The ultimate road trip: 12,500 miles across Africa on a motorcycle

Sean McLachlan — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Africa, Botswana, Burkina, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Kenya, Lesotho, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Rwanda, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Spain, Budget Travel

Thomas Tomczyk is serious about motorcycles. He's done three motorcycle trips across India, from the steamy southern tip all the way up to the frozen highlands of Ladakh. Now he's starting his childhood dream--an epic trip 12,500 miles (20,000 km) across Africa.

His zigzag tour will take in 22 African nations including South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Sudan, the Central African Republic, Chad, Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, the Saharawi Republic, and Morocco. . .

. . .before he ends up skinny, exhausted, and happy at my house in Spain, where my wife will fatten him up with her excellent paella.

Full disclosure: Thomas is a friend of mine. We covered the massive Hindu pilgrimage of Kumbh Mela together in 2001 and barely managed not to get trampled to death by hordes of naked holy men. But even if I didn't know him, this trip is so thoroughly cool I would have reported on it anyway.

Thomas isn't just going on vacation; he'll be visiting innovative grassroots projects that are making life better for the average African. Through his website Africa Heart Beat he'll be telling us about ordinary people doing extraordinary things, such as creating a job center for landmine victims in Mozambique, an AIDS theater group in Botswana, and a Muslim-Christian vocational center in Mali that's bringing the two communities together.

"The idea of crossing Africa came to me when I was 10," Thomas says.

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The ultimate road trip: 12,500 miles across Africa on a motorcycle originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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More Independence Days to Celebrate

Jamie Rhein — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 14:05:00 EST

Filed under: Arts and Culture, Festivals and Events, Benin, Burkina, Central African Republic, Gabon, Niger, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, France, Moldova, Ukraine, Peru, Uruguay

August is another Independence Day bonanza. The shifts of power didn't happen all at once, but 1960 was a big year. If you're in any of these countries expect a holiday. Maybe there will be fireworks or a parade or a speech or two.

August 1 - Benin gained independence from France
August 3-- Niger gained its independence from France
August 5 --Burkina Faso also gained independence from France.
August 11--Guess which country Chad gained independence from? That's right, France.
August 13--Central African Republic also gained independence from--you guessed it--France.
August 14- Pakistan from the U.K. in 1947.
August 15- India from the U.K. in 1947.
August 17- Gabon. Can you guess the country and year? If you said France and 1960, ***ding ding ding ! [Did you hear the you win bells?]
August 19- Afganistan from the U.K. in 1919. Wow, that's early.
August 24- Ukraine in 1991.
August 25- Uruguay from Brazil in 1825.
August 27- Moldova from U.S.S.R. in 1991
August 31- Kyrgystan from the U.S.S.R in 1991 and Trinidad and Tobago from the U.K. in 1962.

*The information is from the International Calendar published by the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of Madison, Wisconsin. They put this calendar together every year and other Peace Corps groups sell it as a fundraiser.

More Independence Days to Celebrate originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 01 Aug 2007 14:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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