Adventure – Head over Heels 2014

To The End

July 29, 2016AyshaLeave a comment

The day begins as every day for the last 3 months has begun: Emma and Mike rise just before dawn, ready to set off as soon as daybreaks. We clear up the campsite, fetch water from a borehole and drive ahead to prepare breakfast. As always, we attract attention but it is a working day, people don’t stay long, they head on to their fields.

As always someone helps us out. Its a community activity.

After breakfast we leave Emma and Mike and drive to the coast, to Pemba. This day, the second last day, Emma ran an incredible 74 kilometres in one day.

Scorpion hole

5 people’s stuff in one car and occasionally 5 people

We speak to several TV companies who say they will film Emma finishing her run. We are delighted that the stunning Avani Pemba Beach Hotel agrees that Emma can end her incredible journey across Africa on their beach.

The next day we wait. Emma has risen early, looking forward to finishing. Robert is waiting on the road to film her arriving at the hotel and radios to let me know she is coming. Woocash is in the middle of the hotel and I am at the end.

It’s a wonderful moment as Emma runs through the hotel: guests and staff cheer and direct her to the beach. It’s been 18 months preparation. Many hours of commitment: for Emma and Mike training and for us preparing the car, kit, logistics, support network, and sponsorship. When Emma and I first came up with this idea, everyone told us we would not survive. We accepted this as a strong possibility and were determined to go. Then, it has been 3 months on the road. There were times in the middle when it looked like the team was going to fall apart and the run would not be finished. Yet, we were all determined to see it through.

Emma runs down the wooden stairs, steps onto the beach, walks along the concrete pier and into the sea. An amazing 3974 km, in 89 days, averaging over a marathon day. She did it. We did it.

We celebrate with champagne and sweets.

*****

Day 88 distance run: 74.17 km, 46.08 miles
Day 89 distance run: 62.11 km, 38.59 miles

Number of Days: 89

Total distance run by Emma: 3974 km, 2469 miles

Daily average distance run by Emma (including rest days): 44.7 km, 27.7 miles
(A marathon is 42.195 km, 26.219 miles)

Men with Machetes!

July 24, 2016Aysha4 Comments

To be fair I have seen 4 year olds with machetes. It’s an essential tool. What makes this moment special is 6 men with machetes in hand are walking towards us with serious intent. Its tricky timing as I am busy cutting onions for dinner. Emma has to be fed within 20 minutes of stopping her run for the day, I’m not sure about the reasoning for this but that is the thing that must be done. We are rushing, a little late, as we couldn’t find a good spot at the right mileage. I don’t have time now to chat to men with machetes.

Woocash and Robert are busy with the fire and setting up the campsite and get to watch their approach with rising concern. We had driven 100 metres off the road to an area of trees to hide Cleopatra but hiding a large 4×4 with a bright yellow bumper is tricky. And they probably saw us drive off the road and across the field.

As they arrive into our camp I turn round to greet them. It has to be me, Robert and Woocash don’t speak Portuguese. There’s a little tension in the air. After a friendly greeting, I go on to tell them why we are there, their faces relax into smiles. I guess they didn’t want to fight either.

The leader asks our names. “Woocash” says Woocash. Its caught the leader out. “Eh?” “Woocash”

“Woo… Woo?”

“Woocash” This looks like it’s going to go on for some time.

An exasperated voice behind the leader bursts out: “Woocash!” There is the definite tone of “you blithering idiot”.

I grin inside, it doesn’t matter what the culture, the emotions younger people feel at times for their elders are the same across the world.

Happily, the food is ready for Emma and Mike when they arrive. Emma has just run her furthest distance of the journey. 73 kilometres! In fact, Emma is feeling so good, she tells us to go ahead tomorrow to Pemba, to prepare for her arrival. They will be there in a couple of days!

Montepuez at dawn

Fetching water from the Mission by bicycle

Deadly scorpion in camp again

Fresh Watermelon from yesterday’s market

*****

Number of Days: 87

Total distance run by Emma: 3838 km, 2384 miles

Daily average distance run by Emma (including rest days): 44.1 km, 27.4 miles

Distance run today: 73.17 km, 45.46 miles

Montepuez

July 20, 2016July 20, 2016AyshaLeave a comment

Montepuez is vibrant with colour and sound and a beautiful back drop of moutainous rock. It doesn’t take long to find the market under cover from the hot sun. There are stalls selling watermelon, potatoes, spinach, tomatoes. Bottles of oil hang with a beauty like liquid gold, glinting from the bands of light cutting through from the sky above. We ask someone where the internet is.

“Vamos” (Lets Go!) He says and he’s off through zig zagging paths wide enough only for one set of feet to pass through at a time.

Left, then right, then right again, then left or may be it was right; past the pharmaceutical stores, selling anti-malarials and antibiotics in the warm shade; past cloths and clothing brushing us as we go by; through the bread area and the smelly fish market; to arrive at the internet. He leaves us there.

Amazingly, we have paid more attention to our inward journey than we thought. After uploading photos to the world, we work our way backwards past the landmarks, buying food and supplies, emerging with pride into the sun.

It’s lunchtime and we are advised to try a local Somalian restaurant. The food is delicious. I highly recommend “Restaurant Jubba”.

We head back to Emma and Mike who are looking relaxed. Robert tastes coconut for the first time.

The next morning sees us on our way. Emma is well enough to run and determined to reach the coast very soon.

*****

For any travellers, I definitely recommend Montepuez. Possibly my favourite town of the whole journey. It’s an international town. We met Pakistani, Somali and Japanese people there.

*****

Number of Days: 86

Total distance run by Emma: 3765 km, 2339 miles

Daily average distance run by Emma (including rest days): 43.8 km, 27.2 miles

Distance run today: 0 km, 0 miles

Emma is ill

July 17, 2016AyshaLeave a comment

“So close you can almost taste it” Natasha Bedingfield’s words have never felt so appropriate. Emma is days away from finishing. We are maybe 250km from the coast.

The first sign Emma is ill is at the end of day 84. Emma is in tears when we arrive to collect her and Robert in Balanga. We don’t know what is wrong. Robert is worried that it is something he has done or not done whilst he was cycling in support. Mike, being closest to Emma, takes responsibility for her care. Emma goes to bed without eating.

I know its possibly wrong to be thinking this at this moment, but as Emma was ill, she wanted to sleep in the Roof Tent, which has a comfier mattress in it. This meant Woocash and I slept in Mike’s tent. We couldn’t squash Robert in too. Its okay though, there was no rain that night so we put up the extension tent for him. Back in the tent, I couldn’t sleep for looking up at the stars, the bright sparkling sheer number of them across the sky was excitingly beautiful.

Due to not being able to camp where Emma stopped, Emma has a shorter nights rest than usual and has to be up at 3.20am so that we can drive her back ready to start running at dawn. Mike swops with Robert and goes on the bicycle. We are all hugely concerned especially as she has not had any food.

That day Emma ran a whopping 59km whilst ill.

At the end of the day, Mike calls us as Emma has gone as far as she can. She’s very tired and isn’t speaking again when we pick her up from the centre of Montepuez.

Robert, Woocash and I have found a beautiful Mission with extensive grounds, 6km out of town. The Padre has said that we can stay. We assure him we will be gone by the next morning.

We rise at 3.45 am but Emma says she cannot run that day. She has had to go to the toilet throughout the night and has barely slept. Emma has been ill before but this is the worst I have seen her yet. It’s a relief that this time she has chosen to rest. She is frustrated.

Yet again, I am struck by the timing. For the last 9 days we have been camping in the bush where we have to dig our own toilets and risk wild animals if we need to get up in the night. But here Emma can rest more easily. Its not perfect for a poorly Emma. Snakes and scorpions can still be present at night and the toilet, although pre dug, is a drop toilet. There is however, a place to shower and hand wash clothes. And solid shade on clean concrete around the sides of the building. It is an oasis from the dirt and humidity of the road. It feels like someone is looking after us again.

Having made sure Emma and Mike have everything they need and can call us in an emergency, we head to Montepuez for much needed fresh food and supplies.

Fetching water

This friendly family directed us to the borehole

*****

Day 84 distance run: 66.22 km, 41.14 miles
Day 85 distance run: 58.85 km, 36.56 miles

Number of Days: 85

Total distance run by Emma: 3765 km, 2339 miles

Daily average distance run by Emma (including rest days): 44.3 km, 27.5 miles

What snaps trees in the night?

July 12, 2016July 14, 2016Aysha1 Comment

Elephants! It is sometime between 3am and 4am and dark, when the first crack of a tree being broken near our tent wakes me. We are camped deep in the bush, surrounded by trees. I nudge Woocash and Robert awake (who both claimed to be awake already). Woocash, Robert and I are sleeping in the tent on top of the car, the guy ropes are tethered to the ground and the occasional tree. I really hope an elephant won’t snap a tree attached to the tent and get frightened. Emma and Mike are sleeping in Mike’s tent on the ground. We hear them get up and head to the car. Happily, they don’t step on a snake or scorpion. The car door slams on their way in. Above them, we tense a little.

Emma and Mike were sleeping in the blue tent when the elephants came by

Knowing the risks makes no difference to the magical moment of seeing the dark shapes moving slowly around us and hearing elephants snapping, munching and making deep contented noises. We are silent and still. Eventually, the elephants move off into the darkness and we all breathe out with joy at the experience, and having come out alive.

Try getting out of here in a hurry

Robert directing Woocash out of the forest. I am the marker for the only exit across a little gulley

We all get up and head onwards to the ocean. Not far now.

P1080149 P1080146

*****

Day 81 distance run: 67.18 km, 41.74 miles
Day 82 distance run: 65.11 km, 40.45 miles

Number of Days: 82

Total distance run by Emma: 3569 km, 2217 miles

Daily average distance run by Emma (including rest days): 43.5 km, 27.0 miles

Police Visit

July 9, 2016Aysha1 Comment

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It rained last night and flowers are slowly coming out.

At lunchtime, as we sat on the ground munching our dinner, two police, one with a gun and one with a baton parked their 4×4 beside us and walked over. They were very serious. They asked us if we had a gun and told us we were in a national park where it is illegal to shoot animals.

I responded (in Portuguese) “No, I think guns are dangerous”.
The police officer agreed adding, “if you don’t know.”

The police then asked to search our vehicle. Behind and under the seats they discovered our hidden stash of tinned tuna and tomatoes. Upon finding this, I’m sure I heard a muffled giggle coming out of one of the policemen. Once they knew we weren’t poachers, I guess, they could relax.

We hope we don’t get mistaken for poachers during the night. I don’t think they would be so friendly in that case.

This young woman came to help me out and then took over as I was too slow. Bless her.

Assessing the route as we drive into the bush

Preparing the ground for Emma and Mike’s tent

*****

Number of Days: 80

Total distance run by Emma: 3437 km, 2135 miles

Daily average distance run by Emma (including rest days): 43.0 km, 26.7 miles

Distance run today: 65.75 km, 40.85 miles

A gorgeous day

July 8, 2016AyshaLeave a comment

The rich colourful views fill up our hearts with happiness. Friendly people wave as they cycle by. As we travel, my favourite spot is on the top of the car, where I can feel the day’s warmth and see miles of trees whenever we crest a hill.

We stop for lunch, yards away from men burning the undergrowth, its a hunting technique. The flies come back crowding round our eyes and ears. I do admire them, they are tough if very tickly. However, once I put on Incognito Mosquito Repellent I don’t find them much of a problem.

After lunch, whilst the rest of the team sleep, Woocash and I take a walk through the burnt ground collecting snail shells bigger than my hand and discover strange termite mounds.

Fire can’t travel across recently burned ground

Woocash hiding from flies whilst collecting snail shells

Robert uses tissue in his ears to stop the flies

I try zen meditation

Ancient termite temples

Back on the road we come across beautiful mango trees. They are not indigenous to Mozambique but they are very popular and grow well. It’s tempting to help ourselves but all mango trees belong to someone, we might be stealing from people who live on pennies.

Baboons

Mangos

And we pass Baboons waving at us, then we realise they are as bothered by flies as we are.

We shop for dinner, buying something in each village we pass: enjoying moments of connection with the people we meet.

Fish for dinner

Everyone wants to be in the photo now

Bananas for dessert

Snap!

Fresh tomatoes for the sauce

A photo to make you smile

P1080106 — Emma on her way to running 67km, her furthest distance in one day so far. Happiness gives energy

At the end of the day, Robert cooks us his favourite dish: Sadza with fish in fresh tomato and onion sauce. Sadza is the main carbohydrate across southern Africa. It took a little while for some of us in the team to get used to the texture and flavour and if it isn’t correctly cooked it can make you ill. Robert is a master at cooking it and now we will happily eat it every day.

Snack time 🙂

Dinner’s much more fun to cook on a real fire.

*****

Number of Days: 79

Total distance run by Emma: 3371 km, 2094 miles

Daily average distance run by Emma (including rest days): 42.7 km, 26.5 miles

Distance run today: 67.28 km, 41.80 miles

17 km up hill to border crossing #7 Chiponde, Malawi to Mandimba, Mozambique

June 28, 2016July 7, 2016Aysha2 Comments

Today was a phenomenal achievement by Mike and Emma. On top of what they do almost every day of this journey.

After a night in hiding, having run off from a camping place that felt dodgy – we had driven up to the local important persons house when he wasn’t there. It felt like we had arrived in a lions’ den and the remaining lions were so surprised they hadn’t quite worked out how to deal with this unexpected gift but were prowling in any case. It was the only time I got a bad vibe on the whole trip, beating even the 5 guys walking up to us with machetes. Of course, it may have been entirely in our imagination, nothing happened. They could be very nice lions.

P1080093 — Dawn and we are already on our way

Anyway, we set off early to be well out the area before people were up and about. Pretty soon we arrived at the biggest hill/mountain, a long twisting and turning 17km uphill. At the bottom Emma says:

“You might as well go to the top, I’ll try and make it.”

I have learnt, when Emma says she’ll try, it means she’ll make it.

17km later, after running and cycling uphill without more than a water and stretch break, Emma and Mike arrive very hungry for breakfast trailing a group of school children. Otherwise they seem pretty cool about their achievement.

I start chatting to the children, moving slowly away from the team, making sure to catch all of the children and draw them away. They are hesitant, initially, but the temptation to talk to me and poke me to see if I am real is much better than just watching a group of strangers. We walk casually and chat about their favourite food (“Mango” in case you are wondering) and other friendly things and quite by chance we have arrived at the school gate, where the teacher ushers them into class. Some of them give me a look like they know what I did.

Back at breakfast, Emma and Mike have eaten twice their usual amount and as Robert was digging out a flat spot for Emma to sleep on, a black snake undulated out. Apparently, it was not a poisonous one.

Post breakfast snooze time with a curious watcher on the hill

The border crossing itself is straightforward.

Emma and Mike carry on their way for another 40km or so through the heat.

Our evening campsite, complete with scorpions:

Bedtime view

Preparing dinner

Not 3 yards from camp I came across this big guy and then another one and then I went to bed not to get up until the sun rose and sent them home.

*****

Number of Days: 75

Total distance run by Emma: 3204 km, 1991 miles

Daily average distance run by Emma (including rest days): 42.7 km, 26.5 miles

Distance run today: 60.90 km, 37.84 miles

Hidden Talent

June 21, 2016June 21, 2016AyshaLeave a comment

Whenever you dig into the heart of a country you will find hidden talent. Here, in Malawi, whilst Emma was running 26 miles with Mike beside her and Robert was teaching me to scrub clothes, Woocash discovered a young breakdancer in the making:

In case you can’t see the video. Here are a few happy photos of the young man dancing:

Part 1: Entertaining Children

June 20, 2016AyshaLeave a comment

Before dawn Woocash takes Emma and Mike to the point where they stopped the night before. As dawn is breaking, Emma starts her run and Lukasz has returns to pick us up from the center of the village.

This day held one of my favourite moments of the trip and, of course, it involves children laughing. We had put up a tarpaulin to shelter from the threatening rain clouds but, as the crowds of children gathered, we shifted it to act as a privacy barrier. Emma and Mike had arrived for breakfast stressed from being screamed at by excitable children. A few of the watchers drifted off to school but the less well dressed ones stayed. I am guessing, but may be wrong, that they didn’t have enough money for a formal education. So, in order to enable the team to have some peace, I went out to the children to be their focus and had loads of fun.

The children were sweet and friendly and tolerated my lack of language skills and crazy antics. I taught them how to spin their leg under themselves, did a few yoga moves, sang songs – “heads, shoulders, knees and toes.” And several times I tried to teach them the Mexican wave (they had surrounded me in a circle and I thought it would be fun).

One girl, Margaret, spoke a few words of English and had the confidence to be the first to try things. Thank God for her. Mostly, the children laughed and giggled and looked up at me with shining eyes and smiles. Pushing in to touch me at times then running away squealing when I looked at them.

An old man came up to me and asked, “Why do you do this?”

“Because I like children.” I reply.

He smiles and says, “Thank you.”

He went on his way to the fields to work.

That thank you and smile that went with it and the sound of children laughing, will warm me for the rest of my life.

At last, I saw Mike and Emma setting off on their journey, hopefully at least a little rested, and disappearing down the road. I could stop, pack up the car, say goodbye to the little crowd and revert to being an introvert. Onwards we go to Mangochi and Lake Malawi.