The White Nile Diaries

the long version

It all began at the Oyster Bar in Grand Central Station, in 1961: Two young Princetonians have returned to New York from South America. With the fire for adventure still burning in their veins, they are tempted by a mysterious letter from Kenya and plan a trip across Africa. They buy a white BMW motorcycle and paint the words "The White Nile" on the tank, to honor the route they will follow. In limpid, elegant prose John Hopkins describes deadly salt flats where tourists vanish without a trace, mysterious Saharan oases, and the funerals of young Tunisians killed by the French Foreign Legion.