My name is Othmane Zolati, I grew up in a very conservative family – a working father, housewife Mom, three daughters and I’m the only boy. I became the third child in the family in 1994. With two sisters, there was a need to me to join up with other boys in the neighborhood to do what only can be done in the street, bike riding, street football, swimming, rough games, etc. As a child growing up, I could best be described as being bashful and reserved. Although not obvious, this shyness was accompanied by many fears – more than most kids have. The fears of strangers, homeless people, insects, being alone, and may more.
At the age of twelve, an event occurred which can now be described as one of my “transformation Moments”. Up until then, the bicycle trips I took with my friends were always around the city. Then, at the age of twelve, a few friends and I altered our short trips and took what for us those days was a huge trip – going 15 kilometers from home to the next town through the forest. Not only was this the furthest trip I had ever taken, but it made an impact which is the first of many achievements. I felt down on this trip and all the other friends were going very fast that I couldn’t reach them. I started crying because they left us alone, a friend of mine Yassine with the same age and me. My bicycle got damaged and I had no idea how to fix it or how to go back home. I thought I’m going to die in the forest because I had no experience before how to handle this kind of situation. The next day my friends started laughing at me and the fact that I was crying. And since that day I decided to change my life to do more adventures and I become after that, one of the best cyclists in Morocco at my age.
Six years of adventures and travels later, now at eighteen, in one of my trips around Morocco, I came across a road sign with the word “ Dakar 1400km” Once again, I realized that Dakar, the capital of Senegal is closer than my home town from that point. And from that day the idea of going to Senegal becomes my motivation to finish studies. Day in, and day out, it was a routine. For my parents, compliance with this schedule made them proud. For me, I was bored. The school was never a challenge or excitement. Recalling the experiences and the small trips I did around Morocco, the hope of someday being in Senegal, engendered a thirst which would motivate me for the rest of my life. In this way, the excitement, thrill, and achievement of one day traveling the African continent would be a reality – not just a dream. In this way, the AFRICAN DREAM was born.
At the age of twenty, and after I finished my studies, I left Morocco with no plans, no fancy filming equipment, yet a backpack full of dreams and 80 Dollars in my pockets, I started hitchhiking to reach the border as soon as possible knowing that I did this road several times on bicycle, on foot and hitchhiking. All my thoughts were into putting my feet in Dakar, Senegal. After a few days, I found my self at the borders of Mauritania and there where the journey began. The feeling of being in another country for the first time of my life, another language, another currency, another culture… it was a strange feeling of happiness and scariness. Crossing Mauritania was very fast, all my mind was in Senegal, it took me less than a week to be on the other side of the river. “Rosso”, was the first city in Senegal. It was totally different from what I have seen in 20 years of my life, people, cultures, landscapes… I started adapting to the new life, talking to everybody and trying to understand the cultures. It didn’t take me long to adapt. I learned how to climb tall palm trees, cut coconuts and many other fruits that I don’t even know their name. I braided baskets, cut trees using traditional equipment, I learned how to prepare coal, driving canoes, fishing with traditional fishing rods and nets, I cultivated rice for the first time in my life, and what was most memorable was learning the Senegalese dance. I adopted their traditions and ways of life, I experienced the true meaning of sharing love and peace. I learned the Tirangua …
After more than a month in Senegal, I decided to go discover Mali, where they arrested me at the border telling me that I look like a terrorist. It took them a few hours to let me go and continue my journey to Bamako, the capital. I spent the first days in one of the poorest neighborhood in the city, and then by chance, I met somebody who invited me to his big villa with a swimming pool in the richest neighborhood. A few weeks later I decided to continue my road to Ivory Coast where I settled down for a while to make some money to continue my journey to South Africa. I started working as a shoe seller then in a hardware store, I spent the first two weeks at the port, sleeping on top of containers or under trucks when it’s raining until I had malaria due to the mosquitos on that place. Few months after, I found a nice job in a factory of biscuits and sweets. I started making good money but I found my self into routine and capitalism system again. I set a goal to get money to buy a camera, bicycle, visas for the next countries and some pocket money for the next months. Once I reached this goal I left Ivory Coast and continued my journey to Ghana, Togo and Benin.
After I couldn’t get Nigeria and Tchad visas I decided to flow to Sudan which was the next country after Tchad, but the plane ticket was very expensive so I decided to go to Ethiopia instead since the ticket is half price. But the problem didn’t stop here. I tried to apply for Ethiopian visa from Ghana and I got rejected. they said that I have to apply from my country. The visas were always stressing me and making my journey looks an impossible mission. I ended up sending my passport to a friend in Senegal who she took care of the visas and send me back my passport. And then we decided to travel together for a couple of weeks. I was so happy that I’m gonna share a part of my journey with somebody. After crossing the 3 last countries in West Africa on a bicycle I took a plane for the first time in my life from Benin to Ethiopia. There where I met Salma from Morocco who traveled with me. We crossed Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Somaliland together then she went back. It was time to be alone again and get in touch more with people. Being with somebody is good but it limits the conversation with random people on the road. Once in south Ethiopia, I went to a village where the oldest tribes in Africa still exist. It felt like a traveled by the time thousands of years ago. The cultures, clothes, houses… everything was totally different from what I have seen before. I spent a few days with the Hamer tribe before I headed to Kenya through the desert.
Traversing the desert was one of the most memorable adventures I had on this journey. I got lost in the desert between Ethiopia and Kenya for 5 days with not enough food and water, finding myself in the middle of nowhere and pushing my bicycle in the hot sand. It was a near death experience but it taught me a lot about myself and about self-survival. A few weeks later I eventually made it to Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, where I met some fellow Moroccans and stayed with them for a couple of days. The money I had from Ivory Coast was almost finished so they supported me with some much needed and appreciated funding to continue this dream.
We were always together watching and supporting the Moroccan soccer team making it to the quarterfinals in the African Cup. Once we lost, I continued my journey to the Massai region where the famous tribe flourishes in Kenya. They taught me their cultures, how to make fire out of two pieces of wood, how to survive with the wild animals around, tips to keep them away and a lot of other useful survival skills that I could use it on my ongoing adventure.
From Kenya, I went to Uganda, a small country of lakes and beautiful landscapes where I finally crossed the equator. I had an intense feeling of joy and pride a truly unexpected achievement after 2 years away from home. From Uganda I continued to Rwanda where I had my first TV interview about my adventure, I felt I was doing something great, something that I have to tell people about, I had to show them the real Africa I encountered and saw with my own eyes, my African eyes.
Always on a bicycle this time I found myself in Tanzania, the land of Swahili. When we talk about Tanzania the first thing that often comes to anyone’s mind is Zanzibar. This was the most exciting place I visited so far. A small island with turquoise water, blue sky, white sandy beaches, coconut trees… A dream island.
I was always watching travel documentaries that show those exotic places. That was always a dream for me, and now, I finally made it. I stayed there for almost 3 months: I started working there as a photographer for hotels and restaurants and as a tour guide. I needed a break after being on the road for couples of months. Finding a place to camp every night, find a place to shower, find food, pedal for 8 hours … it was time for me to just relax on the white sand beach and enjoy it.
Three months later I got my Mozambican and Malawian visas and I left the country. I was beginning to tire of being on a bicycle – the chain couldn’t maintain the uphill sections. I had to push it instead, the tires also were wearing, I had a puncture every day. It was there that I decided to continue my journey on a skateboard. After almost a year and a half, I reached my limit with cycling. Once I reached Mozambique I sent my bicycle to a friend in Maputo and I continued to Malawi on a skateboard. It was a feeling of happiness and freedom – finally, I could do whatever I wanted to do, jump to trucks or take a lift with somebody, it felt like those first days when I started in Mauritania and Senegal.
At the Malawi border, my visa was expired. When I wanted to renew it, the immigration officer told me it would be $100 to get a new one. I didn’t have enough money for that so I decided to jump the border – which was actually illegal. It was one of the stupid things that I was initially happy to do it. The feeling of happiness didn’t continue once I was arrested and they decided to lock me up for at least two months before deporting me home to Morocco. I started negotiating with them and explaining my journey but nobody wanted to hear this. I told them to put me back to Mozambique where I came from. I just didn’t want to go back to Morocco before I finished this adventure. A few hours later I gave them all the money I had which was about $65 and they issued me a 1-month Malawian visa. I found out that money can solve most problems. I was the happiest human being.,One day after, I met my good friend Adil, a fellow Moroccan who was also traveling on a bicycle around Africa. We have been talking for almost 2 years on social media but we never met. We spent 2 weeks together, it remains another fond memory. After that, we separated. He went north while I was going south.
Then, I hit another speed bump – I was robbed. The only $50 I had, was stolen from me. This left me with only $5 in my pocket and that’s how I entered Zambia. A few days later, while on the road I developed a high fever. Actually, and sadly, this was familiar to me – I had malaria for the third time on this journey. I was really weak, the fever was very high, I had an excruciating headache, no appetite, no energy… and, I was alone in the middle of nowhere. So I decided to head for Lusaka, the capital of Zambia as soon as possible by hitchhiking, I had a friend there Nezha. A week later, after starting treatment, I started feeling better so I started working as a photographer again then I applied for the Namibian visa and I left the country.
Namibia was very strange for me, it looked so western but it was there when I realized the huge diversity of Africa. I was always trying to see the small villages and tribes. It was there that I stayed with the Himba people, another very old tribe, for a couple of weeks. Once I reached Windhoek, the capital, I tried to apply to the South African visa but I was immediately rejected, I needed to have a resident permit in order to apply. I moved on to the next country Botswana to try my luck but it was the same there again. I needed to have a resident permit. So I tried to get a resident permit but it was more complicated than I first thought.
It was during my stay in Botswana that I got a call from a festival of travelers in Dubai they told me to come to share my story there. There, they awarded me as being one of the best travelers in the world. What an achievement! From Dubai, I went back to Zimbabwe – this was right after the time when Mugabe resigned as President and the Zimbabweans were very happy. However, my visa saga didn’t stop at Harare, I was there for Christmas, so the South African embassy was closed. I waited for 3 weeks for them to open to hear the same answer again. “ We don’t issue visas to tourists.” I ended staying one more month in Harare working in night clubs as a video maker and photographer. Once I got some money I left the country to Mozambique for the second time on this journey. My phone got damaged so I had no longer had a map or nor WhatsApp for the phone numbers of the people I knew in Maputo. However, as the saying goes, if you have a tongue you will never get lost. I asked people around to direct me where I can find any Moroccans living here. A few hours later I found one of the restaurants then I ended up sleeping at my friend’s house. The Moroccans were really helpful there – they even bought me a phone. But the visas issue was still stressing me. What am I going to do? they told me also that I can’t get the visa. I was becoming desperate and had to find a solution. I started thinking of jumping the border again. I found some people who can do that job with $1000 but where am I going to get that much money? What about walking through the forest?
This was the final country of my journey before I reached my destination, and I wanted nothing to get in the way of me realizing my dream. How can I give up on the final lap of my journey? While I was stressed looking for a solution, I met by chance the consul of the Moroccan embassy and he connected me to one of his friends in the South African embassy. In this world, it’s not what you know, but who you know. A few days later I got my visa and you can imagine how happy I was at that moment. My worst obstacle was finally overcome.
I went to Swaziland with a Moroccan, in his car, He didn’t want to let me go alone – he wanted to join me for the last stages to South Africa and share this achievement with me. After I made it to Johannesburg, I continued my journey on my skateboard again until the southern most point in Africa which it was the final destination. During this last 5 kms, I Had a flashback of the events of my life leading to this point. I remembered the day I started this journey, the farewell to my family, the money I didn’t have, the feeling of the first day in my life out of the country, I started remembering all these obstacles about the visas, when I had malaria, when my bike was broken. I started remembering when I worked as a fisherman in Senegal to get some money, as a mechanic in Mali, sold shoes in Ivory Coast. I started remembering all those days of walking and sleeping under heavy rain or when I got lost in the desert between Ethiopia and Kenya… I just couldn’t believe that I made it and have been through all this. It took me almost 4 years to reach this point. There where I understood that nothing happens as quickly as we want. it needs time, patient, perseverance and no give up.
It wasn’t only about reaching that point it was more about living all these moments, experiences and emotions and I’m thankful because it was much better than I thought.
My name is Othmane Zolati, I’m an adventurer, people like me they don’t give up, and when they start something they make sure to finish it.