Paris-Saigon by Motorcycle
A Belgian motorcyclist, Mlle Justine Tibesar, who completed the Paris-Saigon raid, arrived in Rangoon (Burma, now Myanmar)last night.
Indopacifi.
You Realize…
THE INVITATION TO TRAVEL…
Mlle Tibesar, member of the “Work Around the World Educational Club,” which was founded in America and has 300 members of various nationalities, has, according to the club’s statutes, undertaken her journey around the world.
Mlle Tibesar is Belgian, and her family lives near Verdun; she left on May 10, 1929, without any financial assistance — the club members live off their manual or intellectual work — with only her father’s consent and luggage, to visit Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Germany, and England.
On November 7, 1929, she arrived in North America, and after a year’s stay, went to San Francisco. She departed from there for Japan, reached China, and finally Saigon in February (1931); there, she visited the management of various Indochinese newspapers and explained to them the continuation of her journey around the world:
“Saigon, 15 days. Then Hue, Tonkin, Angkor, Siam, Singapore, the Sunda Islands, Australia, India — if possible — South Africa going up to the Belgian Congo, South America. In two years, I will be back in Europe, after having also seen North Africa, and I will finally go to Paris, which I am saving for dessert!”
What determination and courage in this 21-year-old young woman, who lives alone and has no resource other than her talent as a lecturer.
F. J.
Newspaper: Les Annales Coloniales (The Colonial Annals), Paris, France
Date: April 30, 1931 Page: 3
The article about Justine Tibesar's motorcycle journey from Saigon to Paris appears in a small section near the bottom of page 3. Les Annales Coloniales was a French colonial newspaper that focused on news and developments in France's colonial territories and foreign affairs related to colonies.
The newspaper appears to be from the French National Library (Bibliothèque nationale de France) archives, as indicated by the "Source gallica.bnf.fr" notation at the bottom of the page.
Rangoon (now officially known as Yangon) is the former capital and largest city of Myanmar (previously known as Burma). The city is located in the southern part of Myanmar, near the Irrawaddy River delta where it meets the Gulf of Martaban, part of the Andaman Sea. Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar from the colonial period (when Burma was under British rule) until 2006, when the military government officially moved the administrative capital to Naypyidaw.
During the colonial era, Rangoon was an important port city and commercial center within British Burma. It was known for its mix of British colonial architecture, traditional Burmese pagodas and temples (most famously the Shwedagon Pagoda), and diverse multicultural population.
Hue is a city in central Vietnam. It was the imperial capital of the Nguyen dynasty from 1802 to 1945 and is known for its historic monuments, imperial architecture, and cultural significance.
Tonkin was the historical name for northern Vietnam, particularly the area around the Red River Delta including Hanoi. During the French colonial period (late 19th to mid-20th century), it was part of French Indochina.
Angkor refers to the ancient temple complex in Cambodia, most famously including Angkor Wat. It was the center of the Khmer Empire that flourished from approximately the 9th to 15th centuries.
Siam was the historical name for Thailand until 1939 (and again briefly from 1945-1949). Bangkok was its capital, and it was one of the few Southeast Asian countries that maintained independence during the colonial era.
