Motomountainboulderbiking

So what you do is this;
Hire a Motorbike,
Head up hill as far as you can, maybe pausing for a while to watch the paragliders take off.
When the road ends, Carry on.
When all you have in front of you is a track blocked with boulders, carry on.
If this is seeming too easy pickup a hitchhiker.
Eventually if you’re lucky you will hit a big smooth sweeping mountain road where you can see miles ahead for oncoming traffic (and there’s very little)

I did 70Km yesterday 20 of it off road, only seeing one another vehical. Was hard work but really rewarding.

I chatted to a few gliders back in Pokera and found the going rate was £70 for 30 mins and with all my best haggling skill I could only get them down to £60.

In the evening I called the paragliger who’s number I got given in Varanasi. He didn’t really want to talk about it on the phone but said we’d have to meet up at some time. Tbh he didn’t sound very interested so I didn’t hold much hope.

In the evening I went to the chess café and was chatting to my opponent who turned out to be the same paraglider I called earlier.

We played a couple of games and he said he’ll take me up for £35 if he doesn’t have a booking through the agency this morning.

I’m hoping for the call soon :-)

Views from the track

Sunset over the lake

Pokera and Biking

So I’ve been in Pokera a couple of days now. It’s really beautiful here as is most of Nepal. In fact I really like Nepal, it’s a bit cleaner, and quieter than India and people don’t hassle you as much. It also has one of the lowest crime rates in the world which is amazing considering the poverty. Tho it lacks a bit of the colour and vibrancy of India. The really cheap street side cafes and chai shops are missing, but the restaurants are only a little more than India (£1.50 for a pizza), the beer is cheaper and better (£3 a pint).
The lakeside is very touristy with trekking equipment shops, tour operators, and restaurants over looking the lake every few meters.
The first night I found a chess playing café thanks to my neighbor who plays. I have established my self as one of the strongest there only narrowly loosing to a german guy who turned out to be a former 1900 rated club player.
Yesterday I just strolled around and last night we watched sunset and an awesome thunderstorm from the top of a restaurant, then more chess and on to a Jazz bar where I surprised the staff by beating all comers at Tigers and Goats to spite having some difficulty standing 
This afternoon Jon and I decided to hire some motorbikes and head up into the hills. Jon went for a scooter but I really wanted to try a real bike so chose a 150cc Yamaha, (really new one too) After haggling him down from £7 each to £3.50 for 5 hours I got on and had to ask “So how do you ride it then?” (I hold Mr moody personally responsible for this lack of my knowledge) The guy was then trying to get me on a scooter, but after riding up and down the road a few times, seeing my international license covers me and assurances I’d fix it if I crashed he nervously let me ride off.
Wow those things are fun.
Now Nepal supposedly has the most dangerous roads in the worlds, and motor bikes are the most dangerous form of transport. But hay you only live once, or lots of times till you achieve enlightenment (maybe) and “He fell off the Himalaya on a motorbike” makes a pretty cool epitaph.
We headed into the hills (towards the point to Paragliders take off from) and got our first glimpse of a cloud covered Annapurna and the Himalaya proper. But then Jons scooter expired, Spark plug we and other passing bikers suspect. Thankfully it was downhill the 10km back so he rolled as I explored a bit checking back with him occasionally.
You really can’t go fast, 35Kph scares the **** out of me as the roads are hairpin hairpin gravel and hairpin with 500m drop on one side. Still no one is going much faster which is reassuring.
The police had closed the road to the hire place so this added to the confusion but the chap was happy enough once we showed him where his bikes were.
Tommorow we’re hiring two proper bikes for the day and trying for that peek again.
A german biker who lives here has also told me of a trail that goes to 5000+ meters altitude from here. Although it’s not far I needs to be done in 2 days due to altitude sickness. Pokera btw is only at 800m but Annapurna is over 8000m and only 25km away.
Think I’ll stay here I a while. There’s loads I want to do here and plenty of bars with free Wifi and expensive beer.

View of the Pokera lake from the opposite the guest house

The bike and I with annapurna in the backround (although you can't really see it)

Tansen and journey too Pokara

Tansen was really nice. The 1 day and 2 nights we spent there we only saw 3 other Westerners. It’s a lovely medieval market town and you can see some buildings are like our tudor architecture but with tin roofs and other modern additions.
It’s hard to believe this place was the scene of one of the major battles of the civil war just 5 years ago.
We Hiked across the big hill behind the town which had some awesome views and the occasional random temple.
Then we got the bus to Pokara. The roads somehow cling on to the sides of the mountains as the bus constantly swings left too right, thowing you a few feet in the air every few seconds, always with sheer drop on one side. The seat wasn’t attached to the bus so it was a case of wedging yourself in and hoping for the best. The second half of the journey was particularly scary and the first half I had a nepali guy next to me throwing up out the window. Still we got here ok and found a guest house and got rooms for £1.50 a night. The town looks nice but really touristy.
Will write more in my next entry.

Loads of old buildings like this

View from the Budda at the end of the hill (shame the backround mountains didn't come out)

The Town from just above

Journey to Nepal

I’ve just arrived in Tansen, in Nepal. And am sipping Everest beer and waiting for my momos. I’ve headed up here with Jon, A Spaniard from my guest house in Varanasi who needed to jump the border to renew his visa.

On the first day we had a 16 hour bus journey to the border which we passed with a few movies on the laptop. Luckily the bus wasn’t full so we had room the move about.
We crossed the border at about 9pm. It is the slackest border I have ever seen. Hell even going to Wales the stop you and demand £5.40. Here you can just walk straight through. In fact I had to wander around in Nepal for 30 mins before to get a photocopy of my passport (with no currency) before returning to the border to get the visa.
We found a nice hotel for about £4 each. In the restaurant we met a couple of Germans a bit older than us and I stayed up drinking a few beers with the German chap.

He grew up in East Germany and was studying near Berlin in ’89 so was there when the wall came down. Having been there last year it was really nice to get a personal account of the events. The first thing he and his friends did was to go to the most famous drinking street in the West, negotiate a rate for east marks to Deutsch marks in a bar and got a beer. He still has the glass it came in to this day. Was really touching, he even had a tear in his eye saying what a happy day it was. He dislikes what Berlin has become now. But I think it’s recent history has given it a culture with a reverence for authority and rules, which is one of the things I liked about the place.

This morning I tried to use the only ATM in town again, but it was still out of order, so I wandered back into India but there isn’t one on that side of the border either so I was beginning to think we’d be stuck here as Jon was running out of Indian rupees and I had none left at all. Finally the ATM started working so by midday we could leave.
Tansen is off the beaten track so we had to get 3 busses to get here. The first 5km hop we where on the roof of the bus with all the luggage. Was loads of fun but I’m glad it was a good road.
The Third bus took us finally off the great Indian plain and into the Himalayan foot hills. I say foot hills, but these things make the black mountains look like mole hills. I’m (only!!) at 1400m here. It really is spectacular. Although the visibility is quite low. There was a delay when we ran out of diesel but a passing lorry let us siphon off enough to get to a petrol station.

Now we’re here enjoying food and beer.
The people here seem much more relaxed than the Indians it feels weird walking down the street without being hassled to go to a shop
or something. It’s really nice.

Life is good

Jon on top of the bus

Lazy Days in Varanassi

Hi All

I’m still in Varanasi.

Enjoying lazy days. Visiting the odd site, relaxing by the Ghats.

Saw an awesome Indian classical gig, with a world renowned Indian flutist.  

A few of us went on a day trip to Sarnath where Budda gave his first lecture after attaining enlightenment. There are temples there from all over the Buddhist world and a tree grown from a cutting of the Bhodi tree he attained enlightenment under. Twas all very interesting.

Also this evening I had an interesting trip back along the main road. First there was what looked to my Weston eyes as a carnival, with floats load music and kids dancing. Apparently this was a festival of road cleaning and they were cleaning the road as the went along it!! Then a few hundred meters further up the road was an amazing wedding procession with a ornate horse drawn carriage with the groom and some family in. Then 2 rows of 20 kids in each holding lit florescent tubes, other kids dancing in-between and a marching band at the front.

This as all on the main road so all the cars, bikes, lorries, auto and cycle rickshaws and cows trying to squeeze past.

Of course have been playing a lot of chess too. Mainly at a guest house run by a farther and 2 sons who all play, there’s also load of other Indians who play there. The 3^rd best guy (although I think he’s being modest) is only 19 and is fide rated at 2200 and plays for the state!!! I loose a lot but am getting some respect off the lesser players now.

We had a great thunderstorm yesterday but other than that it’s getting too hot here now so I am leaving for the Nepali border tomorrow. I’ll miss this place.

I have heard of a guy in pokera with a paraglider and a hawk he follows to find thermals in the mountains. So I might have a go at that. But my first stop is the less touristy area of Tansen.

I will let you know how it goes and will blog from Nepal in a few days.

-Dan

 Standing Baba, Has been standing or leaning on his pearch 24 hours for 3 years

View From the roof of my guest house.

 Chess at Eden Halt Guest house

The Ghats from the other side of the river.

 

Now I could have a Full Toss or Gaylord. Humm, what to do ;-)

The Varanassi Trap...

Hello all,

Still in Varanassi, In fact everyone I meet seems to of been here for weeks or months, having arrived with the intention of a few days. I’ve moved to a cheaper guest house, £4.28 per night was too rich for my blood so I found one for £1.43, with free internet, some times, if I sit at a tiny desk with a dodgy wire and the electricity lasts for more than 5 mins, with the wind coming from the south and Jupiter is rising. It also has a really nice court yard I am in now sipping a beer. I think tomorrow I’ll go buy a long good network cable for them. Humm suddenly I feel a long way from maplin. They don’t seem to have chains of shops like back home. Just lots of places selling random unrelated things. Ill ask the kid in the net café by the last guest house where to get one I think.

The first night here I must of got 20 mossi bytes on my head and face. I look a bit Klingon. But the couple that run the place are really nice and got me a mossi net and some coils to burn so last night I didn’t get bitten at all.

I’ve been going off to see something each morning then spending each afternoon playing chess by the chai stall on one of the ghats.

It’s pretty idyllic there and there’s always people playing music and stuff. I think if you sit by a chess board in a public enough place any ware someone will eventually sit and play you. The chai stall guy is pretty handy but can only play speed when his mate is there to make the chai. Playing about 50/50 indians and westerners. The Indians are a lot stronger but I’ve still only lost 3 since I’ve been in india, 2 though my own negligence, and one to a guy who’s younger brother is 2200 and plays for india under 18s. it was a close game and I felt I could of stepped up a gear if the stakes were high. But I have the feeling he wasn’t trying too hard either. Still I can see my game is getting sloppy.

I’ve also spent some time teaching one of the postcard selling kids (about 7-8) how to play his mate is even younger but has a really good understanding not only of how the pieces move but how to protect them. So I’ve had them playing pawns and pawns + bishops.

They still keep trying to sell me postcards still so yesterday I bought one and wrote it to them J

I was a cycle rickshaw driver briefly, on the quiet roads around the university I swapped with the driver for a couple of km.

Really odd not leaning to steer and also the don’t turn much if your peddling but as soon as you lift off they suddenly turn. (no diff but a freewheel I guess)

I have found out that my Indian multiple entry 6 month visa will only let me re-enter india 60days after I leave. So I either need to spend 2 months in Nepal, do my trip in a different order or find some other way around the problem.

More research needed me thinks.

Some Jamming in the market outside a dosa stall...

Varanassi

The sleeper train was rammed and my bunk had been double booked. Luckily I got there first and by booking long predated the other so the inspector lady sorted out something else for the other guy (I hope he was ok). I was lucky as one of the ladies in a bunk near spoke good English to translate. I even watched a couple of movies (with headphones) on my top bunk before dropping off.

When I woke up the whole train was empty. Panic set in a little, could we of passed Varanassi an hour early? I found some people a few bays down who assured me not. In fact we arrived 2 hours late, just like home then.

Been here 2 days now and have been getting to know the place. To Hindus this one of (if not the) holiest place in India. This is for lots of reasons but not least of which is it is the only place the Ganges flows back towards the Himalaya. Today I walked the whole length of the ghats up the river to the bridge then meandered back through the streets stopping for food, refreshments and even a shave and beard trim from a street barber. I also saw a fresh water dolphin!!! Really rare now. The chap I was sat next to hadn’t seen one for 10 years. I think there’s only two species in the world in the Amazon and Ganges (tho there may be one in the Yanksee or Yellow rivers).

The Burning Ghats are strange places where people’s bodies are burned on funeral pyres and then there ashes put in the Ganges. This is going on 24 hours a day with some times up to 20 pyres at once. George Harrisons ashes were scattered here apparently.

Tomorrow I may rickshaw around some temples and start to plan the journey up to Nepal.

Laters

Dan

Ps I've added some photos to previous posts.

Washing on the Ghats: