2098m at 9,45 on the 2nd
Worth getting up early for. Now all we need are skis.
Dave and Phil's Africa blog
Welcome to Dave Need and Phil Gendall's blog. This is a record of our 2008/9 journey from Cornwall to Timbuktu in a 15 year-old totally unmodified Pugeot 205, as part of the Plymouth-Timbuktu Challenge (http://www.plymouth-banjul.co.uk/). Phil is a director at Gendall Design (www.gendall.co.uk), and Dave is a carpenter and boat builder. We left on boxing day 2008 from Portsmouth - and traveled to Marrakesh for New Year's Eve - then on down through Western Sahara and Mauritania, turning left somewhere and on to Mali.... and thence to Timbuktu. If you want to get the best from this blog now it's finished, go to the end and work forwards. If you want to know more about the challenge or just to get in touch email me on phil.gendall@btinternet.com Phil x
Where you from mate?
These guys know Rick Stein (actually), Gary Rhodes (probably), Gordon Ramsay (possibly)... and have a very poor veiw of Scousers. The food comes in seconds and is amazing. What we had would cost these guys three days wages. The boss has a very nice car and a villa. That's capitalism.
Posted by TimbukTwoOhFive
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In a Souk. Marrakech, Jan 1st
Furniture factory and show-room, 5m x 3m. Jesus's dad was a small businessman and this is exactly what his shop would have looked like.
Posted by TimbukTwoOhFive
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New year's eve. Happy birthday
Eiuan and Lee make it through another year by the skin of their teeth.
Posted by TimbukTwoOhFive
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Civil engineering in the Medina
Wish we didn't have to leave Marrakech. It's been an assult on the senses, snakes and smoke, drumming, henna, ripp-offs and bargains. But we gotta keep moving. So it's up at six tomorrow for the 2000m pass over the Haut Atlas - via Tizi-n-Test to Agadir.
Posted by TimbukTwoOhFive
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200? You are insulting me!
Ain't you heard about the credit crunch mate - Stirling's worf nuffin!
Posted by TimbukTwoOhFive
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In Marrakesha...
So it's new year's day and some of us DON'T have life-threatening hangovers. Dave and Phil have spent most of the day in the souk, we were hassled, but we haggled, and managed to pick up some bargains. We are meeting the rest of the crew for dinner in the Medina for lashings of snails and sheeps brains tonight... before retiring for an eqrly start;
Chris and Jack have quite spectacular hangovers; which is only fair considering... Allah be praised.
We are having a bit of trouble posting to this site by iPhone tho... so here's the plan...
In the morning, 2nd Jan we are on the road again - if we can't get this site to work go to...
Click group 4, then select out team name from the menu, and then 'SMS REPORTS' which will give you crude (no, not that type of crude) reports. No pics tho... but we'll get the IT team onto it:)
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Posted by TimbukTwoOhFive
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Meknes in bloom. 8.30am New Year's Eve
This picture makes the site at Meknes look real purdy. Amazing what you can do with a little creative framing. To be fair, the setting is amazing - in the grounds of the city castle. The plumbing and lectrics would worry you though. Now we are on the road to Cassanlanca, gotta make Marrakesha tonight.
Posted by TimbukTwoOhFive
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That's what it's all about
Lee and Chris shouted a halt in the dark, 20k from destination, in the dark... With a 'worrying' noise from front disks. Wheel off in the camp site...
Posted by TimbukTwoOhFive
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On the road to Meknes, 30th Jsn
Well it's been an amazing drive today from Tanger. By the road are women in bright red and orange shawls, sometimes with babies strapped to their backs. Old men on donkeys. Young men flashing huge bricks of hash or miming inhalation as we drive past. Shacks with pyramids of stacked onions or jars of olives in semi-opaque home-pressed oil. Boxes of oranges stacked high. Smoke from fires. The most verdant feilds stretching to the horizon. Distant Atlas mountains tumbling merangues of cloud. White Mercedes. Old lorries. And all the time, banter on the walkie-talkies. Keeping in the convoy. Watch out for the pothole. Go go go past the lorry. Next left. And here we are, camping, and exhausted.
Posted by TimbukTwoOhFive
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