On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I learned from the Kenyan Airways station manager at a bar “night” (there was a 9pm curfew) in Juba, the typical Business Class passengers are either South Sudanese ministers or other high-ranking government officials. They prefer to park their families in Nairobi while just shuttling in for two days to Juba to discuss humanitarian aid projects with international donors. Why living in an almost defunct country with almost no tarmac roads and no electricity if you and your family can live the high life in posh Nairobi?  South Sudan, the youngest nation on earth, could have become an African poster child: lots of oil to sell, the beautiful White Nile providing fertil soil, not least watering the the aquatic wonderland of the Sudd. Instead, during my stay in 2015, there were constant ethnic clashes, Dinkas and Nuer fought about power, Mundari and Dinka about cattle. When I visited South Sudan’s largest displacement camp, I was stunned to see that the UN even had to forcefully separate the battlesome tribes by dugouts within the camp! The entire country seemed to depend on humanitarian aid. Therefore the other typical passenger on a Kenya Airways flight from Nairobi to Juba was either an international aid worker, a diplomat or UN personnel. 

When I was flying to Juba in 2015 my neighbor on 2c was obviously different: William was in his late seventies, American, drinking a lot of Whiskey, and – best of all – he was here to collect one of his last country points! I of course told him that we were sharing a common passion and was hoping that we could continue our “Which was your most exciting country so far? How did you get into North Korea?” discussion in one of the coming days. But William disappointed me: He was not here to experience South Sudan. He was just here to collect the stamp and took the same plane back to Nairobi. I could not believe it.