Ahen after 45,000 kilometers in the motorcycle saddle the famous contour of Table Mountain emerged on the horizon, Joana Breitbart paused for a moment. She had to think about her new friends in Sudan, she says after arriving in Cape Town. Of her tears after meeting corrupt tax collectors in Egypt. The worries on the border with crisis-ridden Ethiopia. Of Africa’s spectacular nature, which at some point became a meditative experience from a motorcycle.
And also a little to all those in the Hessian homeland who advised the 31-year-old and her partner Joshua Steinberg, 30, against the trip. “You can never do that,” some had called after them in view of the Covid pandemic. Of course we can do it, the couple replied. Virus or not.
A year later, after countless hours with countless encounters on sometimes more, sometimes less dusty roads and slopes, you are now in South Africa. Thousands of travel addicts followed the trip through so far 13 countries via their homepage and social networks, which took the couple from the tranquil home village of Haunetal-Wetzlos via Italy, Tunisia, Egypt, Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Namibia to Cape Town. They were traveling at “life-sustaining speed”, as they say, never faster than 90 km / h.
Source: WORLD infographic
For four years, the paramedic and educator had saved up for the trip. “350 euros rent, a cheap cell phone, no children yet – you can travel for two years,” says Joshua Steinberg. At least if you are humble and usually spend the night in a tent. Or meet people en route who invite you to their homes. “That’s the only way it’s a real journey,” he says, “I can also look at the picture book photos of the countries in ‘National Geographic’.”
In Aswan, Egypt, Joana Breitbart and Joshua Steinberg were invited for coffee
Quelle: Joshua Steinberg
Their motorcycles, two Honda CRF250L, each 3000 euros, weigh just 135 kilograms each. Easy enough to straighten up after falling into deep desert sand. And simple enough to find spare parts even in the most remote areas.
Corona does not stop you from the tour through Africa
Steinberg, 23 at the time, had just set off in 2014. After dropping out of medical school, he collected his savings and drove down Africa’s west coast. Despite the detours because of the Boko Haram terrorists who bullied Nigeria. And despite the Ebola virus, which raged in some countries at the time. “It was a bit like now,” says Steinberg, “fever thermometers and masks everywhere.”
Joshua Steinberg on his motorcycle that got stuck in the Sahara
Quelle: Joshua Steinberg
Problems didn’t keep them from Africa this time either. So at the end of October 2020, shortly before the start of the second wave of Covid, they took the last ferry from Sicily to Tunis. A dead end? So it seemed because of some closed borders – the trip threatened to fail in Tunisia. But then things came together and they met a nice employee from Egypt Air who arranged the transport of the motorcycles to Egypt at a friendship price.
There, however, corrupt customs officials only released the two-wheelers after a few days, after paying 600 euros per bike. “I shed tears,” says Joana Breitbart, “a bad start in Africa, but at least one of the few negative experiences.” From then on, the two should almost exclusively meet nice people. And experience the continent in all its beauty.
In the Sudan, tears flowed when we said goodbye
In Sudan, for example. A complicated country where you sometimes have to stand in line for gasoline without any connections. But also one of the most hospitable nations on the continent. Steinberg had worked for the Red Cross for a long time and immediately headed for the local office of the aid organization. And immediately had a line to one of the employees.
They slept with his family for a few days. Another employee of the Red Cross invited her too. This is how unusual friendships arose – in a country that, after the revolution two years ago, is looking for a course between ultra-conservative Islam and new beginnings.
In Sudan, there is sugar with a little tea to eat
Quelle: Joshua Steinberg
The German couple experienced the importance of the family in Sudan. “There is no insurance when the job is gone. No hospital when you’re sick – sometimes not even water and electricity, “says Steinberg,” the only thing that is always there is the family. “He was involved in refugee aid in Germany for a long time and got to know many people who Called their relatives back home every day even after years. Only now has he understood why this is so important.
The Hessians returned the favor for the hospitality and insights into Sudanese culture. “When we came, five sockets were working in the house when we left, all 20,” says Steinberg, who repaired each one himself. The contact was so good and close that tears flowed when we said goodbye.
With the motorcycle it should go on to Asia
Breitbart and Steinberg actually wanted to go to Ethiopia. But the border was closed because of the civil war in Tigray. So they booked a flight to Kenya. There the pandemic also had a small advantage for the first time: The couple could afford to climb Mount Kenya – because of the lack of tourists, it didn’t even cost half the usual price.
And in the country they finally got their first Covid vaccination. Sputnik. The Russian vaccine is not approved in the EU. The couple, however, were happy to have had a vaccination option at all on the way.
For the motorcycles, two Honda CRF250L, spare parts can also be found in the most remote areas
Quelle: Joshua Steinberg
They can talk about the people in Africa for hours. From the little encounters on the roadside, where few travelers pass in times of the pandemic. And of course, of the breathtaking nature, which is best penetrated by small motorbikes. The Egyptian desert landscape southwest of Bahariyya, for example, is unforgettable for them, the Sahara near Douz in Tunisia, but also the Erongo Mountains in Namibia. In general, the unbelievable vastness of the continent.
They are still in South Africa. But soon they want to move on. Thanks to the four-fold vaccination, the Omikron variant is not an issue for them, “as long as the borders remain open,” says Steinbach. Zimbabwe and Mozambique are to follow in Africa, followed by a few months in Asia. A route where one or the other hurdle is sure to be waiting. But that’s what makes Joana Breitbart so attractive: “Because between the difficult,” she says, “it’s beautiful.”
Details about the trip and the route can be found at wetzlosweltwaerts.de
Moonrise in the Moon Valley: Despite all the hurdles that stand in their way, Joshua Steinberg and Joana Breitbart enjoy their journey
Quelle: Joshua Steinberg
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