khartoum: where two rivers meet and i sweat
so i'm in khartoum, and honestly, it's... a lot. the city's split into three parts connected by bridges, and the nile is literally everywhere. you stand at the confluence where the white and blue niles meet - they don't even mix properly, which is wild. someone told me that during flood season it's like watching two different colored ribbons flowing into each other, but right now it's just hot water. i just checked and it's 33.44 degrees celsius right now, feels like 31.05, hope you like that kind of thing. the pressure is 1008 and humidity is 14% - basically, it's a dry oven.
the whole place feels like a chaotic history lesson. they say it started as an egyptian army camp in 1821, then became a garrison town. now it's this sprawling mess with 7.1 million people crammed into what's basically the smallest but most crowded state in sudan.
if you get bored, shendi is just a short drive away (163 km northeast). nyala and dongola are further but still doable if you're really desperate. but honestly, staying put might be better - the city's got these universities like the university of khartoum that used to be gordon memorial college, and the sudan national museum, though i haven't mustered the energy to visit either. someone told me the museum has cool stuff from the meroë ruins along the khartoum-atbara motorway, but that's another adventure.
the population's insane - like 19% of sudan's entire population packed here. there are 2 million idps in informal settlements, so you've got this crazy mix of people from all over sudan and the region. it's a trade hub with rail, river, and air links, but mostly what i notice is the dust. the climate's hot desert - eight months with basically no rain, and the winter's just slightly less dry.
boats are everywhere, people crammed on the backs, going about their lives. the city's got tree-lined avenues and a presidential palace, but honestly, it's hard to appreciate when you're melting. infrastructure's a trip - international airport, motorways, but also dirt roads and yellow trucks kicking up sand. someone told me the confluence is the most striking thing about the place, and yeah, seeing the two rivers divide the tripartite city is pretty cool, but mostly i just want shade. it's ancient roots meets modern sprawl in the desert heat. i'm exhausted.
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