A Positive Outlook: Volunteering in Bomang'ombe

Nellie Huang tells her heart-warming story about volunteering in Tanzania, getting stuck in the mud, hitchhiking and the people she meets along the way. This is an inspiring article that must not be overlooked. Enjoy the excerpts!


"Our new friend Osle, one of the village committee members, wanted to show us his hometown. In his words, "You have to see Machame. I want to thank you for teaching our children and I want to show you my home. It’s beautiful, you won’t regret it." He was right. We would never forget this day."

"We had entered into the simple lives of the villagers in Bomang’ombe, and the hearts of children hopeful about their bright future. Within the few months of teaching in Bomani Primary School, I bonded closely with Naomi, a fellow teacher and a real friend whom I could confide in and be myself."

"Her husband Deo showed us many sides of Tanzania, even a thing or two about drinking beer in Tanzania (he sure could drink!). We shared travel tales with them, while they told us about their childhood and families."

"Not long after, Osle’s truck came to a halt. Two locals were standing by the side of the road and smiling as us. Conversations in Swahili were exchanged, and in no time, the two men were climbing up onto the truck and joining the ride. We said hi to our new travel mates. Life was as simple as this in Tanzania."

A backcountry bike tour of Africa

Imagine - just you and your bicycle traveling thousands of miles together along the dusty roads of Africa. Daniel Gold, one of the writers for GoNOMAD did just that. He was one of many bicyclists putting the pedal to metal... or rather his foot to the pedal, trying for first place at The Tour D'Afrique. I have never been to Africa myself, but I could only imagine the kind of pleasures, sights, and even the pain a bike ride like this could bring. Read on for more of "Cairo to Capetown: Biking Through the Heart of Africa":

The Tour D’Afrique is the longest most grueling bike race/expedition in the world, covering 12000 kilometers (7,456 miles) through Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa.

In 2006, more than 50 riders attempted the trip from Cairo, and I was one of them.

My uncle, Henry Gold, started the tour in 2003 as a way to promote sustainable transport and introduce adventurous travelers to a continent he fell in love with, a continent that most people would be reluctant to travel through on their own.

Forget the other-worldly landscapes, the wild animals, and the other conventional African formalities. At the heart of every good African story lies the people, the locals, and there were many I met along the way.

Riding through villages, I was usually greeted by singing and smiling children, no matter how impoverished or desperate they looked.

There’s a certain quality of Africa that makes you feel this way, as if you’d subconsciously entered another world and found your senses so overwhelmed that you can’t quite remember what you were feeling.

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