Hospitality in Sudan

Eric and Amaya have been cycling around Africa for the past two years and after completing 45,904 km's they have made it to Sudan. Sudan is certainly not on the tourist trail but every visitor I have ever met has been bowled over by the local people's hospitality. Eric and Amaya are no exception. Spending Christmas in Sudan as a visitor doesn't sound too bad at all. Here are some excerpts from their latest journal entry:

Sudanese hospitality is amazing. After 40 kilometers of riding through the flat and featureless terrain, we stopped at a rickety roadside restaurant for a rest and a bite to eat. A young man insisted on buying us ice-cold cokes. As evening approached we rode into a small, dusty town and went to the police compound with a view to camping. The officers all gathered round to greet and welcome us warmly and later brought Eric a juicy slab of lamb for dinner.

And so the hospitality continued all the way to Khartoum. People honk and wave. Some drive alongside and offer us snacks or invite us home for a meal. Our faith in the basic goodness of man has been restored.

The worst part of travel in Sudan is the prolific roadkill. The stench of putrefying dogs, goats, camels and cows is so overpowering that I am left gagging and retching many times daily. Near the capital, buses and lorries rush by at break-neck speed.

Read the whole journal entry here, and find out more about the charity they're doing it all for. The next stop will be Egypt, their final African country.

_{Invited to a Sudanese Wedding -- © 2006- 2009 Amaya Williams and Eric Schambion}