Big Brother’s African Brother #1: Introduction

Penny and Tom Raylott on Hinchinbrook Island, Australia

Let me introduce ourselves. We are a husband and wife team (Tom and Penny) about to embark on a second adventure of a lifetime – after all, one adventure is never enough. I’m aspiring to be a female Bill Bryson with a backpack (I should point out that I bear no physical resemblence) and this is my first stab at travel writing. On July 28, we will be flying to Nairobi, or Nairobbery as it is affectionately known. After three months in Africa, we fly to India on a one way ticket, so that we can be totally flexible with our plans. So far the India/Pakistan conflict has not put us off.

The African expedition would be classed by independent travellers as a cop out, but after reading a little East African history, I needed the reassurance of travelling in a group. It is an organised, low budget, overland trip – 95% of the accommodation is under canvas, but not the type where they serve hot tea and toast in the early morning – we will do all our own cooking and washing up on a rota basis. The rest of our trip will be completely independent – we both feel comfortable travelling around Asia.

For me, the Africa trip is a chance to find out if I have the mental stamina to survive being on a truck with 24 people that I cannot escape from. Can I cope with camping in an ‘A’ frame tent for 11 weeks? In my self imposed Big Brother environment there will be no evictions but I’m sure I’ll be nominating a few fellow travellers. Let’s just hope that I’m not the weakest link. Our main worry is not having anything in common with anyone and finding ourselves on a party party truck where everyone exists comatosed by alcohol and never sees the real Africa.

We will hopefully travel through 9 countries in Africa: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa. Zimbabwe may be substituted for Zambia if the political situation changes.

So why in our early 30s are we leaving behind the security of our jobs and disappearing into the bush? Well, in 1995, a week after we were married, we began our RTW trip that covered Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Bali, Australia, New Zealand and the United States (California, Nevada, Arizona and New York). It was a fantastic adventure that lasted 10 months. My favourite place was the interior of Bali, my second favourite was the Western Coast of Australia and my favourite memory was sky diving over Nelson on the South Island of New Zealand. On returning, we never quite got rid of the travel bug and after attempting two 3 week backpacking trips (Egypt, Israel and the Philippines) that were far too rushed, we started planning the big ONE. Three years of planning later and it has turned into an obsession.

Life is so predictable and I want to recapture the magic of being out on the open road, the feeling of timelessness, of not knowing or caring what day of the week it is. Every day is a new experience – you choose whether you move on, catch that bus at 6:30 in the morning or amble around a village and watch the world go by. Often the most mundane journeys turn into full scale dramas.

So we are off to find enlightenment and a yoga guru in India, visit the Dalai Lama living in exile in Dharamsala, gaze into a mountain gorilla’s eyes in Biwindi, microlight over Victoria Falls, quad bike over the Namibian sand dunes, challenge myself physically by completing the Annapurna circuit in the Himalayas (the highest pass is over 5,400 metres), cycle round the temples of Bagan in Burma, learn the art of Thai cooking in Chiang Mai, watch the sunrise over Angkor Wat and finally fulfill a dream of staying in Tibet.

Luckily, as I’m quite a lazy person, my husband enjoys nothing better than planning the trip like a military operation (he was a chartered accountant in a former life). I could never contemplate a trip like this without him. I also caught him weighing his boxer shorts on the kitchen scales; abnormal behaviour I know, but his mantra is “pack light” and this means he likes to know exactly how much our rucksacks will weigh to ensure that I’m not sneakily packing the kitchen sink.

Packing List

2 pairs of lightweight trousers
3 wick away tops
2 pairs of shorts
Short sleeved blouse
2 long sleeved shirts

Sarong
6 pairs of knickers including two pairs of Tilley knickers (will the Tilley’s live up to the hype? I’ll let you know)
2 pairs of coolmax hiking socks
2 pair of ordinary socks
Swimming costume
Fleece jacket
Lightweight waterproof

Hiking boots
Tevas
Flip Flops (for the showers)
Broad rimmed hat
2 Travel trek towels
Sleeping mat
Silk sleeping liner
3 season sleeping bag
Universal sink plug

Head torch
Magelite
Mosquito net
Pen knife
High factor suntan lotion
Travel wash
Sterile medical kit
Toilet roll
Log Book

Duct Tape
Travel backgammon set
East Africa travel guide
Southern Africa travel guide

Rucksack weighs 11.5 kg (hiking boots are excluded).