Right Around Africa

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Locator said:
Jo's current position (Rue de Moungali, Pointe-Noire, Congo) We will post Jo's trip reports soon!!
Locator, how does one zoom out to see a bigger picture of where Jo is?
 
Roela...help dit???

ScreenShot2012-05-18at33719PM.jpg
 
Of jy kan 'n google search doen vir: "Pointe Noire - Republic of Congo".
 
Hellooooo all.

Okay so just to give you an update on where I'm at and what's been happening.

I am now almost over all my ailments. Have three more days left on antibiotics and then I should be cured. Yay!  :thumleft:

I sent my passport to Brazaville on Friday to be submitted today (submissions are only on Mondays and Wednesdays), for my Nigeria visa. Processing time is three days, so I hope to have my passport back by Thursday.
Then as soon as I have my passport back, I will leave Pointe Noire the following day. (So aiming for Friday at this stage)

Because I have spent WAY more time in Congo than I had originally planned, I am way behind schedule and will have only six days to make it from Pointe Noire to the Nigeria border. (visas are running out) This shouldn't be a problem...but...it has started raining again up here and this could prove a bit of a challenge on some of the roads going further North.

From what I have been told the road from here to Gabon, via Dolisie, is pretty good. Tar all the way to Dolisie. From Dolisie further up,  I'm told the road is fairly good, except for the last stretch to the border which is supposedly very bad. Nobody's been able to tell me how far this stretch is from the border but from what I've been shown on maps my guesstimate is about 60 km's.

So...the plan:
Day 1 - Pointe Noire to Ndende (Gabon) (Find Hotel Pinheiro, owned by Portugeuse friends of friends in Pointe Noire)
Day 2 - Ndende to Lamberene (No clue where to stay...will see)
Day 3 - Lamberene to Libreville (Phone Ferdinand, Portuguese friend of friends in Pointe Noire....OR...Phone Charles...friend of a friend of mine in Kenya)
Day 4 - Libreville to Yaounde (Stay with my friend Divine...yes...he's a guy...and his name is Divine)
Day 5 - One rest day in Yaounde to say hello to friends
Day 6 - Yaounde to Nigeria border...Find Nigerians on bikes......mmmmm.....  :patch:

Now I know Nigeria is one of the main concerns for most people. But never fear...I makes a plan.  :mwink:

I have contacted five different motorbike clubs in Nigeria and the news has spread like wild fire. So I will have riders with me all the way from the Cameroon side border through all the way to Ghana! Well this is what they said....let's see if one can actually trust a Nigerian. I believe they will though.

I am carrying with me...a T-shirt. I offered to carry this T-shirt from Namibia to Lagos.
When I met Andrei and Chris from Romania and Switzerland at Ondangwa Rest Camp in Nam, Andrei had a T-shirt that he needed to get to one 'Mohammed Ducati' in Lagos. Mo is the President of one of the Motorcycle Clubs in Lagos and Andrei wanted to give him this T-shirt as a little 'thank you' for all their help whilst they were in Nigeria. It's a blue golf-type shirt with all Andrei's sponsors' logos on it. So I offered to play "Jo's DHL express" and carry it with me to Lagos to be handed to Mo.  :ricky:

So here's hoping I can get it to him.....

Pointe_NoiretoGhana.jpg
 
Waaaahahahahahaha...just got a call from Nigeria embassy in Brazaville. WHY...did I think that applying for my visa would go without hassles??? Mmmmm...I makes another plan. 'There's more than one way to skin a cat'...  :mwink:
 
I check on your progress every day and my dreams go with you.  All the best!
 
Crossed-up said:
I check on your progress every day and my dreams go with you.  All the best!

Thank you!!  :thumleft: Much appreciated.
 
Jy moet mooi notes maak, oor 2 jaar gaan jy my op die roete vat :thumleft: Mooi ry. R
 
See Duiwel said:
Jy moet mooi notes maak, oor 2 jaar gaan jy my op die roete vat :thumleft: Mooi ry. R

Roela...pak maar so lank my maat.  :thumleft: :ricky:
 
Yo go girl ! Ek was einde April  begin Mei deur Nam. En Botswana, ek is darem nie een vir oor die grens gaan nie , te veel Kark, en terug na SA is die Noordoewer grenspos pateties (SA kant), die Mevrou met die kort hare speel met haar selfoon (SMS) terwyl ek tweede in die ry staan en wag vir haar om die paspoorte te tjap.(30min.)
Mooi ry verder en ek dink aan julle.
 
Ek MOET nou net hierdie storie met julle deel. 
*** For my English friends, I'm sorry but I have to do this in Afrikaans. I cannot describe my frustrations and the pure stupidity of this case in English...well I probably could but it just wouldn't be as funny***

Ek stuur toe nou mos Vrydag oggend my paspoort hier van Pointe Noire af na Brazzaville. Hier is nie 'n ambassade vir Nigeria hier in Pointe Noire nie, so dit is hoekom ek dit Brazzaville toe stuur.

Nou intussen word al die prosedures en 'benodighede' vir my applikasie aan my verduidelik deur Stephanie, die vrou van die huis by wie ek bly. Haar sister bly in Brazzaville en was so 'n gewillige engel en het ingestem om my applikasie te gaan afgee by die Nigeriese ambassade. Maar die praat nie Engels nie en staan by die Ambassade en vra uit oor wat benodig word, verduidelik dit dan aan Stephanie in Frans, en Stephanie dra die informasie dan oor aan my in Engels.

Nou ja, ek het 'n hele pak papierwerk vir hulle gestuur Vrydag saam met 'n drywer van hier af. Ek het sooo gehoop dat alles sal goed afloop. Maar nee....
Vanoggend bel Stephanie my en se vir my dat die Ambassade wil nie my applikasie goedkeur nie oor twee redes:
1. Hulle wil 'n "Hotel Reservation" van my af he waar ek gaan bly in Nigeria
2. Hulle dink my "Letter of invitation is dodgy".

Nou blykbaar is dit net hierdie EEN moegoe by die Ambassade wat nou 'n spanner in my werke wil kom staan en steek.
Mr Moegoe glo blykbaar dat ek van plan is om in Nigeria te gaan bly.

Ja meneer...dit is reg. Ek ry, per motorfiets...vanuit SUID AFRIKA (Die land waar helfte van jou bevolking elk geval bly)...VROU ALLEEN hier teen die Wildste Weste Afrika Kus op...oor ek in JOU F*#cked Up land wil gaan bly?????!!!!
Ek kon nie anders as om uit te bars van die lag nie.

Okay, nou maar goed, dis reg so.
Ek gaan toe nou maar gou gou online en book vir my sommer die duurste hotel in Lagos (Geen deposito benodig nie). Mens leer mos nou maar die 'tricks of the trade' so oor die jare.
Okay, booking klaar gedoen, nou moet ek dit na Stephanie email sodat sy dit vir hulle kan aanstuur.

So gemaak, bel Stephanie vir Mr Moegoe. Raai wat...MOEGOE het nie 'n EMAIL nie!!! Waaahahahhahahaha.
Liewe erdwurm!!!!
Toe moes sy nou vir Mr Moegoe haar login details tot haar email gee sodat hulle nou die email kan sien wat ek aan haar geforward het met my Hotel Reservation. (Not de F@k gaan ek vir hulle MY email login gee nie!!!)

NOU...wil Mr Moegoe my in lewende lywe sien!!!!
Stephanie se suster het hom lyk my gelukkig uit DIE gedagte uit gepraat.

Mr Moegoe moet so aanhou...dan klim ek netnou op my fiets gaan wys nou maar vir hom hoe lyk 'n white pure bred Suid Afrikaanse boere meisie!!!

"Ek het meer maatjies in jou EIE land as jy Moegoe!!! Kom la ons dans"

Hou my dop en watch die move...papa!!!!  :imaposer:
 
Gene said:
Yo go girl ! Ek was einde April  begin Mei deur Nam. En Botswana, ek is darem nie een vir oor die grens gaan nie , te veel Kark, en terug na SA is die Noordoewer grenspos pateties (SA kant), die Mevrou met die kort hare speel met haar selfoon (SMS) terwyl ek tweede in die ry staan en wag vir haar om die paspoorte te tjap.(30min.)
Mooi ry verder en ek dink aan julle.

Hi Gene!  :thumleft:
Lekker man! Ja nee...die grensposte van onse Afrika, gee my soveel entertainment value! lol
Ek het mos al die geduld in die wereld.
Groete.
 
Hello from Turkey, Jo

Currently having endless crap for a Turkmenistan visa here so I feel for you. 5 days on this side and being sent from pillar to post. Now trying our luck in Ankara as we have given up on Istanbul even showing a twinge of life or empathy. And this is only for a transit visa which is supposedly much easier than a "tourist" visa . It would appear that for most of these countries we plan to visit they cannot understand why we would want to be there in the first place and treat us with derision and suspicion. But I digress....

With regards your rear Hedi K60's  small cracks. Nothing to worry about and is as a result of running the tyre under inflated.

Judging by your load I would suggest you pump the rear tyre to 3.0 bar and the front to 2.5 bar. This will also allow the tyre to run a lot cooler and greatly extend your mileage.

Our current set of Hedi K60's (also  on  two Dakars)  are still from Nairobii and developed a few cracks in Sudan. We are still riding on them +- 8 000 km later and will replace them probably in Azerbijan which equates  to +- 15 000m on these tyres, fully loaded and through varying and often trying conditions for both bike and tyres.

Sterkte and keep the SA flag flying :)

Best regards

Harry and Linda
www.pikipiki2.co.za


 
 
cracklin said:
Hello from Turkey, Jo

Currently having endless crap for a Turkmenistan visa here so I feel for you. 5 days on this side and being sent from pillar to post. Now trying our luck in Ankara as we have given up on Istanbul even showing a twinge of life or apathy.

With regards your rear Hedi K60's  small cracks. Nothing to worry about and is as a result of running the tyre under inflated.

Judging by your load I would suggest you pump the rear tyre to 3.0 bar and the front to 2.5 bar. This will also allow the tyre to run a lot cooler and greatly extend your mileage.

Our current set of Hedi K60's (also  on  two Dakars)  are still from Nairobii and developed a few cracks in Sudan. We are still riding on them +- 8 000 km later and will replace them probably in Azerbijan which equates  to +- 15 000m on this tyre, fully loaded and through varying and often trying conditions for both bike and tyres.

Sterkte and keep the SA flag flying :)

Best regards

Harry and Linda
www.pikipiki2.co.za


 

Helloooooo!!!
Now there's a coincidence. I just sent the link to your website to a friend of mine yesterday. He's about to also ride from Germany to Vladivostok.

Thank you for the advice re. the tyre cracks. Duly noted and will check the pressure. Thank you!

Good luck to you both! Have a blast!
Will check on your progress as often as I can.

Cheers.  :thumleft:
 
Jo ek het nou gelag dat my trane loop vir die MOEGOE storie........

Al die "Authority" en Forkol brains.......... :imaposer: :imaposer: :imaposer: :imaposer:
 
Awesome Jo .  :drif:  Thanks for the regular updates .  :thumleft:  :thumleft:

:happy1:
 

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