Carretera Austral (Part I)

| Leonie | Argentinië, Chile, ZUID-AMERIKA | 9 Reacties (Comments)

Carretera Austral ILike Ruta 40 in Argentina, Chile also has a legendary road: the “Carretera Austral”, a 1,240-kilometer-long gravel road through Chilean Patagonia. The road was built in 1976 on the request of  Chilean dictator Pinochet, then as the “Carretera General Augusto Pinochet”. Previous attempts to build a road through the inhospitable south of Chile had failed. Because of the harsh weather, access via the sea or the air also was difficult, due to which the south of Chile was only accessible from Argentina for a long time. When both countries became embroiled in a conflict, the Chilean army was deployed to build a road. An ambitious project involving a large number of casualties. Lees meer (Read more)

White peaks

| Leonie | Argentinië, Chile, ZUID-AMERIKA | 8 Reacties (Comments)

Witte toppenFrom Tecka we ride to San Carlos de Bariloche on Ruta 40, a legendary road that runs through Argentina. From the border with Bolivia in the north to Rio Gallegos in the south the ’40’ covers a distance of over 5,000 kilometers. It is one of the longest roads in the world. In 1932 they started the construction of the long gravel road, which has since then reached a cult status and has drawn many adventurers to all parts of Argentina. The gravel road is now rapidly being paved and some parts are diverted to connect other villages and towns. With the improvements to the road a part of the adventure is gone, but the route still has not lost its legendary status. Annually many motorcyclists start a trip with the sole purpose to ride the entire Ruta 40, preferably the original route. Lees meer (Read more)

At the coast

| Leonie | Argentinië, ZUID-AMERIKA | 4 Reacties (Comments)

Aan de kustIt is Sunday and still early, but outside it is already buzzing. Next to our tent the flamingos are splashing around in the pond, in the tree above us dozens of birds are chirping and in the garden we hear Jorge humming gently while he sweeps the driveway. Outside the walled garden cars drive up and down the street, neighbours greet each other and music sounds from the house next door. Life in Azul has already begun early on this Sunday morning, even though a local party in town went on very long last night. The daily rhythm of the Argentines is quite different from ours. Lees meer (Read more)

Welcome to Argentina!

| Leonie | Argentinië, ZUID-AMERIKA | 5 Reacties (Comments)

Welkom in Argentinië!From Johannesburg we fly via Dubai and Rio de Janeiro to Buenos Aires, a long journey of more than 40 hours. We take a taxi from the airport and let him take us to a hostel in the city center that we had booked a few days earlier. We receive the key for a cozy double room and fall down on the bed exhausted of the trip. Our idea to go to bed late that night according to the Argentine clock goes directly out of the window. We only take some time for a shower and then fall fast asleep. The adventure in South America can wait one more night. Lees meer (Read more)

Out of Africa

| Leonie | AFRICA, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa | 6 Reacties (Comments)

Out of AfricaWith Dick’s departure our journey in Africa has also reached its end. After more than 300 days on this beautiful continent we leave Africa. Although we could have easily travelled another year in Africa because there are so many beautiful things to see here, but we go to South America for a new part of our adventure. Though that departure from Africa is not easy. Not only because we have lost a part of our heart to this continent, but also because it is quite an operation to get the motorbikes in South America. Lees meer (Read more)

Three times ‘water’

| Leonie | AFRICA, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe | 3 Reacties (Comments)

Drie keer 'water'After the great five-day safari through Ethosha, we take our bikes from under the sail at the lodge just outside the park. They are there exactly as we had left them and start without problems. Great! We pitch our tents on the campsite of the lodge and sink into a chair while we have a look at the pictures of Etosha with a smile on our faces. We use the rest of the afternoon for the administration and the laundry and then bend over the map to plan the remainder of the trip. There are three places we would like to visit with Dick: the Chobe River in Botswana, Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe and the Okavango Delta, again in Botswana. Three times to the water! Lees meer (Read more)

Etosha

| Leonie | AFRICA, Namibia | 10 Reacties (Comments)

EtoshaA highlight of our trip through Africa”, we can certainly say that about our visit to Etosha National Park. The game park is situated in the north-west of Namibia and is one of the largest game parks in southern Africa. With an area of 22,270 km2 it is greater than half of the Netherlands! The park is home to a large number of different animals: large groups of elephants, rhinos, zebras, all kinds of antelopes and many birds. The park consists of dry savannah, with a huge salt pan in the center and a large number of waterholes throughout the park. The animals all come to the waterholes to drink, making it the perfect place to see the wildlife. Lees meer (Read more)