• HOME
  • Field Notes
    • The World – Cultural & Inspiration Stuff
      • Motorbikers’ wisdom – Travel quotes motorcycle overlanders
      • Go-getters
      • Travellers we have met
      • Chip in!
    • Articles for the media
      • Podcast & Media Interviews
      • In the Media – Our published bulltwang
      • Adventure Rider Radio- ARR Posdcast
      • Upshift-Online Magazine Articles
    • Africa
      • Angola
      • Egypt
      • Ethiopia
      • Kenya
      • Namibia
      • Malawi
      • Tanzania
      • South Africa
      • Sudan
      • Uganda
      • Zambia
    • Asia countries
      • Israel
      • Jordan
    • Europe
      • France
      • Germany
      • Italy
      • Portugal
      • Spain
    • North & Central America
      • Cuba
      • Mexico
      • United States of America
    • South America
      • Bolivia
      • Colombia
      • Peru
    • Older expeditions – Southern Africa
  • Route
  • Biker’s Guide
    • Travel tips and advice
    • Bikes & Preparation
      • How To Prepare – ADVENDURO Motorcycle The World
      • Suzuki DR650 Dual-Sport for RTW.
      • GPS – Navigation – Personal locators
      • Toolkit List – Complete Guide Tips & Advice.
    • Packing & Equipment
      • Packing & Checklist
      • The Best Way To Pack A Motorcycle For Adventure Journeys
      • Camping Essentials
        • The best tent for motorcycle travel?
        • Tarpaulin must know
        • Camping Stuff
        • Gourmet cooking equipment
      • Protective & everyday clothes
      • Photography gear
      • Lightweight travel laptops, tablets.
        • Portable Hard Drives
    • Paper work – Medical – Money – Insurance
    • Informative & review articles
    • Goodfellas – Brands we support
    • Practical Information by Country PikiPikiOverland
      • Egypt Information
      • Israel Information
      • Tanzania Information
      • Uganda Information
    • Vital Moto Links
  • Visuals
    • ADVMoto Photo Gallery
    • Our Videos Adventure Motorcycling
    • Videos – The best collection adv dualsport motorcycle explorers
  • About Us
    • FAQ – most asked questions to us PikiPikiOverland
    • Have your people call our people.
    • 12 Reasons – Subscribe Newsletter
    • Copyright – PikiPiki Overland Motorcycle Blog
  • Shop
PikiPikiOverland motorcycle adventure dualsport riding world
  • instagram
  • facebook
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • HOME
  • Field Notes
    • The World – Cultural & Inspiration Stuff
      • Motorbikers’ wisdom – Travel quotes motorcycle overlanders
      • Go-getters
      • Travellers we have met
      • Chip in!
    • Articles for the media
      • Podcast & Media Interviews
      • In the Media – Our published bulltwang
      • Adventure Rider Radio- ARR Posdcast
      • Upshift-Online Magazine Articles
    • Africa
      • Angola
      • Egypt
      • Ethiopia
      • Kenya
      • Namibia
      • Malawi
      • Tanzania
      • South Africa
      • Sudan
      • Uganda
      • Zambia
    • Asia countries
      • Israel
      • Jordan
    • Europe
      • France
      • Germany
      • Italy
      • Portugal
      • Spain
    • North & Central America
      • Cuba
      • Mexico
      • United States of America
    • South America
      • Bolivia
      • Colombia
      • Peru
    • Older expeditions – Southern Africa
  • Route
  • Biker’s Guide
    • Travel tips and advice
    • Bikes & Preparation
      • How To Prepare – ADVENDURO Motorcycle The World
      • Suzuki DR650 Dual-Sport for RTW.
      • GPS – Navigation – Personal locators
      • Toolkit List – Complete Guide Tips & Advice.
    • Packing & Equipment
      • Packing & Checklist
      • The Best Way To Pack A Motorcycle For Adventure Journeys
      • Camping Essentials
        • The best tent for motorcycle travel?
        • Tarpaulin must know
        • Camping Stuff
        • Gourmet cooking equipment
      • Protective & everyday clothes
      • Photography gear
      • Lightweight travel laptops, tablets.
        • Portable Hard Drives
    • Paper work – Medical – Money – Insurance
    • Informative & review articles
    • Goodfellas – Brands we support
    • Practical Information by Country PikiPikiOverland
      • Egypt Information
      • Israel Information
      • Tanzania Information
      • Uganda Information
    • Vital Moto Links
  • Visuals
    • ADVMoto Photo Gallery
    • Our Videos Adventure Motorcycling
    • Videos – The best collection adv dualsport motorcycle explorers
  • About Us
    • FAQ – most asked questions to us PikiPikiOverland
    • Have your people call our people.
    • 12 Reasons – Subscribe Newsletter
    • Copyright – PikiPiki Overland Motorcycle Blog
  • Shop
Egypt, Africa country journal, TRAVEL JOURNALS

Egypt..in search of the old Egyptians. Part 1 2012/04/25

michnus

27th October 2012

Penning our experience with Egypt took me some time. It’s got more to do with the aberrant manner of Egypt. Take caution not to become cynical about Egyptians and try and see the real Egypt and people. But let me tell you the story and you can decide for yourself. It’s a love hate affair. Sometimes more hate than love and a bit of a culture shock until one learn to deal with Egypt’s eccentric and quirky ways.

Our modus operandi for any new country was and still is, go in with open minds and expect anything and know that most things most probably will be different to what we are accustomed to. This was no different to Egypt. Although, we had our trepidation about Egypt and were told horror stories by many travelers about Baksheesh and the art of ripping-off of travelers even outside the tourist areas.

We were really seeing forward sitting next to the Nile in Aswan with a beer, Falafel and the sun setting over the sand dunes. You know that pictures of Raiders of the Lost Arch and such movie? And then off course to see the pyramids and ancient sites of the old Egyptians.

Mazar our fixer in Sudan at the border town of Wadi Halfa ran around preparing all the paper work for us to enter Egypt onboard the dilapidated SS Titanic Nasser. This ramshackle zinc tub was still the current and only means of travel between Sudan and Egypt. This must still be the first steel boat ever build in the world operating. We quickly found out the reason for its existence was that an entire economy revolves around the operation of this vessel.

Most migrants and travelers between the two countries would rather opt for road as means of transport than this decrepit piece of 1920’s boat building marvel. There is a perfectly good piece of black slab between Sudan and Egypt but because of corruption people are forced to use the boat and are not allowed to travel by road.

It took 24 hours for the boat to travel to Aswan along the length of Lake Nasser. We had to ask special permission to get our bikes on board as this ferry only took passengers. The barges that normally transport the vehicles were not operational due to a low water level in Lake Nasser.

We set sail late in the afternoon. It took age’s to load all the people and their bags of whatever they had with them. Well, whatever powered this waiting-to-sink-fail-ship got slowly going with more people on-board than what very lenient Western safety standard would allow. There were people sleeping on everything that were flat.

Elsebie got allocated a cabin with a woman and her 2 kids the size of a shoe box. That turned out a disaster as the woman green smelly fart quickly filled the small cabin. As for myself, I had to use friendly force and an evil eye with a few Egyptians for the lid of the box where the life jackets were stored on deck. Not long and Elsebie made me move up to lie next to me on the lid of the box, the farting got too much for her to bear.

We met up with Antoine and Carlene, two bicycle riders from Europe that rode their bicycles from Ethiopia back to Europe. Eventually, we got space under one of the Lifeboats for the duration of the trip. This ferry trip turned out to be one of those experiences which were quite memorable and enjoyable but we would never want to do it again.

more…..

Pages: 1 2

michnus

Michnus, GenX’er born and bred South African product. Known on ADVrider for his epic ride report Michnus & Elsebie Piki-Piki Around the World. Not known to follow or believe his own advice however he loves to share stories and inspiration with others. Michnus and his better half left South Africa 10 years ago on an initial 6 month planned trip up to Europe through Africa. Sold the family pets and mom, hit the road motorcycling on a semi-permanent basis to this day.

One Comment

  1. crab
    28th October 2012 @ 2:35 pm

    Hey Michnus and Elsabie.
    Really cool pictures and writing, I really am enjoying your travels.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Turkana Gear adventure motorcycle soft luggage the best dualsport panniers for ad moto

HAVE YOUR PEOPLE MAIL OUR PEOPLE.

Want to chat to us? Hit this Contact form

Get the good-stuff on email

Connect with us on:

  • facebook
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • vimeo

Copyright © 2018 — PikiPiki Overland. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Yes, you will be kicked in the plums.

Designed by WPZOOM

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent and whatever.
We do not store or record any of your info, there's nothing you have that we want.
.
Cookie settingsWhatever, I am in!
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT