Slow Journey South - Walking to Africa
To hear reading from her new book Slow Journey South — Walking to Africa go to www.randomhouse.com.au/slowjourneysouth/.
When Paula Constant and her husband Gary, break away from the conventional 9-to-5 routine in Australia, a few weeks lazing in a resort is not what they have in mind. What starts out as a daydream of 'a travel to end all travels' turns into something far greater: an epic year-long 5000-kilometre walk from Trafalgar Square in London to Morocco and the threshold of the Sahara Desert.
Quite an ambition for an unfit woman who enjoys late nights sharing cigarettes and a few bottles of wine with friends. But if the arduous nature of walking over 25 kilometres a day through the landscapes and cultural labyrinths of France, Spain, Portugal and Morocco is overlooked in her excitement, then so too is the unexpected journey of self-discovery that lies beyond every bend. Both the companions she meets on the road and the road itself provide what no university can offer: a chance to experience life's simple truths face to face.
Paula's transformation from an urban primary school teacher into a successful expeditioner is a true tale of an ordinary woman achieving something extraordinary.