TravelStream™ news feed for member bohemiabones on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/bohemiabones en-us Copyright ©2010 TravelPod.com Tue, 28 Oct 2008 14:50:23 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bohemiabones/2/1225219560/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bohemiabones/2/1225219560/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bohemiabones/2/1225219560/tpod.html Tue, 28 Oct 2008 14:50:23 -0400 Through Namibia

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Windhoek, Namibia

Through Namibie
The long straight road cutting through the rugged landscape dissappears over the horizon and the only sign of life is a lone group of ostriches. As our 4x4 slows they begin to trot alongside, then picking-up speed so quickly it starts to look like they will win this race until I floor the accelerator and leave them behind.

Deserted Desert
Endless horizons with no sign of a town or village, only a tumble down roadside cafe - like something out of an Arizona road movie - to break the journey and provide respite from the searing heat. My guide comforts me with "our hotel is close by" , but this is a typical Namibian under-statement and we still have another 100km to go. Namibia has the lowest ratio of people to land area in Africa and even though it is as big as Germany, it has only a meagre 1.5 million inhabitants.

The only place you might experience a throng of people is at Kutako International Airport - named after a Herero folk hero - where excited tourist are arriving and impatient one are waiting to depart. Hunters from various European countries and the USA, almost indistinguisable from each other in their uniforms of green trousers, cammoflage jackets and broad-brimmed hats, struggle with awkward rifle cases. Arriving older tourists are relieved to get to their seats on the air-conditioned coaches and once the few young backpackers have finished taking photos, they will be all heading for the capital Windhoek.

Forty minutes driving through a treeless, dry and parched hilly landscape where the occassional little wooden farmhouse prompts you to wonder how this land can produce anything, and you are on the outskirts of Windhoek. First a mixture of low-rise industrial buildings, then smart new villas followed by modern houses and shops before the road widens into a tree lined boulevarde overshadowed by a few modest skyscrapers. Even here in the city centre, there are few people on the streets and only moderate traffic, creating more of a small town atmosphere.

If you want to experience real people, take an organized cultural tour to Katatura township with its thousands of tiny tin sheet dwellings sprawling like a gigantic silver patchwork quilt over the hillsides outside Windhoek. Katatura was created in the 1950´s aparthied days and the name means "place where we do not want to settle" in Herero language. It still draws people in search of work and a better life even if there are just not enough jobs in Windhoek. Still, spirits are high with children playing happily with home-made wooden toy cars, woman laughing and gossiping on every corner, while the men gather outside the bottlestore talking of those mythical jobs in Windhoek.

Sea Fog
Almost 500km from Windhoek at the southern most point of the Trans Kalahari Highway - which starts 1000s km away in Botswana - a heavy sea fog has settled over the small seaside town of Swakomond, just like it does almost every morning of the year.

Radiating rom the seafront are small streets packed with shops, bars and resturants and further out are the suburbs of colourful houses and fancy villas, reminding me vaguely of Europe - if there was only more greenery! But we are in the country where 90% of the land is desert and here the sand is windblown against front doors and gardens are mere sandpits planted with a few succulents and cactus. The European atmosphere is no coincidence: both the English and Germans colonized this country and the cool misty mornings here were preferable to the stifling heat of the interior. In fact today, Swakomund is almost solely occupied by the white descendents of these early settlers and those of South African Afrikaan origins. The English built a deep water port at nearby Walvis Bay and a harbour was later made at Swakomund, but strong currents have deposited sand in it and now its future is in doubt. Walk to the end of long wooden pier and there are good views of the towns main feature, the old light house and port building. From here, the setting sun turns all the towns window pains a glowing orange and this sparkling reflection reminds me of the worlds largest cystal - man size! - which is in the local museum.

The deserted Swakomund coastline is popular with fisherman and hoardes come from South Africa during the winter holiday period and at xmas it is full of locals having a picnic. Down the coast at Walvis Bay, there is a small but thriving fishing industry and the local restaurants specialize in fish - and oysters which are farmed in the lagoon and guaranteed fresh daily. The ice cold Bengali Current that produces such an abundance of fish makes bathing almost unbearable - that is unless you are a seal!

Early morning as tourists are busily getting ready to board boats for pleasure cruises, the elegant pink flamingos are also busy beside the pier sifting through the sandy bottom for mulloscs for breakfast. The mist is clearing and the tourists aboard the catamarans learn they dont have to go to the circus to see performing seals - the clever ones have learnt to jump aboard the boats, pose for photographs and the skipper will reward them with a fish! Luckily for the boats, the other 60,000 seals are not so smart and have made their home - and fishing grounds - along the coast at Cape Cross. In the 1930 there was a factory that culled and processed seals regulating the population, but today these Cape Fur seals are protected and the only threat are the jackals that wander the colony looking for an easy meal of an unguarded seal pup. Watching thousands of seals just metres from you is fascinating, especially the antics they get up to - but be prepared for the accompanying foul smell!!


A Sea of Dunes
It might be said Namibia has the biggest beach in the world, because the Namib Desert stretches the entire coastline of the country from Angola in the north to south Africa in the south and inland for 150 kilometres. This vast wilderness is shaped by the strong winds and like an artists never finished canvass the tones, colours and textures are ever changing in this oldest desert in the world. This is also one of the driest places on earth and yet life does exist in the desert. When cold air from the sea meets hot air of the desert a mist is formed that descends on the desert and sustains flora and fauna.
They call this the "head-standing beetle", so named because it does exactly this on the ridge of a dune when early morning mist gathers on its wax coated back and runs down into its mounth, say tommy Collard the well known local desert guide. Tommy has spent ten years operating the !Living Desert Tours" and where i can only see sand, from his seat behind the steering wheel of our slowly moving Land Rover, he spots miniscule insect and reptile tracks that lead to the amazing discovery of snakes, ghekos, chamealons and all sorts of insects. Many plants have also adapted to this harsh environment: there is the "dollar-bush" which is a succulent storing water in its coin shaped leaves and the mysterious Welwitchis plant with it two broad leaves that become torn by the winf into dozens of strands making it look bedraggled. It survives on just 25mm of rainfal per year and it is believed they live for thousands of years.

Further south are the famous red dunes of Souselvie that feature in so many postcards, picture books and films about Namibia. The dunes here are some of the highest in the word reaching up to 400 metres. Over millions of years nature transformed the yellow sand containing iron oxide into the apricot red we see today and a rare sight are petried dunes that were formed by the action of water. Occassionaly it rains in the Namib and flower and grass seeds that have lain dormant for years spring into life - because of rain last yearin the far south I was treated to the rare sight of dunes still covered in dry straw yellow grass. Scan the dunes and you might find life, but not just Tommy collards insects, as here a majestic desert dwelling antelope has learned to survive. With temperatures in the sun exceeding 50C a mammal increase in blood temperature would kill it but the Oryx has a network of tiny blood vessels close to the skin of the nose that cool the blood as the animal stands on a dune to catch the wind on its face.

In the far south out of the dunes, another animal has adapted to living in this barren wilderness and this might seem hard to believe buts is true. At the turn of the century South african forces bombed a German base in this area and ? thousan horse were scattered over the desert. Most were rounded up, but a handful escaped to adapt and survive in the desert. The descendant are the so called "Wild Horses" that can be seen - with a little luck - at a viewing point overlooking a water hole.


Diamond Fever
"Theft means you steal from us all" says the giant billboards put up by NAMDIB the diamond mining company that strictly guards a vast area of the desert know as the "Restricted Area". It was said that diamonds could be found laying in the sand but with armed patrols the usual method of theft was via the workers in the mines. On the edge of this area right on the coast is the small town of Luderitz, originally founded by German colonists as a port and still home to people working in the diamond mines. The building and arcitecture of Luderitz is often described in travel guides as a typical Bavarian town, but perhaps this is a bit of an exaggeration. A visit is worthwhile but dont get tempted if you meet with some characxters who try to lure you into diamond smuggling - they are likely to dissappear with your money or you could end up with an extended holiday at the Namibian governments hospitality.

The diamond boom started at the beginning of the 19th century when a farm worker found and brought the first diamond to his boss, ???. The find could not be kept secret for long and soon the diamond toiwn of Kolmanskop was founded. Money was no object here, it had luxury villas for the management, a gym, bar and bowling alley, theatre - where top performers from around the world were brought to perform - and a hospital complete with Africa´s first x-ray machine (of course, used to to check whether worker stealing diamonds by swallowing them). Today, you can visit this ghost town on the outskirts of Ludereitz and join a fascinating guided tour amongst the sand blow and sand filed building.

The history of this part of the coast goes back further to when the great explorer Batholmew Dias explored the coast in 15 century and landed just north of Luderitz to plant a cross proclaiming catholicitism had arrived. A fantastic sunset can be experienced here and the wild 4 metre waves constantly crashing against the giant rocks and boulders reminds you of the dangers to shipping along this 1400 km stretch of coast. Shipwrecks abound and it didnt get the name Skeleton Coast for nothing.

Deep in the Earth
In the deep south of Namibia, close to the border with south africa is, set in the vast arid plains baked by 50c summer tempteratures is one of Africas greatest geoloical phenoma - Fish River Canyon. There is no need for me to offer a desription as it is almost identical to the Grand Canyon in the USA, an image I am sure you are familiar with, and only a few metres less deep it is the second biggest canyon in the world.

The diference here compared to the USA version, is that you will just about have the canyong and its strategically made tourist viewpoints to yourself whatever time of day. For the adventurous there is a 8 day trek down and along the bottom of the canyon following the winding route of the little Fisg River amongst the towering canyong walls. The sky is nearly almways a cloudless blue, but on my sunrise visit the clouds gather dramtic black, a brisk wind rose and the sand began to swirl.Driving away in my jeep, tjhe littùle whirlwinds became bigger and engulfed me in a sandstorm. It was over in minutes and visibility restored I quickly drove to the nearby Canyon Lodge, just in case of a repeat performance! The lodge is built in a colonial style with eco-style chalets set amongst enoormous boulders overlooking a sandy plain. In the cool winter evening, we gathered around the fireplace in the main building and my guide told me how exceptionally lucky I was to have seen the canyon with clouds - he had never experienced it before in over 60 visits., so the accompanying sandstorm was a small price to pay!

Heading north east from the Canyon, I enter anthoer desert - the Kalahari, which stetches right across Botswana into Naminia. Here amoingst the red sand plains and gentle dunes you come across the occasional lonely farm house, eeking out a living, and workers on rickety wooden carts being pulled by two or up to four donkeys. At the tiny town of Gobais, I walk in the tin-shed township where perhaps a thousand Nama people settled in aparthied times and now just while away their days. The young girls i meet speak english, learned from school but little practiced as tourists are shy to visit this community, and we chat about their hopes and ambitions. I leave feeling a little humbled by these people with so little who are so friendly, happy and welcoming.

Circling around north of Windhoek, I am in the rocky rugged interiuor away from the sandy Namib Desert and camping under a million stars under the shadow of the Spitzcoppe, a collection of boulders the size of a seven storyy block of flats. Scramplng to the top for sunrise I see a landscape before me that looks more like the Arizona desert than Africa. The sun has painted the rocks and plains orange and in the distance is the Brandenberg, towering above the surrounding plain at over 2000metres. Driving through this area there are marked places where you can find original rock painting made by the Bushman thousands of years ago. But the biggest surprise is at Tylfontain, where knowledgeable guides will take you on a tours of the rocky hillside and point out hundreds of bushman painting. Driving through a rock strewn plain, my guide proudly tells me we are in Messum Crater, the impression made when a meteorite hit this place in ???. The crater is so large, I cannnot identify as such and wonder at the size of the meteorite to make such 20 km diameter impression..

Etosha and Beyond
Almost 500km and six hours drive northm of Windhoek is the world famous Etosha National Park. Here you can see, at close quatewrs, all the major game of Africa - elephant, lion, giraffe, zebra, warthog, etc .. But what really sets Etosha apart from other Parks in Africa is the stunning landscape as it consists of a vast salt pan. The rippling heat haze rising off the pan during an afternoon drive is mesmerizing - although this is the worse time to spot animals and the best to relax around the beautiful lodge a ????. Early morning or evening is the best time for game viewing and herds of animals gather around the water holes and it is here you will witness the cat-and-mouse games between lions and their prospective dinners.

For the adventurous the trip up to the northern border wil reveal even more drametic and stark landscapes of ??? valley, Kunene river on the border with angola and the spectacular Epupa Falls. Perhaps the biggest drawcard is meeting with the Himba tribe who have made this part of the desert their home. Shunning modern ways the woman still smear their body in a mixture of butter fat and iron oxide, including their braided hair, which gives the stunning effect the tribe are reknown for.

People
Namibia is a land of almost unimaginable space. Away from the few towns is a vast diverse landscapes amongst which you can drive all day and hardly see a village, person and perhaps encounter just a handful of other vehicles. Colonialism left a network of exceelent tarred roads linking most parts of the country, although other are just unsurfaces gravel roads that require some caution when driving. Tourists are well catered for, with countless lodges from simple to luxy eco-lodges and a full range of tours options to take you anywhere and see do everything. Because of this, it is also a country where you can organise your own idependant holiday through the internet and is ideal for a fly-drive trip. Namibia has been referred to as "Africa for beginners" - a sentiment I fully agree with!


]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bohemiabones/1/1225050600/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bohemiabones/1/1225050600/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/bohemiabones/1/1225050600/tpod.html Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:34:58 -0400 BAD VEHICLE RENTAL CHOICE IN KENYA

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Nairobi, Kenya

BAD VEHICLE RENTAL CHOICE IN KENYA

PLEASE NOTE: I only just discovered travelpod, so sorry that my first entry is not on a very positive theme but this is my latest travel experience that happened at the beginning of October 2008 and while it might not be cheerful reading, i do really hope it might help you my fellow travellers.

HOW IT ALL BEGUN
Marleen Buis replied to a post I put on a travel forum seeking to rent a 4x4 for a holiday in Kenya. I was organising this holiday for a married couple who are friends, not been to Africa before and wanted an extra special last holiday as they planned to start a family. I told Marleen this and that we needed a reliable vehicle for our safari, to which she assured me that her rental Landcruiser would be suitable and that she together with Dickson Wambugu, her local friend and partner, would provide full back-up with a replacement vehicle in the case of a breakdown.

This is a summary of the problems we experienced with the rented vehicle (Toyota Landcruiser 75), Dickson (the local partner) and Marleen:

BROKEN FUEL INJECTOR PIPE (Part 1.)
Dickson handed over the Landcruiser to me on a friday evening. He had promised me that it had just been fully serviced and was well prepared for our long tour ahead.
On saturday morning when i first drove the vehicle i noticed that the handbrake did not work at all and the clutch was not functioning perfectly, it was not clearing properly and sometimes it was difficult to get out of first or reverse gear. Other small problems were apparent, ie., the engine temperature gauge did not work, the drivers window winder handle was off (which later caused problems when other vehicles created dust while approaching on dirt roads and not being unable to wind up the window in time), the bonnet locating bolts were loose, the bonnet safety catch sometimes did not locate properly and one rubber external safety fastening was broken, as was all the ones that should fasten open and close the roof hatch. Seeing these and other little repairs that obviously Dickson could not be bothered to put right, I did start to have concerns as to whether the major mechanical aspects had been maintained and serviced properly.

Returning to our hotel in Nairobi on the same saturday in the evening after collecting my friends from the airport, I noticed diesel fuel was leaking from the engine onto the hotel car park. With no torch I could not see where it was coming from under the bonnet and sent a message to Dickson. He dismissed this apparent problem saying it was just excess overflow after stopping the engine and would not come to check the vehicle. The next morning we had to go to the airport for lost luggage and on the way back noticed diesel fuel pouring from the engine. I discovered that one of the fuel pipes leading to an injector on the engine had broken completely off and fuel was being sprayed all over the engine. I could see that the breakage was at a previously badly repaired point on the pipe. A soldier guarding the airport gave us a very hard time for stopping, threatened to "arrest" us, wasted 45 minutes of our time and "fined" us 20usd - my friends found this, their first encounter in Kenya very disturbing.

We should have immediately departed for Masai Mara but returned to Nairobi so Dickson could arrange a repair. He took us to a wooden shed repair shop in the township and a guy re-welded the pipe while we were hassled by an unsavoury variety of people - one threateningly weilding a stick! The "mechanic" did not have any welding/brazing rods - or tools for that matter - and just melted the existing braze left on the broken pipe and stuck the two broken ends together. I questioned whether this repair would last long but Dickson reassured me it would. We lost 3.5 hours on this repair and were very late departing for the long drive to the Mara.

My friends starting their holiday of a lifetime were already distressed and very worried about our rental vehicle...as was I, but hoped that this first mechancal failure was just unlucky. What should have been a pleasant slow drive to the Mara turned into a worrying journey because we were so late and knew we had to get to the Reserve gates before dark when they close and after this we would not be able to enter to the safe campsite.

NO TECHNICAL CERTIFICATE
Before taking the Landcruiser I asked Dickson if ALL the technical, insurance and other documentation was correct and he assured me it was. He even showed me the stickers on the windscreen and said that everything was there and the vehicle was legal for road use. I took his word for this and also believed that Marleen would not rent the vehicle if everything was not legal and correct. Still the first day of our holiday (the sunday) we were stopped by police at a checkpoint on our way to the Mara and were told the "Technical Sticker" on the windscreen had expired, the vehicle had no technical test certificate, should not be used on the road and I could face a big fine for driving it. I was also told without a technical sticker our insurance was invalid. We called Dickson who spoke to the policeman and then promised to call him back, Dickson did not call him back and after some time at our request the policeman had to call Dickson. Dickson somehow "pursuaded" the policeman to let us go (???), but we lost another 45 minutes at this checkpoint and were now compromised into driving a vehicle that should not be on the road legally. Later during our holiday twice more at checkpoints police told us the technical had expired and it cost me 100usd in "fines" to enable us to proceed.

It is unbelievable that Marleen and Dickson rented the Landcruiser to me without a technical sticker and knowing that there are many many police checkpoints on just about every road in Kenya. With no handbrake and the other problems, no doubt the vehicle was not capable of getting a technical sticker honestly, but Marleen and Dickson should not be renting a vehicle that is illegal on the road. We were also concerned about the validity of the vehicle insurance and also our holiday insurance should we become involved in an accident.

LEAKING FUEL TANK and BROKEN FUEL INJECTOR PIPE (Part 2.)
At Narok (halfway to Mara) on the same first day of our holiday we filled up both tanks with fuel only to find fuel pouring from underneath the vehicle apparently from the reserve tank. We thought that maybe it was over-filled and would stop once excess had drained away. Later we checked and fuel was still leaking from the tank plus there was now fuel leaking from the engine. We found that the repair to fuel injector pipe had failed and the pipe was broken again in the same place, spraying fuel everywhere. By the time we reached Mara gate (just at dark as apart from the late depature from Nairobi the engine was not running well on five cylinders), I estimate we lost 25 litres of fuel from reserve tank and 20 litres sprayed from the broken pipe which leads direct from the fuel injection pump and is pressurized. The rangers at the gate refused us entry to the reserve or campsite because of the large amount of diesel fuel pouring from the tank and engine. After some time and "persuasion" they allowed us to the camp site within the gate - although I have to agree this fuel leakage everywhere was not eco friendly at all.

I informed Dickson and he said that we should not have filled the reserve tank to the top as it had a breakage lower and once the fuel had run out below this it would stop. BUT, he did not tell me about this broken hole in the tank before when I collected the vehicle otherwise we would not have filled it to the top. And why did he not repair it before renting the vehicle to me?

Our planned itinerary was to arrive the Mara mid-afternoon, set up camp and then do a leisurely game drive at the prime time before sunset. But this was not to be - we set-up our camp in the dark, found that the tent supplied with the vehicle had a broken main support pole (not been told about this) and tried unsuccessully to fix this for one hour before giving up and sleeping with the canvass on my friends heads. My friends could have brought their own tent but Marleen said a tent would be provided - not a broken one. Again a terrible start for my friends.

FIRST REQUEST FOR REPLACEMENT VEHICLE
The first day of our holiday using the vehicle was already starting to be a disaster because of our discovery that it had no technical sticker and the breakdowns. We were unwilling to continue driving this unroadworthy and illegal vehicle and I asked Dickson to bring out a replacement vehicle by the morning. No reply from Dickson about a replacement vehicle. We woke at 5.30am to be prepared (in hope) for the arrival of the replacement vehicle and ready for the morning game drive at dawn if the vehicle arrived. Dickson texted a message that someone would come. Two guys eventually arrived at 8.30am and said they would repair the broken fuel pipe but not replace the vehicle. Nice guys who were a bit pissed off that Dickson asked them to solve his problems....they also said other stuff about Dickson. At 10.30am they had done this and made a good job of it, welding in a new piece of pipe - but saying the previous repair (unders Dicksons supervision and gurarantee) was rubbish and could not be expected to last more than a few hours driving on these bumpy roads. They said the tank could not be repaired in the bush and also that the vehicle was very old, in bad condition and when they heard that we were driving all the way to Lamu Island they said we should ask again for a replacement newer vehicle for our trip. It was obvious to us that Dickson had no intention of replacing the vehicle and expected us to continue our holiday driving this vehicle with no technical sticker - unbelievable! This was the beginning of my friends "holiday of a lifetime" we had a pre-planned itinerary with hotel bookings paid for in full, Park entries arranged and we did not have the financial resources to abandon this vehicle and rent another from a reputable company having parted with all the rental cost in advance to Marleen/Dickson. Deserted by Dickson, we had no alternative now than to continue on our way with this unroadworthy vehicle in the hope that he would still replace it before we left the Mara and needed to drive on-road without the technical.

The Mara was to be our first big experience in game viewing but because of the vehicle we already lost both the previous evenings game drive and now the morning game drive. We hurried through the park as our itinerary meant we had to exit the gate at the complete opposite end of the reserve before dusk. One of the most famous game viewing areas in the world and we missed it. What a dissappointment, with the vehicle, Dickson and finally Marleen for pursuading me to rent it in the first place and that it was a well serviced reliable vehicle.

ENGINE NOT STARTING
Still no mention from Dickson of replacing the vehicle and compromised, we continued on our itinerary. Day 4 of our holiday in Amboseli the vehicle would not start in the morning, turn the key and nothing. We waited one hour for another vehicle which pushed the Landcruiser and it started. We had already missed the best game viewing then because of the clutch not working properly, I stalled the engine later, it would not start and we waited for two hours before a suitable vehicle came along to tow start us. We dare not stop the vehicle and headed for the exit gate, where the engine stopped again and the gate ranger and others had to push start it.

We also found that the doors seals were not very effective and large amounts of dust entered the vehicle as most of the roads were dirt. The rubber grommets around the gear/low range sticks also leaked and dust came pumping through this meaning we had to bag our cameras at all times and everthing, including ourselves, was coated in dust whenever we drove.

SECOND REQUEST FOR REPLACEMENT VEHICLE
We made it to Tsavo West and I again told Dickson that we wanted a replacement vehicle. He said he was out of Nairobi (excuse?) - but that wasnt our problem and we expected the service we were promised. No replacement vehicle came that day. I worked on the starting and think that the solenoid was sticking or starter motor lazy. We got stuck three times that day, sometimes rocking the vehicle in gear or tapping the starter motor, but missed the chance to game drive and see some of the spectacular sights that Tsavo is famous for, such as the lava flow, etc., because we did not dare stop the engine unless it was essential.

THE LONG WAIT
Finally Dickson said he would replace the vehicle and would come out with Marleen on our Day 5. We were less than four hours drive from Nairobi and expected a replacement vehicle in the morning. With no progress report from Dickson we tried to continue through T/West to get to Tsavo East gate on the main highway which would be easier for them to meet us. We got there mid-day and Dickson told me he would arrive before 3pm. We unpacked and cleaned everything and waited and waited and waited. Four hours later still no Dickson/Marleen or replacement car even though Dickson told me they left early morning and its four hours drive(which I know as I later clocked it when we returned from Malindi that way). I called Dickson and he said they had just passed a town which from my map showed that they were still around 100km away, ie., 1 to 2 hours drive. We decided that Dickson was not being truthful as well as not being reliable.
Now, we had been waiting almost another two days for a replacement vehicle after being promised one by Dickson and Nairobi is just four hours drive away. What should we think?
Our hotel was booked and paid for on Lamu Island and we had to be there next day. We faced a 100+km drive through Tsavo East on rough dirt tracks and had to exit the gate before dark when it is then locked, then it was a full day drive up to Lamu. It was 4.30pm now and dark at 6.30pm and Dickson/Marleen are playing cruel games with us. My friend is a senior business analyst with a major international company involved in the tourism sector, his wife a manager of another international company and me a somewhat experienced traveller in africa - our judgement was: either that probably our faulty vehicle would not be replaced but taken from us as we had paid fully for the rental and the Dickson/Marleen team had nothing to lose or in the best scenario they would arrive at dusk and it would be too late for us to make it to Lamu, resulting in the loss of our hotel payments, behind in our itinerary and more importantly the further ruin of our holiday.

I called Dickson on the telephone and he said he would be at the gate to meet us in ten minutes and I said we would wait fifteen minutes otherwise they should meet us at Malindi. They did not arrive and we loaded and left for a very unpleasant rush through East Tsavo. Our itinerary was to include morning game drive, sightseeing Lugana Falls, etc and evening game drive, but we missed all this. In fact we arrived the exit Sala gate in the dark and quite rightly the rangers were angry that we endangered wildlife by driving in the dark - no thanks to Dickson/Marleen.

Another game park experience totally missed because of the vehicle, Dickson and Marleen.

CONTINUED VEHICLE PROBLEMS
The cigerette lighter socket stopped working, not a big thing but we could not charge our telephone, GPS, camera or torch batteries. Clutch, brakes, dust problems continued although the starting seemed to be sorted. Our main concern was losing the use of our mobile phones altough we already well realised by now that no help, assistance or rescue could be expected from Dickson/Marleen team, but in an emergency perhaps others could help. The lighter socket problem was nothing though, because now the foot brake almost didnt work! It just started to apply the brakes right at the bottom and the driving experience was both dangerous and frightening.

ENGINE OVERHEATING
Dickson/Marleen texted that they were overnighting at Voi which is just south of the gate they should have met us at. Obviously, they had no intention of continuing to Malindi - which I told Dickson to do and it was on a well surfaced road for them to drive - to meet with us. Abandoned by them and with our telephones not working, the next day we continued north to Lamu. After our stay, leaving Lamu the engine started to die and run badly. We stopped and found that the radiator reservoir had broken off, fell down and water was lost from the cooling system. The engine had over-heated, but as the temperature guage did not work (as noted from first day of rental) I could not know this. We had to wait two hours for the engine to cool before refilling with water and had to tie up the reservoir with string.
At Malindi a mechanic said all the car was in bad condition and not suitable for long distances as other mechanical things could break at any time, plus a rear spring had a crack and a front shackle was completely loose.

BROKEN EXHAUST AT MANIFOLD Our holday was at an end and we just hoped and prayed the Landcruiser would make it back to Nairobi for our flight home the next day. On our way we could smell exhaust fumes in the cab. I found that the exhaust pipe was fractured right as it exited the manifold from the engine. Part of it was an old break in the badly corroded pipe and I could see a fresh split that had opened - obviously this had not been seen by Dickson and not repaired or the pipe replaced as it should have been if the vehicle had been serviced properly. We drove all day feeling sick from carbon monoxide fumes and worried that the pipe would drop off and as it was directly from the engine, the car would not be possible to drive because of the excessive noise and lack of back-pressure. The car used 20litres of diesel each 100km because of lack of power and overtaking was dangerously slow.

NO APOLOGIES AT NAIROBI
We arrived Nairobi 6pm after a long hard and worrying drive, but least in time to get to our hotel and go for a last meal at Carnivore restaurant. Not locating our hotel we passed Carnivore so stopped for directions to our hotel and to confirm our booking. Wow, Dickson and Marleen were laying in wait like hyenas and pounced (I remembered that I had mentioned to him on arrival that we would book a last dinner at Carnivore). Dickson said next to nothing perhaps embarassed about the bad condition of the car and lack of service, while Marleen on the other hand viciously attacked me with accusations of driving the car so hard I damaged it! Wow again...how could I damage the car in a few kilometres from taking delivery of the vehicle in Nairobi when it already broke down, then it broke down the first day after less than 200km of driving on excellent roads and already had lots of problems that haunted us throughout the holiday. I spent 30 years driving 4x4 vehicles, training drivers (police academy, military, utility companies, expedition teams,etc) working for importers, i currently own four 4x4 vehicles, travel around three months of the year in 4x4s(usually rented locally) with my wife crossing deserts and mountains on lone trips and if I damaged vehicles I simply would not be in business today and not be alive today. I know all about sympathetic driving and it was perhaps through this that we were just able to continue with this crippled vehicle to the end of our holiday. Besides being a vehicle sympathetic driver, we just did the same routes as other 2x4 mini vans do and taking the same time, so how on earth could I have caused damage. Marleen must have thought she could bluster her way out of this, but what about the no technical papers, no replacement vehicle, etc, etc... can brakes wear out in five days? When I challenged Marleen to point out how I had damaged the car she replied "I have a feeling". I had a feeling as well, especially when the Dickson and Marleen´s only concern was to get the vehicle from me there and then instead of the next morning...did they really think I would steal it and forgo my flight to drive it back to Europe? No, they knew they had ripped us off by renting us an old, badly repaired and poorly serviced wreck of a car which was provided with no back-up service or replacement vehicle and perhaps feared we would deliberately damage it at the end out of retribution. Of course, even though Dickson/Marleen and this car ruined our holiday we would not do that, but I found in life that people judge others by what they would do themselves. My friends and I had one small satisfaction, that we had made the right judgement at Tsavo Gate and not waited for the arrival of Dickson and Marleen as at best they would have took the vehicle, our only means of continuing our holiday, and at worse they were not even on their way but just pretending.

I gladly handed over the vehicle but first pointed out some of the worn out, badly repaired or previously broken mechanical parts. Neither said anything.

LAST THOUGHTS
The next day my friends and I reflected on that last meeting with Dickson and Marleen and what occured to us was that neither of them even once said that very simple word "sorry" . Not a single word of sorry for any of the problems with the car, their lack of service or for ruining our holiday, but I suppose that is Dickson and Marleen and doing business with them... or rather being a victim of them.

WHY DID WE CONTINUE WITH THE VEHICLE?
Reading this account, you may wonder why i agreed to rent this vehicle over the internet in the first place and secondly why we continued with the vehicle rather than return it to the renter - even from the first day. Firstly, take a look at Marleens website - she comes over as a genuine and honest person or did i misjudge her from her pages? She rents her vehicle for money and approached me with an offer, told me she just bought another Landcruiser to rent in Kenya, so i see that as a business. I have copies of her emails reassuring me about the reliability of the vehicle and back-up replacement vehicle. She is a Netherlands national and resident and i believed that as a fellow European we shared similar views on standards of service, morals and business ethics. I could never imagine that she would be rent a vehicle a completely worn out, poorly serviced vehicle and without a technical certificate.
Secondly, we continued because i and eventually "we" (as in my friends agreed) were compromised. This was a special holiday i organised for my friends, our itinerary could not be changed without missing major attractions and forfeiting hotel and Park entries. The three of us live and work in the Czech Republic where salaries are around ¼ of "western" european salaries and we just could not afford to return the vehicle, rent another or pay for some sort of private transport service (public transport is too erratic to have enabled us to stick to our itinerary) to complete our holiday. I paid for the rental in advance and soon realised that a refund would not be forthcoming to finance alternative transport. In the first days i still trusted in the back-up replacement vehicle service but later we realised that the only real choice left was to ditch the vehicle or try to continue.

BUT PLEASE MAKE YOUR OWN DECISION IF YOU ARE LOOKING TO RENT A VEHICLE IN KENYA:

MARLEEN BUIS (www.afrikavirus.nl) and DICKSON WAMBUGU(www.advenafrica.com)
and their VEHICLE RENTAL BUSINESS IN KENYA


FOLLOW-UP
I will soon post my emailed complaint to the pair and their reply.












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