Friday, 30 September 2011

Get Bike - Check

We’re back in business!!! Wednesday evening my beautiful new Kawasaki KLR 650 was delivered to me. It was quite a struggle to find her! But now she’s here.

Yesterday morning, for some reason, I felt nervous getting on the bike. It’s the biggest bike I’ve ever ridden myself. I’m very happy to report that we get along just fine though. What a beauty! I’m in love with my bike!! lol

It really is a beautiful bike. I know for a fact that I made the right choice. We have a looong way to go together. I cannot wait to get going!

Now that I have the bike, I can start working on other matters such as training, gear, paperwork etc. I’ll need to put in a lot of time on advanced riding training as well as off-road training. Riding a bike is one thing. Riding a heavily loaded bike through 34 African countries is another thing.

I am so up to the challenge. Well I set myself this challenge. New mode of transport, new tour, renewed internal fire. :)

There is still A LOT to do. But I’m aiming for a launch date in November.

Best I get cracking. :)


My beautiful new bike!!
'Out of the darkness and into the light'



Donations or country sponsorships can be done through PayPal – visit the SPONSOR A COUNTRY page for more details!! Otherwise, send Jolandie or La Domestique a mail.

Please drop by and visit my facebook group or my facebook page. Click on a country to see many more photographs of my incredible journey around Africa!
Lovingly maintained and updated by La Domestique.



Wednesday, 28 September 2011

She's on her way!!

Wooooohhhhoooooo!!!

The wheels are rolling, in more ways than one. I’ve been struggling my hiney off to get the bike I want. Even had friends searching with me, for me… far and wide.

I’ve had a few people message me, asking me which bike I’ve decided on. There were a few correct guesses!

So now I can reveal that I will be circumnavigating the African continent on a Kawasaki KLR 650. Has anyone ever ridden through Africa on a KLR? – I hear you asking. Well, as a matter of fact. Yes!

Check out Lodie de Jager’s site. And thanks to his generous input, I am more than convinced that my new KLR and I will get along just fine.

For the last two weeks, all I’ve been doing is scouring online advertisements for second hand KLR’s. Each and every one of them sold by the time I contacted the owners.

Even a brand new one seemed out of my reach. Until yesterday when I phoned up Mean Machine Motorcycles in Menlyn, Pretoria. ‘We do have one, only one’ the sales executive said to me. Needless to say I immediately jumped on my bike (read Hanret’s car), and drove through to Pretoria.

Today I am the proud owner of my beautiful, brand new Kawasaki KLR!!!

Yessssss!!!

They’re delivering her tonight. I am excited beyond what words can describe!!!

I’ll post photos as soon as she has arrived. Yes, it’s a she. Of course.

Now I just have to decide on her name. :)



Donations or country sponsorships can be done through PayPal – visit the SPONSOR A COUNTRY page for more details!! Otherwise, send Jolandie or La Domestique a mail.

Please drop by and visit my facebook group or my facebook page. Click on a country to see many more photographs of my incredible journey around Africa!
Lovingly maintained and updated by La Domestique.



Sunday, 25 September 2011

Bridging The Gap

Sitting at the Service Station coffee shop this morning near my home with cappuccino in hand, chatting to a friend of mine and taking in the aroma of coffee, bacon and eggs and fresh toast being served, listening to the hustle and bustle of the other ‘breakfast goers’… I got served a plate of realization.

I realized that from an outsider’s point of view it might seem that there’s this big gap. One moment my bike and gear is taken from me in Angola, the next I’m back home and hopping on a motorbike. I feel that maybe I haven’t addressed the ‘in-between’ bit as well as I could have.

There’s one main question I got asked this morning that I would like to address now: ‘Why the change from motorcycle to motorbike?’

This was a big decision for me, but one that came surprisingly easily. Almost like it was the natural choice. For the longest time, my focus lied with CYCLING around Africa. Because it seemed more challenging, somehow I convinced myself that I needed to do something extreme to earn people’s support. Almost like, if I did it in any other way, it would make me less ‘worthy’.

In the moment that my Luna was taken from me, the idea of going around Africa on a motorbike slipped into my head. Unexpectedly. I was completely at ease with it. I knew then that my journey had taken a turn.

And there, standing next to the road with my Camelbak, one front pannier bag and my handlebar bag hanging over my shoulder… watching Luna disappear around the bend… another realization hit me. (Realizations are wonderful little things. It just sometimes feels like they hit me at an abnormally frequent rate!) It was never about ‘doing it on a bicycle’ as such. It’s about the actual journey. No matter how I tackle it, making it around Africa will be a feat in itself. It just took me about 4 years, 11 000 kilometers and cycling all the way to Northern Angola to make peace with it.

And so I have.

Most of the feedback that I have received upon breaking the news has been positive. I am sure that my hardcore cycling friends must be a little disappointed. Yes, I won’t be doing it on a bicycle. (Not this time round anyway.) I don’t consider myself to have failed. Instead, because of what happened to me in Angola, I have gained so much.

I have a new found need for simplicity in what I do. To be open and completely honest about where I am at. (As opposed to doing what I ‘think’ others want me to do.) I think we all struggle with this at some point in our lives.

Hanret mentioned the other night that I show more excitement now, than I ever have before about the trip. That, in itself, somehow tells me that I’m doing the right thing. I truly am extremely excited!!

It feels like Africa will keep dragging me back to the starting point… until I get it right.

I think I’m finally getting it right.

I don’t think it will be any easier. A motorbike brings with it its own set of challenges. I will still need to face and handle bureaucratic intricacies, all kinds of logistical planning, paperwork, bad roads, conflict areas and all the other wonderful things that travelling in Africa brings with it.

Tomorrow, I might be getting my bike. I really look forward to introducing her to you. That’s step one: getting the bike. From here, I can move forward with all the other arrangements and will keep you all updated about my progress.

I also want to ‘simplify’ my blog a bit. If you have any suggestions or input as to what you think might improve my blog, please let me know. I would love your input.

Thank you to each and every one of you for your continued support!

I look forward to sharing my ‘new’ journey with you all!



Donations or country sponsorships can be done through PayPal – visit the SPONSOR A COUNTRY page for more details!! Otherwise, send Jolandie or La Domestique a mail.

Please drop by and visit my facebook group or my facebook page. Click on a country to see many more photographs of my incredible journey around Africa!
Lovingly maintained and updated by La Domestique.


Thursday, 22 September 2011

Patience is a virtue

Or so they say. Whoever ‘THEY’ may be.

You know how when you really want something, time can seem to stand still and it seems like everyone is taking their time at delivering whatever it is you need from them? That’s how I’m feeling right now.

I consider myself a fairly patient individual. But yikes… I wish things would happen a little faster now. (At the same time this little voice inside of me says: Be careful what you wish for!!)

I want to get going. In order for that to happen, a great deal has to happen first. Like getting THE BIKE, for instance. (In search of ‘The One’.) Waiting on Angola for transfer of funds before I can start ordering all the gear I will be needing for the trip. Only when I have my bike can I start organizing the paperwork I’ll be needing for her.

A bunch of my gear will be ordered from the USA. Delivery of which, takes time. I still have to go for my motorbike driver’s license. Then get my international driver’s license from the AA and ‘Carnet de Passage en Douane’ papers for the bike. And of course for this, I need to get a bank guarantee first.

The visas won’t be an issue this time round. Acquiring my Angolan visa will be VERY easy! :) DRC and Congo takes 4 days max to get both. The rest I still have to get on route.

I also still need to go play around in the sand a bit. Get better acquainted with my ‘new Luna’. Which reminds me, I haven’t thought of a name for her yet. Any suggestions?

On a positive note: Thank you to Nokia for their ongoing support! I lost my ‘hands-free’ set. So they provided me with a new one yesterday and threw in a spare battery pack as well. Awesome!

Training is also going really well. Swimming in the mornings, walking and rowing in the evenings. I don’t know why I have this new-found urge to train. It’s not like I ever trained for any of my other trips. And that was WAY more taxing, physically! Then again, exercise can only be good for me.

Here’s hoping I’ll have more news by the end of the week! :)



Donations or country sponsorships can be done through PayPal – visit the SPONSOR A COUNTRY page for more details!! Otherwise, send Jolandie or La Domestique a mail.

Please drop by and visit my facebook group or my facebook page. Click on a country to see many more photographs of my incredible journey around Africa!
Lovingly maintained and updated by La Domestique.



Tuesday, 20 September 2011

Like a kid on Christmas eve!

I love it when a plan comes together. Things are now starting to move along and I LOVE it!!! :)

Being a little more active always helps as well. I’ve decided that I’ve had enough loafing now and need to get moving again, in more ways than one.

Since Luna has gone gallivanting somewhere up North without me, I am now getting into swimming, walking and rowing. Just to keep the joints well lubricated. Hanret and I had our second swimming session this morning. Swimming is very different from cycling… that’s for sure! :)

I also had to write my learner’s license test for my motorbike license yesterday morning. I am happy to report that I passed with ease. Thank goodness!! Although the whole process did take 4 hours!!

Now the real fun begins!! Shopping!! **Grin** Bike, gear, clothing, gadgets… I feel like a kid on Christmas eve! So much fun!!

AND…I have finally decided on which bike I’ll be taking. You’ll have to wait a little longer for the big unveiling, I’m afraid. I should have her within the next two weeks. Then I’ll introduce her to you all!

Now, I have to book for my motorbike driver’s license. I have to sort out my visas… again! I have to sort out Carnet papers for the bike. International license, once I have my driver’s license. Insurance. Order gear. Go for advanced driving course. (Especially playing in sand.) Spend some time in a workshop so I can get to know the ins and outs on my bike. And then… we’re good to go.

Africa, here I come. Again!!! LoL



Donations or country sponsorships can be done through PayPal – visit the SPONSOR A COUNTRY page for more details!! Otherwise, send Jolandie or La Domestique a mail.

Please drop by and visit my facebook group or my facebook page. Click on a country to see many more photographs of my incredible journey around Africa!
Lovingly maintained and updated by La Domestique.



Saturday, 17 September 2011

Bikes, bikes and more bikes.

That’s what I’m eating, drinking and sleeping right now. I dreamt I was riding on a Kawasaki KLR 650 last night. Black. A sign???

It’s down to two bikes at the moment. I haven’t decided on which one I’ll be taking around Africa yet. At this stage it’s either the BMW F650GS or Kawasaki KLR 650. I guess it will come down to the one I’m most comfortable with, that’s easiest to maintain and most reliable.

Next week is devoted to sorting out licenses and finalizing the finer details with Angola. I still have to pinch myself every now and again. That a country, not even my own, would agree to support me in such a big way… remains unbelievable to me. It’s fantastic of course. Just still feels so unreal!

There’s a certain camaraderie among ‘bikers’ that I really enjoy. There’s only been one article on my ‘new’ adventure thus far and already someone has offered to GIVE me a bike that I can fix up and play around on.

I am yet to get to know the biker community in my area though (Melville, Johannesburg). So if you know of anyone or if you’re an avid biker, please give me a shout. Any and all advice/input welcome!

One of the to-dos on my list is spending some time in a workshop. Getting to know the ins and outs of a bike. I need to be able to fix anything on a bike. So if you can help on this front – please let me know.

Then, once I have the bike – it then becomes all about the gear! I love toys and gadgets! Very excited to play around with some of the new gadgets I’ll have this time round.

One of the things I would like to change is to implement live tracking. So you can follow me all the time. I’ll also be doing more video documenting on the trip. There’s so much going on. It’s all very exciting!

Within the next 2 – 3 weeks, everything should start falling into place.



Donations or country sponsorships can be done through PayPal – visit the SPONSOR A COUNTRY page for more details!! Otherwise, send Jolandie or La Domestique a mail.

Please drop by and visit my facebook group or my facebook page. Click on a country to see many more photographs of my incredible journey around Africa!
Lovingly maintained and updated by La Domestique.



Thursday, 15 September 2011

Angola Supports Jolandie

I have been bursting at the seams with anticipation of this announcement.

So much has happened in the last few weeks. From Luna being hijacked, to my being flown all over Angola. Staying with Zaire Province’s Governor. Specially chartered flights. Road trip back the way I came. A few changes to the trip.

There is no denying that Angola has gone above and beyond in assisting me when I really needed some assistance. Well, they’ve just gone the EXTRA mile.

The only thing that has changed in my aim to circumnavigating Africa is my chosen mode of transport. If you read my last blog update, you’ll know that I will now be circumnavigating Africa on a motorbike.

The goal remains: ‘To be the first woman to circumnavigate Africa, solo’.

I have been chatting to a lot of people around the issue of ‘which bike do I choose’? It’s all very exciting.

Now I won’t fool myself into thinking that it will be any easier. Sure, I’ll be going a little faster and won’t have to pedal at all. But apart from that, it’s still the same trip. Same challenges. Same dangers. More paperwork!!

I do not have a new launch date yet. Right now I am immersing myself in research and training – All about the bike.

Once I have a clearer picture on departure date and other details, you’ll be the first to know.

NOW:
Today I received some fantastic news! News that had me throw my hands up in the air and shout yesssss. If I could, I would’ve screamed at the top of my voice. But I’m incapable of doing so. I’m not a screamer! LoL

Negotiations are at an end and I can finally let it out:

I am extremely excited to announce that The Republic of Angola, in association with INFOTUR – the Angolan Institute of Tourism, will be the main sponsor of my expedition around Africa!!!!

Unbelievably, amazingly AWESOME!!!! Wooooohhhhoooooo!!

So, preparation and organization is now in full swing. I really am unbelievably excited!

To Angola, her people, government and country as a whole – Thank you so much for your amazing support! I feel this to be but the beginning of a long and fruitful friendship!

Ladies and gentlemen, START YOUR ENGINES!!! :)

(Can just see I’m going to become a total motorhead!) LoL




Donations or country sponsorships can be done through PayPal – visit the SPONSOR A COUNTRY page for more details!! Otherwise, send Jolandie or La Domestique a mail.

Please drop by and visit my facebook group or my facebook page. Click on a country to see many more photographs of my incredible journey around Africa!
Lovingly maintained and updated by La Domestique.


Monday, 12 September 2011

Change is inevitable - except from a vending machine. ~Robert C. Gallagher

Change is something that I am quite accustomed to. It is something I accept very easily and more often than not, look forward to. This is something that hasn’t changed in me. :)

A few other things have, though.

But first: an update on what I’ve been up to.

I’ve just spent a few days visiting my dad and my little brother in Richard’s Bay. It was great to see them and to catch up on all that’s happened over the last year or so. My time there also gave me the opportunity to reflect on all that has happened over the last few months and the way forward.

I even got to take a ride on the back of my brother’s new bike. I have never gone that fast on wheels of any description!!! LoL It was great fun!

I also got to play around on a bike to get in some practice.

I’m guessing you’ve all cottoned on to where this is heading by now. In the moment that my precious Luna was taken from me, it made me question my primary objective of this trip. In all honesty, after four years of fighting like a good trooper and never giving up – for the very first time I couldn’t get excited about getting on a new bicycle and carrying on from whence I left off.

For the very first time in almost four years that clear picture I had carried with me, of riding around Africa on my bicycle, wasn’t there anymore. It was very difficult to admit it, even to myself. One of the first thoughts that went through my mind was: ‘I need to do this differently’.

I realized then that my primary objective is to be the first woman to circumnavigate Africa, solo. That is the goal that lies at my core. And so, without further ado:

I will be continuing on my journey and I have now decided to circumnavigate the African continent on a motorcycle. So the dynamics change a bit. All-in-all the main difference is my chosen mode of transport.

I do have a potential sponsor but am waiting on a definite yes before I can make that announcement. I am working hard at getting back on the road as soon as possible

My needs list will change a bit as well, of course.

As soon as I have my ducks walking in a neat row again (not like they ever do), I’ll be able to share more details and the more technical aspects of the trip. For now, this update serves as an announcement of my intentions going forward.

I am sure that my decision will result in mixed reactions. But I am very excited about this change.

The adventure does continue.


Spending time with my little brother and... his bike!!!



Donations or country sponsorships can be done through PayPal – visit the SPONSOR A COUNTRY page for more details!! Otherwise, send Jolandie or La Domestique a mail.

Please drop by and visit my facebook group or my facebook page. Click on a country to see many more photographs of my incredible journey around Africa!
Lovingly maintained and updated by La Domestique.


Wednesday, 07 September 2011

Update - Being Home

It’s much easier to give a blog update when I’m on the road. I don’t even have to think about what to write about. On the road, there’s so much to take in and experience every day.
 
Something that did cross my mind yesterday was that: I have never flown so much in such a short space of time as in the last two weeks. First it was flying to M’banza Congo with the Governor of the Zaire province in Angola. Then specially chartered flight to Lobito. Then flying home from Windhoek.
 
On Thursday I fly to Richards Bay to visit my dad and younger brother. I haven’t seen them in over a year and a half! So, I’m really looking forward to catching up!! And then the flight back to Johannesburg again. (Maybe I should fly around Africa?!)
 
My pesky cold seems to have finally come to terms with the fact that I don’t like it and don’t want to be involved with it anymore. ‘It’s not you, it’s me – I’m just not that into you.’
 
My most precious Hvir (The Greatest Dane in the world) is sick. (Seems that the pesky cold is chancing it on ‘playing the field’). She has been to the doctor and I’m sure she’ll be wagging her tail again in no time.
 
Now… what’s happening on the ‘circumnavigating Africa’ front? I hope to be sharing some exciting news with you all pretty soon. Right now I don’t have any definite answers, but there is a plan!
  • It does involve a new Luna…of sorts. :)
  • It does involve going around Africa.
  • It does involve jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring, hold-on-to-your-seats-and-buckle-up-for-the-ride-of-your-life adventure!!! 
 
But you’ll have to wait until I have a definite YES!
 
Other than that, I don’t have much news at this stage. Though that doesn’t deter ‘La Domestique’ from giving me the ‘I’ll kill you if you don’t give me a blog update’ look every day! :)
 
Here’s to living your dreams, taking that leap. To getting up, dusting yourself off and carrying on. No matter how many times you may fall down.
 
‘Shoot for the moon, if you miss, you still land amongst the stars.’
 




 
Donations or country sponsorships can be done through PayPal – visit the SPONSOR A COUNTRY page for more details!! Otherwise, send Jolandie or La Domestique a mail.

 
Please drop by and visit my facebook group or my facebook page. Click on a country to see many more photographs of my incredible journey around Africa!

 
Lovingly maintained and updated by La Domestique.

 


 

Sunday, 04 September 2011

My side of the story

Phew!! So much to say, where do I start?

First off, I really just want to say thank you! From the bottom of my heart. Thank you to all my followers, friends, family, fans, for all your support, messages, e-mails, tweets, sms messages, phone calls. It’s been one crazy ride! (pun intended) :)

And thank you to La Domestique (Hanret) for keeping everybody updated and making me jump up and down, screaming next to the road!!!

I am convinced, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I must be the luckiest person on the face of this earth. Now I can hear some of you asking: ‘How the heck can you be lucky if your bike got stolen’? Well, it would seem that I ALWAYS bump into the right people, and when something ‘bad’ does happen to me, a miracle always follows.

I am absolutely stunned beyond what I can put in words, at just how Angola, as a nation, as a country… reacted to my ‘predicament’.

I’ll try and explain, in my own words, what happened. (In a nutshell, as I think everybody knows the story by now and I’ve had to go over it with the Angolan police and media like ten thousand times.)
Four drunk kids yielding knives (big and bigger), take my precious Luna. I manage to keep my handlebar bag, one front pannier and Camelbak. I Whatsapp message Hanret back home. I manage to phone friends in Lobito and Luanda. Then….CHAOS!!!

Friends from Lobito jump in their car, friends of friends from Lobito in Soyo jump in their car. Bearing in mind that these towns are, respectively, about 200 kilometers and 700 kilometers from where I am!! Friends from Luanda phone the head of police in N’zeto. Next thing I know I have four cars skidding to a halt next to me. (Police)

I get taken to police station and have about thirty officers in uniform all asking questions, all at the same time, in Portuguese. They find someone that can speak English. (At this point my Portuguese is good enough to explain what happened etc, but I’m stressed and jump between English, Afrikaans, Portuguese, French, Hebrew… heck, I even throw in a little isiZulu)

Then I get taken to hotel, two guards in charge of making sure nobody comes near me. The guys from Soyo arrive (Domingo and Jose, whom I met for the first time in front of the hotel, but they came to save me anyway). We soon discover that all three of us are Aquarians and we immediately get on like Namibians and Jaggermeister.

I then receive a phone call from one, Pedro SebastiĆ£o, the Governor of the Zaire province in Angola. He informs me that he has dispatched two helicopters from Luanda and is on his way, personally, in his airplane. Holy Moses!!! From thereon it was just the most incredibly, amazingly, bizarre and crazy and ‘out-of-this-world’ experience I have ever had.

The Governor arrives and tells me that I will be flying back with him to M’banza Congo where I will spend two days. (Yes sir! – she replies) In the air, he asks whether I need a doctor? (I’m still fighting this stupid cold or flu or whatever it is.) We land, at his house (read mansion), the doctor awaits. He gives me a load of meds and I go to bed. I stayed in bed, no jokes, until the NEXT evening!

The two helicopters remain in the air for TWO days, searching for Luna and/or the perps. On Monday, a flight is especially chartered for me to Lobito, at my request!! (I have a lot of friends in Lobito and it was where I felt most comfortable at the time.) I receive phone calls from no less that four Ministers, PERSONALLY!!!

From Lobito I drove to Windhoek (Namibia), thought it would be a nice road trip, to see the road I had cycled just weeks before. Then I flew back home.

So here I am, back in good old Mzansi. In the city of gold. AGAIN!!!

Bar the incident in Angola, I just have to state that I have never experienced such kindness, openness, warmth, caring and passion anywhere else before!! And this is before and after the incident. Angola is an amazingly beautiful country with amazingly beautiful, caring people!

I am, and probably always will be in awe of the extent that the people of Angola has gone to, to try and catch the boys that took Luna and to make sure that I was safe. It is just beyond words! I owe them a great deal of gratitude!

NOW – I know the question EVERYONE is asking is: ‘Are you calling it a day’? I will say this once, and once only: I have NO intention to give UP!!! I want to be the first woman to circumnavigate Africa solo. I’m just currently figuring out the how and when etc.

So * watch this space *!!

Thank you to Hoteis Angola for their ongoing support.



Donations or country sponsorships can be done through PayPal – visit the SPONSOR A COUNTRY page for more details!! Otherwise, send Jolandie or La Domestique a mail.

Please drop by and visit my facebook group or my facebook page. Click on a country to see many more photographs of my incredible journey around Africa!

Lovingly maintained and updated by La Domestique.