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Informationen zum Autor JEROEN VAN BERGEIJK is a journalist based in Amsterdam and has written for The New York Times , Wired , and many other publications in Europe and the United States. Klappentext "Oh Lord! won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz?” —Janis Joplin A journalist's intrepid endeavor to sell his used car abroad results in a high-spirited and revealing look at West Africa. "Look! there's my car!” I say! pointing at my Mercedes in the parking lot. "Where?” a fellow desert traveler asks. "There! that Mercedes!” I say. He looks at me! questioning. "You want to drive that through the Sahara?” 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 190D 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. The author finds himself facing a driving challenge akin to the Dakar Rally but encounters obstacles never dreamed of by race-car drivers: active minefields! occasional banditry—mostly by the border guards—and a teenage! chain-smoking desert guide with a fondness for Tupac lyrics. Food and water are scarce! sandstorms are frequent! and all he has to patch up his many car breakdowns thousands of miles from civilization is 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? Zusammenfassung “Oh Lord! won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz?” —Janis Joplin A journalist’s intrepid endeavor to sell his used car abroad results in a high-spirited and revealing look at West Africa. “Look! there’s my car!” I say! pointing at my Mercedes in the parking lot. “Where?” a fellow desert traveler asks. “There! that Mercedes!” I say. He looks at me! questioning. “You want to drive that through the Sahara?” 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 190D 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. The author finds himself facing a driving challenge akin to the Dakar Rally but encounters obstacles never dreamed of by race-car drivers: active minefields! occasional banditry—mostly by the border guards—and a teenage! chain-smoking desert guide with a fondness for Tupac lyrics. Food and water are scarce! sandstorms are frequent! and all he has to patch up his many car breakdowns thousands of miles from civilization is 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? ...
