They are a week behind schedule and need to get to Cape Town in time to fly back for medical school and work. They’ve been away for a month and a half, but at 10,100km have completed only two-fifths of the route.
Smith likened one hotel they stayed in — apparently the best in town — to a POW camp with cell-like rooms where they awoke “absolutely sweltering” because the air conditioning had conked out in a power cut.
Despite having just one guidebook, they are finding their way without GPS and stumbling across tourist gems quite by chance — such as lazing under palm trees next to an ancient Egyptian temple after lunch.
Sudan’s attraction was being able to realize the dream of getting off the beaten track — the trio’s blog is at www.ditchthecomfortzone.com. But from Wadi Halfa to Dongola they also witnessed Sudan’s march to development on the back of oil profits.
“You can see that in a couple of years that (new road) is going to be finished. You won’t need any of the dirt bikes that we’ve kitted out — you can do it on anything,” said Smith.
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