Rest, work and itchy feet

It has  been a fairly quiet time for me in Australia so far. And I guess it would be. After all I have  primarily been working, and that's in a place that in comparison to Asia is too organised and culturally very much like England. Except for a few exceptions like the totally awesome camping trip in d'Entrecasteaux National Park with the guys from work and us all almost going insane on the secluded farm which felt more like the big brother house, not much has been happening really. It was a time for me to stop for a while, do some physical labour and earn a bit of money. Not too bad a combination, but  after 3 months of work primarily consisting of concreting and shovelling it was time to go.

After a short trip to Bali, where my love for Asia was re-emphasised, I am now house-sharing and working in a gym just outside Fremantle, which is a welcome change for the body and mind. Fremantle is a lot nicer than Perth and so living and working here will do me for a few months. I am exercising regularly and brushing up my knowledge about health and fitness, as well as loving the comforts and conveniences of my own room, shops, internet and telephone signal, which is something that was lacking on the farm.

I am now at around a half way point of my journey. Having worked a few things out along the way and made some plans it seems right to have a break from travelling, to reflect on the experience so far and to prepare for the return, which I am really looking forward to. I can't wait to get out of the Perth area and live on the road again. As soon as it warms up in Russia and my bank account looks a little healthier I'll start packing. It feels good having done the half, realising I still have a long way to go, but also knowing that soon I will slowly be making my way towards the people I miss and love.

G'day Australia

I have managed to migrate towards the sun for some time now. Although that has recently come to an end. I like it here so far, but it is rather wet and cold.

Bike went through quarantine without problems upon arrival. Just as well I spent hours scrubbing prior to seeing her off. They are very strict and have some crazy rules in this country. The other day I got cautioned by police for doing a U-turn !?!?? Takes some getting used to this orderly driving after Asia where anything goes...

I'm off to work on a farm near York where I'm guessing I'll stay a couple of months.

Some photos from Malaysia

 

 

Malaysia

To date no other country made me feel as welcome as Malaysia. I have heard only bits here and there about the country beforehand so I came in with no glorious expectations. But it's been truly wonderful right from the start. There is just something nice about being given a 3 month entry stamp with no questions asked. Although trying to declare the bike through customs was not easy. Normally, the Carnet (bike passport) is the first thing officials want to see when they see me but here they just kept waving me on until I found myself on the highway towards Ipoh... On my return to the border it was a bit of a mission to find the right person to stamp my documents.but in the end all went smoothly with smiles all round.
The general easy going mood followed me right until the end of my stay.
The only negative comment I might have is that the food is not as good as in Thailand, but then in few places it is. Somehow Malaysia makes up for it in everything else though.

Cameron Highlands , which I have been told are lovely, were indeed nice, but a little bit too artificial for my liking. Kind of like a huge gardening centre and a theme park in one. But then things got interesting. I rode out of the wet hills into Taman Negara - one of the oldest rain forests in the world and a really magnificent wilderness. being very remote and largely unchanged for the past 130 million years I got pretty close to some cool wildlife, including the (mildly) venomous Twin-barred Tree Snake on which I very nearly stepped just outside my tent, and the numerous leeches stuck to my legs.
I'll try to add some photos whenever I can.

Slowly I then got to the Perhentien island where I did my Open Water diving course. My highlight from the week or so on the island would have to be the swim only about half a metre away from a Hawks Bill Turtle that could not care less about my presence. I also spotted some Black-tipped Sharks, all three about a metre long, but they were much faster swimmers than I and stayed well clear..

I'm now in KL airport waiting for my flight to Perth. bike is flying too.

Nepal to Thailand

Everything just seems rather calm and quiet after India and even  Nepal to an extent.
Nepal was great by the way! There are some laid-back historical districts dotted within Kathmandu and around the Kathmandu Valley, which make for interesting daily outings. Even so, after a few days I found myself craving the reputable mountains with the recurring feeling that I can only take so much of big cities and their surroundings.

 

The change of scenery from the flat south and congested Kathmandu to the
peaceful Himalayan section of the Annapurna range was just what my
mind and body required. There I've gone for about a week-long trek which covered approximately one third of the Annapurna circuit. When the clouds permitted the views of the surrounding 6000-8000m high peaks were simply outstanding!

My part of the trail took me to 3193m at one point, which meant some steep climbing, sometimes for most of the day. But there are friendly villages along the path where decent accommodation and food is available.

The more remote settlements of higher elevations, such as the village of Marpha near Jomsom were probably the most interesting. Being predominantly Tibetan Buddhist the inhabitants are quite justifiably proud of their unique cultural heritage. This is evident in architecture, clothing, handicrafts, food, gestures, and their religion being integral to the way of life.

I did not feel like hanging around Kathmandu after the trekking and so arranged shipment of the bike to Bangkok as Myanmar still does not permit overland travel. On my arrival the Thai New Year celebrations were just taking place. The city was buzzing, people splashing each other with water (not all that bad in the 40°C heat!) but after 3 days of not being able to get a bite to eat without getting soaked or my lunch splashed I was looking forward to getting out again-  As soon as I could I took the bike through yet another drooling process at customs and rode to Ayutthaya- the ancient royal capital of Siam and once upon a time the largest city in the world. There are numerous magnificent ruins and monasteries, some of which date back to the 1300s. It was nice to be riding around the sites on an unloaded bike just for pleasure for a change.

Next day I rode the excellent and near brand new road to Chiang Mai, checked myself into a cheap hotel and registered at a Muay Thai training camp. Ok, I have to be honest- I'm unfit! even after the walking in Nepal- I was very nearly going to be sick during my first session. But now that I've been training 2x a day for 5 days the body seems to be adapting.  I'll stay for a bit and then see.

goodbye India, hello Nepal

..goodbye...

Whenever the time arises to leave a country I have mixed feelings. Those of slight nostalgia for the people and places I have got to know and began to love interspersed with the anticipation of something exciting just around the corner, or in this case, behind the border.

This could not be more so when, the time came to leave India. I thought that after 6 months in the country I would at least be able to give some sort of summary of this vast and varied place but no. The contrasts are just too many.

From beautiful forests of the national parks, arid deserts, river flood plains and the Himalayan peaks to the unbelievably hectic cities with some extraordinary architecture, it would hardly be an exaggeration to say that India has it all. Sure, India is always the in-your-face kind of place, which can be frustrating if you don't manage to put yourself in the mood for it. but once anything is expected India becomes a great place to be in. I will certainly miss the generosity and openness of its people, as well as the craziness, surprises and freedom.

With regards to my personal journey I more or less achieved all I wanted to in India. Most notably, after many months of traveling I was beginning to feel like doing something useful as well as having a break from not knowing what I'll be doing tomorrow. And as it so often happens in life I found myself in the right place at the right time which resulted in me not only coming into contact with the Baiga and Gond tribes but also working with them and being part of a project, that is of great importance to their livelihoods and the wildlife they depend on.

It will certainly be interesting to see how they get on. Which leads me to the question. "will I come back?"
Most definitely!

...hello...

Coming from Rishikesh, the closest border into Nepal was at Banbasa.- probably the friendliest and most hassle free border crossing ever. And so far, the whole of Nepal has been pretty relaxed. For some reason that I have not figured out yet, this country seems more developed than India. which officially is not the case off course. But it is quite a bit cleaner and seems better organised. The roads are in good condition and break lights of most vehicles work! The vibrant Kathmandu where I am now is probably the most convenient city I've been to since ...well a while anyway... Everything is here- culture, history, great food. and much more.

Prior to arriving here, and a day stop in Lumbini I spent 4 days in a great little resort just outside the gates of Bardia National Park.

The Park itself is a refuge to some rare wildlife and the day trek within was certainly worth it.
There were some special moments.

I'll stay in Nepal for a few more weeks.

update

I've been busy.
Most of December I spent travelling with John who brought me news from home, as well as some very much needed new tyres and other spare parts. In Bombay, where we met up we first sorted our bikes out and then headed towards the sea and sun.

South Maharashtra was by far the most beautiful of the western coast. Empty beaches, small fishing villages and lack of busy tourist industry meant that we were treated like kings on what felt like our own private beach. We had a feeling there and then that this could potentially be the highlight of our joint voyage, and sadly it was so. It was good, but Goa was not what we expected. The scene that must have been around in the previous decades must have spread out to the surrounding states, and now it just felt like the holiday resorts of Costa del Sol and such like. The evenings vaguely reminded me of the types of piss-ups  you get around London on Friday nights. So it felt right not to hang about too long.

Faults with John's bike, the Hero Honda Hunk 150, or "Hun" as she was christened were by no means few. I cannot now exactly recall the number of problems we had with her but just to give some idea of the fun she gave us: we had to replace the starter, fork oil seals, rear break shoe and fuel hose. Other than that, we had a puncture and the rev counter as well as the speedometer stopped working. Luckily in India there is a mechanic on every street corner where a spare part for that bike can be picked up, even on a Sunday. Aaah the beauty of India where anything is possible; I could just hear what we'd be told in England: "sorry mate, we're fully booked til after the new year..."

It was great to travel with a friend for a change.  Making joint decisions and sharing experiences was something I hadn't done for a while. Riding on separate bikes meant that we'd have a few breaks during the day and then ask: "so how was your day?" in the evening. We just had no lack of topics to discuss. (Thanks for coming man!)

After John's departure I attended a meditation course just outside Mumbai. I needed some explanations after the rather intense 10 days so got speaking to the workers at the centre. They tried hard to make me accept their interpretations of Buddha's teachings and I was a respectful listener and tried to keep an open mind, but the theories which absorbed most of my thinking time even for days after failed to satisfy me. Nevertheless I have benefited  with progress in some of my ideas and outlook on life.. which as a matter off course is a never ending process.

After visiting the very impressive Ajanta caves some of which date back to the 2nd century BC I rode for a couple of days in the general eastern direction. My original plan was to get to the east coast, but the distances with nothing interesting in between combined with the realisation that it's turned far too cold to be by the sea I rode for a bit too long without an aim. With tiredness and the feeling of being really far from anywhere as well as not knowing exactly where to go due to my guidebook having absolutely nothing about this part of India I could feel my spirits sinking.

But fortune favored me when I took a break with a biker who was going either in front or just behind me for about an hour. Andy who above all was a good conversationalist had impressive knowledge of the local geography and suggested me to go North. Problem solved. We rode together that afternoon, taking regular cay breaks and I was already sensing an improvement in my mood.

Other than being fairly quiet and not entirely covered with litter, there was actually not that much in Kawardha. But as it was one of the friendliest places I've been in on my travels it was enough for me to want to stay and rest for 2 days, do my laundry and sleep in a clean bed... Everybody was insisting on showing me around and on me having lunch or dinner with them. As such it was very easy to become acquainted with local conditions. Having taken Andy's advice I then headed via the Bhoramdev temple towards the Kanha National Park, where I met Sunny.

After drinking some Rum by the bonfire and chatting into the night with him I was put in touch with his friend  Margie the following day. Margie is setting up an NGO, called the Kanha Conservation Trust which is working with the community and the Baiga and Gond tribes on village and ecosystem improvements. It's just what I was looking for and so I have now been volunteering with the Trust for a week, taking part in a reforestation project. I plan to stay a while.

The benefits of smiling and talking to people are incalculable. But  it also goes to show that there are more good people than the bad in this world, and I would therefore like to thank all the amazing people who I have met along the way and helped me out of low points. (you know who you are)

So just to let you know, I'll be busy again for the next month.