APRIL 2004
EGYPT RECCE
9 April 04 - Cairo, Egypt’s capital, is one of the destinations on PETRONAS Adventure Team’s next expedition. Expedition Leader Halim Rahman and Promotions and Marketing Director Azman Baharuddin were there recently on a fact-finding mission.
The objective of the Egypt recce trip, said Halim, was to meet with the Malaysian Embassy and PETRONAS office representatives in Cairo. “We also had to discuss details of the border formalities between Sudan and Egypt and make the necessary arrangements for the military support,” added Halim.
“At the same time, we checked out the campsite and hotels, and held preliminary discussions about the community relations programmes, the dinners, and so forth,” said Azman.
The pair was kept fairly busy with the arrangements for the expedition:
Day 1: The local handler’s representative Thomas William from Travco met the recce team at the airport.
Day 2: To gain a hands-on experience of the road system and the route, the recce team drove to Bahariah, 350km from Cairo. There, they also checked the conditions of the campsite. Daytime temperatures was around 38 degrees, while at night, it dipped to 15 degrees, chillier when the wind blows.
Day 3: The recce team returned to Cairo to have another round of discussions with Thomas about the route and how the convoy is to be managed.
Day 4: Met with the Malaysian Embassy Counsellor – Encik Azmi Zainuddin. The embassy has promised their full support to ensure the expedition’s success.
Day 5: Met with H.E. Sherine Maher Ambassador from Foreign Affairs Department of Egypt and later at the PETRONAS Egypt office, met with its General Manager Encik Azhar Nordin and Senior Manager Encik Zarei Mohamed.
“Overall, the trip was successful because now we know the direction to take regarding the border formality for the Sudan-Egypt crossing,” said Halim.
“We plan to make another trip to follow-up on matters,” added Azman.
SUDAN RECCE SPRINGS A FEW SURPRISES
2 April 04 - “This (next expedition will be much tougher than last year’s Africa Trek,” said Operations Director Faruk Rahman. Fresh from his first recce to Sudan, Faruk together with team member Dr Zaini Sharaani, and local handler Alessandro Arada, had spent eight days scouting the route from Khartoum to the Egyptian – Sudanese border.
Upon reaching the border, the recce team achieved their objective, which was to determine if there were border posts between Sudan and Egypt. Although there was no border post on the Sudanese side, there was the Arkin border post in Egypt. But Arkin has long been close to traffic – from both sides.
While the team tries to get a letter from Khartoum with the assistance of PETRONAS Sudan Country Office, Expedition Leader Halim Rahman and Promotions and Marketing Director Azman Baharuddin, who are presently in Egypt, are working to get permission from the Egyptian authorities.
It took Faruk and his team three days to drive from Khartoum to Arkin, about an 800km journey, with two nights camping in the Nubian Desert. “Although one campsite to another is relatively a short distance, about 250km, the journey is long,” said Faruk. “It can take about 10 hours due to the terrain.” What complicates the journey is that there are no tracks in the Nubian Desert unlike last year’s expedition where the convoy had tracks in the Namib Desert crossing.
The campsites have no facilities. At some places, there may be a spring water well, marked by a few logs, or in one spot, by a tyre on the ground with a hole in it. “Water is so precious here,” remarked Faruk. “If the convoy is here, we cannot depend on this water – it’s meant for the local people. We’ll have to bring our own supply of water for cooking and drinking.” Fuel stations are also scarce. Between Khartoum and the border, there’s only one refueling point at Dongola.
Of the people, Faruk found them very hospitable and friendly. One day, while looking for water, they came across a village and one family welcomed them into their home for a night’s stay.
Early preparations such as this recce are crucial to a successfully planned expedition. So far, there are plans to begin the expedition in Sudan and finish in Morocco. In between, countries like Libya, Tunisia and Algeria are still being discussed.
