Sudan & Uganda: A travel diary

Uganda Beyond the Gorillas: From Boda Boda to Bunyonyi

---

Almost always a Toyota Hilux, these are the most common form of transport where there is no sealed road. Quicker than a bus covering the same ground, and often the only option, they are also slightly more expensive. Bokasi are a relatively fast and furious way to travel. The cab has two seats next to the driver and the covered back of the pick-up has bench seating along each side, with five passengers crammed on each row.

Any free floor space is taken up with baggage, and with an unlimited number of children thrown in for good measure. Latecomers sit on the roof. The benches are hard and you can feel every bump. Short trips are fine, but a long journey can leave you cramped and bruised if the road is particularly bad. The more comfortable seats next to the driver cost a quarter to a third more than those in the back and are always the first to be reserved. A few visitors to South Sudan come to the country as part of a longer trip through Africa. Having your own vehicle gives you the ultimate freedom to travel where you want, and camping under the stars can really let you enjoy South Sudan at its most spectacular and wild.

Detailed planning for a major overland trip is outside the scope of this guide, but there are several excellent resources out there to help you with your preparations. In a country where public transport between villages is at best patchy, locals use hitching to get around all the time. Free lifts are rare, however, and drivers will expect you to pay for the ride. There is almost an unwritten right to jump in a vehicle if there is space. South Sudanese can become offended if there is space and they are not availed a ride, a mistake many of the humanitarian and UN agencies make at the cost of much local trust and respect.

There are currently no long-distance passenger ferries, and only cargo barges trawl the stretch from Juba to Malakal and, occasionally, north into Sudan. Our authors Sophie and Max Lovell-Hoare tell the story of a tribe shrouded in legend. Our authors explore whether the South Sudanese government is right to pitch the settlement of Ramciel as a site for their new capital.

To see how we use this information about you and how you can unsubscribe from our newsletter subscriptions, view our Privacy Policy. South Sudan - Travel and visas. By land There are a large number of road border crossing points at which it would in theory be possible to pass into South Sudan.

By boat The Nile is navigable as far south as Juba, so it is theoretically possible to enter the country by barge and even the occasional steamer from the White Nile port of Kosti in the Republic of Sudan. By air South Sudan has a small commercial air network that is largely operated by Kush Airlines.

By road At the time of writing, South Sudan had just a little over km of paved road. Boksi The workhorse of rural South Sudan is the pick-up truck, known locally as a boksi plural bokasi. Self-drive A few visitors to South Sudan come to the country as part of a longer trip through Africa. Hitchhiking In a country where public transport between villages is at best patchy, locals use hitching to get around all the time.

Since most were over 18 and living on their own they needed to support themselves. And even though the majority attended school within Kakuma camp and had completed or were well on their way to completing high school, they did not necessarily qualify for entry into U.

The Lost Boys of Sudan

For these young men, IRC staff members stressed the importance of finding a job soon after arrival, and continuing their educational pursuits part-time. The IRC helped the Lost Boys find jobs with local employers and connected them with volunteer mentors for help studying for exams to enable them to receive a General Equivalency Diploma GED , and in turn, apply for college. Trips to baseball games were one way many Lost Boys were introduced to life in the U. The Lost Boys faced enormous challenges in adjusting to American culture and modern society.

IRC case workers worked closely with the boys in orienting them to their new communities, making sure that they were as comfortable as possible, and offering guidance on such issues as personal safety, social customs, public transportation, shopping, cooking, nutrition and hygiene. Volunteers, many of whom became aware of the immense needs of this group through media coverage, also played a significant role in this area.

They served as an essential link to the greater community, helping to generate additional employment opportunities, as well as increase donations and awareness. Volunteers at the IRC's Boston office now closed took part in a mentoring program for newly arrived Kakuma youth, providing support and guidance, and organizing recreational activities to bring the young men together. Many of the Lost Boys resettled by the IRC also took part in IRC programs aimed at helping them cope with their traumatic past and easing their transition into such a different culture. The IRC's Phoenix resettlement office, for example, worked with clinical psychologists to provide specialized counseling services.

Over the next decade the Lost Boys built new lives for themselves in their adopted country. Many of them went on to earn college degrees and attain U. Then, in , news came that gave them hope: A peace agreement had been signed between North and South. Finish your Sudan itinerary in the border town of Wadi Halfa, from where you can easily cross into Egypt in the morning. Hotel ElHarm is a great place to stay in the centre of town, with the Souk and bus station all within easy walking distance.

Book your border bus ticket for Egypt that night and get ready for a full day of country-crossing adventure starting at 7am in the morning!

2. Rafting (or Flipping One’s Raft) on the Nile River Rapids

How to Travel from Sudan to Egypt Overland. And please, do let me know your stories below. Sudan sees so few tourists it would be really great to hear from others who have been there….

My husband and I and our two sons, 2 and 9mo, moved to Dongola in , for 5 years. He was beginning an agricultural project north of Dongola.

South Sudan articles

It was a wonderful five years during which we made many friends there. My 2 year-old picked up Arabic quickly and became my little translater.

Search form

We traveled all over Northern Sudan and were welcomed into local homes everywhere we traveled. It was a great 5 years.

Cheryl, this is a truly wonderful story — thank you so much for sharing your unique experience and for corroborating that the Sudanese people are some of the friendliest in the world! It would be so interesting to know how much it has changed since — have you been back since? Your email address will not be published. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam.

• The Orange Fairy Book [with Biographical Introduction] (Dover Childrens Classics)
• A. Buero Vallejo. La tragedia, transparencia y cristal de la palabra (Spanish Edition)
• Be Filled: Sermons on the Beatitudes
• Tribology in Machine Design
• Ausgelacht (German Edition)
• Exposition (Pratique photo) (French Edition)