Interesting thread all. Some good tips.

For our part we had 2 US reg Defender 110s on a trip from London to Cape Town last year. We were nervous about the licence plates as they say 'COLORADO' on them. Also when we got our carnet we were informed by the CAA that it was a 'legal requirement' to place the USA sticker on the rear of the cars. I didn't have much problem with this, but our travelling companions didn't want to put he USA stickers on. So we didn't, and no one complained. No one even seemed to notice.

In North Africa we often got asked about Bush at checkpoints. We learned that mentioning Arnold Schwarznegger who had just become governer usually got a laugh and a thumbs up. We would just explain that Bush was an idiot, and they understood. We got no ill will.

In the souk in Marrakesh we ran into a local who had a pin on his shirt with a pic of Bush, a line through him and the words 'International Terroist' underneath. I thought it was great and asked where I could buy one. That got a friendly response and initiated a discussion about politics (though I was never able to buy a pin).

I think groups in cars have the advantage over singles on motocycles because we could always leave someone to watch the cars.

Lastly, we did claim to be Canadian at one point. Never to officials, but to a very unfriendly guide at the Mauritanian border who was trying to get more money out of us for his services. In principle I can understand the objection that Canadians have to this. But travelling in forein lands can sometimes be intimidating, and angry people can be as well. If the political positions were reversed, I wonder how many Canadians would claim to be from the US.

My view there may well be in the minority. I am British, but have never lived there. I grew up in RSA and USA, and have never had a very patriotic feeling for anything. It's not that I feel equally comfortable anywhere, it's that I feel equally uncomfortable everywhere. I don't feel very safe in the US at the moment, and that was brought home by US immigration when I returned after the trip. They interrogated me at the Atlanta airport for an hour, asking what crime I had committed that I had to 'run through Africa' to escape. They were more threatening and unfriendly than any of the immigration officials I had dealt with in Africa, including places like DRC.

I think it has been said before: keep a low profile, always be friendly and be very patient.

cheers

Graham
www.africaoverland.org

__________________
Graham 'Cracker'
Director: Overland Training
Editor: Overland Journal
Instigator: Africa Overland