Traversa

by Fran Sandham

Inspired by the legendary explorers who first crossed the African heartland, Fran Sandham left the daily grind of London to undertake an extraordinary adventure. He traveled on foot across Africa from the Skeleton Coast on the southwest tip of the African continent through Namibia, Zambia, Malawi, and Tanzania, until he reached the Indian Ocean. Traversa is the fascinating account of the hardships and hilarity that he experienced during his epic solo journey.

Sandham describes his brushes with lions and snakes, land mines and bandits, his two-month battle with a syphilitic donkey, malaria, cockroaches the size of mice, and the other everyday troubles that arise when walking across Africa. Underpinned with the stories of his forerunners--David Livingstone, Sir H. M. Stanley, and Sir Francis Galton, among others--Traversa is the enthralling account of a real-life modern-day adventure against the elements.

Genres: Travel, Africa, Nonfiction, Namibia, Adventure, Walking, Zambia

274 pages

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Fran Sandham was an editor at Rough Guides for several years, and worked in bookselling and in the voluntary sector before that. He has traveled in over fifty countries. He now lives in London and Wirral, and divides his time between freelance writing and public speaking. He has written for many newspapers, magazines and travel publications, including the Sunday Times, the Daily Telegraph, the Observer, the Financial Times,Adventure Travel, Traveller magazine, Travel Africa and Country Walking.

Reviews

[Daren · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It has a lot going for it (in terms of appealing to me): it is slightly unorthodox travel, it is written in a relaxed and easy style, it is very funny, and the author doesn't hold himself up for glory.

So, what did he do? He completed the Traversa.
Page 2: While many Victorian explorers became obsessed with the notion of being the first white man to set foot in some particular place, a few individuals came to regard crossing Africa overland from coast to coast as a goal to rival the discovery of the source of the Nile. This overland crossing of Africa became known as 'the Traversa'.

For the author's Traversa, he not only planned this as overland, but was walking, carrying his own pack and equipment. Commencing in Namibia, on the Skeleton Coast at the Atlantic Ocean coastline, through Namibia, Zambia, Malawi, and Tanzania to reach the Indian Ocean.

This is quite the epic stroll. Over 5000 kilometres, through desert (extreme hot and cold), through the Caprivi Strip to the Zambezi, and to Victoria Falls, where food was largely unavailable, through wet season downpours, up the west side of Lake Malawi and on to Bagamoyo, and his goal.

There are trials and tribulations - a small donkey, a donkey cart, a mule - there are insects, lots of insects! -there are medical situations, mostly related to feet and insects - and there is that 40kg pack.

For me,he got the writing bang on. Enough history to be informed about the places he is, and quotes from and talks about the more famous explorers where they cross his path. He also does not fall into the trap of repetition. He calmly states "Four days later, I arrived at..." without feeling he had to labour over four uneventful days. For a journey of over a year, this was essential to being able to document his travel. He also uses self-deprecating humour, and isn't afraid to question his own actions, which is refreshing. It is also apparent that the author has a genuine affection for Africa and its people.

A quote - P221
And new physical problems are arising almost daily. I'm getting problems from a painful trapped nerve in my shoulder, where my rucksack strap has been pinching it, and I can't straighten my arm above shoulder level - soon I will be limping like Richard III. By now my back is covered with eczema, the result of a perpetually sodden shirt and rucksack pressed against it day after day in this heat. In one place my pack has rubbed a painful hole in my skin through the eczema; carrying my rucksack was unpleasant before, but now it is purgatory. This eczema must be partly due to eating bad food for so long - I never had this problem at home. I'm expecting my teeth and hair to start falling out before long, and I've got more or less a permanent acid indigestion from eating so much junk. Week after week I've lived on lukewarm Coca-Cola, stale buns and doughnuts, slurps, green bananas, powdered milk and far too many cigarettes. With all the rubbishy food and sugar soft drinks I've been consuming, I'll see the east coast through a hypoglycaemic haze.

Great stuff, five stars.

[Lee Prescott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought my 1800 Km trek across Europe from Le Puy-En-Velay to Cabo Fisterra was hard going, but Sandham's trek is on another level. Swap a 12Kg pack for 30Kg, sleeping in pilgrim hostels to roughing it in a tent, the menu pelerin or del dia for a cream cake and custard junk food diet spliced inbetween a maize porridge. Its an amazing tale and even when Sandham is repeating himself with nothing much to say, that captures some of the monotony of trekking for months on end and lends the book real authenticity. Its funny too. The finale of 'why bother?'/'What did you get out of it?' is one of the best explanations of that I've read. Highly recommended if you like adventure books .

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible story of trekking from Namibia's Atlantic Coast to the Indian Ocean (ending up at Zanzibar). Although the author's attacked by neither man nor beast (just insects aplenty), he has his share of troubles, starting with recalitrant wild donkeys, and finishing up with a week of malaria treatment (apologies if that proves a spoiler). Terrific writing skills and a great sense of humor make this book one of my top books for the year. Highly recommended.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It was captivating. I feel like I've travelled across Africa with him, obviously without the challenge of walking 5000km.

You'd think after reading a book about a man walking across four African countries, from Skeleton Coast to Bagamoyo on the coast of the Indian Ocean, I'd have some awesome and poetic quotes for you, but my favourite passages were:

"On the outskirts of Karonga I sit outside a little shop, eating a slurp as I watch the world go by. A cow stands patiently on the opposite side of the road, minding its own business; a local guy approaches, and for no apparent reason gives the cow a hefty kick as he passes, then turns and grins at me. What am I supposed to do, applaud politely? The cow's response is to give the man an incredibly human look - intelligent, dignified and full of pathos. It's as though it's saying: 'Look, I may only be a cow, but it's still not fair for you to kick me just because you feel like it.'"

I bet he was glad he walked across Africa to witness that... Next:

"Just outside of Morogoro I stop beside the road to fix my rucksack, facing the direction in which I've come. A bus races up behind me; as it passes, a young guy leans right out of the door and whacks my arse with a large stick. 'Come back here, you FUCKER!' I shout rather impotently after him..."

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO entertaining, great writing with laugh out loud humor thrown in. The excerpts from the Livingstone and Stanley expeditions were quite interesting. One of the best travel narratives I've read (and I've read a LOT of them)!

[Chris Steeden · Rating 4 out of 5]

With a mix of adventure and history this is a fantastic book. Also very inspiring. We follow Fran as he treks across Africa from the Skeleton Coast to Zanzibar and, my word, what a journey it is. He did it on his own under his own willpower, strength, determination and bloody mindedness. Fantastic.

The book is free-flowing and damn is it interesting. I love the way that Africa is so vast that at one point Fran looks at two places on a map and realises it is not to far to walk in comparison to what he has already done and then when related back to Britain it is like walking from London to Glasgow.

From Namibia to Zambia to Malawi to Tanzania to Zanzibar. Just a little walk then Fran? He throws in nuggets of history from other explorers experiences of the places he visits including Livingstone, Stanley and Ewart Grogan.

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

An entertaining account of the author's 'traversa' across Africa on foot from Namibia to Tanzania. Sandham tells the story with self-deprecating humor and anecdotes from the great African explorers like Stanley and Livingston of how he backpacked across the continent entirely on his own.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fran Sandham is a British writer who worked for years as an editor for the Rough Guide Travel Series. Tiring of the hustle and bustle of London, he decided to walk across Africa. Even as a child he had been fascinated by the stories of the African explorers, such as Stanley and Livingstone. The walk became a real test of endurance. He wouldn’t accept rides, and often spread his sleeping bag in an inconspicuous place at night rather than stay at a hostel or guest house. His pack was much too heavy at the beginning of his trip and he even considered getting a donkey or a mule to carry his pack, but eventually lightened his pack as much as he could and went on alone. He started at Namibia’s Skeleton Coast near Swakopmund and crossed Namibia, Zambia, Malawi, and finished at the Indian Ocean coast of Tanzania. He writes well, and is well-read, so that he uses literary allusions and tells tales of those who have been there before him. I particularly enjoyed it because our family has traveled in Namibia and we have been to some of the places he visited. I highly recommend this book.

[Pat Stearman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading group book. Took me a little while to get into it but thoroughly enjoyed once I did (and once I worked out it was a bloke!!) Some parts are hilariously laugh out loud funny, some are horrific but he drives the narrative along and you really want to know more. Half tempted to follow up by reading more about Livingstone and Stanley - hadn't realised a) how many other expeditions Stanley had done and b) what a nasty piece of work he was!
He doesn't really answer the question we all wanted answering tho - why did he do it!!!

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

A stunning memoir of Sandham's lone walk from Namibia's Skeleton Coast to Zanzibar. A trek of 5000km where water and insects are constant problems and landscape and wildlife are both dangerous and awesome. Never sentimental, often self-mocking, with a weakness for cigarettes and a longing for oat porridge, Sandham develops complete respect for the continent and its people. We see poverty which we cannot conceive and generosity which stuns him and us. Terrifically researched and quotations from Livingstone et al's journals, the while read is rich and enriching.

[Linda Wallis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading Group book.
Thoroughly enjoyed this.
Finally finished as was distracted by 2 other books.
Did wonder sometimes why he was doing it, as was so unpleasant for him on occasions.
Learnt things I didn't know and he made me laugh out loud too at times.
Highly recommended.

[Robert Luke · Rating 2 out of 5]

Desperately sad I didn't like it - the subject was so tempting. The writing style however wasn't to my liking. I obviously don't know the author and don't wish to be personal, but he writes in a style that doesn't appeal. Great potential poorly delivered.

[Sara Lay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book, enjoyable tales as well as an insight into a different way of life. Opened my eyes and inspired me.

[Gretchen · Rating 4 out of 5]

loved it! shows the good, the bad, the lovely, and the ugly.

[Emma Judd · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of those books I wish didn’t read so fast, because now I’m sad it’s over.

[GUD Magazine · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's hard to read many travel books without a sense of 'Why? Why are you putting yourself through all this?' and Traversa is no exception. Those who sit at home may not understand what drives some people to these lengths, but that doesn't stop us lapping it up and asking for more.

In this enthralling book, Sandham brings his solo walk from the aptly-named Skeleton Coast to the Indian Ocean to life. He comes across, variously, as courageous, determined, bloody-minded, and completely insane. By the end of the book, it's easy to feel, as he does, that he has earned his right to be in Africa, even among people so poor that a man who has scrimped, saved and given up chocolate biscuits to be there, is immeasurably rich.

Throughout, Sandham places his experiences in a historical context, evoking the horror of being preserved from shipwreck only to die of thirst, the shame and waste of the slave trade, and butchery in wars over territory that match anything Europe has achieved in that line. As his traversa progresses, he moves from a theoretical understanding of Africa to a genuine affection for the place and its people.

The book is filled with dry self-deprecation and humour--there's a disastrous donkey, and we can only imagine Sandham's problems with his mule, as he declines to go into details--and some of the characters he meets are portrayed as so much larger than life that there's a temptation to believe they're imaginary. Perhaps the best example of the man's courage is when, having invested time, effort and money in a donkey (diseased), a donkey-cart (beautifully painted), and a mule (disobedient), he's able to walk away from all three. Many people would have persisted even in the face of so much discouragement, but Sandham knows when to cut his losses. He probably wouldn't have made it across Africa without that knowledge.

Apart from the not-so-tame domestic animals, there's lions. Real, live, traveller-eating lions. Fortunately, the threat they pose is more perceived than actual; some people have been eaten, but Sandham gets through. There's also explosive diarrhea, a very unpleasant, if probably inevitable, attack of malaria, and, of course, blisters. Yet day after day, he gets up, and gets going. Even after side trips to investigate mules or donkeys, he insists on being driven back to the point where he stopped walking, so he can start again. He knows when he's idled somewhere too long, and somehow gets himself going. There's no cheating on this journey, even though the temptations must have been enormous.

This book entertained and saddened me by turns, and I heartily recommend it--reading what Sandham has to say is the only way even partially to answer the question, 'Why?'.

[Maliades · Rating 3 out of 5]

If there is one burning desire in my life right now, it is adventure! This book choice seems serendipitous, having just watched the series premiere of 'Expedition Africe' on the History Channel last night. In Expedition Africa, the journey begins in Zanzibar, and in Traversa, the journey ends in Zanzibar. Both sets of travelers seem to be loosely re-creating the journeys of Livingstone and Stanley. I shall read this book with great pleasure (hopefully) while I dream of foreign lands and travel!

Now I've finished the book, and I must say that it was very enjoyable. At times I cringed at the difficulties he faced: questionable food, huge blisters, stubborn donkeys, or merely his having walked so many miles across harsh land... it sure must not have been easy, but he did it! Wow. I appreciated the history peppered throughout the book, and the stories of the people he encountered. I do wish he would have included more technical information on his supplies, and I found it mind-boggling that he'd eat so much junk food and drink so much alcohol on such a hard, physical journey... but he did it! And the book was enjoyable. Anyone who is yearning for travel or adventure should read this.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Travel narrative is a subjective taste. So, I always feel a little guilty giving a relatively low rating to a book with very good points. Sandham walks from the Skeleton Coast in Namibia to the Indian Ocean in Tanzania. He follows a strict rule of accepting no rides and he does not have a support team nor a sponsor, so he does the entire trip on a shoestring budget. There are several sections where Sandham does a nice job of succinctly explaining important historical events in the regions he passes through, although they are rather standard narratives. For my taste, I prefer a narrator who spends more time describing either human interactions or the natural history of the areas he passes through. Too much of this book is about the various other backpackers/white travelers Sandham either daydreams about seducing or spends time getting drunk with and, a minor point, I suppose, but for someone who supposedly spent a year preparing for the trip, Sandham spends an awful lot of time describing his blisters, which never seem to heal. Not that blisters aren't a big issue for long distance walkers, but when it is literally the only thing I learn about weeks of the journey, I hope I don't sound hardhearted in saying I lost interest in those sections pretty quickly.

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Journeys like this always fascinate me, the ability to tear away from life and walk or travel alone, immersed in a new place. In this case, Fran Sandham embarked on a solo walk across Africa, from the Skeleton Coast to the Indian Ocean.

Traversa is part travel writing, part history, recounting Sandham's voyage through deserts, game reserves, falls, and eventually reaches the coast. As expected there are trials and tribulations, hunger, thirst, pain, and other hardships. However, the tone is informal and chatty, and his narration is witty and entertaining, which contrasted well with the segments of history of the many countries he passed through.

Of course there are snippets of other explorers experiences like Livingstone, Stanley, Galton, and Grogan, to which he details how their journeys differed to his.

If you're looking for a sense of adventure and looking to live vicariously through other people's travels, this is a great travelogue to get stuck into. I was already craving an adventure, but I am even more so now.

🌍🚶‍♂️🏜⛺🗺

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author takes approximately eight months to walk across Africa from the Skeleton Coast of Namibia to Bagamoyo in Tanzania on the Indian Ocean. This book is the recounting of that trip with the adventures (and misadventures) that he encounters along the way. Included in the account at appropriate points are the experiences of the early Explorers.
Overall, I enjoyed it. At times, like the detour with the mule/donkey delay, it seemed just that: a delay. But there is a certain amount of admiration for someone who would undertake such a grueling feat. Having traveled some in Namibia myself, I enjoyed the accounts of Windhoek, Swakopmund, Waterburg Plateau, Otavi. Granted, my times there were by car but there was a sense of familiarity. It was also interesting to me to read the history that was included throughout. It got a little tedious in places but there seemed to be a balance. About the time I'd want him to get back to the journey he would do just that.

[Jane E · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a surprisingly good book. I love that the author didn't big note himself. This is not your train for years health nut ready to make the great trek across Africa. Instead he smokes, tries to give up smoking and then smokes some more, drinks too much local beer and eats rubbish like UHT custard and buns. Altogether my kind of person. He also doesn't harp on about how hard it is to walk 40-50km a day with a huge pack. He doesn't make it some sort of spiritual quest. In fact he makes it what it is - a very long walk with a very large backpack because he said he would do it and it would be embarrassing not to after that. Reading this book was a good use of my time and I suspect the author and I would get on well. (A gift from a German traveller in Brussels Airport.)

[Darla Ebert · Rating 3 out of 5]

An ok true adventure-style book. I was wanting more...maybe more interaction with the African people, and so I was left wondering exactly why the book was written. The plan sounded kind of shaky and unnecessary, the author's traveling from point A to point B on foot. I don't know if the journey will actually make it into the Guiness book of world records. As a personal goal, the author achieved it but seemingly at great cost to his health and comfort. For those who have not read the books detailing the travels of Stanley and Livingstone there was a fair amount of information given from their records.
Fairly entertaining.

[Neil Basnett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I mainly enjoyed reading this book, it became frustrating how often he deviated from the walk to compare his 'Traversa' with expeditions previously undertaken by other explorers e.g Livingstone and Stanley. Without these diversions, the book would actually have been quite short. Even though the author was in some ways totally unprepared for the experience and what he would go through, he did incredibly well and managed often to see the funny side of things. I enjoyed his narration of what he was actually going through on the walk much more than the sections devited to tales of past explorations.

[Marie Knock · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book charting one man's coast to coast walk across Africa.

I love Africa, and therefore loved hearing about so many different cultures, people, animals and environments that the author experienced along the walk. His determination to complete the trip is as admirable as it is crazy at times, he encounters all kinds of dangers and dilemmas. Ultimately this book left me eager for more and inspired... if only I had the guts to try something like this.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the adventuresome chutzpah it took to undertake the trip... and the historical expedition details interwoven into the chronology of the trip gave the book depth and made for a more interesting read, but I found the writing style rather bland for this type of travel journal

[Nurettin Ayvali · Rating 3 out of 5]

first 50 pages are all about mules, donkeys, rucksackss, so made me lost my appetite to read it through. i was able to read half of it, there are really nice historical references, though not for my taste ...

[Rafał Sobol · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found myself absolutely glued to the book from the very beginning up until the end. Mr. Sandham proved himself a skilled writer, splendidly going between describing his own journey and retelling stories of the Victorian ages' explorers. His writing style is very nice - not terribly stiff, with a few well-placed explicit words here and there, but then again absolutely not annoyingly loose.
I recommend this book to anyone, even those who don't generally fancy travel books. It's a great read, I assure you.

[Rachel Galbraith]

This book was enjoyable but hard to read at times cause this guy jumped into his travels with less thought than I'd put into finding a matatu to ride in Kenya... it is entertaining at the very least however.

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book because a friend had heard him speak at a U3a meeting . I think she must have told me all the best bits but the book didn't,t quite live up to her recommendation . still worth a read though.

[Valerie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unusual; it took me a while to get into it, but it improved as I (and he) went along. What an adventure!