Everything Else

Yes, the research behind the car preparation took a huge amount of time, but so did all the other elements critical to making this a successful journey. The key additional elements were paperwork, health and expedition equipment.

PAPERWORK

Sadly travel in Africa is virtually synonymous with bureaucracy. Luckily we were able to do most of the preparation in the UK, including getting virtually all the visas we will needed (Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia). It is virtually impossible to get a Sudanese visa from the UK so we got that in Cairo where it only takes 24 hours. Happily we didn’t need visas for Rwanda, Malawi, Botswana, Namibia or South Africa.

In addition to this we also needed yellow fever certificates, international driving licences and lots and lots of copies of our passports. And gold-plated travel insurance.

The most tedious bit is the paperwork for the car. As for normal travel in Europe you need the registration document and certificate of insurance. But the insurance is only operative in the EU. Normally you would have to buy 3rd party cover (as a legal minimum) on every border but we managed to get a Kenyan base policy and a ‘yellow card’ which covers the car for the rest of Africa before we left the UK. In addition we got another policy to cover us for damage, fire and theft outside of the EU. That meant we still had to buy 3rd party insurance on entering Turkey, Syria and Jordan, though.

Then you need to get a Carte Grise (international version of the registration document) and the dreaded Carnet de Passage. The latter document enables you to temporarily import your car into each non-EU country then re-export it on exit. That wouldn’t be so bad but you also have to leave a bond with your home motoring organisation (the RAC in our case) which has a value of several times that of your vehicle which is only discharged when you bring the car back to the UK. The whole system is designed to prevent people exporting cars and getting them into other countries without paying import taxes. It is an onerous system and the single most expensive part of the entire trip.

HEALTH

It is well known that Africa has many inventive and unpleasant ways of making you ill. In reality, the biggest risks we faced were road accidents and malaria. For the latter we took Doxycyline. For the former we used our wits and common sense!

The Hospital of Tropical Diseases was very helpful in our preparations for the trip with lots of useful advice. They also turned us into pin cushions, topping up or administering vaccinations for Rabies, Hep A, Hep B, Typhoid, Yellow Fever and so on. We also put together a pretty comprehensive travel medical and first aid kit. Ned even read a fascinating book called “Where there is no Doctor” - she tells me you can sew someone back together with cotton thread... She did insist on me going on a first aid course however. Very entertaining.

To make sure we were in a fit state for travelling in Africa, we even made long overdue visits to the Dentist (1 tooth extracted, 3 fillings between us!), Chiropodist, Optician and so on. We did even think about going to the gym and getting fit, but that would have been taking things too far. Funnily enough, there was never time...

EQUIPMENT

We decided we really couldn’t do without the following (and actually used it all!);

2x sleeping bags

2x folding camping chairs

1x folding table

1x primus stove and the usual cooking utensils

emergency food (basically chocolate, my sister’s Christmas cake and more chocolate)

1x Garmin GPS unit preloaded with Track 4 Africa

loads of maps (courtesy of Stanfords in Covent Garden, quite possibly the best map shop in the World)

various Bradt and Lonely Planet travel guides

camera gear

comprehensive tool kit

Oh yes, and a few changes of clothes!