This week, i have ridden from Lusaka to Johannesburg, a 1000 mile journey in 3 days. My arms & butt ache, i have sunburnt wrists which were exposed when i was riding and i’m generally feeling knackered.
The Chirundu border between Zambia/Zimbabwe (Zim) is a one-stop-shop for both countries, organised with sequential booths for foot/bus passengers. For travellers with vehicles, it’s back to the zig-zag to and from different windows to get carbon tax, INTERPOL checks, customs, etc, etc..
I managed to attract only one speeding ticket in Zim where i missed a reduction sign. At $15 US i didn’t want to quibble. The police where very friendly at the 10 or so checkpoints i had to stop at travelling from north to south. The road tolls are motorcycle friendly, charging $0USD for motorcycles, though there wasn’t always a gap to ride past the barrier. In southern Zim, i passed some of the places I’d visited with Tony – a grotty lodge where we camped in the tennis court. Happy memories.
Beitbridge was super-easy this time on the Zim and South African (ZA) side, taking less than an hour to reach South African soil. The police/customs in ZA only wanted a 5 min chat about where i’d been traveling before letting me carry on – last time we were there chatting for an hour!
I’m now looking forward to some R&R over the coming days/weeks along with South African hospitality. Fufu behaved herself, though i have identified some more ajustments and tweaks i need to make. Luckily BMW Motorrad South Africa have presence all over ZA for parts, help with the final repairs and reset my service indicator.
I’m now looking for somewhere to live around Pretoria/Johannesburg or Cape Town for a few months – looks like Gumtree is my friend – any advice/suggestions?