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Motorcycle tour through East Africa: Tanzania and Lake Victoria
Tanzania and Lake Victoria (with GPS track)
Motorcycle tour through East Africa
The impressions our author takes home from his motorcycle trip around Lake Victoria are unforgettable. People, animals, plants, landscapes, colors, smells, soul moods get under your skin.
Rainer Bracht
02/17/2011
The film “Far away from Africa” originated here.
The humid, hot air almost kills us when we step out of the airport in Mombasa and free our motorcycles from the clutches of the customs authorities for a handful of dollars. Two days of acclimatization on Kikambala beach are good. An 85-year-old Swiss woman turtles with a 25-year-old Samburu, not just since this year, they say in the bars. So sex tourism here too, the boy will certainly be well paid. We start the engines, drive around Nairobi and dive into the Rift Valley to the Fisherman’s Camp on Lake Naivasha. It was in this area in 1985 that Hollywood pussies became popular “Far away from Africa” shot with impressive nature shots. At night in the tent you can hear the hippos grazing, a good feeling to be so close to nature. Further north we do not camp directly on the shore, because crocodiles romp around here as well as the hippos.
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Watching the animals at dusk and falling asleep while the numerous birds are singing is balm for the soul. At Lake Bogoria we marvel at geysers, flamingos and sea eagles, then we cross the border to Uganda. The customs officer helps us to exchange money on the black market. Martin’s rear tire is losing air, he has to fix it. Hundreds of people form a tight circle around him. As long as they don’t step on his fingers while screwing, he doesn’t mind the crowd, says Martin bravely. As a reward, he is allowed to climb Mount Elgon while I am on the exciting slopes around the mountain and on
enjoy the Sipi Falls. Rested we reach Jinja, where one of the Nile springs can be found. The Bujagali Falls are one of the tourist spots in the country. There is bungee jumping, rafting, canoe tours – everything. In Mandisi, my BMW is causing massive problems: the starter and steering head bearings are over.
Flatfoot at Sipi.
The landlady of the Court View Hotel lets us use the PC and telephone to order spare parts in Germany. The company Q-Tech, which saved me from many a mess on previous trips, is also helping now and getting the parts on the way. We spend the waiting time in the Murchison Falls National Park, which you can actually drive on with motorbikes. It is not a pleasure to rumble down the slope with the defective warehouse and to push the box after every stop, but the park is unearthly. The wild animals look even bigger from the motorcycle. The highlight is a boat trip to the Nile Falls, impressive the huge crocodiles at the foot of the hitting water masses. Many fish do not survive the fall over the falls, so that there is a kind of fast food here for the giant lizards.
Back in Masindi, we find that the spare parts are stuck in the Kampala customs office. Triggering is said to cost $ 40. The driver of the Masindi-Kampala night bus takes the money with him and hands it over to a local named Deo in the capital, who turns out to be a saving angel for our entire trip. Deo is 21 years old and has been self-employed with a car paint shop and workshop for six years. He is the only mechanic who professionally fixes large motorcycles in all of Uganda. Deo, who has 13 employees, fetches the spare parts from customs, brings them to Masindi and installs them himself. Fast, safe and technically competent. He can be reached by cell phone around the clock and is ready to help anywhere in the country. In addition, he is doing his Abitur in order to start studying this year. On top of that, he pays school fees for his siblings, supports his father and goes cycling.
His dream is for Uganda to participate in the Olympics. Reverend James, another angel who not only preaches but also repairs tractors, brings us the missing 36-key, then we start into Queen Elizabeth Park. Through the crater landscapes in the north, we continue rolling on slopes through dreamy, open savannah. When camping on the Kazinga Canal you can see the elephants playing in the water, trumpeting loudly. Further south the landscape becomes greener, volcanoes and tea plantations shape the picture.
Flamingos at Lake Bogoria in Kenya.
We pass the idyllic Lake Bunyionyi and arrive in Rwanda. Heavenly landscape and relaxed atmosphere suppress the thought of the genocide of 1994 until we come across a memorial with piled skulls in Kibuye. On Lake Kivu the fishermen go out singing in the sunset – an experience that makes us happier again. We arrive earlier than expected at Lake Eyasi in Tanzania – the route had recently been paved. We spend a day with the Hadzabe in the Ngorongoro Highlands. The small people, consisting of 800 people, live as hunters and gatherers like in the Stone Age.
There is no storage, and even at dawn they go hunting. We are allowed to go with you. A bird and a jackal are killed quickly, we couldn’t have kept up with the Hadzabe’s endurance run for much longer. Unfortunately, this peaceful people, which knows no hierarchies, is threatened in its existence by arable farmers and poachers. The Eyasi Foundation (www.eyasi-foundation.org) supports these people.
On the way to Lake Natron, we imagine we are in the Garden of Eden. The slope leads through a wide steppe. Wildebeest, giraffes, zebras and ostriches accompany us. In between Maasai with their herds. Martin climbs the Ol Doinyo Lengai, the holy mountain, and reports a fantastic sunrise with a view of Kilimanjaro. We continue via Moshi, past Kilimanjaro, then up into the Usambara Mountains. We don’t see Usambara violets there. No wonder, says Martin, they are all standing on his mother’s windowsill at home.
We learn that there were plans in the German colonial era to turn what was then Wilhemstal (now Lushoto) into the capital. Nothing came of it. Relaxed, we roll along the edge of the mountains and look at the Masai steppe, which is 900 meters below. We spend our last days of travel at Tiwi Beach, south of Mombasa. Thanks to palm trees and a sandy beach, a place out of a South Seas dream, but you shouldn’t stray too far from the campground because bandits with machetes lurk in every direction. This is pure Africa: happiness and suffering, pleasure and danger, life and death are closer together here than anywhere else.
Info
A thrilling round trip that not only leads through Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania, but also right into the heart of Africa, the diversity of which is experienced here in a compressed form.
Travel time: From January to the beginning of March there is usually the small dry season in East Africa. The tour is therefore an ideal winter escape, which should be possible in less than four weeks without any major problems.
Getting there: The flight to Mombasa (second largest city in Kenya and most important port city in East Africa) costs around 800 euros. The motorcycle transport with LTU came to 1000 euros each way (info: www.bikeworld-travel.de). You can also rent a Yamaha XT 600 in Tanzania via the info telephone 0221/7680560.
Documents: Passport, still valid for at least six months. The required visas are issued at the borders and are free of charge for Rwanda, while the other countries charge 30 to 50 US dollars. Furthermore: International driver’s and vehicle license as well as a vaccination pass with a registered yellow fever vaccination and the Carnet de Passage, which is z. B. can apply for 160 euros (non-members 260 euros) at the ADAC. The ADAC requires the signed application, a copy of the passport, the vehicle registration and a bank guarantee as a deposit equal to part of the motorcycle’s value.
Health: The yellow fever vaccination is compulsory. Malaria prophylaxis is recommended (Lariam, Malarone). Detailed information from the Center for Travel Medicine at www.crm.de. Drink water only from sealed bottles.
Money: Only cash can be exchanged in Rwanda. Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have ATMs in the larger towns. B. with the Visa card, often even with the EC card, money can be withdrawn. A reserve in US dollars should be carried for emergencies. Cashing traveller’s checks has now become almost impossible.
Spend the night: Camping on campsites costs from three US dollars, in Tanzania ten dollars. A clean hotel room is available in these countries from around 15 dollars, a meal costs from five dollars.
Literature: The author used the Michelin map sheet 746 as an overview, along with the country maps “Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda” and “Tanzania” of travel know-how. For the navigation system: Tracks4Africa, (www.tracks4africa.co.za), accurate and routable. In addition, travel guides from Reise-Know-How-Verlag did a good job.
Addresses: Information about national parks, hotels, prices, laws: www.magical-kenya.de, www.visituganda.com, www.tanzaniatouristboard.com, www.rwandatourism.com
Travel time: 35 days driven; Route: 5800 kilometers
Capitals, population: Kenya: Nairobi, 38 million Uganda: Kampala, 31 million Rwanda: Kigali, 11 million Tanzania: Dodoma, 41 million.
Motorcycle loading in Mombasa. Costs 1000 euros each way.
Money: Only cash can be exchanged in Rwanda. Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have ATMs in the larger towns. B. with the Visa card, often even with the EC card, money can be withdrawn. A reserve in US dollars should be carried for emergencies. Cashing traveller’s checks has now become almost impossible.
Spend the night: Camping on campsites costs from three US dollars, in Tanzania ten dollars. A clean hotel room is available in these countries from around 15 dollars, a meal costs from five dollars.
Literature: The author used the Michelin map sheet 746 as an overview, along with the country maps “Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda” and “Tanzania” of travel know-how. For the navigation system: Tracks4Africa, (www.tracks4africa.co.za), accurate and routable. In addition, travel guides from Reise-Know-How-Verlag did a good job.
Addresses: Information about national parks, hotels, prices, laws: www.magical-kenya.de, www.visituganda.com, www.tanzaniatouristboard.com, www.rwandatourism.com
Travel time: 35 days driven; Route: 5800 kilometers
Capitals, population: Kenya: Nairobi, 38 million Uganda: Kampala, 31 million Rwanda: Kigali, 11 million Tanzania: Dodoma, 41 million.
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