The mechanic told me it was a broken suspension coil — the broken Section was removed and with no spares to be found, I was simply told to “drive carefully”.
According to my overlander sources, a border official dubbed “Mr Glasses” would make the crossing from Cameroon into Gabon a challenge. Legend foretold that he would insist I had accommodation booked in Gabon before entry was granted. He would even check by calling the establishment.
But booking confirmations don't work for overlanders, who sleep in their vehicles. I armed myself with my best attitude and crossed the bridge over the Ntem River.
It was the middle of May in 2019. I was close to the equator and it was hot and humid. To cope with the heat, the border building was open on all sides with a low wall around it, and a roof on top of the corner pillars. Inside there were four then (three attired in something resembling a uniform), and an old Wooden desk in the corner.
I noted one man was wearing sunglasses – was this the fabled Mr Glasses? I approached with a friendly “Bonjour!” accompanied by an award-winning smile. This was warmly received and returned. After a brief Wait, I handed over my passport and made small talk. There was great interest in the fact that I was travelling alone and had already progressed through 11 countries since I'd left Europe the year before.
The crunch came when the man holding my passport looked at the man wearing the sunglasses and expressed concern about my accommodation… I held my breath fora moment, smiled broadly and explained that my accommodation was always with me. I pointed proudly at my Ford Transit van, BlueBelle.
Mr Glasses asked to inspect the van. I invited them all to have a look. They took interest in the flag stickers on the side window of all the countries I'd already passed through. Then I opened BlueBelle and they all took turns peeking inside, nodding their approval. We walked back to the building and there was no further discussion on the matter. All the necessary ledgers were filled in, I got my passport back, wished them a good day and
