NZ - UK

I was sorry to leave Bam I was so relaxed after Pakistan and had a good time there.

The ride to Shiraz, 580km, was one of the best so far (i've probably said that before), the scenery was unreal sort of semi desert / arid with mountain ranges, valleys and huge salt lake beds. For weeks now I have ridden long straight roads which stretch out to the horizon but this time I had mountain passes to cross and lots of twisties (bends, for non bikers. We love twisties.) It took a bit of getting used to as the bike felt quite light in the front end with the weight on the back and I had to be a bit cautious to start, but once i got the feel I was chucking it into those corners.

Lonely Planet suggests "don't even think about going to Yazd in hot season"
Red Rag... So now I have been here 3 days.
The ride from Shiraz again was amazing oh the scenery (it really is a shame that its so hard to download stills from my video, I have tried too slow internet)

Got up at 6am to hit the road and apart from the back (as mentioned) had an enjoyable ride cruising at around 130km/hr on long straight roads, actually toll roads which motorbikes aren't allowed on (Iranian) got stopped by police a couple of times but no problems (they really only want to look at the bike) and was waved through all of the toll booths..they didn't know what to charge and also the Iranians are just like that with foreigners.

Lonely Planet (LP) describes Esfahan : "Iran's masterpiece, the jewel of ancient Persia and one of the finest cities in the Islamic world". Now I definitely don't agree with LP all the time but I believe they have got it right this time. What an amazing place. Beautiful palaces, bridges, mosques and the stunning Imam Square. Not since the Taj Mahal have I been so impressed by architecture!.

Wow Iran exceeded all my expectations. The people are generous and fantastic hosts
It is such a beautiful country and the towns and cities I visited all had a rich cultural heritage and many sites worth seeing. Some of them take your breath away. The scenery is diverse as you can get. I know I spent a lot of time riding through deserts but that doesn't mean that it's just barren with nothing to see it has it's own beauty, it's just that the roads are dead straight and it's just bloody hot.

Forgot to mention that whilst servicing the bike in Nowshahr I managed to have a wee accident when I put the bike on the stand it landed on my big toe and with 200kg of bike on it I was not happy. Anyway got to use the first aid kit for the first time.
Leaving Nowshahr I headed all the way around the Caspien Sea coast. What a waste of a good coast line the towns which line it were tatty and unappealing which surprised me because Iranian flock here for holidays. So with no nice place to stay I carried on to Rasht where I stayed for one night.

Ý hope you apprecýate thýs as Ý was just about to fýnýsh thýs entry when the power went down and lost what Ý had wrýtten so here we go agaýn.
After 2 nýghts ýn Tabrýz (Ýran) Ý headed to the Turkýsh border, 250km.
Great rýde doýng such low km and the scenery was fantastýc especýally as Ý got closer to the border and snow covered (peak) Mt. Ararat came ýnto výew.

Hý team Ýt has been a few days since Ý made an entry on the blog but Ý have done some hard riding getting a few Km,s under my belt. Ý ended up going in the complete opposite direction Ý had initially planned to go. Fröm Doguhayazt Ý headed down to Lake Van (323km) A very scenic ride especýally once Ý got to the lake side, Thýs lake is huge and the water a very pretty lýght blue, great riding as the road followed the shoreline for over 200km, deserts? what deserts. Ý stayed the night on the far western edge at Tatvan.

Spent 3 wonderful day's in middle earth (goreme) and was then wanting to get back on the road.

As I saıd previously İ only stayed one nıght ın Antalya but Luıs (the bıker I met from Portugal) and I decıded to take a easy rıde up the coast to Olympos only an hour away. It was great rıdıng wıth someone else after all thıs tıme but I soon realısed why I was adamant from the begınıng that I was goıng to do thıs trıp alone. After a late nıght prevıous we had arranged to meet at breakfast and leave at a perfectly cıvıl tıme of around 10.30am. This is quite unusual for me as I try to set off early around 6 or 7am especially if I intend to ride a long distance.

When I was planning this trip I always had in mind that I would decide on my route through Europe once I got to Istanbul. Well I aren't going to Istanbul. I made this decision yesterday after considering a number of factors. I'm happy with the decision, however there is one problem. I was going to buy all my maps and guide book for Europe once in Istanbul.... I have managed to print off some pretty scratchy one half page maps from the internet but lack any real detail. I take back what I said about GPS!

I had a late night farewell diner with Luis as we were going or separate ways in the morning. We ended up having a few beers to many and as a result I left far too late to make the 7-800km ride to Istanbul. As a result I only did about 350km and headed for a little town on the coast Foca which is just north of Izmir.
A very picturesque fishing village which has turned itself over to tourism like most of their type in Turkey. A very scenic ride once off the main highway. It was quite relaxing walking along the shoreline after dinner taking in the cooler air.

Hi just a short update:
Entered Greece and spent the night in Alexandpoulis (check spelling) which is 40km from the border.

While in Thessaloniki I managed to buy a book of maps for Europe (not a great scale) and the Lonely Planet (LP) for Mediterranean Europe (in English). LP doesn't cover all the countries I want eg Austria Switzerland Germany but does cover the Balkin countries Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, Slovenia which I wanted. I may end up going through the top of Italy and France, both covered.

Hi all, before I update blog I just want to give a summary on Turkey
Got to say I really enjoyed the country It was a journey of contrasts from the Kurdish south eastern corner, to Cappadoccia (the real middle earth, a great highlight of the trip) to the southern coast (great beaches) and to finish it with a memorable visit to Galipolli.
I know I keep going on about it but, the only negative was the price of fuel, probably my biggest expense.

Well I didn't know anything about Albania before arriving here, and still don't know a lot except to say it's a bit like the wild west!.
I entered from Greece this morning after a few minor issues at the border(visa?, not required I said).
After getting cleared I headed off into the unknown, except I have known this before... India... shocking roads. One pot holed lane going through winding mountain passes is not fun especially when the locals consider that lane to belongs to them!

God it seems like ages ago since I was in Albania...
I had a interesting chat with a Albanian / Canadian guy on my last night in the country, I asked why if the country is so poor how come there are so many flash cars being driven around? The answer 2 reasons: organised crime and (related) most are stolen from other European countries. You see GB plated BMW's and Audi's everywhere the "owner" just can't take it out of Albania.
Seems ages ago since Albania
Rushed through Montenegro, 2 days, small country and quite nice. A lot more friendly and nice roads.

What was the last entry all about??
Sometimes I have tough days....
I got my A into G and rode over 450km to Zargreb the capital today, just what I needed.
What a great city, most tourists give the city a miss and head for the coast, which is probably why this place is so cool. Very pretty and only about 280,000 people.
Reminds me a bit like Wellington, size and feel, not the weather. Temps ever since I left Turkey have been in the 30's maybe a bit hotter on the coast.

I forgot to mention that in Zagreb I lost my Ipod, bloody annoying as I really miss having music while riding. You may remember that I put the Ipod as the number one thing that I brought with me on this trip.