By Roadjunky, Posted Dec 10, 2006
Sections: Intro El Camino de Santiago Cape to Cairo Raft the Amazon? New York to LA Road to Kathmandu The India Rickshaw Race Trans-Siberian Train Pilgrimage to Kailash Hajj to Mecca Improvise More Travel Ideas
From the pinnacle of the largest continent to its Arabic beginnings, respect is always doled out to the traveler who heads from Cape Town to Cairo without getting murdered along the way.
The trouble with this epic voyage is that you have to pass through devastated countries like Sudan along route and get through border checkpoints in places like Kenya where bandits routinely shoot at passing vans to slow them down and rob them.
Still, that shouldn’t put off the dedicated road junky and you can take heart from the fact that Paul Theroux managed to pull it off at the age of 60 and tells the tale in his book, Dark Star Safari, an inspiring read for anyone who feels travel has got just too tame.
Another danger on route are the African cities that only Jackie Chan would plan on walking around after dark. Try to arrange all your paperwork way in advance so that you need to spend as little time as possible in them. The heart of Africa is out in the country and that’s where you’ll want to be staying.
