At 16:24 yesterday afternoon, after 79 days on the road I finally arrived at the end of my journey. I am still slightly dazed by the whole situation and apart from the elation of knowing that I don’t have to get back on Herbert again, it hasn’t really sunk in that it’s all over.

I really want to write a deep and meaningful post about all the great lessons I have learned and the experiences I have had, but the truth of the matter is that I am just so exhausted that I can’t really think of anything to say. Even though I have finished cycling I have by no means had any time to rest. After arriving I have had to strip Herbert down and give him a full service so that he looked (and sounded) respectable for his new home and I have had to wash and clean all my kit. The biggest job though has been finding a new home for Herbert! After doing such an incredible journey I wanted him to go to somebody that would truly appreciate him, like the kids at the Huruma Orphanage did with Flashdance. After meeting as many people as possible in the short time frame that I had I finally found a young boy whom I felt will really benefit from Herbert.

Nkululeko is a 19 year old boy who dreams of becoming an Engineer one day. So passionate about his dream that he walks a 24km round trip to and from work everyday. He turns his had to pretty much anything he can on the farm were he works, so that he can help pay for his tuition fees and one day fulfill his dream. He is a very shy and quiet person and his honesty and sincerity was touching, especially when I asked him if he was good on a bike and he replied that he had never had the chance to ride on one before. In the light of this new fact I spent the afternoon giving him a few lessons and showing him the in’s and out’s of Herberts working parts so that he would take good care of him. At the end of it all when the time came for me to leave him and Herbert, he just stared at me and told me he had no idea what to say. I smiled, wished him a Merry Christmas and headed off down the road. With that Herbert has begun yet another adventure, my journey on the other hand has come to an end here. Africa has been a spectacular and unique experience but I am very much looking forward to going home and seeing Katie now.

My bus is due to arrive in a few minuets to take me to the airport and I still have some packing to do so I will write again when I get home and I have had a few moments to compose myself and my thoughts. I just want to thank Mountain Equipment, Profeet, Raleigh and Pangaea TV again for their support throughout the trip, their input has been exceptional and without them the trip would never have got off the ground. Congratulations to ‘Re-cycle‘ for all their hard work bringing bikes over to Africa and if you would like to help them in their work then please visit their website.

As you will very quickly gather this is Katie writing on behalf of Tarka, as he has just returned to Africa from a fleeting visit to the UK. (Confused?)

Well, Caroline Rose (our speaking agent) had been asked by a client if Tarka could return so they could book our dual talk. Considering all that’s gone on, with the projects goals changing due to my departure, and how Tarka is so passionate about his speaking, we were delighted to except the job. In addition it was a great opportunity to see each other, as it has now been 4 weeks since I left Africa and it will be a further 3 weeks before he is home for good. 

Tarka’s journey was a fairly hectic one, flying from Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania to Nairobi in Kenya and on to Heathrow, where I picked him up. We then drove to Birmingham to give our evening talk and then the following morning we went back to Heathrow for him to fly once again to Nairobi and then on to Dar Es Salaam. He is now making his way back to where he left his bicycle before he can continue into Malawi.

On a different note, Tarka throughout the journey has had very little time for taking photos, as when he is not cycling he his predominantly filming (our primary aim of the journey). On his brief visit back to the UK he did remember to leave with me his used DV tapes and memory cards. I have started to go through some of the DV tapes and the footage is really promising. Below I have posted some of the few photos he has managed to snap, most of them are from Kili, as this seems to be the only place he has had the time to take both photos and film footage, but there are a few more from the orphanage also.

This cross section of images from Kilimanjaro show just how diverse the landscape and terrain can be within the 5 day trek, ranging from the humid rainforest’s through to the punishingly cold glaciers.

Next are some more pics from the Huruma Orphanage (including another one for Hector)

Katie’s sudden departure left us with a spare bike and I really couldn’t face dragging it all the way down to South Africa with me. Seeing as how Herbert was the original starter and began the journey back on day 1, it felt right that I should continue on him and give Flashdance away to a worthy cause.

After considerable searching we stumbled on a tiny little orphanage just outside Arusha. They receive almost no support at all and after a short conversation with Father Zacharia I felt that this was a good home for Flashdance. She was bought down from Nairobi on the top of a car and yesterday I went round to the Huruma Orphanage to give her away.

It was a twenty minute drive out of Arusha up a long dirt track to reach the tiny little building that housed the children. Abdul, the director of Abrojaley Africa Ajabu Ltd. has very close ties with the orphanage and kindly offered to drive me up there. Although the building was in need of some considerable love and care the setting was absolutely breathtaking. There was a spectacular view out the back looking up at the mountains blanketed in foliage. There was a small old swing and a tiny little football pitch set in amongst the banana trees. From what Farther Zacharia explained the children lived primarily off bananas (which they grew themselves) and from milk that is produced by the two cows that has been given to them. As it stood the single building could only accommodate a maximum of 22 children, some of which are HIV orphans others have simply been left at the gate with no explanation. As we walked around meeting the kids I was told all about the dream of educating each and every one of them and I listened intently as he meticulously explained how he planned to achieve this right down to what crops he was going to plant where and how big each classroom was going to be.

I am no psychologist and I have not visited enough orphanages in my life to create a convincing case study but I have found that children with the least often have the most to give. I have no idea whether the unlimited levels of affection that they display is a way of compensating for the lack of love that they have received or whether it is simply a natural human emotion that manifests itself in times of need. Despite all this outward display of affection I couldn’t help but be left with a sense of emptiness as I looked around.

I asked Farther Zacharia what the bicycle meant to them and whether it would be of any use so far up this dirt track. In truth I was partly expecting him to say that it was a very kind gesture but that it would probably be sold to help feed the children. As it turned out he told me that the children had been praying for a bike for some time now. It is more than a 2km walk for them to collect water each day and on occasions when they could buy supplies it was a long an arduous walk back to the house and the bike would make their lives considerably easier. As I watched the kids race around on the bike I also suspected that it would provide them with a little entertainment from time to time, in between the daily chores.

After a healthy amount of hugging it was time to continue on my journey and as we pulled away down the hill I caught sight of the children racing around on Flashdance back in the distance. I have to say that I have had my fair share of disagreements with Flashdance, I’ve even come close to quietly pushing her off a cliff, but seeing how useful she really is to people in need made me forget all the quarrels we have had.