After overcoming the confusion of being on the left hand side of the road, the first thing we did after crossing into Thailand was to head for the train station. It was Dec 20 and we were due to meet our Dutchie cycling pals for Christmas just south of Bangkok. There was no way that … Continue reading Cyclists’ Christmas
After our gravel and washboard excursions in Kyrgyzstan, as amazing as they might have been, we were dreaming and looking forward to the tarmac roads of Kazhakistan. However, contrary to expectations, the tarmac, took some time to come. We thought as soon as we crossed the border the road would automatically improve and change to … Continue reading Steppe-ing through Kazakhstan
After almost 3 weeks on the road together, in Osh we said farewell to our slow cycling, gourmet dinner dreaming, salt lake swimming, cow poo fire building, snicker eating buddies: Mari and Eva @12brakeblocks, as we head to similar destinations but through different paths… While we are back in the Pamir they made a day … Continue reading A day in the life in the Pamir
As soon as we crossed the border into Kyrgyzstan, it seemed the landscape changed immediately. Green rolling hills started to appear, and trees!! We hadn't really realised quite how much we had missed seeing trees! It was as if the simple image of a tree in our minds brought a comforting feeling. We zoomed down … Continue reading Kyrgyzstan – a little detour to a big mountain
We had been anticipating the Pamir Highway for such a long time. When we were getting tired of the lack of camping and craving some personal space in Iran, I was wishing ourselves forward a few thousand kms to Tajikistan. But then suddenly we were here. Less than ten days after leaving Iran, we had … Continue reading Back into the mountains
Warning : this not a sugarcoated sweet little tale of cycling through the beautiful Armenian landscapes. Language is perhaps a little abrasive at times, but I am from North London. Apologies for not sharing with closer friends and family sooner, but I only wanted to write this once. Our planned route through Armenia was going … Continue reading Armenia – the good, the bad, and the ugly
We hadn't cycled more than 1km from the Georgian border and we were already being offered a cup not of tea but of homemade wine. An immediate change from the multiple daily çay invitations we had become used to. Besides this, the large numbers of (white) Renaults we had become accustomed to in Turkey, ranging … Continue reading Return of the Lada
'pologies for the delay. This post has been written for weeks, nay months, but we've had technical difficulties getting the photos from our camera... And we both know you people only look at the pictures anyway... In space this post covers about 1500km of pedalling, in time about 3 weeks, and in seasons all 4. … Continue reading From catamarans to hot air balloons
Bikes finally back under our bums after their extended stay at the bicycle spa, we took a deep breath and headed through the crazy Istanbul traffic - making our way to one of the ferry ports with my new rear hub whirring happily behind us. The plan was to escape the madness of the city … Continue reading Turkish Hospitality
Along the road we were, minding our own cycling when all of the sudden, out of nowhere, who do we find?? The nice old couple from Riaño!! What were the odds??! Well... quite a few since in fact they are my parents and it was my birthday the next day and we had arranged to … Continue reading Füssen (or how to eat a lot of cake)