A week into his ambitious attempt to ride from Jeddah to Birmingham, Trevor Woolley, sales manager for Jeddah Today sent Arab News a promised update.
After completing the final formalities and loading the motorcycle safely on board the Suez- bound ship, Trevor relaxed into the prospect of a two- day trip to Suez, ready to take to the road. However, the first unplanned event happened even before landfall was sighted; the ship had an engine failure and arrived after running repairs a day late in Suez.
No such problems with the bike, however. “Sweet as you like,” said Trevor. “Ran beautifully all the way to Egyptian customs and about 400 meters!” That was the full extent of the morning’s journey, as officialdom decreed that explanations and multiple searches of the bike and even the contents of the spare Castrol containers was to take five hours. “I don’t think they could quite handle the fact that I was riding to England, “ said Trevor. “It just didn’t seem reasonable to them.”
Eventually, after re-packing the bike, he set out across the Sinai desert. After several hours of blistering heat and wind-blown sand, Trevor halted overnight at St Catherineís Mount. Tuesday involved crossing the remainder of the peninsula to Nuweiba and taking ship to Aqaba.
Wednesday morning ís dawn start routed Trevor down the long winding road down to the lowest point on earth and thence along the shore of the Dead Sea. Traveling slowly because of the intense heat, he stopped occasionally to look at the rarely visited historical sites. “I celebrated my birthday by eating lunch floating in the Dead Sea,” he said.
After an overnight stop in Amman, he crossed the Syrian border with no problems. “They were fantastic at the border post! Lots of interest and even more dates and coffee. I was sorry to leave!”
In Syria, good weather and slightly lower temperatures made the ride to Damascus less grueling. “Wherever I stop, the people are great. Tremendous interest and hospitality.”
Riding a motorcycle, rather than being in the air-conditioned comfort of a car brings you nearer the environment you are traveling through. Details of the landscape and the feel of wind, sand and the occasional impact of insects adds, if not a welcome contact with the surroundings, an involvement with it.
“When I entered Damascus, the smells of cooking from the cafes in the smaller side streets was something I just would not have noticed in a car. It’s proving to be quite an experience!”
When last we heard, Homs and Lattkia were the next cities en route.
