My Mercedes is not for sale
Subtitle: from Amsterdam to Ouagadougou : an auto-misadventure across the Sahara
By: Jeroen van Bergeijk ; translated in English byJohn Antonides.
Contributors: Antonides, John.
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: Broadway Books
Published: 2008
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 210
ISBN-13: 9780767928694
Subjects: Bergeijk, Jeroen van, -- 1965- -- Travel -- Africa, West; Mercedes automobile -- Anecdotes; Africa, West -- Description and travel
Genres: Anecdotes.
Work titles: Mijn mercedes is niet te koop.
Description: Jeroen Van Bergeijk came up with what seemed like a great scheme for making a quick profit: buy a clunker of a car in his native Amsterdam and resell it in the Third World, where a market even for jalopies still thrives. His chariot of choice is a rusted-out 1988 Mercedes 190 D with 220,000 kilometers on its odometer; his route will take him from Holland through Morocco, across the Sahara, and into some of the least trodden parts of Africa.My Mercedes Is Not for Sale is a rollicking tale of an innocent abroad. Food and water are scarce, sandstorms are frequent, and all he has to patch up his many car breakdowns thousands of miles from civilization are a bar of soap, some duct tape, and a pair of women's nylons. Then there's the coup he survived.My Mercedes Is Not for Sale captures more than the adventure-it vividly portrays the impact of globalization on Africa through a surprise-filled journey into its thriving car culture, while asking the question: Is the white man's burden really a used car? Book jacket.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 209-210).