Waiting…

Waiting… enevitably when travelling there are places where you need to be patient… train stations, airports, border checkpoints and the odd ferry or two. This is especially true when travelling overland through countries like Sudan. The best thing to try and do is ‘go with the flow’ and, if you can, use the time as an opportunity to observe local life – in this case a little of Sudanese life.

Atbara (Atbarah) in northern Sudan is located at the junction of the Nile and Atbarah rivers and it is necessary to cross here if you are heading south to Khartoum. The ferry is just a roll on / roll off ferry – basically a raft with an engine. It can be a long wait, but presents a nice opportunity to observe the locals – who of course, get preferencial treatment in terms of the order in which people and vehicles are allowed to get on board.

Whilst we waited to load the truck onto the ferry across the Nile near Atbara, three men caught my eye as they sat waiting on the other side of the road. They were laughing at me because one of the girls I was with kept rubbing my head to put me off taking a photographs. So I turned the camera on them and got one of my favourite shots from my travels. Three faces I’ll never forget…

Eventually we walked on board with the locals and their donkeys. After the ferry crossingwe stopped briefly in Attbara for some shopping. I went searching for bread and found a bakery, where I got to see how it was baked in big ovens and slid in and out with long wooden poles. We also managed to pick up some wonderful falafel on the main street whilst the locals stood around staring at us.

More photographs from around Sudan: