Taking plane, cabs and train from Buenos Aires to Durban

Johannesburg view from Kensington

I flew to Johannesburg the night of April 14. In the morning of the 15, the plane stopped in Cape Town for an hour and an half, and around 1 p.m., I arrived at destination.

Flying over Cape Town

The country is getting ready for the World Cup, and the airport is a mess. As a result, I can’t locate the bus going to the city center, and have to get a ride with one of the many not-so-official cab you find there. It costs me US$30 to get in the city center.
The immense city is born in 1886 of a huge gold rush. The population is still divided between the highly secure primarily white suburbs and the blacks in townships and squatters camps. Dr. Joy Scott, one of the American followers of the blog invited me to spend few nights at the Wits University campus, one of the biggest universities in Africa and one of the rare multiracial enclaves during apartheid. I spend three days there, preparing my upcoming travel. I get some maps, and I try to trace the route ahead, getting information on the internet about dirt roads, river crossing and availability of visa at country borders. Message boards are useful, as you get first hand information from people who drove the roads recently.

A more precise map takes shape

The route is getting more precise. I will get my truck in Durban, follow the coast and go north to the Kruger Park before crossing to Mozambique from there. Dirt roads should lead me south-east back to the coast at Chidenguele. I will travel north to the Parque Nacional da Gorongosa after enjoying the beaches around Inhambane.
In Caia, I will cross the Rio Zambeze and continue north-east and see Pemba on the coast before going back inland and cross the Rio Rovuma – marking the border with Tanzania – in Negomane, taking advantage of the new bridge. Few days after, I should be able to make it to Dar Es Salaam, the capital of Tanzania.
Days go by, and it is time for me to go visit Jerome Delay, another AP-colleague who I worked with in Paris, and is now the chief of photo for Africa. He lives in Johannesburg since 2005 with Benedicte Kurzen, photographer as well. You can see examples of the work they do here  and here.
I spend few days with them, and Jerome help me out getting my stuff ready. He takes on his time to drive me around the city. I should have rent a car when I arrived at the airport, as you can’t navigate Johannesburg without a vehicle. The city is dangerous, and is reminiscent of Los Angeles, where you don’t see a soul walking the streets. Violence seems to have decreased in the last years, but when everybody tells you that you should not go out by foot on your own, you begin to feel a little bit paranoiac.
We go to the Automobile Association, where I have to make changes to my Carnet de Passage, the equivalent of my truck passport. Since I decided to change my route from the West to the East coast, I have to add the new countries to the document. They are really helpful there, and it is done in ten minutes. If you find yourself in a similar case, contact ¬¬ Meliza Chegwidden (MChegwidden [AT] AASA.CO.ZA), she is the best. Changes are free while it would have cost US$500 in North America.

Nelson Mandela bungalow in Soweto. In the center, Dr. Joy Scott.

Meanwhile, I get new information from Jerome and his friends. It looks like getting visas for Sudan and Saudi Arabia is now easier. I also get confirmations that there are boats three times a week between Sudan or Eritrea to Saudi Arabia. It seems that it would work for me.

Visit in a school, Soweto

Also, I spend some time with Dr. Joy Scott and her colleagues who came from the U.S. They visit some schools in Soweto to observe methods of teaching, but primarily to tell them about the methods they specialize in. It is all about identifying gifted kids and to prepare a specific curriculum for them, a method unheard of in Africa where most efforts are directed into getting basic things rolling, like getting electricity in classrooms.
Soweto stands for South Western Township, where four millions people live in 140 square kilometers. It is now wealthiest than it has been, and easy to visit.

In a classroom, working on multiplication tables

We spend time in the township and go to eat at world famous Wandie’s, a legendary restaurant close to Winnie Mandela’s mansion. On the menu, spicy oxtail stew and potjie kos which is beef and vegetable stew. Later, we visit the house Nelson Mandela lived before he got arrested in 1956, and hold our breath at the Hector Peterson museum, dedicated to keep the memories of the 1976 Soweto uprising fresh.

Meeting with Wandie at Wandie’s Place

Mandela’s bungalow bedroom

Every week on Thursday, there is a train leaving Johannesburg to Durban with sleeping options. I get a small compartment for less than US$40, and at 6:30 p.m., the train departs for its 13 hours trip. You can travel on the Shosholoza Meyl in a seat for US$10, but at this price, I may as well get some sleep, and be in good shape to attack all the formalities to free my truck.

In the train going south as night comes

Although it is cold in the train, the trip is much nicer than taking the bus. Shortly after leaving Johannesburg, a bunch of people attack the train, throwing rocks and breaking windows. I hide under the table. The train continues. Looking at other people, it looks like it is business as usual.

The small compartment where I am sleeping while traveling across South Africa

The night goes by fast as I read and get a very nice night of sleep. In the morning, I discover a shower in the car, and take advantage of this luxury.

When I wake up, the train is crossing large forests

We arrive in Durban a little bit late, and I negotiate a cab ride to the sea front. My plan for the day is to sort out the customs with SARS, the equivalent of the American IRS. I knew it will not be simple, and of course it is not. Few hours later I had navigated several offices with no success. Nobody knows anything. Finally I have no other choice but get a clearing agent who will deal with them, as well as getting a warehouse space where I can unload my truck. I wanted to avoid that to save money, but there is no way around. The bad news is that it will cost me more than US$1,300 to pay the port dues, the container transportation, the warehouse and the agent.

Breakfast in the train, as we get closer to Durban

But there is no better options, so I try to stay positive, even when I learn that the boat transporting my truck is late, and will not make it to the port before the following Friday, instead of Monday. After that, the container will be stuck for the weekend. I will consider myself lucky if I can get my vehicle on the Wednesday after that. It will be costly, as I will have to go to a hostel for ten days. Again, there’s nothing I can do, so after I sort out everything I can, I just take a cab to the Nomads Backpacker hostel, which seems nice and cost US$16 a night.
There, I will wait and get ready for more trouble, as I know getting the truck out will not be as easy.
For the kind of journey I am undertaking, I learned soon enough one quality is more important than courage or strength. Patience.

Side trip in Uruguay

My parents on the beach close to Colonia

Since I have been waiting impatiently the time to leave Argentina and begin a new adventure in Africa, I decided to use the time to do a short trip to Uruguay.
From Buenos Aires, one can take a quick boat ride north and be in Uruguay an hour later (round-trip US$ 60).

Typical street, Colonia

The town you arrive at is Colonia, a small place, very quiet, especially in this period, the equivalent of fall down here. Colonia is the oldest town in Uruguay, and was founded by the Portuguese in 1680.
The historic quarter, where I stayed, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is very beautiful, as you feel transported in time when strolling through the cobbled streets.

The coast is reminescent of Maine or Brittany

There, you will not find much to do but walk around and go to the beach. By now, the water is too cold to bath, but the long beaches are empty, and it is the perfect place to relax far from Buenos Aires.
Back in Buenos Aires, I left the apartment I had to go to a backpacker hostel. Sleeping in an 8-person dormitory does save you tons of money (Hostel Garden House, US$9 a night, highly recommended)

On the other side, Buenos Aires

Now I am just getting ready for Africa. Reading books and tracing maps. I will fly to Johannesburg on Wednesday, spend few days there, and then take the bus to Durban to begin the customs paperwork. The procedure for the vehicle clearance will probably be a pain, and I have hard time finding the necessary information. As always, I will try to save money by doing all the import procedure myself, but the harbor people don’t like that much, and are reluctant to give information on the procedure.
Hopefully I will be driving toward Kruger Park around April 30. From there, I will probably cross to Mozambique and work my way up north.

Again, stay tuned for more adventure beginning soon.