The Ukimwi Road: From Kenya to Zimbabwe - Hardcover

Murphy, Dervla

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0719552508 ISBN 13: 9780719552502

Publisher: John Murray, 1993

Synopsis

Dervla Murphy often recalled these words while pedalling or pushing her bicycle over some of the roughest roads in sub-Saharan Africa. Yet the beauty of the contrasting landscapes along her 3,000-mile route from Kenya through Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi and Zambia to Zimbabwe more than compensated for the hazardous and the unexpected.;Dervla had been naively looking forward to a few carefree months of fresh air and exercise free from the stress of the last few years. Soon, however, she realized that for travellers who wish to remain carefree, Africa is the wrong continent. Inevitably she was caught up in the harrowing problems of the peoples amongst whom she travelled: on the one hand the devastating effects of AIDS, drought and economic collapse and on the other the scepticism of the Africans about Western 'development projects' and 'aid schemes' which promise so much but deliver so little except to the administrators.;By day Dervla enjoyed the space and solitude of rural Africa; even the toughest terrain did not deter her although on one occasion it nearly claimed her. In the evenings she usually stayed in villages, sometimes sleeping on the floor. She found the locals talkative and welcoming and many shared her fondness for beer. Hours of illuminating conversation ended most days and often AIDS (in Swahili 'ukimwi') was discussed by both men and women. By now the disease is of epidemic proportions in Africa and she discovered a wide range of reactions to this new mysterious threat and its effects on family life.;What also emerged, as Dervla travelled on, was the extent to which the barriers to progress in Africa were being underpinned by corruption and incompetence both White and Black. In consequence she sensed a new wind of change. As it is clear that no African country can sustain 'development' along European lines some communities are reverting to traditional ways of organizing village society and discovering that this can lead to greater stability.

About this title

Book Description:

Tells of Dervla Murphy's cycle journey through sub-Saharan Africa. She describes the beauty and ruggedness of the countries she visited, but also offers her own view of the concern of the people with Western development projects, AIDS, and the return of communities to traditional ways.

From the Back Cover:

FOR TRAVELLERS WHO WISH TO REMAIN CAREFREE, AFRICA IS THE WRONG CONTINENT

Embarking on a three-thousand mile solo cycle ride across sub-Saharan Africa, Dervla Murphy, at sixty 'the toughest female travel writer of our age', had hoped to escape from the mental and emotional shackles of home. But as she pedalled and pushed her bicycle over some of the roughest roads from Kenya through Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi and Zambia to Zimbabwe, inevitably the harrowing problems of the peoples among whom she travelled rose up to take their place. In particular, the mysterious threat of AIDS ('ukimwi' in Swahili) was talked about wherever she went, by both men and women.

Finding comfort in the beauty of the contrasting landscapes of the countries she passed through, in the space and the solitude, and entertained by the talkative, welcoming local people, Murphy survived starvation, a beating by paramilitaries and a bout of malaria. As ever, she was sustained by her extraordinary compassion, humour and sense of adventure. What emerges from her journey along the Ukimwi Road is a personal, often controversial, always compelling view of Africa, its peoples and its future.

''The Ukimwi Road' is at times a grim work. It is also illuminating and clear-headed'
MARK COCKER, 'Daily Telegraph'

'[Dervla Murphy] belongs firmly to that fine tradition of eccentric women travellers...endearingly self-deprecating'
ANTHONY DANIELS, 'Spectator'

'Wonderful descriptions of the varied landscapes spanning her six-country tour ... the reader is given a flavour of the African sense of humour not normally found in travel literature'
JARLATH DOLAN, 'Irish Times'

About this edition

• Publisher: John Murray
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 0719552508
• ISBN 13: 9780719552502
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 228