• Khartoum, here I come

August 27, 2004

Life in Khartoum is laid back	Expedition Leader Halim Abdul Rahman and fellow team member Zainab Abdul Rahman gets a sneak preview of a science demonstration

It was difficult to believe that the day had finally arrived. Yes, I was indeed going to Khartoum, and this would be my maiden voyage overseas.

The journey to Khartoum was pretty uneventful. We left Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) at 2:40am, Malaysian time. I slept throughout the major part of the flight. We had to transit at Doha and the six-hour transit was indeed agonising.

We were greeted by intense heat, bordering between 40 to 41 degrees Celsius as we stepped out of the aeroplane. We finally arrived at Grand Holiday Villa, Khartoum without much fanfare. My first impression of Khartoum was that the city was not very developed and life seemed to move at a slower pace than what I am used to back home.

I have been given a room to myself, which I believe is a privilege of sorts. The only setback I suppose is that there is no one to counter check on me. Well, there was a briefing at 7:30pm, and yours truly arrived for the briefing at 7:50 pm, amid claps and cheers from the rest of the team. With this, I am now in the running for the Ya Humar Award which is awarded to the person who does the silliest thing.

Simba’s paw note: It is indeed a great joy and privilege to see a dream become a reality, to experience that dream, and to live to tell the story.