#overland trip

This is the third and last edition of Overland Trip I Want To Take- explaining theoretical road trips that I’ve recently planned out.  The series was inspired by a trip I’m currently planning, but generally I always fantasize about crazy journeys while I have free time.  Hopefully in the next few years I’ll take one or more of these and then be able to post about the actual trip!

You can find the other two tours here:

Part 1 (South America)

Part 2 (Eastern Europe)

Western Africa

If I had a choice (and all the money and all the time and guaranteed safety) this is the tour that I would take.  West Africa is one of the few parts of the world left for me to explore and so I’m eager to learn about it, see its people, experience its culture, and visit its sites.  That said, there are a few reasons why I haven’t made the trip and why it might be hard to do.  These reasons are: language, safety, and cost/time.

• Language: Most countries in West Africa are French + local language speaking.  I don’t speak French.  What actually bothers me with French is that I can understand so much of it because I speak (conversationally) Spanish and Italian. So when I hear French I have a natural impulse to listen to try to figure it out. Usually though, I can’t, and that is frustrating. This would be easy to overcome by having a French-speaking travel companion.  I’ll keep it in mind.
• Safety:Though I generally think I travel smart and am thus not too worried about security threats, this is a bit of a volatile part of the world, I don’t have too many contacts there, and again, not knowing the language adds another risk.  
• Cost / Time:  I put these two together because they’re very dependent on one another- the longer you travel, the more it costs.  Traveling overland in West Africa takes a long time because of inefficient roads, lots of borders, and also because cities are so close, the buses stop more often.  The itinerary below would take, I imagine, a couple months.  Furthermore, though food and hotels generally aren’t too expensive (7 West African countries are on the list of 20 poorest in the world), there is one big expense: visas.  Each of the 15 countries in the circular tour below require a visa, with an average cost between them at more than $100- it’s close to $2000!  Furthermore, these aren’t visas on arrival- these are visas where you have to go to an embassy beforehand and apply, have a waiting period, etc.  Because many of these are small and generally poor nations, there aren’t many embassies around.  The best process would be to start in one of the bigger nations in the region (i.e Senegal, Ghana, or Nigeria) and apply from there.  

All of this together makes the trip a little bit of a tough sell.  Splitting it up into two or three trips would probably make more sense.  Either way, it would be important to start somewhere for a couple weeks where you could apply for the other visas, have the money and time to endure all the waiting and bureaucracy, and likely have a French speaker.  Because of this, I’ve cut the itinerary up into three parts (red, yellow, and pink) and added the blue as ways they could, theoretically be combined.

Lagos to Abidjan

This would be the easiest section for me to do as English is widely spoken in both Ghana and Nigeria, most of these countries are rather safe, and the road connections are quite straight-forward.  The trip could start in Lagos, Nigeria- Sub-Saharan Africa’s largest and one of the fastest growing cities.  Nigeria, thanks to oil, has been quickly developing in the recent past, and is now seen as one of the main centers for business in Africa.  The route from Lagos to the next locations, the two narrow countries of Togo and Benin, would be quick, only a few hours between each main point all the way to Accra, Ghana. Ghana is the country in West Africa I most want to visit, as I have many friends from high school there and it is famous for its old British colonial forts and a wonderfully preserved jungle.  The final jaunt on this section would be a half day trip from Ghana to the Ivory Coast (or Cote d'Ivoire) and its fascinating capital- Abidjan.  The second largest city in West Africa, Abidjan has an interesting developmental history as it has somewhat shrunk from past economic and political heights in the past 20 or so years. Supposedly it still holds the charm of a once regional center that is trying to fight its way back.

Monrovia to Dakar 

This route would likely be easier (visa wise) starting in Dakar.  Either way, this will be a complicated path as the countries here are more of the unknown and tense ones in the region / world.  Though Liberia and Sierra Leone both being English-speaking may be useful, they both have long and somewhat recent histories of violence.  In many ways this actually makes the nations safer, as disarmament has taken place and people are trying to get over their painful past.  Liberia would be great to see as it was actually founded by freed black slave from the USA and it’s capital, Monrovia is named after James Monroe.  Moving up North would be the two Guineas:  Guinea and Guinea-Bissau.  Guinea supposedly has next to no transport infrastructure, so that could a be a harrowing journey trying to navigate through the rather large and diverse nation, but hopefully there would be a way to have some experiences there and then make it to Guinea-Bissau, one of the few Portuguese-speaking countries in Africa (the others being Angola, Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe, and Cape Verde).  The final stretch would be through the tiny nation of Gambia, another English speaking nation, and then on to Dakar, Senegal.  Along with Accra, Dakar is the city I most want to see in West Africa, one Christmas a Senegalese friend of mine from boarding school came to spend the holidays with my family, she cooked one night and if what she made then was any indication of what I’d eat in Dakar, I’d go just for the food!  Another incentive is that one of my advisors from university works heavily in Senegal and so I’m sure I could talk to some inspiring individuals there.

Nouakchott to Niamey

This part of the trip is really exciting to me because it is through the land that combines French West Africa with the Arab North Africa, though in a much more “untouched” way than people might think of in Morocco, for example.  Being a desert region also remind me of my current home, Abu Dhabi, and so it could be eye-opening to see how others (less gaudy than the Gulfis) live in this harsh terrain.  Though some might find this section crazy because of the three insanely long (24-50hr) bus rides that would be required, anyone who has read this blog for a while knows my strange obsession with long bus rides, especially in Africa.  In fact, the buses might be the highlight of the trip, as much of the things to do in these countries is admire the landscape.  The first bus from Nouakchott, Mauritania to Bamako would be the longest, with stories of 2-3 days including breakdowns…  From Bamako, Mali it would be great to go up and visit Timbuktu, but currently rebel factions have a hold of it and travel in the North is not advised- hopefully that would change.  The next two buses, from Bamako to Ouagadougou (pronounced Waa-gaa-doo-goo) and then onward to Niamey, Niger, would entirely cross Burkina Faso- going from the lush Volta region, through to the Arid west.  The final stop, Niamey, is a low lying desert city with a nice river that (along with the mosques) are the main point of interaction.  Though the cities along the way may be less than stellar, I think this section would be full of things to learn and reflect on: the identity of Islam in Africa, political economy of landlocked nations, and lots of introspection on those long rides.

So there you have it!  A crazy tour through West Africa. If anyone wants to fund it (trip cost + salary deduction for missed time), speaks French, and is a good companion- let me know!  

Bonus Trip:  In each of the three parts, I’ve included a bonus trip that I haven’t thought through very much at all, but would still like to take.  Todays bonus is- The Caucuses and Central Asia.  This would be a two part, really requiring a flight in the middle, but a nice jaunt around Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia and then a trip through a few of the stans: Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan (the three most prominently on my list) would be really mind blowing since I hardly know ANYTHING about the culture in any of these locations.

This is Part 1

for part 2 (Eastern Europe) click here

and for part 3 (West Africa) click here

I’m currently planning on going to Europe in December to spend Christmas with my German family.  One of my American friends from boarding school will be around because he is working in Germany for a year but not going home, and so I’ve invited him to Christmas with my uncle.  Because of the way the holiday, and New Year’s Day, falls in the middle of my Sun-Thurs work week, it’s very easy to take off the next week as well, and so we’re now planning a little jaunt around German speaking Europe.  It’s all very tentative, but I’ve started looking at prices and things to do around and routes to take, and I map the itinerary below:

It’s fun because it takes us through every Germany speaking country: Germany, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Austria, and because it is pretty short, with the maximum travel time less than 6 hours.  We would have about nine days to do it- probably the first four going quickly point by point and then a slower five in Austria.  Who knows if it will materialize or how much of it we will do, but it looks like a lot of fun!

In getting excited for this trip, I started thinking of other overland tours I would like to take, looking into whether or not they’re possible, and fantasizing about when I could do them, who with, and adding extra fun components like making a documentary of the journey or something.  It all sounds up in the air and like a dream, but I’m sure I will actually do at least one in the next five years.  I always say, “always be dreaming 10 amazing things, then if you only accomplish 1 or 2, you’re still being amazing!”  So, I’ll add these to my list of amazing ideas and see where they go.  

So without further ado, the trips!

The W®est of South America 

This trip would hit all of the things I wanted to do in South America but haven’t yet.  It hits three of the four countries on the West of the continent, as well as the rest of the Spanish speaking countries I’ve yet been to, so I call it the W®est trip.  It would start in Buenos Aires where I would see my wonderful Italian relatives that live in the Capital.  I would then head up to the triple border of Argentina-Paraguay-Brazil to see the Iguazu falls, which are the last waterfall on my list of the top 5 (the others being Niagara, Angel, Gullfoss, and Victoria).  I would then head up through Paraguay to Bolivia, stopping to revisit the family of a friend I stayed with in Santa Cruz, the Potosi Salt Flats, and the Mile High city: La Paz.  I’d then head into Peru, spending time admiring the Andes, and of course seeing Machu Picchu near Cusco.  I’d then head up through Ecuador before finishing in Bogota, Colombia!   

The yellow highlighted bits are “optional” thoughts that I would consider depending on time.  The first is to explore Argentine Patagonia, supposedly one of the most beautiful places in the world.  The second is to take a flight to the Galapagos islands (or maybe Easter island?) from Ecuador.  A third one not included on the map would be a quick jaunt over to Suriname and French Guinana- so I could officially say I’d been to every country in South America!

Bonus trip (I haven’t put too much thought into but in talking with some friends, thought to include): Southeast Asia- somehow incorporating Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and maybe Myanmar?