In 2004, Paula Constant and her husband slipped on some walking shoes and began walking. Starting at London’s Trafalgar Square, they made their way through England — and continued through France, Spain, Portugal, and into Morocco.
After finishing up in Morocco a year later, the couple began planning the second leg of their trip: a trans-Sahara crossing, where they would live with Bedouin tribes and adhere to the same customs and moral code as the nomads. In September 2005, the couple again bought some camels, slipped on some new shoes, and began walking. Paula’s husband lasted 6 weeks. Paula continued without him for 6 months, until she learned her mother had been diagnosed with breast cancer and Meniere’s disease.
After taking a short break to find sponsors to try to raise money for the National Breast Cancer Foundation, in October 2006, Paula slipped on some new shoes for a third time and started off. Currently outside Timbuktu, when she finishes, she’ll be the first woman to’ve made a solo crossing of the Sahara on foot without backup. If you, like me, feel moved by her adventure, you can read about her experience on her blog, which is updated surprisingly frequently. I was planning on doing a lot of sitting this weekend. Suddenly, that doesn’t seem so awesome any more.
[Via Hobolinks]