The children were fantastic travellers. As we inched our way across the map of Europe, then Central Asia, their capabilities of course increased. Of school there was none but plenty of home education more than filled the gap. Some basics, especially arithmetic and English for Fionn, who had only attended one year of primary, we taught. Most of what they learned was autonomous, though, absorbed almost osmotically. Geography was all around; arithmetic was course and distance calculations and money changing; history was often just chat, if Scottish, or visiting places like Avignon, or Budapest, or Kiev... And as it happens, they did go to school, in Slovenia, by invitation, for two terms, where they were taught in Slovenian! PHOTO Courtesy of DRG

I first came across this extra ordinary fellow called David Renwick Grant back in 1996 when I was planning my Patagonian trip on horseback, he gave me a book about his amazing journey with his family and he taught me a lot. Most of all he inspired me a lot! He still does. We have been in contact on and off throughout the years, lately on Facebook, where he is one of the most dignified of my 2137 friends. Not long ago I read about a Family on Bikes on Facebook and felt a lot of joy! But when reading about them I realized they were very criticized by people who thought it was crazy to bring children travelling. I was stunned! We have only been sedentary, we humans, for no more than maybe a 1000 years of our total of 150 000 as a species. How than can travelling be bad? So I asked David Renwick Grant what he thought.

THREADS FROM THE TAPESTRY

by

David Renwick Grant

I was on board the RSS Discovery last week. She’s berthed permanently in her home port of Dundee, where she was built and it was several years since I had had a look at her. Whatever their preferred means of travel, I would defy anyone who walks aboard and looks up at the crow’s nest not to see in their minds eye a landscape of ice and snow, instead of the solid stone face of Dundee and the gently-flowing river Tay. The old ship has been much modified over the years but you can still stand at the wheel or look into the galley or view the restored cabins of Scott and others. I could feel a tingle start in my feet, as I contemplated faraway places….

Scott’s two expeditions were massive affairs, as was Shackleton’s and to a lesser extent Amundsen’s. At the other end of the world, Nansen’s voyage in the Fram was equally large. Yet, I reflected, it is not essential to be equipped as if for a military operation. Nor is it a prerequisite to have spent years in training and be hugely fit. Had it been, my family and I would probably never have started, let alone completed, the first, and so far as I know, so far the only global circumnavigation by horse-drawn caravan. Yes, I did write ‘my family and I.’ Horse travel is slow, it’s a long way around the world and I wasn’t going to leave them behind for years. Seven years, as it turned out.

The idea of travelling en famille had begun almost as a joke, during a particularly vile day of low, scudding cloud and horizontal rain, sitting by a fire that would not draw and with smoke blowing back down the chimney into the room. The carpet was partially airborne but not from magic, just the draught blasting in under the door. The three children were pretty small then, which ruled out walking and cycling, I never learnt to sail and anyway (ex-)wife Kate got seasick. So that seemed to leave converting a bus, truck, or retired fire-engine perhaps. Anyway, we did nothing about it then, nor in the following year but we talked about it more and more often. Then one day, while I was working away from home, living in ‘digs’ (lodgings) in Lancaster during the week, I was lying in bed reading a magazine. I turned a page and there was this article about horse-drawn caravan holidays in Ireland and a most beguiling picture of a skewbald cob pulling a light bow-top wagon. That was it! That was how we should travel. And, about two years later, we did.

What I think we demonstrated very convincingly is that there are ways to travel as a family, even over an extended period, that neither break the bank nor destroy the life-chances of the children involved. Indeed on the latter point, the reverse is true. I mean, how many kids get the chance to jog along on their own pony across the Mongolian plains while reading a text-book! Financially, I reckon it cost us approximately £10,000 per year, which is pretty modest for five people, a horse and, for part of the time, two dogs. PHOTO Courtesy of DRG

The process of preparation we went through is largely common to any extended journey. In addition we had to find a suitable caravan and suitable horse. It would have been good to have found some suitable sponsors too, but 560-odd letters produced only a limited amount, nearly all donations or discounts, for which we were very grateful but which was never going to be enough. The caravan ended up being purpose-built, to my own design, by Gaulds of Crieff, Perthshire.  I had been advised that the Netherlands was the best place to seek a driving horse. This would also avoid the need for the extensive palaver involved when crossing a frontier with a horse – and risking life, horse and caravan to manic motorists on Britain’s narrow roads. There was a very steep learning curve to follow, though, before we finally set off, nearly five weeks after crossing the North Sea.

You learn a lot about people when you travel during a seemingly continuously wet autumn,  through the monotonously flat beet-growing countryside of northern France. The caravan seemed to get smaller and smaller as it filled with more and more wet gear and we were confined to sitting in it, at day’s end, because there was nowhere to go and more wet walking held no appeal. In fact, the children, who were only ten, nine and six then, stayed aboard most of the time and if it was flat enough, I would ride on occasionally, though it was actually warmer walking. With little to look at, villages few and far between, even I was beginning to wonder whether we were quite daft. The children bore up amazingly. It was as well that we had a good, if limited, supply of books and games with us and many a deadly session of Yahtze, Vulgar Bulgars or Nine Men’s Morris kept everyone amused of an evening when cooped up with rain still hammering on the roof.

The children were fantastic travellers. As we inched our way across the map of Europe, then Central Asia, their capabilities of course increased. Of school there was none but plenty of home education more than filled the gap. Some basics, especially arithmetic and English for Fionn, who had only attended one year of primary, we taught. Most of what they learned was autonomous, though, absorbed almost osmotically. Geography was all around; arithmetic was course and distance calculations and money changing; history was often just chat, if Scottish, or visiting places like Avignon, or Budapest, or Kiev… And as it happens, they did go to school, in Slovenia, by invitation, for two terms, where they were taught in Slovenian!

As John Ridgway wrote to me before we left: “Do it. You'll regret it for the rest of your lives if you don't.” PHOTO Courtesy of DRG

By the time we had reached the Ukraine, crossed Russia and reached Kazakhstan, we were all seasoned horse-drivers, foragers, wood gatherers and, to an extent, quite good linguists. Our first horse had proved too light and been changed back in France for a solid one-tonne model, who had by now become a much-loved member of the family. The further east we went, the more hospitable and friendly people became. The weather, however, did not and we had a fairly hellish couple of months before finally arriving in Almaty, the then-capital of Kazakhstan, in temperatures of -28° with plenty snow on the ground. The wonderful thing we had found was that, moving along at walking pace meant one could meet and talk – or at least communicate – with people along the way.

We always stopped for winter and that gave us all sorts of opportunities. I have a tape of Eilidh interviewing her little brother for Slovenian radio in Slovenian. Torcuil and I took to the skies in a microlight in Hungary. In Russia, we went trawling for crayfish. We had seen the empty shops of rural Ukraine, Russia and Kazakhstan – and learnt the secret of obtaining supplies in many different ways (all honest, I must add – we never stole so much as a cabbage).

There came problems in plenty, of course. We were hit glancing blows by cars in France and Italy. We were held back, sometimes for days, by the paperwork required for taking a horse across an international border. It took a week to wear down the Russians and get through to Mongolia – but in the interim we were taken to a concert by the Direktor of the Rajon where the noted Kazakh singer Roza Rimbayeva gave a stunning performance and somehow I ended up on stage at the end! We were bothered by drunks on several occasions, the worst of these leading to a serious situation in Mongolia where the prospect of gaol for me loomed, for a while. In fact, the only times I felt threatened were caused by drunken behaviour; even wartime in Yugoslavia seemed safer. Traceur, our ‘main engine’ was largely healthy right up until our last winter, in South Dakota, where, tragically, he died of a brain tumour.

Mostly we had great experiences, a lot of fun, much hard work, saw superb swathes of still-unspoilt parts of the planet and encountered some wonderful people. The children survived our return and have all been doing well in their chosen spheres. I was the one who seemed to find it hardest to settle down. So much so, in fact, that I set off on a solo kayak journey across the Baltic from Sweden, then up and down the rivers Dvina, Ulla, Berezina and Dnepr, finishing on the Black Sea at Odessa. It was different, contained a lot fewer pressures because I had no-one else to worry about, but was not, on the whole, as enjoyable.

The Grant Family! PHOTO Courtesy of DRG

What I think we demonstrated very convincingly is that there are ways to travel as a family, even over an extended period, that neither break the bank nor destroy the life-chances of the children involved. Indeed on the latter point, the reverse is true. I mean, how many kids get the chance to jog along on their own pony across the Mongolian plains while reading a text-book! Financially, I reckon it cost us approximately £10,000 per year, which is pretty modest for five people, a horse and, for part of the time, two dogs. £70,000 is still a fair lump of money of course, even today; it came from the proceeds of the sale of our house, plus some fees for writing and even for tuition on a couple of occasions. With hindsight, we should have prepared some sort of act or entertainment we could have offered – a portable means of making money and one that does not require a rigmarole to do.

As John Ridgway wrote to me before we left: “Do it. You’ll regret it for the rest of your lives if you don’t.”

David Renwick Grant

A short biography of David:

At the end of 1997, David Grant – and his family: ex-wife Kate, children Torcuil (1980), Eilidh (1981) and Fionn (1984) – returned from travelling around the world with a horse and caravan, an unique journey which took them seven years; across fifteen countries on three continents and, incidentally, into the Guinness Book of World Records. His story of the family’s epic global journey was published by Simon & Schuster as The Seven Year Hitch, (1999) and in paperback in 2000.

Before this, he had worked as a jackaroo and sheep-shearer in Australia, in ecology and wildlife management for the Nature Conservancy (now Scottish Natural Heritage), as a crofter and prawn creel fisherman on Skye and as part of a film-crew on Orkney.

David was educated in Edinburgh, at George Watson’s College and Merchiston Castle School. After a year in the paper-making industry, he went to Aberdeen University, graduating with an MA degree in 1963. Two years in Australia followed, before a return to university, Edinburgh this time, to take a MSc degree in ecology and wildlife management.

In 2000, David undertook a solo kayak expedition from Sweden to the Black Sea, following an old Viking trade route via the rivers Daugava/Western Dvina, Ulla, Berezina and Dneiper. Along the way, he kept a look out for traces of Vikings, observed the way of life in places he passed and kept a note of the wildlife he saw, and visited local Bahá’í communities. The book about the journey, Spirit of the Vikings, was published in 2007 by The Long Riders’ Guild Press.

David’s other books are: A Submarine at War – the brief life of HMS Trooper (Periscope Publishing, 2006) about the World War II T-class boat in which his half-brother lost his life along with the rest of the crew in 1943 and The Wagon Travel Handbook (The Long Riders’ Guild Press, 2007), a distillation of his and others’ experiences of preparing for life on the, mainly horse-drawn, road in the 21^st century.

WORLD FAMOUS EXPLORER JOINS KENSINGTON TOURS
AS EXPLORER-IN-RESIDENCE

Mikael Strandberg to support launch of Kensington’s new Expedition Series

“Kensington Tours' mission,” says Willner “is to provide private guided experiences to every corner of our world. For every budget, every schedule, every group size, and every interest, we can tailor a perfect tour. Our collaboration with Mikael and our Explorer-in-Residence program is another example of our commitment to truly special travel experiences – whatever your travel style.”

A professional explorer for the past quarter century, Mikael Strandberg is considered one of the 50 most important explorers on earth and The Explorers Club has called him “the best contemporary explorer in the world.” Strandberg will collaborate with Kensington founder and CEO Jeff Willner to design and develop this new product offering for intrepid travelers.  Strandberg will also be available to guide these expeditions as well as tailor-made expeditions, upon request.

“Kensington Tours’ mission,” says Willner “is to provide private guided experiences to every corner of our world. For every budget, every schedule, every group size, and every interest, we can tailor a perfect tour. Our collaboration with Mikael and our Explorer-in-Residence program is another example of our commitment to truly special travel experiences – whatever your travel style.”

Willner and Strandberg recently undertook a scouting mission to The Democratic Republic of the Congo to assess its potential and readiness as a destination for intrepid travelers.  Congo itineraries – featuring endangered Eastern Lowland Gorillas, Pygmy tribes and the Nyiragongo volcano – are the first in the Expedition Series.  Other itineraries under development include Antarctica exploration with polar explorers, motorcycle safaris in Kenya, Tanzania and Russia, deep dive submarine into the Cayman Trench and cultural discoveries in Yemen, Oman and North Korea. These itineraries will appeal to intrepid global explorers and will complement Kensington’s complete collection of affordable private guided tours to the world’s must-see destinations.

“It’s the places that people believe that they cannot go, these are the places where the hidden wonders of the world and breathtaking experiences await,” said Strandberg. “The Expedition Series will highlight many of these destinations.  I am indeed honored to be an Explorer-in-Residence for this brave company. Brave makes a difference, helps a country, builds bridges and creates trips which open people’s minds. With a visionary and a lover of humanity like Jeff Willner at its helm, Kensington Tours is really in the forefront of what good tourism should be today.”

“Some of the Expedition itineraries may require hard work, some may be expensive and some will feature unconventional destinations, but all promise a unique experience,” confirms Willner.  “Whether escorted by an Explorer-in-Residence or not, all of our tours will be carefully managed by our local offices and local expert guides to ensure a safe and supported adventure.”

####

“It’s the places that people believe that they cannot go, these are the places where the hidden wonders of the world and breathtaking experiences await,” said Strandberg. “The Expedition Series will highlight many of these destinations. I am indeed honored to be an Explorer-in-Residence for this brave company. Brave makes a difference, helps a country, builds bridges and creates trips which open people’s minds. With a visionary and a lover of humanity like Jeff Willner at its helm, Kensington Tours is really in the forefront of what good tourism should be today.”

About Kensington Tours
Kensington Tours offers custom private guided tours to over 80 countries around the world. The flexibility of Kensington’s offerings allows for personalization of every tour at a wide range of price points – resulting in a handcrafted vacation experience at an unbeatable value. The company’s private tours are regularly benchmarked at 30% less than identical tours from premium group operators. Kensington Tours was named one of the ‘Best Adventure Travel Companies on Earth’ in 2008 & 2009 by the editors of National Geographic Adventure magazine.

About Mikael Standberg:
He started his professional career as an explorer 23 years ago. Strandberg is currently working as an explorer, a lecturer and a writer. He has also produced three internationally renowned documentaries for television Patagonia – 3,000 Kilometres by Horse and The Masaai People – 1,000 Kilometres by Foot and his much awarded 58 Degrees – Exploring Siberia on Skies.  Frequently appearing in travel and adventure programmes, Swedish Television SVT and National Geographic have both made documentaries about his life. Voted Explorer Hero by the National Geographic 2002, Strandberg is an Honorary Ambassador of his native district Älvdalen and Cappadocia, Turkey. In 2005 he was awarded The Determination in the Face of Adversity Medal by the Explorers Club. The Travellers Club of Sweden awarded him the prestigious Silver Medal in 2006. The Travellers Club of Finland awarded Mikael the prestigious Mannerheim Medal at a ceremony in October, 2006.

About Jeff Willner
Kensington Tours is the inspiration of intrepid explorer and Royal Geographic Society Fellow Jeff Willner begin_of_the_skype_highlightingend_of_the_skype_highlighting. His thirst for travel stems from growing up in Africa where his parents worked for most of his childhood, and where he discovered the richness of global cultures. A veteran of global expeditions to over 70 countries, he has criss-crossed the continents to experience the extraordinary. During these years, Jeff realized the vast difference between a package tour and personal discovery — where deep knowledge and personal attention of a local guide can turn a trip into an experience. It is from these roots that Jeff began building his vision for Kensington Tours. With a commitment to rethinking the way we travel, and drawing on his years with McKinsey & Company and Wharton, he recruited a strong team of destination experts (with real in-country experience) and top IT professionals to build an award winning travel company that now spans the globe.

For more information please contact:
Jeff Willner
CEO,
Kensington Tours
jeff.willner@kensingtontours.com

“Some of the Expedition itineraries may require hard work, some may be expensive and some will feature unconventional destinations, but all promise a unique experience,” confirms Willner. “Whether escorted by an Explorer-in-Residence or not, all of our tours will be carefully managed by our local offices and local expert guides to ensure a safe and supported adventure.”

I’m a mother of two small children, Ripley’s secretary and coach. I run his home base and remain ready for any emergency call 24/7. I take my mobile phone everywhere. Every time hear Ripley’s Satellite phone ring, my heart misses a beat and my mouth dries up. Obviously, I’m worried about him. It’s my first time and experience being alone while Ripley is away on his expedition, so I’m still learning.

What is it like to be the wife of an adventurer?

Allow me to give you a brief picture of my world and who I was before I met Ripley.

I lived in Denmark’s metropolis: Copenhagen. Just a stones throw, with my arm, from the city center. My life was surrounded by material items and meaningless gossip with, so called girlfriends, in an uptown café every Sunday. It was our girls get together but quite simply a brunch. I could go on weekend shopping tours to London or any other city, whenever I wanted. I could spend my time in the museums or concerts at will. Whatever, wherever, it was all forgotten the next day.

At that time, I thought I was happy and didn’t want to change my life in any way. It seemed to fit. One day, it all changed.

I was on a course, one of many yawn filled lectures, with my work colleagues and at the very hotel where we were staying, Ripley Davenport was giving a presentation about his adventure in the Namib Desert. His picture, displayed in the reception, caught my eye and having nothing to do for a few hours and without thought, I purchased a ticket to see what it was all about.

The room was full with all walks of life and I was surprised at the turn out.

After an introduction, I saw this tall, bald and very confident man giving an amazing speech. The room was silent and I sat, like everyone else, overwhelmed by his story. That was the quickest hour of my life and I just had to speak to him after the event. That evening, we talked, we laughed. Three 3 months later, I quit my job, moved out of the city to the Danish countryside. Four months later we were expecting our first child. A whirlwind romance you may say but one that still blossoms.

Ripley changed my perception of what is really important in this life.

Adventure? I didn’t know what it meant before I met him. To be honest, I had a stereotype of adventurers being strange, bearded and old people. That was my first lesson: Never judge a book by its cover and every story has two sides. Ripley taught me these two minor but important rules. He lives by them, so why don´t I?

What is like to be a wife while your husband is out on an expedition?

In a way, I’m on my own little expedition but only here, in Denmark. I’m a mother of two small children, Ripley’s secretary and coach. I run his home base and remain ready for any emergency call 24/7. I take my mobile phone everywhere. Every time hear Ripley’s Satellite phone ring, my heart misses a beat and my mouth dries up.  Obviously, I’m worried about him. It’s my first time and experience being alone while Ripley is away on his expedition, so I’m still learning.

We have experienced many difficult situations together and got through each a lot wiser. I know that future challenges can be overcome. We have been through so much. I have learnt not to worry so much. I’m more focused and calm now and learn to stay rational in the extreme situations.

My daily routine consists of strong cup of coffee with milk, getting the kids ready for kindergarten and then getting back home to the office and updating Ripley’s news. Once done and few coffees later, I find ways to promote the Mongolia 2010 Expedition further on top of my normal job (I’m glad that’s only 4 hrs/day). Then I trudge out to get the shopping for dinner, pick up the kids and try to figure out what and how to cook dinners. I can’t cook and given the chance – won’t cook. It’s always been Daddy’s job, but it’s now a role reversal. Scott, our oldest 4½ years old, repeatedly says, “Mummy, daddy cooks much better dinners, why?” What can I say except laugh and find excuses?

The hardest psychological challenge was definitely the first 2 weeks. When he called me on the 3^rd day of his expedition and told me about the torrential rains and thunderstorms, his equipment being drowned and his body shivering from being cold and wet, I felt hopeless. I contacted every adventurer and endurance athlete that Ripley knew to ask for advice and support. Each helped a great deal.

That night, I had a dozen cups of coffee just to stay awake. I felt like it was a duty to stay up with Ripley through his tough night. I believe, it was harder for me.

We were on different sides of the planet and different time zones so I adjusted my clock to suit his and tried to keep in his routine.

We have experienced many difficult situations together and got through each a lot wiser. I know that future challenges can be overcome. We have been through so much. I have learnt not to worry so much. I’m more focused and calm now and learn to stay rational in the extreme situations.

I thought I was ready to take over the family duties on my own and run home base while Ripley is in Mongolia. I guess you could never be ready for anything until you’re in the actual situation. Out of my comfort zone.

We don’t have any family support in Denmark. My mother has passed away and my father has little contact. Ripley’s parents live in England and contact with them is very scarce.

I could honestly say, that we’re on our own. It’s not easy, but we do what we have to do and never moan or gripe about our situation. It makes me laugh, when people complain about small petty things. I could write an endless list of examples.

We haven’t been out for as much as an evening dinner or drink in four years. So what! We still have our time together, when kids are asleep and that’s what is important.

Being an adventurer’s wife teaches you to be happy with what you’ve got and stop comparing what your neighbour has and maybe take a cooking class once in a while?

The Davenport family!

About me:

35 years old, born in Lithuania, speak Lithuanian, Russian, English and Danish, have degree in International Business Management. Moved to Denmark in 1998. Hobby: dancing salsa

Her husband Ripley wrote this report before he set off!

I added on plenty of fat before setting out to walk against Maasailand....fat is good!..

My friend Nick Gallop, who has written one of my guest writer columns, sent me an interesting query about nutrition on Expeditions. It is a very interesting question, what to eat on an Expedition! So I decided to use his great questions for another blog report!

1. On long, man-powered expeditions like yours what problems do you have getting enough calories and nutrition?

Well, most of the time, there´s just not enough food around! And one can´t haul enough……Therefore, one just have to eat a lot of fat, loads of caloeries and hope that one comes a cross some kind of civilisation every month to be able to fill up with the best possible foods! There´s no doubt about it, that you do take a good beating on long, man hauled Expeditions!

2. What food tips do you have for anyone planning such an expedition?

One just have to add on a few extra kilos before leaving, maybe not 26, like I did before the Siberian Expedition! But quite a few, yes! Because you will loose lots of kilos!

Most of the time, one is really, really tired, so there´s little energy to either fish or hunt or do any complicated meals, so bring lots of freeze dried food, but with some tasty food 1-2 a week. Like dried moose fillet…..I recommend REAL when it comes to freeze dried food. Tasty and filling!

3. It seems to me that people eat some real crap because it’s light to carry and find it too easy to skimp on nutritional content. How can we find the right balance?

Well, REAL is quite good, actually, but on top of that, eat everything you can get your hands on!

Nalim is probably the best fish to make stroganina out of!

4. What’s your favorite expedition food?

Dried moose heart. Dried fish. Like straganina! Yummy!

5. The kit list for your 2004-2005 expedition along the Kolyma river in Siberia included the following items:

Fishing and hunting equipment

• 1 Rifle, Blaser R90 Off-Road with .3006-pipe [barrel]

• Telescopic sight

• Extra ammunition holders

• 1 Cleaning kit

• 2 Fishing rods

• 60 bullets, lead .3006

• A Couple of baits and wobblers

• Extra line, flys, casting balls

• Float, hooks

• Landing net

• Fishing net

Being Swedish, I’d guess that hunting and fishing is very natural to you but many people in the UK probably wouldn’t consider taking this kind of hardware – especially a firearm. How did carrying it change the expedition?

Lot´s of fresh, nutritious food!

The Siberian hares were not only big, but really tasty and nutritious!

6. What problems did carrying a firearm cause you?

In Siberia, on and off, they, the authorities, thought we were hired guns, mercenaries or/and snipers!

7. When planning the expedition did you have a rough idea how much food you could get by hunting and fishing? Were your ideas right?

No, much more difficult than I thought! A typhoon moved in the second day, we didn´t get anything for the first month!

8. Was the time for food gathering included in your plans? – how did the sometimes time-consuming task of finding food fit in with the objectives of the expedition?

We only fished and hunted before the arrival of winter. Hunting and fishing is also part of who we are, so it is a fulfilling work!

9. It’s very easy to pack some simple, lightweight fishing kit and simple hunting kit such as a slingshot. Do you think the time invested in learning to use these effectively will be worth it?

No, hunting should be efficient and the game shouldn´t be suffering unnecessarily. Always shoot to kill the easiest way, e.g the heart. Fishing, sure, but it is harder. Better to bring a net…..

You need a good knife to be able to eat stroganina!

10. If you could carry one packable hunting or fishing item on expedition what would it be and why?

Knife! Well, it is the most vital item. You can do pretty much everything with it!

11. You’ve done some very long cycle expeditions – how different was the food situation on these?

Well, you can carry more food and roads are most of the time close to settlements where u can fill up!

12. As you know I’m very interested in the connections we can make with indigenous people through the use of primitive skills. If we learned about wild food and hunted, fished and foraged on our expedition how would it change our relationship to the people we meet along the way?

Good question! It would make a dramatic difference, since getting to know local people, indigenous or not, you need to have some very close things to associate with to open the door to their hearts, hunting and fishing is part of their lives!

13. How do you think our expedition food choices affect the environment?

Depends where…….In Siberia, hunting and fishing in a proper way, doesn´t harm, but otherwise, if you by local food, this is of course, helping the local economy. So buy locally! If possible….

The food amongst the maasai wasn´t always easy to digest.....

14. What’s the worst thing you’re ever had to eat on an expedition?

Well, drinking raw blood with the maasai wasn´t a hit, I can tell you that! Basically due to the heat and other surrounding smells…..like urin…..and also, am now fan of tree slugs in Congo! And my friend Dogan Tlilic´s iskembe soup, am not big on tripe in soups!

15. Have your food experiences while on expedition changed your thinking on how we treat food back in Europe?

Well, being brought up in the countryside and forest, hunting and fishing has been a big part of my life. So Siberia taught me to take care of every single part of the animal, including the muzzle of a moose and their brains…..yummy!

The Arabian Expedition is still far off. However, it will happen eventually. The Arab world still dominates my thoughts and life in many ways. And, a documentary will be made. Photo courtesy of Anders Åberg Film

I continue to get loads of emails asking what happened with the Arabian Expedition?

Well, the very good news is that we have one major sponsor in the waiting, but need one more to get it going. And we have a few minor one´s lining up too, but right now, it is on hold. I don´t know for how long. I am still waiting for the go ahead from the major contributor, but so far, he is still pondering. Therefore, I have returned back to Stockholm in Sweden, getting on with my old life. Lecturing, guiding, writing and waiting to see what happens. I do have some extremely interesting projects coming up on both the Exploration front and the lecturing side of life. Today I lectured at TED X in Stockholm and enjoyed their idea of spreading interesting ideas a lot. You can see the lecture LIVE here!

So, right now, it is kind of a Catch 22 situation of my life.  But, it is also an extremely good time of my life. Something I will share with you all in the future. But this is not the right time. But, it is definitely a major piece in the jigsaw of understanding the meaning of life!

I also think about Congo pretty much every day and miss the company of Jeff, Kennedy, Olly, Emmanuel and the smell of Africa.

I have met a lot of great people since I came back to Sweden, my old friend Nima for example. Who knows what will happen if we put our knowledge together?

By the way, I follow Ripley´s slog against himself in Mongolia!  And I am happy to say that Christian Bodegren have returned home after some minor problems on his Sahara trip. He has definitely grown as a human being, which shows that his Expedition was a success!

Bonobos are capable of passing the mirror-recognition test for self-awareness. They communicate primarily through vocal means, although the meanings of their vocalizations are not currently known.

I first heard about our closest relative, the bonobo, whilst reading a book written by an extra ordinary writer, and a friend, Lasse Berg. If he, instead of being born in Sweden, would have been raised in, for example, the United States of America, he would be a world renowned writer and scientist today. In this book about the origin of human kind, he states that not only is the bonobo our closest relative, but it shows that we instead of becoming such a violent ape, could have copied this dwarf chimpanzee instead of the more aggressive bigger chimpanzee or gorilla. Because, compared to his bigger relatives, the bonobo just makes love to handle any sense of aggression! With anyone. Their kids, same sex, well, anyone around!

“Emmanuel should have seen this!” Kennedy laughed when we sat and watched a group of bonobos eating and lovemaking at the Bonobo Reserve just located outside the capital Kinshasa, “It´s unbelievable!”

Was this our closest relative? Did I feel any connection, like I did when meeting the lowland gorillas? I think even more! It was almost scary! Because when we first arrived to the Reserve, the last stop of this great Tour of Congo, after a slightly traumatic trip by van on terrible roads, we came across a lone male bonobo sitting next to a little pond playing with an empty plastic bottle. Suddenly when he saw us, he stood up and raced up and down the fence, making a noise in the grass with the bottle, which was similar to the one I managed to get as a kid with I taped a piece of cardboard on my bicycle wheel. He ran up and down the fence until one of the local guides we were forced to have from the capital, made an idiot of himself, trying to get the bonobo to perform otherwise. That irritated this fella so much that he took some wet mud from the pond and threw at the  guy. Suddenly he came up to where I was kneeling down at the fence, sat down, lay back on than shoot a glance at me like he wanted to say:

in the humid forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo of central Africa.”]

Around 10,000 Bonobos are found only south of the Congo River and north of the Kasai River (a tributary of the Congo),[38

I immediately felt a connection there, which I have never ever felt together with any other animals. I have been very close to one specific dog, horses, camels, but I have never felt this connection.

Their way of handling any type of stress is just making love to anyone in every position. It was odd sitting watching a group of bonobos being fed bananas by the wardens and on and off, they felt some kind of stress, and just made out, followed by an orgasm. Extraordinary human!

Visiting the bonobos was the last on our itinerary of a Tour of the great Congo. No doubt, one of the most exiting countries on earth right now. I just have a few profound feelings to share. One just have to go to Congo, before something nasty will happen here again. It is such a volatile country. And, like the bonobo, there´s so many threats of extinction of important species here, relatives of us, the naked ape. Plus that one has the constant feeling of being one of the first foreigners to penetrate the deep forest of this vast country. A feeling you can get in very few countries on earth today. But most important I think, this is really Africa. There´s not a boring second!

With a visionary and a lover of humans like Jeff Willner at its helm, Kensington Tours is really in the forefront of what good tourism should be today. Brave, makes a difference, helps a country, builds bridges and creates trips which open peoples minds. I am indeed honored to be a explorer-in-residence for this extra ordinary visionary company!

Have a look at this slideshow of this great country and you will understand even more!

With a visionary and a lover of humans like Jeff Willner at its helm, Kensington Tours is really in the forefront of what good tourism should be today. Brave, makes a difference, helps a country, builds bridges and creates trips which open peoples mind. I am indeed honored to be a explorer-in-residence for this extra ordinary visionary company! Photo taken by Kennedy at Hakuna Matata Tours in Congo.

]]> http://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/2010/06/04/bonobo-the-love-monkey/feed/ 2 http://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/2010/05/31/kisangani/ http://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/2010/05/31/kisangani/#comments Mon, 31 May 2010 09:15:54 +0000 mikael http://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/?p=1780

Captain Jon Cadd preparing for another odd flight. This time with a bunch of explorers who feared the long drive from Epulu to Kisangani in a car on the worst road on earth. So, Jeff, always generous, decided 2 hours was better!

We flew into Kisangani by a small air craft from MAF piloted by one of the organisations great characters. Jon Cadd have seen, heard and done most things in life. I remember the MAF pilots as vividly as anything else from my 2½ years on a push bike through Africa. Most of them, like Jon, has a lot of humor as well. You need that to survive Africa. But, I also remember one pilot, who didn´t have enough humor. Whilst cycling through East Africa 1989, where I was accompanied by one of my best friends, Steve Jewell, we stopped at the MAF compound in Dodoma, Tanzania, and Steve helped one of their pilots to pull a propeller of a plane. And whilst doing that, suddenly oil gushed out of a hole and Steve, never tactful, shouted:

“Holy shit!”

The pilot of this profound Christian organisation looked at Steve, with great seriousness and said:

“I guess you could call it that…..”

Jon had far more humor and distance to himself and life. He cruised over the great African rain forest with ease. Now, whilst flying for two hours from Epulu to what was formerly known as Stanleyville, we were so close to these broccoli shaped tree tops, so at times it felt like we could touch them. Only on and off was the thickness of the forest cut up by mud brown rivers snaking through the denseness. Except the pilot, it was Jeff, Olly, Patrick, me and a slightly terrified Emmanuel. Everytime I asked him if he was ok, he smiled in his usual charming way, but most of the time he probably prayed that the flight would be over as soon as possible.

Downtown Kisangani looked pretty much the same as when I came through here on a push bike 1989. Even though that had faced two devastating wars since then.

The airport in Kisangani looked like it had gone through all levels of the hell described in Dante’s inferno. This revelation and the heat hit us badly, as did the officials of the airport. Even though the worst of the cleptocracy created by the former dictator Mobutu Sese Seko is gone, officials still spend a fair amount of time trying to find faults in the passports belonging to travelers. This time, correctly though, they noted that Olly and Patrick´s visa was overdue by a day. If it hadn´t been for Kennedy´s extra ordinary contacts and skills, that could have ended with Olly and Patrick in a dreary prison cell, whilst Jeff and me enjoyed the entertaining Kisangani street life seen from a bar in the center of town. I say dreary, because I found out, at the bar, that two Norwegians are imprisoned in this out back and far beyond town.

“It is two young men who just got a bit a stray, they wanted a bit of adventure and things went terribly wrong” , a Norwegian from their Angola Embassy said whilst gulping down a cold beer, “They are not doing to well at all. They´re freaking out and are terrified that they will be moved to the prison on the other side of the river. It is supposedly even worse than here on this side.”

Some 1,300 miles from the mouth of the Congo River, Stanley founded the area’s first trading post for King Leopold II of Belgium in December 1883. The city was known first as Falls Station (or "the Post Stanley Falls" or "The Falls" or simply "Boyoma" the African name of Boyoma Falls) and then with Belgian colonization of the area, it grew into a settlement called Stanleyville (after the explorer Henry Morton Stanley). A city terminus of steamer navigation on the Congo River, the town began as a Belgian trading post. It has been the major centre of the northern Congo since the late 1800s.

I have to say, I feel really sad for these two young men. Kisangani isn´t the place where you want things to go wrong. Am also amazed that one of the charges is spying. The question is for what? What in earth could the government of Norway be interested in when it comes to Congo? How to make good matoke? Better to go to Uganda then! Or, maybe they like many other countries are interested in the vast quantities of diamonds that are around Kisangani. At least if one is to judge by the street signs, where every other store seems to deal with diamonds.

“Buy one for your love” , Jeff said, “Then she will never leave you. Diamonds are forever.”

When I passed through here 1989 I was really ill after over eating bananas, pine apple and home made peanut butter. I spent most of my time in a bed at Hotel Kisangani. I saw much more of this extra ordinary place this time. It is really run down after the Mobutu years and two wars, but still has great character in many ways. It is, also, really in the middle of Africa,  it came to fame through Henry Morton Stanley and it is a micro-cosmos of all of the bad and good things of Africa. Everything from poverty to the great African laughter and spectacular natural beauty. The great life line of the continent, the great Congo River, is impressive. This also applies to the last reminiscence of the architecture from the colonial era.

It is also a very hot and humid place. This fact tires you easily and I can understand that as many as 30% of the colonial employees from Belgium, just freaked out after a short while in this area. They couldn´t take it, they almost turned mad. I read a book by a Norwegian journalist, Alfred Henrik Mohn´s book Kongo kallar, about the colonial era. Very interesting. Others returned to Belgium, couldn´t take the life there and returned to Congo. Which I also fully understand. There´s something profoundly deep with this continent, which always makes you extremely run down, but always wants you to return!

Don´t miss this slideshow of this great country!

Africa - it always wants you to return.....

The former chief of the Mbuti village in Epulu....

“Is the molimo still part of your world?” I asked and managed to make him surprised!

“The molimo…” , he whispered, “….we shouldn´t talk about the molimo. It is hidden out there!”

I was referring to a kind of a holy and spiritual being for the mbuti pygmies, which took the shape of a long object from which one could make different sounds. This instrument is hidden in the forest, their home, only to be seen by the men. Only used once a year at a special celebration. At least according to Colin Turnbull´s excellent book The Forest People. (Which has been recently analyzed and seen in new light, see here!) And since the pygmy in front of me reacted like that, it still exists. Otherwise, life since Turnbull´s book, written at the end of the 1950´s, have changed quite a lot for these fantastic people. At least if I judged by the man in front of me. He was dressed like a smaller version of Mobutu Sese Seko, the former dictator of Congo, and sported a hat worn by Muslims.

“They do anything for money” , a friend of mine added, “because when the Muslims arrived here to Epulu, they offered money to people who became Muslims. And for the money they can buy alcohol.  They don´t know anything about the outside world. this guy doesn´t even know his own age if you ask him. They are like animals.”

The Mbuti Pygmies of Congo's Ituri forest have survived a brutal civil war and chaotic aftermath. But peace—with its inevitable land rush—poses an even greater threat.

The guy he pointed to was no taller than 140 cm, looked really rough and one could easily see traces in his face of far too much alcohol consumption. He looked pretty much like a guy I remember meeting at the same place, at the Epulu Station, 21 years ago. The first time I came across these extra ordinary people. Most of them I met at the station were they worked by collecting leaves for the okapi. Or where they like these fellows, hanged around hoping they could get something out of the tourists. Either selling arrows, bows or some kind of a handover. But like back than, they were only a fraction of the pygmies in this area. And like than, everyone had an opinion about them. They were childish, naive, easy to fool or like animals. Depending on who you talked to.

“Oh, they do smoke a lot of marijuana!”,  my very good friend Olly Steeds said when he finally turned up in Epulu and we met after just missing each other for a week, “But they are a great people! And it seems like they have preserved their knowledge how to survive in the forest by hunting and gathering.”

Olly had spent five days with a group of mbuti hunters, who were still catching their prey with big, 30 meter long nets. Their camp was a bout half an hour away. There was one even closer, just quarter of an hours walk away from the station, a permanent village, located just a bit away from the real Epulu Village. We all went over there in the evening and we walked into a life where they partly lived in their traditional huts made out of twigs and big leaves, and partly in new houses. The women were working as usual and the men sat around smoking. A young, well dressed pygmy greeted us. He was the new chief of the village and he had also taken Jesus to his heart.  His father came over, who used to be the former chief, and shook hands. he had a white beard and look as wise as a former village chief should look like. It didn´t take long until the women started to sing during their work in an amazing series of sounds! All smiling and laughing. Like all native people, they´re so easy to meet and be together with. Just curious and relaxed. Suddenly the sky opened and rain and thunder arrived. So we returned quickly back to the station but returned next day again. A visit which is a high light in my life.

The play they set up, which depicts the rebell leader Bemba attacking the village, drinking the blood of virgins.

It was drizzling slowly when we walked into the village, met a young girl, painted white on body and face, wearing a skirt made of leaves and she danced slowly to the monotonous beat of the drum. After awhile the whole village joined in, so did we, dancing in a ring, whilst the elders of the village, smoked and watched us closely. Suddenly, the dancing stopped and the village kind of split up in two groups and did kind of a theater play, where the storyline was easy to follow and it was played at great suspense. It was the former rebel leader Bemba attacking the village, eating the blood of the virgins, after having cut their heads off.

They finished our visit by singing in the traditional way of an African church choir. Very strong, very moving and very spectacular. We left the pygmies feeling very extra ordinary and privileged. Exactly as I did 21 years ago.

For more info about the pygmies, read this excellent summery from National Geographic.

See this slide show from Congo!

The Okapi (Okapia johnstoni; pronounced /oʊˈkɑːpɪ/) is a giraffid artiodactyl mammal native to the Ituri Rainforest, located in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in central Africa. Although the okapi bears striped markings reminiscent of the zebra, it is most closely related to the giraffe. Unknown to Europeans until 1901, today there are approximately 10,000–20,000 in the wild and only 40 different worldwide institutions display them

“I remember…” , I said, “…when I passed through here 21 years ago, I met a friendly fellow named Karl Ruf, who had 2 chimpanzees.”

“That was my husband” , the woman who had presented herself as Rosmarie answered sadly, “He died three years ago in a car accident in Uganda.”

I was talking to a legend. Rosmarie Ruf is one of these rare human beings who has devoted most of her life to a cause to preserve one of this planets unique species. In her case; the very odd looking animal called okapi. She has spent the last 27 years living in the middle of the darkest Africa, next to a small charming river called Epulu.

“My husband came here from Basel zoo and was supposed to stay for a short while, but we ended up making this our life” , she told us during our far too short visit at this little heaven for okapis and pygmies, “and I really hope we have made, and still can make a difference, because this area is under a constant threat from a lot of things.”

” I am amazed that you haven´t received the same attention globally for your work as Jane Godall and Dian Fossey!” I exclaimed, but that didn´t bother Rosmarie.

She hadn´t chosen this life in the middle of Africa to get famous. But to save the unique okapi for the future generations to enjoy. It is the oddest looking of animals. It has the head of a giraffe, but the first detail you notice about this shy animal, is the stripes on its front and back legs, making one think about the zebra. But it belongs to the giraffe family, which is easy to understand when you see its enormous tongue finding the right leaves to eat.

“I remember when I passed through here 21 years ago on a bicycle, that to be able to survive, their diet was made up of 27 different leaves. And that the only ones who knew which ones, where the pygmies. And you had a team of them, looking for them everyday. Is it still like this?” I asked Rosmarie whilst she showed us around the Epulu station.

“Yes, we have a team of them going out each day, and since we have 14 okapis in captivity here and they eat about 4 kg:s of leaves a day, it takes a lot of work to collect this. And the local pygmies do this job and bring it back to the park, where another team assembles them perfectly for each okapi.”

Rosmarie Ruf - a human extra ordinary

Another observation which struck me with this extra ordinary looking animal, was how incredibly silent it was whilst walking and how well it was camouflaged whilst slowly, effortless and elegantly moving around this rain forest in the middle of the darkest Africa. Just like the pygmies. The okapi was unknown to the outside world until 1901 and even though it is estimated that there could be around 10 000 of these unique animals in this area, they are somewhat under threat of extinction. The wars, the rebells, logging and the uncertainty of the future of this country, make it a big worry. Even though we live in a very much more accessible world today, Epulu is still stuck in the middle of nowhere. And getting there is still, if you don´t fly in and out in a small airplane, a hardship involving long hours on the earths worst roads. When it comes to the roads, even though the Chinese are slowly turning the countries roads into passable, they haven´t changed a bit since I literally slogged through here 21 years ago. BUT, it is still the real Africa, which is still possible to enjoy! And the area around Epulu is unique on this earth!

I admire people like Rosmarie Ruf, who give their life to a cause to preserve something unique. And by that giving up a comfortable life in the West. Far away from family and roots. And on top of that, knowing that she is living in the middle of Africa, has been under a lot of personal threat due to the wars and she still is there, and most likely will be for the rest of her life, that makes me think that she is one of the most fantastic human beings I have come across. Epulu is unique!

The rangers at Epulu note down every single leaf, every single bundle and which pygmies showed up that day.

n January 2002, Nyiragongo erupted, sending a stream of lava 200 metres (219 yd) to one kilometre (1,100 yd) wide and up to two metres (6½ ft) deep through the center of the city as far as the lake shore. Agencies monitoring the volcano were able to give a warning and most of the population of Goma evacuated to Gisenyi. The lava destroyed 40% of the city (more than 4,500 houses and buildings).

“Even though we were warned on the radio, some people just didn´t leave in time” , Emmanuel told us while he gesticulated frenetically with his arms, indicating how the hot lava spread over the town of Goma, “They ran for the cathedral and thought hiding inside would save them. It didn´t. They fried to death.”

We were all standing on top of an outcrop of sharp black lava, where the eruption had started in January 2002. It was Emmanuel, our guide, Jeff and me, a very passionate local woman who saw herself as the caretaker of the area and about a dozen kids in awe of what they called monics. (mispronunciation of United Nations mission in Congo, MONUC) The lava had just broken through the ground where we were standing, about 10 km:s south of Nyarigongo Volcano, but at the edge of this unfortunate town.

“The lava stream was one kilometer wide and up to two meters deep and it just went through the whole town ending up with a great fizz in Lake Kivu.”

I looked to the north, were the perfect coned shaped volcano Nyarigongo, looked as calm as an active volcano can look like. Just a small cloud covering it, a bit of smoke crawling out of the caldera we had stood on a few days earlier. I turned my eyes back to the south and saw a wide black line of dried lava shooting through the town. Goma probably has one of the most beautiful settings in the world, at the foot of a string of volcanoes which forms Virunga National Park and overlooking the charming Lake Kivu. But it is a town which has suffered badly from the effects of the eruptions and from the two wars of 1996-97 fuelled by the Rwandan Genocide. We left the eruption area, went back to the dusty road, paid a few “fees” for our visit and started one of the oddest city tours I have ever done. But also one of the most interesting.!

It was in one way, a trip through the lives of many unfortunate, struggling people, who´s lives had been totally ruined. It was a tour plagued by rubbish everywhere, poverty, kids with signs of kwashiorkor, the thinnest of dogs, ramshackle homes and stores, extremely pot holed dirt roads and enormous amounts of people just trying to figure out how to go ahead with daily life. There were many fortunate ones. They kind of hid in homes covered by barbed wire and guards, as where all of UN:s deposits around town. Their presence could be seen everywhere. Troops came from Uruguay, Pakistan and India. I even heard Swedish spoken.

Is this tourism?

Cruising through Goma....

In my mind, absolutely. For me tourism is showing reality, creating understanding and finding ways to build bridges between cultures. And even though, for somebody with a very negative attitude to the realities of life, sure, it was a lot of misery. But, amongst all this, there was a everlasting feeling of hope, possibilities and pioneering. People were starting to rebuild their lives, by setting up what it looked like, very unstable structures, homes, on top of the dried lava. Others were transporting enormous loads of fruit, building material, cassava, on home made bicycles of wood. Small businesses were starting up everywhere. On sale was second hand clothes, cassava, loads of pine apple, beer and lots more. Things were happening and the one feeling which always have dominated my time in Africa is that the Africans are extra ordinary resourceful people and always find ways to survive and live in dignity. And they still know how to laugh!

It was definitely a tour of hope!

But, except mobile phones, and to be fair to reality, not a lot had changed in those 21 years since I passed through on my push bike. Congo, of course, have gone through a lot of upheaval, at least two wars, Mobutu was dead and gone and a new president had arrived, the son of Laurent Kabila, Joseph. As far as I can understand, the governing by cleptocracy that was Mobutu’s legacy, is far from gone. Many Congolese we conversed with, talked themselves warm for Paul Kagame, the president of Rwanda, a country modernizing quickly. I can understand they want change! Just crossing the border to the twin city of Gisenyi on the other side, was quite dramatic. In reality, this area was once part of the great kingdom of Rwanda and many of the inhabitants are of course Tutsi and Hutu. The Belgians, like other colonial powers, didn´t care about such things and made their borders without thinking about the tribal identities in the area.

“Is it safe to visit this area?” I asked Emanuel, which echoed what his boss Kennedy and pretty much everyone else we´d come across during the visit in this region, ” Yes! The last insurgents left the area half a year ago and we welcome tourists again!”

“And the Hutu FDLR-rebells have left as well?” I asked, and Emanuel answered: “Yes, but some or still hiding away in the mountains and forests north and west of the town, but are easily avoided. ”

The recent history of Goma has been dominated by the volcano and the Rwandan Genocide of 1994, which in turn fuelled the First and Second Congo Wars. The aftermath of these events was still having effects on the city and its surroundings in 2010.

Of course, if you read on the Internet, and the recommendations of the British and American Embassies,  its almost on pair with Yemen, which is one of the safest places I have ever visited. Congo is one of the most fascinating places on earth, for me the real Africa, and just have to be visited! And like Kensington Tours moving in just six months after the last disturbance, is very brave and shows why I want to work with them. They move the limits what is possible and offer something utterly unique. My feeling, travelling through Congo, is that it is almost unspoilt by tourism! Not many places you can get those feelings nowadays!

And Goma feels very safe, very stable, but one major difference have occurred since I passed through 21 years ago. Somebody said that the Congolese have lost their innocence through the wars and taking photos is a major obstacle. There´s no doubt, there´s a more aggressive attitude formed, which is very understandable.

Goma is probably one of the most interesting places on earth right now!

And, not only that, Goma is the birth place of Innocent Balude, the 13-year old which is the number one super star in Congo right now, see why here!

Jeff Willner have big visions and a big heart....he is the leader and founder of Kensington Tours. A very good friend of mine today!