Starting early again this morning we were outside the minibus office by 7am. Our bikes were loaded on the bus, a little more delicately than last time, and we selected our seats. The bus was due to leave at 7:30am and to our surprise it did!
Despite the fact that there is new fully sealed road from Karima to Atbara, for reasons unknown to us, we set off across the desert along an unsealed road. None of the passengers looked particularly surprised so we have to assume that this was usual. It certainly added a bit of interest to the journey. Unfortunately the bumpy road caused a child to be sick, which as you can imagine in a confined minibus smells lovely. Something that Debs, who suffers from travel sickness, really didn't need. After a brief stop where the mother and daughter had a drink of water, but made no attempt to clean themselves up we set off again. It wasn't long before we rejoined the road, much to Debs and I am sure the little girls relief! As during our last journey, sand storms battered the side of the minibus. We were once again thankful that we weren't cycling through it.
Eventually, after just over 3 hours we arrived in Atbara. The bikes were swiftly unloaded from the bus and we attached our gear ready to go and find a hotel. Having decided to treat ourselves a bit we went to have a look at the Al Asfia hotel, which our guidebook describes as the best hotel in town. We have to say it was a disappointment, it may have had a fridge, air-con and a bathroom, but it was old tatty and overpriced. Leaving that hotel behind we went in search of another, hoping this one would be better. At the end of the road we met a British 4x4, driven by some Kiwis. We stopped to say hello and they told us that they had been battered by sand storms all the way to Atbara. It seems we have had a lucky escape! We bid them well on their journey, also to Cape Town, and headed to the hotel.
When we got to the Nile Hotel it was a massive improvement on the Al Asfia. Despite having a shared bathroom, the room is brighter, cleaner and the hotel is a lot more welcoming. Plus after the heat, it is great to have air-con if only for one night.
Other than a trip to the market to buy some fruit, we have no plans to do much. We have arranged to have dinner here and an early breakfast for tomorrow. With a bit of luck and a fair tailwind we should get to the Meroe pyramids tomorrow. Then it will be camping all the way down to Khartoum. We better make the most of having an air conditioned room!
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