Legends aren’t born overnight, something only becomes legendary after stories are passed on through the decades over hundreds of years. When it comes to travel destinations they don’t come much more legendary then Timbuktu. Now we know why that legend lives on.

Yes – Timbuktu really does exist and you’ll find it in northern Mali on the edge of the Sahara.

Tired of reading already? See the road to Timbuktu as we filmed it!

What can we say about it? The town itself is far from an oasis, but it’s the lengths you’ll take to get there that tells the real tale.

Wait around in the shade of an old wooden hut hiding away from the searing heat in a car yard as you wait for enough passengers to arrive to overload a 4 x 4 Toyota. Begin the journey north and as the sun saps the life out of the surroundings, kilometre by kilometre the road evaporates into little more then a dusty sand dune trail.

With 140km to go, with the mercury nudging 47 degrees celcius and cars exceeding load capacities you can guarantee you’ll be required to help out others on the way – if you don’t break down yourself. Packed 4 to a row it’s hard work amidst the incumbent sandstorm. If like us you decide to go in the middle of hot season, you’ll experience the hot winds and the anger of the skies as they turn a bright orange like nothing you’ve ever seen before.

Sounds too easy? Don’t be fooled, as usual things don’t just go to plan.

Stop to push a broken down bus out of a boggy sand jam and your hopes of reaching Timbuktu begin to fade amongst the haze along with daylight. You can only dream of what it would be like to reach the last ferry which leaves to cross the Niger at 6pm. As a weary driver pushes on into the darkness, the panic in local passengers is obvious as increased speeds on deteriorating roads can lead only to danger. In our case, the driver did almost roll the vehicle on two separate occasions before protests intervened and locals threatened to get out.

Reach the river crossing in pure darkness and wonder what you will do for the night. Most stay and await daybreak to cross into Timbuktu. Naturally, we didn’t want to wait. Find a French speaker, find a local with a boat and find some CFA (local currency). Paddle across the Niger in the middle of the night, share some cigarettes with checkpoint police on the other side and follow into the darkness. Walk through dried up rice paddies, through fish markets, wade through shin deep water and after 5km of darkness rendevous with a van which is usually designated for the transportation of animals.

It’s not an orthedox approach but it’s authentic and although unadvisable given the currently security warnings for the area – in the early hours of the morning – we made it.

That’s right we made it to Timbuktu.

You’re in the town that’s famous for personifying ‘the middle of nowhere’ and it’s the gateway to the Sahara, so there’s plenty to see. Camel rides, mud mosques, markets and museums with the tales of those who’ve gone before and those who weren’t so lucky to survive.

The ride back isn’t particularly easy either, but at least we made the ferry. By not particularly easy we mean – 400km in 43 degrees, you only have one breakdown, one ongoing argument over leg room with an angry individual, one baby pulling you hair, hitting, spewing and urinating on you and the new experience of a warm breast feeding over your arm on the bumpy road back. But don’t worry, that was only for the first 5 hours.

That aside, at least when you make it back like us you can stand loud and proud and say – I’ve been to Timbuktu and back.

If you don’t believe after all these years it’s still that hard? We filmed it and the heat alone destroyed most of our gear, so check out the video.

It’s a place most have probably never heard of and it’s a place with an unforgettable name which is fitting as it’s a place you’ll never forget.

What is it?
Dogon Country – once you make it to Mali, it’s all the hype and deservedly so, it’s incredible. This is a stretch of villages lining a 150km escarpment in southern Mali and it’s something else. It’s a must do in Mali, well let’s be honest, it’s a must do in West Africa and what’s best is you can do it all by foot.

What can you do?
Stand in awe of the traditional villages built into and along the sides of the mountains, mingle with the locals like nowhere else and step back in time to listen to the sounds of the lively villages from amongst the mudhuts scattered across massive cliff faces – it’s a feeling like no other in this special part of the world.

What’s amazing about Dogon?
It’s like that place you imagined existed in your mind but it’s like the place you’ve never actually seen.

The Dogon people have lived in the area for 1200 years, and some of their old villages – mud huts made by hand, are nested under the overhanding cliff face halfway up the rock mountain. What is perhaps even more incredible are the Pygmie villages that remain even higher in the escarpment.

Hold it! Sometimes words can only say so much – Check out what we filmed along the way.

Climb through the cliffs and from the summit overlook the picturesque savannah, towards the villages below to experience the sights – the traditional way of life, the sounds of women and children crushing millet, the chaos of animals roaming the narrow walkways and the feel the life of Dogon.

One of the first things that you’ll notice is the elaborate greetings between Dogon people. It’s more than a simple hello, it’s a detailed introduction and story and what might sound like mumbled words are actually acute interactions discussing each others’ families and problems. We won’t even try explain how it works, but simply say it is something to experience and take with you.

The mudhuts, the smiles and the greetings will welcome you in every village and if you stay longer you’ll get the opportunity to sleep on a mudhut rooftop in a small village under the stars which in reality, is one of the coolest things you could ever do. If like us you have all the luck, you’ll even be rained on by the survival rains in the middle of the night – adding further more to an unbelievable experience.

Don’t worry, when its 40 degrees, in baking sun and you’ve just hiked 4km across rock and plain there is a unique feeling of relief in reaching the next village and knowing the hospitality and water that awaits.

Is Dogon country too ‘touristy’?
As a backpacker it has many of the things that you’ll do anything to avoid like having to take a guide and a tour, but for this part of the world we’ll say it again – it’s a must.

First things first, getting a guide for Dogon country is a pretty expensive (around 25,000 CFA per day or about 40 Euro) affair and its never easy forking out a lot of cash in one go. To soften the blow, get a few people together and go for a minimum of 2 days. Initially, you’ll have to suck it up, but you’ll soon see why the guide is a necessity when it comes to gaining an appreciation into the lives of the Dogon people.

If you’re like us and go in low season, you’ll barely see any one else travelling the area – which for us made it a more intimate and memorable experience. You will however battle the temperatures climbing well above 40 degrees every day, so take a towel.

With a guide you can ask whatever questions you want and feel at ease within the Dogon villages. It’s also important for sustainable and responsible travel that you find an authorised guide and as you travel the region – you’ll see the effects of those who have gone before without. We don’t think that is has been overrun by the tourist trail, it’s just one of those places that you should read up on beforehand to ensure you respect the local way of live and negotiate with the guide on what’s included in the price.

What do we say?
If you’re in Africa get there. Leave your big packpack behind, take the essentials, make some new friends to bring along, find a reputable guide and you’re set for Dogon country. It’s one of the only remaining places in the world that we know of where you can get an insight into traditional lifestyles in Africa and see first hand the challenges and opportunties that tourism brings to these fascinating communities.

Sounds too good to be true? It isn’t – check out what we filmed along the way.

The Gambia
The Gambia – Yep that’s right it’s actually called that and it’s the only country in the World that we’re aware of that uses ‘The’ to officially introduce itself. Along with this there are two other reasons we immediately loved The Gambia, one – English is the national language and two – they don’t charge Australians anything for a Visa. Heaven.

What else will you love in The Gambia?
It moves to a slow beat and it’s a fairly chilled out scene, most locals will want you to stop for a chat to welcome you. You’ll also get used to the familiar calls of ‘Toubab’ (the local term for white man) from the local kids as you high five them and they hug you back as you roam the streets. It’s famous for it’s eco-tourism scene and it’s all well organised, it’s easy to get around and it’s refreshingly progressive with loads of worthwhile organisations and programs doing great local work.

After dark it’s a place like no other – we learnt a lot on our first night out. Don’t be fooled, you’re not in a retirement village, in fact it’s anything but – the older women you will find in the bars have found their inner youth and that’s why they’re here. It’s a lesson in the food chain as these predators of the night stalk their younger local prey across all parts of the dance floor.

If you hadn’t guessed sex tourism is booming here, predominately with older Brits, surprisingly mostly women but there’s also a few men floating about in search of, well, (for lack of any other non-offensive term) love.

Back to the city and around Banjul, there is an awkward sprawl of 5 or 6 local areas, each with their own scene. As a whole if it’s nightclubs you’re after you’ll find them centred in one spot, known as ‘the Strip’ – and they pump. The local lads can truly dance so you’re in for a treat, but as we witnessed time after time, if you’re a white guy stay seated – it’s embarrassing for everybody when you dangle your limbs awkwardly around trying to compete. As one of the local ladies said – ‘White guys can’t dance and black guys can’t swim’.

What seals the deal?
The Gambia is supremely cheap if you stick with the locals. The ‘street meat’ here is well above board and on any given night you can find anything from Nigerian cuisine to loaded long baguettes to fruits to the insides of a goat. If you choose the latter, you’ll need to wash that down with one of no doubt Africa’s best beers, Jul Brew and yes, it’s pretty special.

If The Gambia sounds like your sort of place, we’ve given it an in depth review with all the information you’d need to visit it yourself and we’ve got a video to show you bits and pieces as well.

Senegal
500 additional kilometres, 50 additional Euros, 5 minutes in a country, 2 frustrated travelers and 4 days later on the second attempt – we made it into Senegal.

It turns out you can’t get a Visa at the border these days, but that’s a different story.

What made it all worth it?
Aside from that, however long it takes and what ever you have to do to get there – St Louis, Senegal is something special. A side of Africa we hadn’t seen and the side where each street is running along to it’s own beat.

There’s an unmissable colonial charm in St Louis and everywhere you look there is plenty of character in the stores, over the buildings and amongst the people. It’s set on an island and along with fishing it’s football, it’s weaved between every dusty alley way and no matter how bad you might be, you’ll find yourself kicking around with the kids at some point.

There is live music everywhere and unexpectedly a buzzing artistic scene. Everything is pretty much to love about this place and we don’t think we’re biased, but in the name of transparency we will admit, St Louis is also the first place in Africa that we’ve really found a bar, beers and beats. That’s a trifecta in anyone’s book.

Sound like your kind of place? Check out the full details here.

What about the big smoke – Dakar?
We never saw the rally that makes this place famous, but we imagine it couldn’t be much more chaotic then the car ride that delivered us. Six Senegalese and us wedged in a wagon tearing down some of Africa’s best highways, traffic aversion via footpaths, dodging street sellers and sitting in some of the worst traffic West Africa could possibly produce – it was another rally experience all together.

A ride like that does however, set the scene for Dakar. Power coffees, street scammers, a mix of music and more, downtown Dakar sets a hectic pace. It’s as developed as we imagine any African city would be and from the skyscrapers to the markets this place has got a vibe of it’s own.

One minute you’ll enjoy some high class Senegalese food and the next you’ll be palming off pickpockets before haggling down for whatever you want on a street side. Everybody wants to help you and you’ll enjoy or maybe not so, the game of trying to filter the genuine help from those who want to help themselves to your CFA (Central African Francs). Non merci.

Come night, you better be ready to dance – and even if you are like we were – you can expect to be schooled in rhythmic moves as the locals can and do dance until the early hours anywhere and everywhere.

We’d trekked to Dakar early and we were pumped to be in town for Senegal’s Independence day. We were particularly pumped to be in town as it was the 50th Anniversary. We know right – Epic celebrations surely.

Surely not. The streets were desolate, the shops were shut, the beats were gone and we were in disbelief. The best we could manage was a bar with westerners watching the national wrestling and seeing Akon set the stadium alight.and just to set the record straight – the wrestling is worlds apart from the WWE. Thankfully.

For everything else we discovered and the stuff that might be useful to know about Senegal, click here for the full analysis and to see bits and pieces of our journey to The Gambia through Senegal.

It’s not only probably the longest train in the World, it’s not only probably the wildest train ride in the World, but it’s almost definitely one of the most epic things you could ever do anywhere in the World and it won’t even cost you a cent.

3.30pm any day of the week at Nouadhibou Station in the Sahara desert, Mauritania there’s a hive of activity. For most locals, it’s another day of commuting and transporting supplies but for a few, it’s much more. We dared to be one of the few.

We won’t lie, until about an hour beforehand we were still unsure whether we would jump upon this infamous, yet largely unknown train, but as we waited amidst the chaos and the sandstorms, the thought of stowing away in a train carriage is something you could only dream of in most countries – Naturally, it was far too irresistible.

Yes – we’d read the Government warnings that advised us not to travel and we had heard all the hype about the Western Saharan border region with extremist groups etc, but we’d also read about a train, the Iron Ore train and the more dangerous it sounded, the more seductive the it became.

Through the winds and sands in the distance it arrives. A seemingly endless number of sun-baked old wagons waltz by in the searing heat of the Sahara. As the train eventually comes to a halt you’re almost pulled into the carriages by it’s character and charm. In our case, we were actually pushed in by a local Police officer, either way we made it in.

Clamber aboard, dump your backpack and look around. If you’re like us, it’ll be hard to wipe the smile of your face. Within a few minutes we were amongst the locals and after the initial looks of surprise, the nervous laughter and the awkward exchanges (we don’t speak French) it was clear the locals were pumped to have a couple of fresh faces onboard. It more than stretched us trying to hold conversations amidst the excitement but failing that, as always you can count on football to communicate.

As always, we were incredibly unprepared for the next 12 hours, we had both just lost our head scarves, had only a litre of water each and a couple of bags of nuts. By the end of the trip we’d had a loaf of bread each, a range of snacks, fruits, 5 cups of Mauritanian tea and a local had even offered his jacket to us as the sun set. Yes – of course we shared our nuts.

The locals were only too happy to share their culture and even rolled out the red carpet for us – literally. If you haven’t figured it out yet, this simply isn’t your average train ride. Each carriage isn’t just another carriage, they might only measure about 10m x 3m each but the cultural exchange you’ll experience in that space transcends thousands of kilometres.

So who else is actually on the wagon?
18 Mauritanians. Mining company employees up one end organising the fire, tea and food exchanges and the young lads at the end of the carriage quick to dance, play Western tunes on their mobile phones and pose for photos. You’ll get a bit of everything on this train and it’s something special to see 16 men on a open carriage on a moving train assemble as one when it’s time for prayer.

Hold up! This article is pretty long, particularly for us. Why not break it up and get a real feel for the journey! Check out the video we filmed on board.

What else can you expect over the 12 hour journey?
The winds and the sandstorms are relentless and the taste of Iron Ore is something you’ll have to get used to. It’s incredibly hot in the day and incredibly cold late into the night but you can expect to see the Sahara at her best and its hard imagine clearer skies and as many stars elsewhere. You probably won’t sleep either, but you can find space amongst the crowd and bags to huddle in for warmth. You’ll also get the added bonus of seeing the Ben Amira rock, which is the world’s 2nd largest rock after Uluru in Australia, which despite the surrounding darkness still casts an impressive shadow on an otherwise desolate plain.

What else can we tell you?
The conditions are pretty rough and it’s definitely not for the faint hearted. You can of course get a ticket on board the one and only passenger carriage but that would set you back about 5 Euro. We’re sure it would still be a great experience, but the feeling of stowing away in Iron-Ore wagon without paying a cent for us was far more appealing.

The train runs from the Saharan Iron-Ore mines of Zouerat to the port city of Nouadhibou and links communities from the Sahara to the sea. Once on board, you’ll soon realise that the train is a lifeline for the remote communities as along the way dozens of locals will make the trip to the tracks to greet those onboard, from groups of women to young kids, there is a sense of excitement as the train rolls by.

3.30am you’ll make it to Choum, a decrepit station some 400km later where you would think your journey ends, but it’s just the beginning of another. It’s a strange feeling – one where despite getting off probably the world’s longest train in the middle of nowhere, you realise you have just been somewhere you had never imagined and experienced something you will never forget.

That said, we hadn’t anticipated an hour later we’d be sitting on top of a Toyota Landcruiser packed with luggage and supplies with 6 others pieced together like a jigsaw puzzle. Luckily for us, Michael Schumacher had recently come out of retirement and was driving, with precision at top speed across the dusty, corrigated tracks, narrowly avoiding wildlife, trees and everything else guided only by the 20m of visibility provided by the headlights.

So how does a Landcruiser loaded with 8 people and a few tonnes of cargo hold up in the conditions? Maybe we were just lucky, but we received a lesson in Mauritanian roadside mechanics as one of the tyres blew out at top speed.

What lasting advice do we have?
Do it. There’s nothing else like it. Take some food to share, plenty of water, be ready for anything and just go with it. Everything else is provided and if you can’t speak French like us, know that everybody supports either Barcelona or Madrid so choose wisely.

We need to mention as well that the region is still considered to be highly dangerous, so be sure to speak with locals in the area and other backpackers for the latest information. We did and we went.

The first 3 places in the week that Africa broke us in. Over 2700kms – the hardest week of long haul travel in our lives. We’ve seen plenty on the road less traveled so it’s time for the brief analysis, Amateur style.

Morocco
Without doubt, Morocco definitely has better places to visit, but we had to start somewhere and you can always grab a cheap flight to Agadir. It’s not the Morocco you’d imagine but you’ll still find glimpses and a bus to get out.

What sticks out?
If you’re after some nudity, the beach scene here might be up your alley, however, you’ll soon discover those topless bodies are actually old overweight westerners. It’s a tourist resort hotspot although we’re not really sure why.

If you like to smoke, you’ll no doubt enjoy it. It’s the question on everyone’s lips.

The food here is a definite highlight once you follow the locals to their eateries. Moroccan’s can make a mean soup which you’ll find for about 60 Euro cents and the Tajines are not to be missed. The 50 cent banana smoothies at any juice bar are a real winner.

If it’s your first time to Africa like us, it’ll be a good adjuster and you’ll have time to get used the waste management issues, the heat and the people. It’s also a great way to get used to flashing your passport if you’re heading south with 5 checkpoints before Western Sahara on the 21 hour bus.

Western Sahara
This place took our breath away, with the highway hugging the desolate coastline for close to 1000kms, it’s untouched and it’s incredible to see as the sunsets. Understandably, those who do travel the route find it hard not to stop and spend some time and as a result you’ll find people scattered every 10 – 20kms with their own piece of prime real estate.

What makes it irresistible?
Apart from the epic coastline, the Saharan sand dunes through the night are really something special. The moon casts shadows over the majestic mass dunes and the road weaves in and out between the sands and the coast.

Fresh fish on sunrise at the local restaurants goes down a treat and once you make it to the border, being stuck in no man’s land for 30mins between borders is a unique experience and reactions to the landmine warning signs might give you a photo opportunity.

For all the details on Morocco and Western Sahara, click here or for some insight into the scenery check out our video here

Mauritania
The country full of surprises from Nouadibou in the north where the goats rule the streets, to the Iron Ore Train across one of the most dangerous borders in the world, to the organised chaos of the capital combined with the friendliest people you might ever meet.

What reels you in?
Being stuck in a Saharan sandstorm has a certain ring to it and first impressions count, so when you enter a country and the border official spends 25 minutes telling your fellow passenger how beautiful she is, it’s hard not to be intrigued.

Kids playing football well into the night set the tone for what we expect in Africa and they love it here. The heat here grabs you and the shops will even shut from lunch until about 4pm. You’ll find it hard to haggle over cab prices in 40 degree heat with your backpacks on.

The Iron Ore train is without doubt one of the most epic adventures you could experience in a lifetime and thus deserves it’s own article and it’s own video.

Being stuck in the searing Sahara is something like no other. Heat exhaustion got us both, but Harty’s hallucinations where the highlight when in the midst of the desert over a period of 30 minutes he’d seen a lake an elephant and an airport – none of which existed.

On the road there’s a love for checkpoints which gets almost unbearably frustrating in the heat of the desert but dig deep for some patience and you’ll get through no worries. You’ll also find a great network of hand signals for those wanting to hitch hike and although it might delay you some time, it’s truly admirable how the locals will stop to help anyone pulled over along the way.

For all the important and not so important details on Mauritania, click here or for some insight into the scenery check out the pictures we snapped or the video we put together here.

On the eve of adventure it’s hard to describe the mood. Probably due to the fact we aren’t prepared and it’s realistically too late to do much about it.

However, during our last minute rush before we go, here are few other things we thought you should know.

How did we actually end up here?
We wanted to go to the World Cup. It happened to be in South Africa. We thought if we were going to go all that way we would see more if we travelled Africa overland. Then we thought it seems like everybody travels overland through the East so let’s travel through the West. Then we thought if we’re going through the West let’s make it interesting. Then we thought if it’s going to be interesting let’s make sure it’s important. Then we thought if it’s going to be important let’s make sure we make a difference.

Which brings us to now – we’re backpacking to break through borders and break down barriers.

With a few hours left, you might be wondering what we are actually looking forward to. So here’s a few things you’ll see in the coming weeks:
- Stowing away on the longest train in the world, Mauritania.
- Soaking up the atmosphere in hectic markets of some of Africa’s busiest metropolis’s.
- The wildlife and possibly wrestling with Gorillas and/or Guerillas.
- Being able to say we have been to Timbuktu, Mali.
- Participating in a Voodoo ceremony in Benin.
- Sharing meals and transport with people from some of the world’s poorest communities throughout West Africa.
- Trying to make a little difference to a few lives along the way and helping out in as many organisations as we can.

What can you do to help us?
You can get involved and show your support by engaging with our website, telling us what you think and passing on the site to others spreading the word of the Amateurs . Basically, we figure the bigger the audience, the greater the resources we can raise at short notice should something go horribly wrong.

In terms of the rush – it’s amateurish. We’ve run out of time for medical supplies, rations and outdoor survival equipment. Tomorrow it’s on. All we could manage was a Chinese buffet with Australians followed by Guinness with a Chilean, Argentine and a German in in an Irish nightclub. Fairly impractical but that’s how we roll.

Africa – we are coming to meet you.

With 7 days to go before our arrival in Africa it’s time to acknowledge the past 7 weeks of scare tactics through conversations, travel books and government warnings.

Here are our 7 biggest fears for the next 4 and a half months.

For Harty
1. Getting stuck in a country in the middle of a coup d’etat.
2. Having a trip that was expected to take a few hours end up taking 3 days.
3. Missing our flight from Libreville to Johannesburg.
4. Trying to negotiate ‘facilitation payments’ at various borders with the unpaid guards, along with the language difficulties. (I’m actually secretly looking forward to this challenge)
5. A lack of travellers to meet on the road.
6. Australia losing all 3 World Cup Games.
7. Making it home in one piece.

For Benny
1. That not speaking more then 5 words of French will be problematic.
2. Rabies ridden dogs. Seriously – they’re scary.
3. Requiring hospital attention in a remote African village.
4. Losing a bout of rock, paper, scissors and having to eat roast cat or a similarly unappealing dish.
5. Laughing inappropriately at tense border crossings whilst trying to facilitate some sort of payment with armed guards in French and subsequently being arrested.
6. Arriving at a border crossing on a Friday at 4.30pm when it closes at 4pm. Meaning sleeping in the dirt until the Monday reopening.
7. That we will be unable to find a bar, beers or a nightclub for an extended period of time.

We think that just about covers it. Let the countdown begin.

How not to choose a travel route # 101. Kids don’t try this at home.

Lesson learned – when planning to backpack Africa overland it’s a good idea to do some research. It’s better months, possibly even years before departure as opposed to a leaving it until the last minute. Naturally it’s last minute for us – but hindsight is fantastic.

However, 10 days from arrival on the continent we’ve found some new attractions to keep an eye out for and to spice things up.

When crossing from Western Sahara into Mauritania – features include:
- Fishing Villages
- UNESCO listed natural wonders
- High risk of terrorist attack
- High threat of Western Kidnappings
- Armed smugglers
- Land mines along the Northern border
- High possibility of riots
- Rocky deserts
- Stunning untouched coastline

For Mali and Timbuktu:
- Four UNESCO heritage listed sites
- Supreme Sahara
- Al Qaeda operations
- Banditry and armed groups in the North
- High risk of Western kidnappings by extremists
- Dogon country and it’s uniqueness

From Nigeria we can expect:
- Lagos the biggest city in Africa
- Some of Africa’s most incredible beaches
- High tensions and civil unrest
- Heightened risk of violence
- Unpredictable security situation
- Beach football with locals

We’d list some other countries but that covers the extent of our research to this point. There’s nothing quite like a sense of danger to spice things up. Is there?

For all the details and sensible travel advice please follow the links to the below countries.
Mauritanian advisories
Mali advisories or US travel advice for Mali
Nigeria advisories
For all other African travel advisories, please click here

If you’re heading to Africa we’d strongly advise you not to follow our process and do your research in advance.

To our surprise we now have a functional website. So it’s about time we posted something relevant about travel but before Africa we have Eastern Europe and parts of the Middle East on the cards via vastly different roads. So since our Berlin debut opening video…

Harty – He’s been trekking through Romania, hitting Soviet style statues in Sofia – Bulgaria, taking on Doners and Galipolli in Turkey, haggled in 600 year old bazaar markets, rummaged through thousand year old ruins, lapped up the warmth of Syrians and is currently battling internet censorship issues there with many roadblocks and stop signs.

Benny - A later start and an amateur one at that with a medical visit totalling 16 times more then expected, a hungover pack leaving him with too much luggage, numerous Visa problems on the horizon and a narrow aversion of ticket inspectors upon arrival in Croatia.

And no – we are not that bad at geography, we know none of these places have anything to do with Africa. However, in our defence we have to practice somewhere and it only highlights the fact that over the next 5 months you’ll get a bit of everything out of us.

We’ll even post from St Patrick’s Day in Ireland 3 days before trekking the deserts of Morocco. Seriously, we’re amateurs but we can’t miss one of the world’s greatest events and who wouldn’t want a cold pint before an African summer.