Wandering CrankWandering Crank

Biking the World one crank at a time

Journey

Kathmandu

by Nathan Molyneaux on category ,

The journey from Pokhara to Kathmandu was a very bumpy bus ride.  12 hours of bumpy.  But at least it was a nicer seat.  My bum still hurts! The road had been ripped up to make ready for a new road.  But much like most of Central Asia, they tended to do it the Chinese way.  Rip up the road from beginning to end and then start the work.  Leaving everyone with no real road for years!

Knowing I needed to rest I selected a hostel further out but still near one of the temples.  The hostel turned out to be VERY quiet, I was the only person in my room.  Whilst this can be a blessing, it is nice to talk to people occasionally.

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Don’t try the Annapurna circuit with a chest cough!

by Nathan Molyneaux on category , ,

It should go without saying that trying to hike over a 5,500m pass with a chest cough is a stupid idea.  Nevertheless, I still did it.  It should also be said that I am two weeks later and still dealing with said cough.

Setting off with Nabil and Seb we first had to endure 6 hour bus journey to the start of the circuit in Besisahar.  As is common in these parts and similar to Central Asia the objective is to cram as much cargo and as many people as you can in the bus.  Think of the path between the seats laden with live chickens in a bag, boxes of parts and people on stools. I have a feeling if they could’ve put people on the roof they would’ve done.

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For the want of seeing tigers!

by Nathan Molyneaux on category , , ,

Despite my experience of Indian bureaucracy, I can still be amazed by it.  Moritz and I enter the immigration office at the border and get invited to sit in a rather plush room.  None of these grey, dreary passport control buildings you get everywhere.  We were then taken individually into another room where they scanned the passport and took our photo.  The normal process.  After returning to the original room he would then fill in all the details in a book.  I am sure that book is never looked at.

Thinking this process was over, Moritz and I headed towards the gate, which the military controlled.  There we were given some seats to sit on in the booth where they once again wrote down all the details from our passport in a book.  We could then leave India!

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Wet tents, temples, and Rishikesh.  Where spirituality clashes with mass tourism.

by Nathan Molyneaux on category , ,

A quick left, a quick right, forward a bit.  Komoot had found a unique way through Delhi and out into the countryside North of Delhi.  Shooting down the back streets of Delhi, you see a different world.  The metre-wide streets are home to small communities within the sprawling city.  They become the playgrounds of children, you will interrupt a game of chase or more likely a small game of cricket.  Easy to score a boundary!

I am heading for a road running along the Ganges canal which heads north.  To get to it I have to traverse the countryside.  Flat cultivated land with irrigation canals all over.  Cycling along the cobbled streets connecting the occasional village you will come across a troop of monkeys.  Don’t stare and they will get out of your way!  The villages have a mixture of very nice houses and old mud-constructed houses, which have seen better days.

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First taste of India: Indian bureaucracy at its finest

by Nathan Molyneaux on category , , ,

Land, clear immigration, pick up bag and bike box, put the bike together and cycle off into the sunset.  Simple.  I landed, headed straight to Immigration and then I had to go back because I needed to fill out a piece of paper with details they already had linked to my passport and e-visa.  I finally cleared immigration.  Picked up the bag, easily.  I’m getting good at this flying stuff.

Bike box.  Now where is oversized luggage?  Found it, ummm… doesn’t seem to be doing much!  Ah, a gentleman in a suit is coming towards me.  ‘Are you expecting anything, Sir?’

‘Um. Yes, my bike box, please’ I replied. It definitely went on the plane, I thought.

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