Jaunted

Volunteer Travel / Movie Travel / Africa Travel / Gerard Butler / → All Tags

How You Can Help The Real Machine Gun Preacher In Sudan

Machine Gun Preacher, which is currently in theaters, stars Gerard Butler as Sam Childers, a man who turned his life around and helped build an orphanage in Nimule, South Sudan.

13 years later, Sam's orphanage is going strong with more than 200 children calling it home, but there is still work to be done considering most people in the region don't have access to clean water, food, or medicine.

more ›

Political Travel / South Sudan / Africa Travel / Travel News / Geography / → All Tags

Google Maps Fails to Recognize the World's Newest Country, South Sudan

The current Google Map doesn't show the new South Sudan

Close your atlases and history textbooks. They're out of date. Close your browser too, because it looks like the Google Maps team doesn't work on the weekends. Despite all the news reports of the physical alteration to the world that occurred this weekend when South Sudan became it's own country, the official Google Map has yet to recognize it. Even President Barack Obama took some time from his Saturday morning to formally acknowledge the Republic of South Sudan.

It's not like South Sudan is a minor nation, either. It's got a capital (Juba), a flag (see below), a hefty population (some 8.2 million), and fifty years filled with two civil wars that brought it to this point. It's even planning its own currency: the South Sudanese Pound. Bet you can't guess South Sudan's official language...it's English!

more ›

Celeb Travel / Travel Health / George Clooney / Justin Bieber / → All Tags

Even George Clooney Can't Avoid Malaria While Traveling

Celebs may be able to fly in private jets and stay at the best hotels, but that doesn't mean they're immune to travel-related illnesses.

According to The L.A. Times, even George Clooney is susceptible. Apparently, George has recently recovered from malaria, which he contracted while on a philanthropic trip to Sudan earlier this month.

But George isn't the only celeb who has fallen ill after traveling. During the swine flu epidemic of '09, several stars were taken down by the illness, including Rupert Grint (Harry Potter's Ron Weasley) who got sick after traveling.

more ›

Google Earth / Volunteer Travel / Sudan Travel / → All Tags

Google Earth: Crystal Clear Shots of Darfur Village Damage

Google Earth using toggle layers to draw attention to certain political causes is not new. However, new crystal clear, high resolution imagery show destroyed Darfur villages and refugee camps in haunting clarity.

In some villages, the resolution is high enough to show the burnt ruins of individual houses. Just zoom in on the flame icons, especially in the western part of the Sudan.

President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan has denied that widespread atrocities have occurred in Darfur, but the United Nations estimates that more than 200,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million displaced in four years.

Tourists are not going to be flocking to the Sudan anytime soon, but volunteer travelers have plenty of opportunities to get involved.

There is currently a travel warning for US citizens traveling to the Sudan.

Related Stories:
· Satellite Imagery of Darfur Village [Jaunted]
· Darfur on Google Earth [Google Earth]
· Sudan Tourism [Official Site]

Animals / Sudan / Culture / Weddings / → All Tags

Goat to the Altar

Looks like they observe the Pottery Barn Rule even in Sudan. A Sudanese man has been forced to wed a goat after he was caught in flagrante delicto with the creature. According to the BBC, the owner of the goat spotted the man in his yard, he caught him, tied the man up, and brought him to a Sudanese council of elders for judgement.

The elders in the Upper Nile region of Sudan decreed that the man pay the goat's owner a $50 dowry, since he had "already used the goat as his wife". No word yet if there are any plans for a honeymoon, but according to the goat's original owner says "We have given him the goat, and as far as we know they are still together". Part of us hopes that this is just some weird promotion for the Borat movie, but mostly we like the idea of a goat in a wedding dress.

[Image via lillian.manlyman/Flickr]  

Related Stories:
·   Sudan Man Marries Goat [BBC]