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-   -   troubles in Kenya, passing true? (https://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hubb/travellers-advisories-safety-security-road/troubles-in-kenya-passing-true-32034)

StevenD 4 Jan 2008 10:42

troubles in Kenya, passing true?
 
Hi all,

Currently i'm in Mbeya, Tanzania and came to know about the crisis in Kenya. Also i was told the land borders are closed so i can not go trough there.
My plan was to go true South sudan after all, but to get a visa i was hoping to go to Nairoby (and some needed parts for the bike would be available there to). Is there anyone with some real information about the situation there right now, is the landborder really closed and if not, is the route to nairoby relatively safe to travel (and then to the west, towards Juba).
The border Kenya-Uganda is not safe due to a large number of refugees in that region going towards Uganda, so i would cross from Kenya into Sudan.

Otherwise, is it possible to obtain a visa for Sudan in either Kampala (my last information say's the embassy is no longer there, but this could be old information) or in Burundi or Rwanda?
Dodoma has no Sudanese ambassy as far as i know, only Dar es salaam which would be a long way towards the wrong direction.

On the occational moment i have an internet connection here i can find little information about this, especially about entering south sudan from either kenya or Uganda. If anyone has usefull information it is very higly apreciated.

An other suggestion on getting towards Djibouty, where i will cros to Yemen is also apriciated, though flying over the conflict zone is just to expensive.
Overland other that Sudan or Kenya i dont think i have options, the Eastern part of The Congo is surely a no go zone.


Africa can change overnight, this Kenya crisis is very recent proof of that :(

Walkabout 4 Jan 2008 11:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by StevenD (Post 166442)
Hi all,


Africa can change overnight, this Kenya crisis is very recent proof of that :(


Very true!

I don't have any personal knowledge to add to what you know; the international news of the bbc seems to think that things are a bit calmer:-

BBC NEWS | Africa | Kenyan police block fresh rally

If you can wait for a few days in TZ, the situation may become much clearer.

You could also post this question in the sub-saharan forum; maybe more people will see it there and quicker.
Or, perhaps there is a community in Kenya; take a look over on the left of your display, under "community".

Good luck,

StevenD 7 Jan 2008 16:56

Kenya it is, i will go to nairoby after all to do some well needed work on the bike there.

If anyone can add something about the sudan Visa it would be very helpfull. Is there a good source that can tell me if the border between kenya and Sudan is open and possible to travel? the embassey is not very helpfull.

antony_nz 8 Jan 2008 07:34

[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']Hi don’t know how much this will help,[/FONT]


[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']If i was you i would get my Sudan visa in dar es salaam, because its the one place people seem to have the little trouble with. Who knows the Sudan embassy in Nairobi might have shut down due to the riots.[/FONT]

[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']Once in Nairobi get an Ethiopian visa.[/FONT]

[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']About the Sudan Kenya boarder being open or closed. I was in lokichokio 2 years ago and they said it was open. But people in Nairobi told me it wasn’t so who knows. I think it just depends on your luck. I have heard that the South Sudan government might issue its own visa to.[/FONT]
[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']Unless you’re in Juba or lokichokio or close by the boarder you won’t really know for sure. (That opinion any way)[/FONT]


[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']If you can’t get cross the border in to Sudan (i think you should be able to) you could go back to lodwar and head up lake Turkana on the west side and cross the omo river in a dugout canoe at a place called Omorate this is on the Ethiopian side. This is what i did in 2006.( public transport) But without a bike.[/FONT]

[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']Problems you might find are: canoe not big enough for a bike, when i was there i didn’t see any but I wasn’t looking either. Bring lot of fuel and water as i didn’t see any after lodwar.[/FONT]

[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']Their a police station up their somewhere on the Kenyan side just west of lake turkana near the border with Ethiopia. I stayed there a night and they are a bunch of good guys cooked me dinner and all. Once you find this police station they can show you the way to omorate. [/FONT]

[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif'] You can clear immigration on the Kenyan side at eldoret or lokichokio which is easy. And once in Ethiopia you can clear immigration at a place called Omorate.[/FONT]

[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']Once in Omorate your fine. I didn’t see any but your be able to get fuel and 2 or 3 hotel with plenty of bottle water and food.[/FONT]

[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']Advise: Around Lake Turkana, northern Kenya and south west Ethiopia it not the safest of places to break down or get lost. Not much traffic and people do carry guns. Don’t take this easy. It not. [/FONT]

[FONT='Verdana','sans-serif']Anything else just let me know[/FONT]

antony_nz 8 Jan 2008 07:58

Hi don’t know how much this will help,


If i was you i would get my Sudan visa in dar es salaam, because its the one place people seem to have the little trouble with. Who knows the Sudan embassy in Nairobi might have shut down due to the riots.

Once in Nairobi get an Ethiopian visa.

About the Sudan Kenya boarder being open or closed. I was in lokichokio 2 years ago and they said it was open. But people in Nairobi told me it wasn’t so who knows. I think it just depends on your luck. I have heard that the South Sudan government might issue its own visa to.
Unless you’re in Juba or lokichokio or close by the boarder you won’t really know for sure. (That opinion any way)


If you can’t get cross the border in to Sudan (i think you should be able to) you could go back to lodwar and head up lake Turkana on the west side and cross the omo river in a dugout canoe at a place called Omorate this is on the Ethiopian side. This is what i did in 2006.( public transport) But without a bike.

Problems you might find are: canoe not big enough for a bike, when i was there i didn’t see any but I wasn’t looking either. Bring lot of fuel and water as i didn’t see any after lodwar.

Their a police station up their somewhere on the Kenyan side just west of lake turkana near the border with Ethiopia. I stayed there a night and they are a bunch of good guys cooked me dinner and all. Once you find this police station they can show you the way to omorate.

You can clear immigration on the Kenyan side at eldoret or lokichokio which is easy. And once in Ethiopia you can clear immigration at a place called Omorate.

Once in Omorate your fine. I didn’t see any but your be able to get fuel and 2 or 3 hotel with plenty of bottle water.

Advise: Around Lake Turkana, northern Kenya and south west Ethiopia it not the safest of places to break down or get lost. Not much traffic and people do carry guns. Don’t take this easy. It not.

Anything else just let me know

Gecko 8 Jan 2008 10:41

We spoke to a friend in Nairobi yesterday and she tells us that the whole thing is hugely exaggerated by the media. There has been some trouble but nothing like the extent that the western media has been reporting. There are parts of Nairobi that you would be advised to always avoid and these areas are 'hot spots' which people generally avoid anyway. Street robberies are unfortunately a problem - nothing new there so be smart and keep your eyes open . Kenya is not the new Rwanda despite what the media would like us to believe.

StevenD 9 Jan 2008 14:50

Hello Antony, thnx for stepping in with this helpfull information.
I heard of the SPLA providing visa's to, on the hubb. although i have been searching for any information about this but can hardly find any information about the SPLA itself. There is supposed to be an office in Kampala, but i have not found it so far. Therefor i am looking to get a Sudanese visa instead. The safest way to enter would probably be from Kampala towards Juba, but then i would have to ride the north east of Uganda wich is not known to be a safe place either. Other option would be to ride to the south of Uganda and enter there but i'm not looking forward to this huge detour.

Soon i have to make my decision, but it is very hard with the little information available. But that's wat exploring is all about i guess :)

I want to cross either from Kenya (preferred for the cost saving of the Uganda Visa) or from Uganda, then getting the visa for Ethiopia in Khartoum later on.
Wish i did some more reasearch at home, where internet is free and reliable :cool4:

HaroldT 9 Jan 2008 15:48

Hey Steven,

Plaats dit probleem ook even op Allroadmaniacs.nl.
NL Gerben heeft ook zo geredn en kan je misschien ook nog helpen.

succes

antony_nz 9 Jan 2008 19:21

this may help

Getting a Sudanese Visa - ... - Thorn Tree Travel Forum - Lonely Planet


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