Latest news from Neill and Julie

30/12/11 Part 2

Hennings hotel with a dirt floor was $10USD !!! we decided that the only thing for it was to use up one packet of beef mince and make us all spaghetti (spag bog). We arranged for him to meet us at 6pm in the desert, gave him one of our walkie talkies and left him to his afternoon of luxury. I think he never took navigation lessons as even with my fantastic directions it took him an hour to find us. For once the veg was cooked in the spag bog as it was simmering for over an hour!. The pasta was perfect though. We all enjoyed the night sat on our boxes. I also got a ride on his motorcycle but only as a passenger.

31/12/11

A drive to Dongola (which have the most delicious sponge cakebars mmm...) and Henning called us off his Satellite phone so we could meet up. After all its new years eve but i think its because i'd told him we had two large bottles of Vodka and Coke. We slept outside the hotel and Henning let us use his cold shower. He also shaved and now we cannot recognise him. We spent the evening chatting about family at home and getting slowly drunk. We managed to miss the 40 lashes for having alcohol and even then my Mum called to tell me I was a naughty boy. She might have been calling to wish me happy new year but it sounded like a telling off for smuggling alcohol (and dealing!)

We slept outside the hotel and due to the late night didn't get enough sleep for the long Journey the next day.

1/1/12

A little bit of a hang over....a long drive (feeling tired),,,,a few Pyramids and a lot of Sudanese mountain climbers? Strange place Karima. A large stone hill on the edge with a few small Pyramids at the bottom. About 4pm every Sudanese for 100km's comes and climbs it and watches the sunset. It might be something to do with its independence day here (no aliens though) but since we've not been here on any other day we can only presume its every day. Photos to follow when we get out of the Sudanese embargo on my website host.

2/1/12

International Rescue part 4. This time it was a stricken tractor. A Massey Fergusson none the less. A tow strop and a couple of spanners later and they were on their way. Air in the fuel line i think. I didn't do the towing and neither did i use the spanners, i just provided them. Considering neither of them spoke a word of English we did quite well. They did speak one word of English and that was "THANK YOU". They were 60Km from town in the desert and what they were doing in tractors out there i have no idea. Not ploughing anything that’s for sure.

We did find some strange dried fruit out there (photos to come) and we think they are water melons (in the desert !!!) They could be dinosaur eggs....there were millions of them so the making of a movie for sure.