrow – I am not sure why but we hope that perhaps they represent the South African interests in Sudan.

Anyway, at least we found a hotel – clean bed, aircon and TV for 46 000 Sudanese pounds or 4600SD per night. Under 20USD. The currency here kills me. People say that something costs 1000 meaning 1000 Sudanese pounds which no longer exist, they then expect from you a 100SD payment! This is really very confusing and leaves great room for being ripped off. We seem to be getting by OK now except that I feel that the hotel last night was way, way over priced. We stayed in the Meridian and paid 132USD. I would have been happy to pay that for a Western-style business class hotel but that was not what we got. It was nice once but is now old and tacky. In our first room the toilet didn’t flush so we had to swap rooms. The second had no toiletries supplied, not even soap and only one bath towel. The carpets were stained and dirty and it all looked very shabby. Where we are now is far, far better value for money. That’s good because we may have to spend a while here. It all depends on what happens at the Ethiopian embassy tomorrow. I know that worrying doesn’t help but what else can I do? At least I got to call home which was great because in our last email a week ago, Scott said that we should be in Khartoum in 3 days! He also tried to call but his folks had left the fax machine on which was very disappointing for him.

So after all of this, my main learning experience has been one of dirt. I last showered and washed my hair on Tuesday 25 May. One week without a shower is absolutely awful. We did try to wipe ourselves clean with a wet, soapy facecloth but it just isn’t the same. I am so glad that I could put my hair in a ponytail and just pretend that it wasn’t there. Our arms and faces are really brown now. On the boat we didn’t tan at all – just too hot to be in the sun but I guess we did get some sun even though I was wearing a hat all the time. The problem was the journey South. Every time that we got out of the car to dig out the Kombi we got more sun and suntan lotion didn’t help – it was sweated off in no time at all.

So that’s it. So far my expectations have been totally overturned and Libya and Sudan are turning out to be my favourite places. Considering that we may  never get further South than here, that’s maybe a good thing. I really don’t know what we are going to do, I was so sure that getting as far as this would be the hardest part. Oh well, tomorrow we will know about entry into Ethiopia at least.

Now that we have got ourselves clean, next step is the car. The desert was extremely windy and everything is covered in a fine layer of dust. The problem is that our hotel is in town so there is no real space to work on it. My vote is that we head out of town for a day and make up a picnic, find a quiet spot and wash the car and sort out the car, boxes and ourselves at the same time. Looks like we will have plenty of time to do that while we sort out our future plans.

3 June – Khartoum

We’re still here and the bad news is that the Ethiopian visas look like a real no-go. We got to speak to the first secretary who said that they were working under a clear directive from Addis Ababa – No land entry.

We are doing mad rush arounds but achieving very little each day, getting lots of ‘come back tomorrow’.

We went to a shipping agent today with no luck. Next we rely on Rick to get us a Messina shipping contact. We sent of some emails about that yesterday. The embassy at least assured us that even though normal procedure requires a return ticket, they will issue the visa based on a 1-way ticket. We have our ticket but it is an open airticket so I hope that that is OK with them. We plan the following – get visa, drive to Gallabat and check on the possibilities of crossing. If no go, go back to Gedaref, from there to Port Sudan and try to find a boat. Then we’ll bus ourselves back to Khartoum and fly to Addis Ababa. Then we’ll have to get a Djibouti visa, take a train to Djibouti and collect the car. Wow, what a mission!

The embassy said that nothing is moving over the border. I didn’t believe this so we asked the shipping guy about it. He said that trade has re-started between the countries so he is pretty sure that trucks cover the route and cross the border. I am sure of that too.

We do have one other slight issue – the Ethiopian Embassy requires a letter of recommendation from your embassy in Sudan. This is OK for the Swiss but a real problem for us. There is no South African Embassy here in Sudan and no-one representing our interests. It puts us in a spot but there is absolutely nothing we can do about it.

All business ends at 2pm, making it a very short day. To give you an idea of the success rate, this is what we did today:

Starting 8:05am we called the shipping company but there was no reply. Phone call to Interior Ministry to find out if there is any South African representation in Sudan. Re-call the shipping agent. The boss is not in but will be in at 10pm. Try to get address but no luck. Get operator to help us. Get address, now to get directions! We can’t even make our own calls, it is all done downstairs by an operator. Next, pay for the calls and head off to the registration office. We need to apply for a new travel permit now including Port Sudan. We should have put it in the first application but it’s too late now – big mistake. Photocopier at Registration Office broken so walk to another one to get passports copied. Fill in 3 copies of application form. Hand over forms, application and money – get the forms back with a stamp. Now we have to go to the police for another stamp before returning here for the actual permit but we were told yesterday to be at the police at 11am to collect the first permit so will hand these in at the same time. It is now only around 9:30am so we decide to head off to get the photography permit. Fill in form and get permit – free. However, we have to fill in another travel permit form, get it stamped and photocopied. The original is for us and the copy for the police. Rather not hand it over unless asked because we have 2 travel permit applications but only one of these forms. Now off to find the shipping agent. Have to ask directions 3 times. Eventually we get there but hear that they only do Red Sea shipping and know nothing about Djibouti or even Kenya. Strike out. Next we’re off to find the Ethiopian Air offices. Have to ask directions twice but we get there in the end. The open tickets cost USD232 per person so we decide to go for it. It takes us about an hour, maybe more, to get this done. We eventually get the tickets but have to return Saturday to get the others’ currency declaration form. Now off to the police to hand in second travel permit. Wait 40 minutes. Get the first back with the required stamps and told to go back Saturday for the second (hopefully). Now we have to take the first ones back to immigration but they are closed for the day, Ethiopian embassy also closed. Tomorrow is Friday so nothing is open. Guess what, start again Saturday!

Basically, we still need to finalise both travel permits and get the visa. All we have achieved so far is to get the photography permit and the air ticket. Later today we’ll check email and hopefully have something from Rick.

4 June – Khartoum

Friday is the Muslim day of rest and it truly is. We even struggled to find lunch – all the restaurants are closed. We found a roadside stall and bought fresh fruit and bread. The fruit here is great. At least we are finding nice fruit and it should only get better from here. The mango and guava juices are wonderful!

Today was a cleaning day. Scott cleaned the inside of the car while I washed clothes and cleaned out our sleep and daily food boxes. Things are looking a lot less sandy now! The clothes were filthy; after washing just a few items, the bucket is all sandy. We also washed all the towels and cloths and sterilised all the dishes in Miltons. Next we have to wash the pots and kettle, plus still 3 or 4 articles of clothing. Our line is quite short so all the washing has to get done in stages. After this we went for a drive and checked out where the Blue and White Nile meet to form the Nile. No great shakes – 2 rivers join! We saw some good markets – good looking fruit and vegetables and also a regular market for buying clothes, pots and pans etc. Here we had a great experience. Khartoum is full of tea ladies – women who sit on the side of the road and make tea for a living. They can scrape no more than a meagre survival out of this. We met one woman like this in the market who spoke English – Fatillah. She invited us for tea and we accepted. It was good tea – strong, 1 tablespoon of sugar and some fresh mint. When we were done we tried to pay her but she refused to accept anything saying that she had invited us which made us guests. Wow! When you consider our relative levels of wealth it was a gesture of extraordinary generosity. She said that we can pay next time so we will make a point of going back.

Tomorrow is visa application day. We are nervous as hell about this working out and us getting visas with open tickets and no letter from our embassy. Tomorrow will tell I guess. We got no news from Rick yesterday re shipping and today all is closed. See again tomorrow.

5 June – Khartoum

What a terrible day. We were refused permission to travel to Port Sudan. It seemed to be at the whim of the policeman concerned and not by a fixed rule but either way, we are stuffed. We also went to the Ethiopian Embassy to find it closed so no news on that front, also no news from Rick.

The only marginal glimmer is that we finally have the travel permit for Gallabat so IF we can swing the visa we can go to the border and see if we can beg and plead our way through. Shit, this is getting worse by the minute and we are starting to resign ourselves to returning to Egypt.

The only good news is that we have 3 new e-mails to read. We saw them in our inbox this morning while we were looking for news from Rick (nothing) but didn’t have time to read them since we wanted to get to the Ethiopian Embassy.

Another problem is time. One week here already and no closer to a solution. Felix and Alfons only have a 3 week visa and if we want to return to Egypt we must make it by 16 June when our Egyptian visa expires. I had visions of being in Ethiopia already. My swearing vocabulary just doesn’t cover how terribly frustrating and depressing this all is. The worst is the feeling of utter helplessness, or maybe the worst is the feeling of precious holiday time running out. Hell I don’t know, it’s all bad – even coming back to the hotel at 2pm each day to brood about the day’s disasters.

The other two have a clear option that we luck – sell or dump the car. It is a 25year old VW Kombi so this is feasible for them. We will lose so much money that it just doesn’t bear thinking about. Also there is Sudan customs. They would demand their share too.

Off to sink into a depression….

6 June – Khartoum

Only one thing happened today and it was a very, very good thing – we got our Ethiopian visas – no questions asked! Also, it is a standard visa, there are no restrictions on the port of entry. So now, with that visa and our travel permits we head off to the border to see what we can do. Holding all fingers, thumbs and toes.

We went off to the Hilton to celebrate and I had a Khartoum cooler – mango juice, guava juice and ice-cream. Yummy!

One other thing happened – we ran into more tourists. Wow, this city is getting overrun! They are a Canadian couple doing the whole thing by public transport. The car business is a headache and can be an insurmountable problem at times as we may still yet discover but public transport is not easy either. Seven hard days from Wadi Halfa to Khartoum for example. They have been on the road for 4 months now so are pretty hardened but still find it pretty tough going. The worst part seems to be trying to find any private space. Sure, the vehicle isolates you from your surroundings but at times that is just what you need.

They are also planning to go to Ethiopia. In fact, we met them at the Ethiopian Embassy where they hit the same brick wall as what we did. We helped them to Ethiopian Airlines who refused to sell them a one-way ticket, the scum. They found a travel agent who would do it and are doing the same as us except that the day they get their visa they will go and cancel the ticket. We’re still holding on to ours just in case.

So that’s pretty much it. Emails sent, clothes washed, car checked out and now only packing left to do. We have piles of stuff to take down to the car. We’ll head for Gedaref tomorrow, only 430km away and then for Gallabat the day after. The 150km to Gallabat are supposed to be really bad road so we’ll leave a full day for it. After that – who knows. I hope it won’t entail turning back.

7 June – Gedaref

We’ve made it this far! We have not lied about our plans at all and at all the police stops have said that Ethiopia is our final destination. So far no problems. One checkpoint even told us that some other tourists came through a couple of hours before us, also en-route to Gallabat and Ethiopia.

I love the openness and friendliness of the people but hate the bureaucracy. Travelling here is hard. We were stopped at three roadblocks (waved through countless more) but at two actually had to get out of the car, go to an office and have all of our data written into a book. Not only have our travel permits been scrutinised, they even write on them when we pass through a checkpoint. We assume this is so that we can’t lie at the next checkpoint about our time on the road. It’s all a little much.

We are in the most expensive hotel in town – 74000SD per night as opposed to 46000SD as in Khartoum. We even had to change 100USD on the black market to pay for it. The other two hotels claimed to be full but they only got ‘full’ when they saw me. Anyway, we met a nice guy who was very helpful but very concerned about the stuff on the roof getting stolen. This hotel has a locked yard so maybe that alone makes it worth the money. Dinner at 12000SD per couple was a bargain.

So, tomorrow is D-Day. Jeez, this ‘holiday’ has been full of make or break days. I just hope that this one goes well too. Apart from the iffy border crossing, the 150km road to Gallabat is marked as impassable in bad weather. Guess what? It has just started to rain!