I woke up alone in the back of Sinan's truck covered in some sort of an oily dust. There wasn't anyone around and the sun was just rising so I took the time to clean my matress and sleeping bag. First Jehan showed up. He spent the night wandering around the customs zone climbing refinery towers. Isabel slept inside the truck and Recep was with Mehmet. Soon everyone gathered for breakfast. Thinking of the roads ahead, I decided to shorten my windscreen. It tends to crack when there's too much vibration.
After breakfast, Recep asked the big question: "What is her decision?" We looked at Isabel. She made a pedalling gesture with her hands and said "Cycle!" That didn't require much translation. He felt bad but didn't say anything.
So it was down to the three of us. We would be leaving for Aktau as soon as the bikes cleared the customs. ...Read More
Leaving Baku took longer than I expected. From the point we were ready to board, until the moment of departure, we have been asked for documents probably five times. It seems like this is a completely random thing. Some guards don't do anything. They just look at the pages of the passport and read silly stuff they find interesting. They compare visa photographs and ask personal questions mixed with dirty jokes. Speaking Turkish, I naturally became the translator and guide for Jehan and Isabel all through the way from the port of Baku to the port of Aktau, a total of 5 days spent together with truckers and guards... My job included all sorts of cajolery, mediation, alteration and explanations required to move on.
The ferry itself, Miss Mercury is actually a very old bitch. Details such as the operation instructions on the casino coin machines reveal that she used to ...Read More
Georgian border crossing was without much incident apart from the long queue and a young man running away from an angry policeman. Feeling somewhat stressed with all sorts of warnings I had been listening to during the past weeks, I didn't really feel an urge to stop anywhere. All through the country, my feet touched the ground three times. Once I was stopped by a mountain guard. He told me that the road I was using was actually a mountain road and I had missed the main highway a few miles back. Second was when I stopped for fuel and exchanged some money, and third was to sleep in a roadside guest house. It's was a pity to have rushed through this country. If I had known what was waiting for me in Azerbaijan, I would have taken a few more days here. I didn't even taste the famous wine. ...Read More
Somewhere between Thessaloniki and Kavala, I missed the highway exit and the road took me about 20 kilometers inland. I wanted to camp on the seaside but there weren't any roads on the map. However, there seemed to be a thin road barely visible over the mountains. I decided to take it. After a few kilometers, I arrived at a hut where the road seemed to disintegrate. I took a few uncertain turns and found it again. Climbing further up, this time I ended up near a TV antenna tower. Apparently, the road existed for the construction of this tower and did not continue beyond it. Then I heard some goat bells and followed the sound. The shepherd was quite surprised to see me. I explained him where I wanted to go and he gave me directions. All in sign language... I told him my name and asked his. He ...Read More
"Tour de Monde" is how I explain what I'm doing to the French. One man said "brave" as I explained him my route. Another said something like "courageous". They want to be nice. They probably think I'm stupid to do something like this. Bad things do happen. I know that too. But so do good things. There is no point missing the latter because I'm afraid. This isn't bravery. It's just how things work. The day is just as beautiful as the night is scary. And you miss it all if you stay inside.
The days are long up north at this time of the year. The dusk light takes its time before it gives way to night. I get to do long rides before I camp. Somewhere south of Moulin, rain clouds gathered and the sky turned dark blue. I remember this color. It's the color of depth. It's the ...Read More
I had to do this...
I stayed in Paris for two days. Now I'm on my way to Lyon and possibly to the Alps... Everything's fine. Just wanted to check in as I'm in brief Wi-fi zone. I'll do a detailed post in a few days... Read More
Las Vegas and counting. We're planning to camp in echo bay on the shores of Colarado river. 70 more miles to go. At least for today.
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