Nepal – Part 1

Written by Martin on November 20th, 2011. Posted in Allgemein

While Sebas is getting the carnets stamped, Martin gets friend with the border guards and people from the border villageSebastian: From the Indian border we drive over a rough gravel road to the one of Nepal. The visa is done in no time and while filling out the carnet the passage Martin is already making friends with the police men outside of the customs hut. When I finished the documents the police man looks me in the eyes as he shakes my hand and tells me that:” Now we are happy to also welcome you as a guest in our country!”. Well that is a warm welcome and it gives me goosebumps comparing it to a passport control in good old Europe. We leave the border and find ourselves on a beautiful asphalted road in perfect condition.

<!–:de–>Indien Trilogie – Teil 3<!–:–><!–:en–>India trilogy – part 3<!–:–><!–:fr–>India 3 (Résumé)<!–:–><!–:es–>India 3 (Resumen)<!–:–>

Written by Sebastian on November 9th, 2011. Posted in Allgemein

On the way to Manali (where we didnt go at the end but nevermind :) )Martin: We hit the road direction Manali, which continues to offer us incredible sceneries and spectacular views. Again, we drive from one valley to the next, slowly we reach different vegetation zones, from bold mountains we start seeing some bushes until we are surrounded by beautiful forest and driving in the valley next to a river we get the impression of driving somewhere in the Austrian Alps. Even though it´s being said that there is no gas station between Leh and Manali, after approx. 380 kilometers we find one in Tandi…driving downhill in neutral gear pays off, as we reach the gas station with still more than 4 litres left in our tanks. We continue and after almost 3 weeks driving in mostly uninhabitated area, the population and traffic increases by kilometer. As it gets dark we reach Koxar and decide to stay there overnight. The only thing seperating us now from Manali is the Rotang pass, said to be the hardest to drive pass on the trip.

India trilogy – part 2

Written by Sebastian on October 31st, 2011. Posted in Allgemein

dsc_0106-2_0Sebastian: Sooo, where were we…? In Leh, the turning point for all tourists who want to travel the wonderful area of northern India. We got everything arranged for the necessary permits and on we went to conquer the highest mountable road in the world to reach the Kardung La pass.

We get up early with the idea in mind that we might see a beautiful sunrise on top but get surprised by the chilly temperatures on the way up. Nevertheless that doesn’t change that yet again sun is shining (we didn’t leave in time so the sun had already rosen) and we are enjoying a great view over the + 6000 meter high mountains right in front of us. It is, as so many moments on this trip, just breathtaking. We are happy when we get a chance to take some pictures with a group of ladies who are on the way to their yaks for milking them and surprised when they almost pose like models:).

India trilogy – part 1

Written by Sebastian on October 9th, 2011. Posted in Allgemein

p1060516-2Martin: We hit the border in the morning and again, we don´t face any problems entering India. The city Amritsar is close to the border and we decide to take it easy and spent the night there. We change the plan immediately after entering the city. Even though it seems quite nice, it´s hell to drive with the bike. Traffic is massive, it´s hot and humid and the streets in the old town are so narrow that it´s hard to get through with our bikes. After a riksha driver tore down Sebastian’s right suitcase without bothering to stop (luckily without breaking it) and me getting stuck in one of the narrow streets because a trailer blocked the way (with the owner sitting right next to it just watching me being unable to get through and moving it only after me asking him to do so), we draw the line and decide to go directly to Dharamsala to see if the Dalai Lama is home.

<!–:de–>Pakistan – Intensiv!<!–:–><!–:en–>Pakistan has ist all!<!–:–><!–:fr–>Pakistan – intensif !<!–:–><!–:es–>Pakistan – intenso!<!–:–>

Written by Sebastian on September 19th, 2011. Posted in Allgemein

Driving on and on and onSebastian: We arrive at the border with the military escort which accompanied us since shortly before Bam (not one, but different escorts). They help us to find the right places to get the carnet de passage done and to double the line for getting our stamps in the passport. It takes us maximum 30-40 minutes to get out of Iran. When we arrive in Pakistan the first difference to notice is that people speak English and that all the guys that want to offer us the best exchange rates wear pyjamas… interesting!

<!–:de–>Iran – 3 schöne Städte und die Wüste<!–:–><!–:en–>Iran – 3 beautiful cities and the desert<!–:–><!–:fr–>Iran – 3 villes magnifiques et le désert (résumé)<!–:–><!–:es–>Iran – 3 ciudades maravillosas y el desierto (resumen)<!–:–>

Written by Sebastian on September 6th, 2011. Posted in Allgemein

Martin: We leave Teheran direction to the highway where we are stopped by a police officer in front of the toll station telling us that motorbikes are not allowed on the highway and that we have to take the old country road. While explaining me how to get there, a motorbike police officer stops by and after two minutes of discussion between them he tells me we are free to go („you will not find the old country road anyways“), but asks us to drive on the emergency lane („because the cars on the highway drive really fast“). This guy has obviously no idea what we have between our legs 🙂

Iran – Teheran

Written by Martin on August 28th, 2011. Posted in Allgemein

Sebastian: We arrive in Teheran and try to get some orientation. As often we are not at all prepared and have to stop in the middle of the highway to call our contact from KTM. He tries to explain us but in the end we take the easy way: we ask a taxi driver to show us the way to the KTM shop. Staying behind the guy was an challenge by itself since it took us a while to understand the logic and functioning of the local traffic. After

Iran – until the Caspian Sea

Written by Martin on August 20th, 2011. Posted in Allgemein

Sebastian: So we finally made it to arrive in Iran. The moment you cross the boarder you can feel that you are somewhere else. The landscape is exactly as I imagined it (from the movies 😀 ) and after just a couple of kilometers my eyes get wet (only a little!) from the emotions boiling in my body. Iran has for a long time been a destination of strong interest for me an it is the first time that I really start to realize what we are doing here (I am sure this will happen a couple of times).

Armenia

Written by Sebastian on August 12th, 2011. Posted in Allgemein

Martin: „Welcome“ is the first we hear from one of the Armenian border guards. Entering Armenia turns out not to be a problem, you buy a visa for $6 and again they don´t bother about a bike insurance.

The landscape in Northern Armenia is once again spectacular, as you drive on about 2000m elevation on sandy looking highlands and the road takes us right away to Yerewan. Driving through that scenery makes the both of us think that this is how Mongolia or Tibet must be like (in our imagination of course, as none of us had ever been there :-)). People are yet very friendly again, waving to us when we pass by and when we stop, there is someone with us right away asking if we need help.

<!–:de–>Georgien<!–:–><!–:en–>Georgia<!–:–><!–:fr–>Géorgie (résumé)<!–:–><!–:es–>Georgia (resumen)<!–:–>

Written by Sebastian on August 12th, 2011. Posted in Allgemein

Martin: We arrive at the Turkish border expecting the outward voyage will be the same like coming into Turkey. Far away 🙂

The atmosphere at the border is super chaotic, people are running hectically around and cars and trucks seem to park wherever they wish to. It takes us almost half an hour to figure out how the system works (of course again with the help of Turkish fellas, who showed mercy with us :-)): when you get to the border, stop your vehicle wherever you find space, then run to the pass control counter. The chances are good that loads of people are already standing in front of it pushing each other around to be the next to get the passport stamped. So use your elbows  gently and work yourself through the crowd. After you repeated the same procedure with the vehicle registration counter you´re done. Sometimes you might have to wait because one of the counter officers decides to go for tea break – without replacement of course 🙂