Bike theft stalls amazing journey
A MOROCCAN adventurer has had the bicycle that carried him through 17 African countries stolen in Jeffreys Bay.
Yassine Ghallam, 32, said yesterday that the bike was stolen out of the Islamic Centre in Jeffreys Bay while he was praying there on Friday evening.
It has brought an abrupt end to the explorer’s amazing journey down through Africa with no money in his pocket.
“I was in the building for just 10 minutes and when I went to look for my bike, it was gone,” a shocked Ghallam said. “It was the worst day of my life. “I was planning to cycle to the Western Cape next and to explore that part of South Africa because I hear that it is beautiful.”
He had always wanted to travel the continent, he said. “When I started this journey, I had no money in my pocket and also no bicycle at the time.
“On January 22 last year, I decided I was going to travel by just walking.
“So I walked from my home in Casablanca in Morocco to Dakar in Senegal, where I got my bike,” he said.
Documenting his passage on social media, he cycled to Ivory Coast and then on to Ghana and Togo.
Other countries he explored with his trusty bike included Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Congo and Angola.
Before arriving in South Africa in April this year, Ghallam had visited Zambia, Mozambique and Swaziland.
“I was still planning to go to many other places, like Cape Town and Madagascar,” he said.
“I would have even liked to travel through South America with my bicycle.
“I’m still going to stay here in Jeffreys Bay for a while because I hope that the police will be able to track down my bicycle.”
The theft of his bicycle has not been the first unpleasant experience for Ghallam.
He was robbed at gunpoint in Ghana and even had brushes with the likes of Boko Haram in Nigeria.
Ghallam, who relies on kindness from strangers for survival, said he used to ride up to 120km a day – but this had reduced to about 60km while he was fasting for Ramadan. “I feel sad and lost without my bicycle. “Having travelled through so many countries with it, I have to say that I really miss it,” he said
Police spokeswoman Captain Gerda Swart confirmed that the theft of Ghallam’s bicycle was being investigated.