Six days after leaving Kinshasa, cycling 500km on a good tarmac road, and I’ve arrived in Kikwit. It may have been a good surface but the endless hills and scorching sun made it tough enough!

Apart from a couple of minor incidents (one corrupt non-official wanting money and screaming villagers chasing me) it’s been an amazing week. The scenery has been beautiful and constantly changing. The people have been nothing but kind, helpful and generous.

A proper update will have to wait, but here are some photos from the first 500km across the DR Congo… (if the slideshow isn’t working, click the link)