Cycling Across the Poorest Country in the World vA 117
Muyinga, Burundi - Bye-bye. - Bye. - Hello. - Hello. - Thank you! Have a good day. Bye. - Bye. - Bye. - Bon voyage. - Morning, my friends, from Muyinga in Burundi.
And today we are going to Gitega. So it's 100 kilometers with a lot of ups and downs, and the bright dangerous sun. So, let's go to the second biggest city in Burundi.
Yeah. Hello. - Hi. - How are you? - Good, good. How are you? Hello. - Hello. - Yeah. - Yo. - Yeah. - Yeah. - Yes, sir. Yes. - Yes, sir. Beautiful market. Look at that. Bike shop. - Yeah. Ola.
- So the difficulty now is that apparently, I have to check that the police are not around when I film. Otherwise, I'll get punished as this man told me. - Good morning, sir. - Good morning. - How are you? - Good, good. How are you? - Where are you going? - Gitega. - You are going to Gitega.
- Gitega. Yes. Ah? - Gitega. - Far away from here. Yes. - Yes. And then, where did you come from? - France. - Friend, friend. - You came from France? - Yes. - On that bicycle? - Yes. With that bicycle. Yes. - Yeah.
You are going to Gitega. - I'm going to Gitega. Yes. I think that's the biggest instant-following crowd I picked up anywhere. Yeah. Bonjour. Hello. - Hello.
- Yeah. - Beautiful Burundi, guys. Look at that. - Yeah. - Hey, mzungu. - Yeah. How are you? Gitega. - Yeah, yeah. - Left? - Yeah. - Okay.
- Yeah, Gitega. - Gitega. Okay. - Hello. - Hello, hello. - Yeah. Hi, man. - Hi, man. - Hi, man. - Yeah. Yes, yes, yes, yes. - Hello, hello.
- A lot of bicycle repair shops around here. - Hello, man. Hello, man. - Yeah. - Hi, mzungu. - Mzungu. How are you? - How are you, white man? - Fine, fine. What a road, guys! Hello.
- Yeah. - Hey. - Oh, man. Ah? - What do you do? What do you do? (broken French) - What do you do? I ride a bicycle. I have no idea how many people follow me. - What do you do? What do you do? - What do you do? What do you do? Yes.
Yes. Yes. - What do you do? A mzungu, mzungu. - Yes, yes. - Turning left. - You turn right. - Thank you. - Yeah. - You go to Bujumbura? - Gitega, Gitega. - Oh, what do you do? - Okay, the flag broke again. I think it's the end of the story for this flag. Hello. - Yeah. - Hello. - Let's just stop to store the flag, because I could not do it down there because the police were there.
I mean, I think I should throw this flag away, actually. I think that was the... Hello. I think that was the biggest following group I ever picked up.
The exit from Muyinga was completely insane. Gitega is this way? - Yes. - Yes. - Okay, good. Thank you. Hello. - Good. - Hello. Hello. - Hello.
- Hello. Hello. Hello.
They all run away from me now. Oh my God. - Hi. - Hello. - Yeah, hello. - Hey. - Hello. - Mzungu. - Mzungu. Hello.
It's very funny. Cyclists are the same everywhere. I overtook them. So then they accelerated to overtake me again. - Hi. - Hello. - Hello, hello. - Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. - Hello. - Yeah. - Hello. - Hello. - It's quite strange here.
People talk to me always in Swahili. Nobody answers my "hello" in Kirundi. Drying corn.
Hello. - Hello. - How are you, man? - Hello. - Yeah, hello, hello. Yeah. - Hello.
Hello. - Bonjour, bonjour. - Hello. Hello. - Yeah. - Hello. - Yeah.
- Hello. There's this flag everywhere. I wonder what it is. Hello. Hello. - Hey, hey. - Hello.
- Mzungu, mzungu. - Hello. Hello. - Hello. - Ah? I don't understand. Hello. I need to stop to put on some lip balm.
My lips are just completely dry. Sorry. Goodbye. - Bye. - Bye.
- Goodbye. - Yeah. Bye, mzungu. - Allez, let's go. I'm confused by the languages because I have to use French, English, and Swahili here. So it gets confusing. Hello. - Hello. - I love it when,
when women have big bags with handles. But still, the bag is on the head. Despite the handles. And the handles look like two giant ears. Oh my God.
That's the queue for the fuel, guys. Ah, it's not too long, less long than in Lebanon. - Hello. - Hello. - Camera. - Hey. - Hey, hey. Hey, man. - Hello, hello. - Hey, man. - Yeah. - Yeah.
Hello. - Hello. - Hello. - Hello. - Camera. - Hello, hello. - Hello. - Hello, man. - Hello. Hello. - Hello. - Hello. - Mzungu, mzungu. Yes. - Come, come. - Hello. - Hello. - Hello.
Hello. - All right. - Hello. - Yes. - Hello. - Yeah. - Hello. - Yes, from? - It's very funny. Everyone speaks Swahili here. No Kirundi. Hello. - Hello. - Yeah. - Mzungu. - Hello. - Mzungu, mzungu. Yes. - Salama, salama. - Nice, nice. - Hello. Nice, nice. Oh, the lush green. The landscape is so beautiful.
The color especially. This vibrant green. What's really interesting is that... Yeah, it is. So Burundi is the poorest country in the world, in terms of GDP per capita. It's... I mean, it's quite crazy, actually. It's like ten times poorer than Kenya, for example. So... It's almost half compared to the second last in this classification.
So it's really, really much poorer than any other country. But I think the countryside of Rwanda is as poor, because Kigali is so rich, so it increases the GDP a lot. But the GDP of Rwanda was still quite low, still very low.
So I think it means that the countryside is probably similar to here. But what's interesting is, actually it's the same as in Rwanda. People don't look THAT poor. I think it's just that people don't have money. But people do have food, because there is food growing everywhere.
I do think that people have food, have decent houses. Hello. And it's just that they don't have money. But I guess if you don't have money but you build your own house and you grow your own food, then you still have a decent life. Hello. I love seeing those two-year-old kids alone, on their own, discovering life on their own. They seem to be happy, usually.
Barbecue. Hello. - Nice. - Hello. - Yeah. - Bicycle. - Yeah. - Hello. - Hello. - Hello. - Hello, mzungu. - Mzungu, mzungu. Halfway, guys.
Hello. - Hello. - Hello. - Hello. - Hello. Good afternoon. - Hello. Good afternoon. What is it? Alcohol? - Alcohol... - Alcohol. - Banana alcohol. - Banana alcohol. - Banana. - Okay. - Okay. Give me money. - No, no. - My name is Consolate. - Consolate? - Yeah. - Nice to meet you. - I live...
I live in Muheza. - In Muheza? - Ah-ah. - Okay. - Muheza. - Nice to meet you. - Yeah. - Have a good day. - Yeah. Have a good day. - De l'alcool de banane. Banana alcohol.
Abagumya banga. That's this flag. Women's league. Youth league of the party. So it's the flag of a political party apparently. Hello. Hello. - Hello. - Hello.
- Hello, mzungu. - Hello. - Hello. - They are afraid. Oh my God. Hello. - How are you? - Good, good, good. - Yeah. - Chicken. Chicken. - Hello. - Hello. - Hello. - Hello, hello. Oh my God. Hello. - Yeah. - Yeah.
Hello. Hello. Oh my God. - Yeah, yeah, yeah. - Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- Mzungu, mzungu, mzungu. - Oh my God. It's as crazy as Ethiopia. They are less persistent though. And they run less fast. Oh my God, that's mental. Ah? - How are you?
- You don't say the same thing. - Yes. - What were you saying before? - Yes. - What were you saying? - You don't understand. - He was very clearly saying, "F*** you." (A type of greeting I sometimes receive)
Hello. Hello. Snack break, as I will probably not find any food on the way. Hello. - Hello. - Hello. - Hello.
Do you live here? Do you live here? - Yeah. - Yeah. - That's very good grilled peanuts from Rwanda. I see the... Goodbye. - Goodbye. - Bye-bye. - Hello.
- Hello. - Yeah. - Hello. Corn drying. - Hello. - Hello.
Hello. - Hello. - Ay-ay-ay-ay-ay. Very nice. My pedal is broken. Ay-ay-ay. Look at that. Fantastic.
Because I have the screw, but I don't put it because it goes off all the time. I mean, I have to... It just doesn't stay. It gets unscrewed all the time. Oh, man.
Let's see if it works like that. If it doesn't work, that's gonna be very, very annoying; hello. Okay. Hopefully, it works like this.
Oh, f***. Ay-ay-ay-ay-ay. Okay, I'll try to finish the day like this. I have... What can I do? I cannot do anything else.
Somehow, I knew this was gonna happen. Let's go to Gitega, and let's see if I can get something fixed somehow there. So how do you pedal like this? Oh, fantastic. I have 30 kilometers left with one leg, guys. Ah? - Eggs. - Eggs. - Ay-ay? Oh, no. It's okay. Thank you. Eggs. The difficulty is I have to try to push and pull, because I need to give a constant effort to the engine. Otherwise, the engine doesn't understand what's going on.
I need to find some shade to try to repair it better. Oh, f***. Hello. Hello.
Wow, what a beautiful place. - Hey, man. - I'm gonna destroy the bike by doing this. Hello. - Yeah. - Yeah. - The bicycle is broken. I don't know. Bicycle. - Broken. - Okay, that's it.
Yes, yes. No, but this one. This one... Kaput. This is still okay. Okay, I tightened everything as strongly as I could. Let's see if it kind of works, if it can get me to Gitega. Oh, that's annoying. I'm tired of...
Let's see if it can hold it now. Oh, it can hold it a little bit. Yeah. Bye-bye.
It works, guys. Wow. I don't know for how long, but it works. So, inside the pedal, all the teeth are almost all eaten. Honestly, I don't know how long it's gonna last. It's funny. They have the roofs. It's the same as...
They do the same roofs as in southern France. Hello. Yeah, all right, all right. - Bicycle. - Hello. - Hello, hello. - Hello. - Will you stay in Gitega?
- I'll stay in Gitega. - Gitega? - Yes. - There is your family? Or there are other people who know this? - Ah, no. I'll just stay for some days. I'll just stay a few days in Gitega. I go to South Africa. - South Africa? - Thank you. - Yes. Thank you. - Yes.
Thank you. - Hello. - You pass where? - Hello. - How are you? - I pass Tanzania, Zambia. - Tanzania? - Yes. - How are you? - Good, good. How are you? - Zanzibar. Zanzibar. - No, Zanzibar is not on the way. - There is no way? - Zanzibar is not on the way. - How many older then you have? (meaning "How old are you?") - How many what? - How many older then you have? - Orders? - Older. - Ah, older. - Yeah, years. - My years. Oh. - Yes. - 38. - Yes.
- 38. - 48? - 38. 38. - It's younger than me. I'm 44. - You're 44? - Yes. - Oh, wow. You look much younger. - Yes, yes. - Me — 38. Yeah.
The pedal is holding, working. - You think that many who want... - You know what? - Money. - My moto. - Oh, you have... - I see that your bike is very excellent. - Is very what? - We're happy to see you. - Ah, you happy to see my bike. - Yeah. - Good. Yes. Yeah, I can see every... - ...of people who see you.
They already follow you, don't see. - Yeah, yeah, yeah. - So we are very happy. - Everybody's very happy to see me here. We will go. Yes. - Yes. - Give me your WhatsApp.
- You're gonna be with me. - Yeah. Yes, yes. - Good. - Do you have a phone number? - Yeah, but... - Do you have a phone number? - Yes. - Where do you come from? - Good, good, good. - Do you have a phone number? - I wish I could ride. - Yes, but...
Now, I'm riding, man. - If it's possible, can I call you? - Ah? - Yeah. - Give me your number if you have it. - Yeah, but no. Sorry, I'm busy doing something now. I cannot... - Goodbye, goodbye. - Goodbye. Yes.
- We will seek a way. - And I have the whole school behind me. - Hello, mzungu. - Beautiful landscape. Hello. Hello. Hello.
Hello. Salama. Oh, there's a bike shop here. - Yeah. - Hello. - Yeah, yeah. - Hello. - Hello. - Mzungu. - Mzungu. Yes. So now it's just a long climb all the way to Gitega. Oh, man. The sun is crazily strong here.
Hello. - Hello, hello. - Hello. - Hello. - Hello. Hello.
- Hello, mzungu. - Hello. - All right. - Are you coming from Muyinga now? - Today, from Muyinga. Yes. - You did a long distance. - Yes, yes. I'm tired now. - Ah, you are tired. Yes, yes. - Yes.
- You left there in the morning. - Yes, I left in the morning. Yeah. - Oh. How many hours have you been riding? - I've been... Six hours. - Oh. - So many hours. Yes. - You're coming to settle here in Burundi. - No, no.
I'm just coming to visit. - Ah, you want to visit some interesting places. - Yes, I travel across Africa. So... - Yeah. - I just go across Burundi, also. - Oh. - Hello. - All right, all right. - All right, all right. Hello. - A camera.
Mzungu. - Yes, mzungu. How do you say "thank you"? Murakoze, no? - Yes, yes. We say "murakoze". - "Murakoze" for "thank you". - Thank you.
- Mzungu. - Mzungu, mzungu. I will stop for a bit to eat. - Ah, yeah? - Yeah, I need to eat now. - Oh. - So have a nice day. - Yes. - I stop here. Yeah. - You stop here. - Yes, yes. - Oh. Do you want to go back? - No, no. I stop because I need to eat. - Ah, okay. You are hungry. - Yes, I am hungry. Yes, I have no more energy.
- Because you did a long distance. - That's it. - Ah, yeah. You need to eat. - Exactly. I need to eat. So have a nice day. - Okay. Thank you very much. - Thank you. - Okay. You are welcome. - Okay, thank you. Hello. - Hello, hello. - Okay. - Yeah. - Have a nice day. - Bon voyage.
- Bon voyage. Thank you. Fine, fine. - Yeah, thank you, thank you. - Thank you, thank you. Okay, so... As I had problems with the police with filming before, I cannot stop here to have lunch. No, no, no, but... I will stop a little bit further because...
Sometimes, the police don't like the camera. So, I want to stop where there are no police. - The police have come and have gone psycho at you. - Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I don't know if they ask for... - You don't know what they want to ask you. - Exactly. I don't know what they want to ask me. So I prefer to stop where there are no police. - That is how the police of our country are. - Yes, sadly.
Yeah. - They want to investigate. - Yes, they like to investigate. Yeah. - Yeah. - I will stop here. - Ah, stop here. - Because there is shade. - And you'll have a... - Yes, I stop here to eat. - Okay. Oh. - Okay. - Okay. - Bonne journée. Have a good day.
- Really thank you. - Thank you. Yeah. - Okay. Enjoy your meal. - Okay, merci. - Yeah. - Thank you. - Yeah, likewise. What's your name? - Yves. - Yves? - Yes. And you? - Ah.
My name is Jonas. - Jonas? - Yeah. - Nice to meet you. - Okay, nice to meet you. - Nice to meet you. Okay. Let's see if I can eat here a little bit. Yeah, I pedal.
Ah? I don't understand. I eat first. So that's my very quiet... Very well-hidden snack break. I have a new spectator with matoke. Okay. - Let's go. - Let's go! - Let's go. - Let's go. Okay. Goodbye. - Goodbye. - Yeah. - So they all waited for this moment basically just to see me riding.
Hello. - Yves. - Oh. - You're still around. - Fine, Jonas? - Yeah. Salama. - Salama, salama. - Yeah.
- And we are arriving... We are arriving in Gitega, guys. I am dead. - Hyah, hyah, hyah, hyah. - Hyah, hyah, hyah. - Hyah. - Yes, yes, yes. - Hyah, hyah, hyah. - Yes. - Hyah, hyah. - Yes, yes. - Yeah, yeah, yeah. - A mzungu. - A mzungu.
Mzungu, mzungu. Mzungu, mzungu. Yes. - A mzungu. - Yes. I don't understand. - Hello, my brother.
- I don't understand. ISANGO Hotel. That's where I intend to go. Hello. - Hey. - Hello. - Hello. How are you? - Fine. - Very fine. - Very good. It's this way. - Yeah. - Okay.
I can leave it like this? I will take... - Is it a motorbike? - Bicycle, bicycle. - Bicycle? - Electric bicycle. - Electric? - Yes. - Where do you charge? Into the sockets? - This is the battery. - Ah, yeah? Where is the battery? - Here. - Ah, it's here. So there are solar panels or...? - No, no. I charge with normal sockets.
- Ah. So we can go to Bujumbura with this motorbike. - Yeah. You need to pedal. The engine helps. - Yeah. Okay. - You need to pedal. It's half-half. - Half-half. - Half my legs and half the engine. - Okay.
Up to Bujumbura? - Yes. All the way to South Africa. - South Africa?! - Yes. - With this bicycle? - With this bike. Yes. - It's too hard. - Ah, yes. It's difficult. - It's difficult. So... And with... There are gears? - Yes, there are gears. Yes, yes. There are gears. Okay.
I'm going to see... Hello. You have rooms, I guess. I want to know how much it is to know if it's in my budget. How much is it? - 60, 70, 90 (in Belgian French). - 60, 70, 90. - Yes. - Thousands? - Yes.
- And in dollars? Is it possible to pay in dollars? - Yes. In dollars, it would be 30, 35, and 45. - 30, 35, 45. But that's... It's with the exchange rate (official fake exchange rate).
- Of the bank. - Of the bank. Okay. 60,000. Can I see it? - Yes. - Thank you. This is 60,000. - Yes. - Okay. And is there a bathroom? - Yes, yes.
- Look at that, guys. I've got one of the fanciest rooms in the hotel, actually, because the guy was not... Look at that. They even have a balcony. Second floor. Beautiful view over the hills around Gitega. So Gitega is the political capital of Burundi. It replaced Bujumbura.
I don't know when, but it replaced Bujumbura. You have the sacred drums of Burundi that we might see in the next video. And yeah, I stopped filming because, obviously, he was not giving me the correct price because of the camera, so I talked to him off camera. And then I got a much better price by paying directly in dollars. Yeah.
What a way! I don't know if the issue with my bike is... I don't know if I need to maybe go to a shop and get someone to make the teeth deeper again. I don't know if I need to do that, or if the bike can survive all the way to Lusaka or maybe all the way to Cape Town. I don't know. Let's see.
Anyway, we made it to Gitega, to the center of Burundi. See you for the next adventures. Ciao, guys.
2024-05-20 09:03
