Just after arriving in Parsons Green, this sunny and warm day, I turned on the computer and saw these great news :

Dear Mikael,

We made you a honorary member in La Rahla so that if you need to consult any of our members we can put you in touch with them for information on the regions of the Sahara you intend to cross. We can also facilitate you buying photocopies of maps of the Sahara as we have practically full coverage of this part of the world. We can also help you on historical events which took place in the areas you will be crossing. It will add interest for you and the people you will be describing your expedition to.

We also feel that you are intending to do something particularly difficult physically and near impossible in this day and age with all the red tape problems in crossing borders that we can but admire your optimism on being able to conclude this venture. You are going to cross a part of the world we enjoy so much visiting and reading about. It will be a pleasure for us also to follow your itinerary and telling our members how it is progressing.

Mikael, “La Rahla, Amicale des Sahariens” 116 rue Damrémont 75018 PARIS FRANCE, is an association created over 80 years ago with over 1000 members across the world. Publishing every quarter in french a review of 80 pages on the Sahara excusively, and that this month it has just published as well a booklet of over 128 pages on an epic crossing of the Tenere desert done in 1927- 1928 when this part of the world was just a blank on the map with the title “EXPLORATION DU TENERE à la recherche du Tafassasset avec Ch. Toubeau de Maisonnneuve”. To see more about this Association visit their internet site :

http://www.larahla.com