Slovenia and Beyond

Slovenia is great and Dober dan to you all!NESS: Slovenia is great and Dober dan to you all! We started in the North and Bled, which was rather Butlinsesque. Lorenz quickly whisked us past, foiling my attempts to hang in a town and catch a band and art gallery, to Bohinjska Bistrica. We were told by our first cafe owner that they must speak English, (a very depressing approach, I thought, but oh well). The older people loved being greeted in their own language I found.

Bulgarian Black Sea Coast

Crossing the border into Bulgaria caused few problems and we headed towards Sofia stumbling with the foreign road signs and hoping we would not get lost. We decided against a Guide Book of Bulgaria as we were only passing through. What a mistake. In Sofia we had considerable difficulty finding cheap accomodation let alone a campground. Most enquiries were greeted with a shrug of the shoulders and a very glum look. Eventually one was located. We believe it was a brothel. The plumbng barely functioned (the toilet did not) and it stank.

If its Tuesday it must be…………..

The evening started well with a lovely sunset and improved when the generator failed, so we spent a peaceful evening in front of a real fire, with only the sound of the waves and the insects to disturb us. The road to Granada was easy and in good condition, the driving too was a lot less hazardous, so we took it easy and got to the hostel in the late afternoon. Parking was right at the back of the building, through the restaurant, bar, reception, laundry, toilets, rooms and into a leafy patio.

Northern Peru

We arrived in Mancora nice and early, found a lovely room in a hostel on the beach, unpacked, and spent a lovely afternoon chilling on the beach, drinking beer and making friends with other travelers, as well as bumping into some old faces from up the road, a couple of guys I had met back in Colombia.We arrived in Mancora nice and early, found a lovely room in a hostel on the beach, unpacked, and spent a lovely afternoon chilling on the beach, drinking beer and making friends with other travelers, as well as bumping into some old faces from up the road, a couple of guys I had met back in Co

Grossglockner Pass

Prague, Check (Hey, it was funny the first time) :=) The priorities of the trip were done: Nordkapp, Norway – Saint Petersburg, Russia and Prague, and it was time to enjoy the area and see what was available for the next week.We blew out of Prague heading south with a general idea that we would explore some of the Austrian and Swiss Alps. From Prague we rode into the very northeast corner of Germany, then into Austria, then into Germany (again) and back into Austria. Some very nice roads

XR´s only.....

We stopped for some refreshing beer as the sun beat upon us at over 95 degrees, and the wind was not helping a bit.......the beer flowed, we were now ready to head out to the coast. The day was March 28, 2003, we were riding up the central coast of Brasil. Heading out to the waters edge to find yet another sleepy beach. the dirt road we were commensing upon had some road work machinery in action, we skirted around thru the deep mud and water, and wondered how the passing bus made it thru such a passage.......It had been several weeks since the last dirt, Ed & I were ready!

Unexpected Hospitality

Arno had abandoned his bike outside the police station and ran back to see how I was doing and the police – being the suspicious sort - had followed. From San Antonio, we took the Pan Americana (Ruta 5) south, it’s a boring road that you have to pay for, but there is no real alternative if you want to get anywhere without zigzagging around like a demented insect.

3,200kms to Buenos Aires

We left early in the morning, a touch over 3,000 kms to cover before we got to Buenos Aires. We rode out of Ushuaia under a grey sky. I was happy to leave the place behind. I had found it expensive, ugly and miserable. We had gone there for one purpose only, to touch a point on a map, and to be honest, I was wishing we had skipped it.We had done what we wanted to do in Ushuaia, we bought stickers for our bikes and postcards for our friends (which finally arrived in the UK four months later), and decided to head out the next day.

Pass the Salt, Please

Finally left Cusco headed for Lake Titicaca, La Paz Bolivia, and Uyuni, Bolivia for some great salt flat riding. I will cross into Argentina in a couple of days headed for Mendoza or Santiago, Chile, then on south!Ok, we had overdosed on ruins around Cusco and had drank all the beer in the world famous Norton Rats bar so it was time to move on to our next destination, Lake Titicaca. The ride from Cucso to Puno was another one of those 14,000 foot roads with more beautiful scenery.

Indonesia (Nusa Tengara) and Timor Leste

After our luxurious break in Bali we reluctantly packed the bike again and left for the island of Lombok in search of more adventure.

Click here to see Lisa and friend

Diego’s Armadillo

It was a Friday night and the place was buzzing. We got out of our soggy gear, got to know everyone and ate the first of our Azul asados.It had just stopped raining when we pulled into town, but Oscar still came to meet us on his bike. He is a member of the Horizons Community in Viedma. We visited his place, met his family, then were found a great place to stay just up the road.

Oscar and Arno making noquis

The Road of Death!!

The ride started as normal, and we found our way out of Mexico city without too much trouble, the problems started later on. The road was glorious. We rode up, down and round mountains, through the forest, twisting and winding our way along in the sunshinThe ride started as normal, and we found our way out of Mexico city without too much trouble, the problems started later on. The road was glorious. We rode up, down and round mountains, through the forest, twisting and winding our way along in the sunshine, and after a few hours, we were ready for a stop.