Sudan: Youth Tour Continental Sudan Using Bicycles

Khartoum — Would any one reinvent the bicycle? Well in Sudan youth are nowadays inventing fresh ways to use it. For the young generations in the country, many are the towns that are waiting for them to discover, relish the beauties, enjoy the hospitality of the local populations, and put their cameras to use for featuring the habits and costumes and breathe taking folkloric diversities.

Three young men (Mozamil Musa, 28, Abdassalam Bashir, 30, Mohamed Mohamed Hassan, 32) have decided to couple words with deeds and use their bicycles to travel around the country, a very rare activity Sudanese youth have indulge themselves in, contrary to what seems to be the norm around the world. Since they launched the project last year the three young men have crisscrossed eight out of the country's eighteen states. And this was only the beginning; they are planning to see the rest of the country using the same means to transportation: bikes.

The idea to take such an adventure dates back to early years of the lead figure, Mozamil who said he had first seen his father and elder brother using it as means of transportation. He decided to have his own which he eventually did and which he started using for his local riffraff's along with his friends.

As a starter the three friends toured nearby locations and neighborhoods inside Khartoum, the national capital, namely remote residential peripheral area such as Al-kalakla and Jabal Awlia.

Discovering that it wasn't an impossible task, but rather an enjoyable enterprise the youth, always using their bicycles, pondered about touring the 18 Sudanese states. It was all fun and adventure, that was worth trying they thought.

The first journey took Mozamil, Abdassalam and Mohamed to Atbra, (310) km of juncture of the two Niles in Khartoum. Upon arriving there they were accorded a warm welcome by the local population who furthermore offered them food and shelter. For the people of Atbara, the visitors were considered welcome family guests deserving every sign of hospitality.

They came out with delightful memories of local generosity including ladies selling tea who offered them cups after cups of refreshing tea with a smile and declining to take money for the services rendered.

The three travelers continued their adventure and from Atbara they paid visit to the whole state of Nahr Alneel (River Nile state) town after town, village after village, relishing the discoveries of new landmarks and sites they might have never known about without this unique tour.

One of the areas they enjoyed most was the northern areas of this state where two things stand out: Dates and the most ancient history mankind could come across. Here stand the majestic prototypes of pyramids of the great Meroe, Nubian Kingdom, in Bajrawia.

From Nahr Nil, the group pedaled their way to the Red Sea state, through Kassala state and its towering mountains.

Mozamil and his friends then moved back to Khartoum to replenish and kick started to Madani, capital city of Gazera State.

Their first traveling season is autumn when the weather is nice, trees are green and sand is stable for the bicycles wheels.

The trip was not all honey and sweet, though. The youth said they encountered many a difficulty, some bad roads and security challenges but it was all understandable within the context of such a tour. The joy of traveling and adventure made such happenings mere ingredients, they argued.

One interesting event was that border police units they first met in Eastern Sudan took them for Ethiopians, but after checking their IDs and making sure they were in fact full-fledged Sudanese youth trying to discover their own homeland using this non conventional method at this corner of the world, the police even offered help. The unit provided them with phone numbers to call any time they encountered a difficulty in the region.

Mozamil and his friends are now encouraging Sudanese youth to discover Sudan and enjoy its beauties.

AllAfrica publishes around 400 reports a day from more than 100 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.

Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.