-
How With Decision Made The Travel Process Can Continue
May 11, 2009
After leaving the Iran embassy having been rejected for the visa a second time, I cycled over to the travel agency, and booked a flight to Istanbul. Flying is not the best transport for me because I feel that it cuts out the point of travel which is the adventure of meeting people and having a valuable experience. It is also the most polluting mode of transport. After 1.5 months in New Delhi I made the decision based on a long process of research and yes it felt like a compromise.
-
Notes from BBC Northampton Radio Interview
April 11, 2009
What route have you travelled so far? The trip started in June 2007 and I cycled across Europe to the Caucasus. After getting an Iran Visa, I spent 1.5 months travelling through Iran, 3 weeks in Pakistan, 4.5 months in India and 2 weeks in Nepal. A problem with my Iran visa in New Delhi stopped my intention of travelling back overland to Georgia so I flew back to Turkey and got a bus back to Tbilisi.
-
Everyday Life in Tbilisi and Helping an NGO Plant a Vegetable Garden
April 1, 2009
It looks like I’m going to be in Tbilisi for a while. Since arriving back from my cycle travels, I’ve had a lot to reflect on. For the moment, I’m happy where I am. I’m enjoying seeing friends and rekindling relationships. I am doing what I can to keep my days organised now I don’t have the routine of cycling each day. I’ve been doing a lot of reading. I’m researching design as it is something I am interested in.
-
How not to get an Iran visa twice But Why You Should Still Try
March 30, 2009
Turn up to the Iranian Embassy having just arrived in New Delhi and say you want to get a visa. Tell them your nationality (bad decision if British) Remember that you absolutely definitely need a pesky ‘Letter of Invitation’ obtained either through a pricey tour agency or by a friend who ‘invites you’ to Iran. Apply immediately for an LOI and wait for 15 days thinking things will probably be ok.
-
Holi is India's Most Amazing Festival Experience
March 17, 2009
Last week it was the Holi festival. People throw colourful powder and drench each other with water. I took a cycle ride through the Mehrauli area near the Qutab Minar monument just as the festivities were peaking in the morning. Most people were stained from head to toe in a shade of purple. This was from from having been pelted with every colour mixed together. It was like God’s hand had slipped and knocked the paint palette over.
-
Staying with Couchsurfers whilst Waiting in Delhi for Border Bureaucracy
March 15, 2009
I am currently living with wonderful Couchsurfers, Navneet and Priya in Delhi and travelling each day back to the Iranian Embassy. I have a half-baked plan to go back to Georgia overland. The border into Tibet from Nepal is closed. The other options are go back to Pakistan, then come back to India or wait until the border with China opens a couple of months later in May. My no-fly policy was something that was an important part of the original Ride Earth project.
-
The Challenge of Border Bureacracy with a Self-Imposed No Fly Travel Policy
March 14, 2009
I’m in Delhi. I got a Pakistan visa about 2 weeks ago. I had applied for an Iran LOI (letter of invitation - required for the Iran visa, through tour agency Stantours.com for a princely sum). I was waiting for the little code of confirmation to come through so I could go to the Embassy in Delhi and pick up my visa. However, it was was not to be. A few days ago I got an email saying my application had been rejected.
-
Staying Positive in Delhi and the Frustration of Visa Bureaucracy
February 25, 2009
Having arrived in Delhi, I had been wishfully thinking that I would pick up Pakistan and Iran visas again and make my way by public transport back to Turkey. However, the world’s borders and their associated bureaucracy and politics thought differently. At the time it felt to me like the only point of border was to make life difficult for the overland traveller. I cycled this morning the 16km from my host to the Iran Embassy to be told that I need the Letter of Invitation from a friend in Iran or they need to send my application to Iran, either way it would take at least a month.
-
Cycling Out of Kathmandu
February 23, 2009
I cycled out of Kathmandu contending with smoky diesel fumes from the relentless traffic. Gradually I made my way into the suburbs and up out of the valley. I was not used to the mountains but I glad to be cycling on some hills again. It felt like the beginning of another adventure and with the bare trees and overcast weather it reminded me a little of the Black Sea coast in Turkey.
Tags: NepalCycle touringTravel
-
Visiting a School in Nepal
February 23, 2009
I met a man who was playing a type of table top hockey. He asked me to go and visit his school. Inside, the children were attending their lessons. The school was a project of ‘Room to Read’, the local community and the Nepali government. Architecturally the building looked good and with a nice paint job on the outside at least. The teacher took me onto the roof and said ‘we don’t have equipment for our school - no tables, books, and no money to buy them’.
Tags: Nepal
-
Staying with Laxman the Botanist in Nepal
February 23, 2009
Onward I went up through the mountains, through little villages, and clay shacks by the roadside. I decided to continue to cycle in the moonlight and arrived in the town of Daman at 2330 m at around 7 o’clock. I went into a Dhaba which was a building made of branches with a thatch roof, a small clay oven. There were two ladies. One was smoking a pipe whilst cooking by some pans on a stove.
-
Meeting 5 saddhus on a Pilgrimage to Parvati
February 23, 2009
From Daman on clear day, you could see 18 Himalayan peaks. Unfortunately visibility wasn’t good, but the peaks of Ganesh Himal, Annapurna and Machappuchre were a mystical sight floating atop the whispy clouds and haze. I passed the 2400m summit point feeling spiritually rested from being in the quiet mountain area surrounded by glorious wild nature. The downhill was long and ponderous. I regularly stopped to take photos, film travelling shots, and otherwise record my thoughts as they occurred via dictaphone.
Tags: Nepal