Tour

China – Way to Xiangcheng

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Over dusty road and high passes to Sichuan, Days 297-300

Juhui, we are on our way again! A remote area with high passes is waiting for us. That’s why we visit the market once again and fill our bags with enough provisions. We take it easy the first day. At 2800 meters we find a nice spot by the river where we camp. It has not been so warm for a long time. In the best weather we continue cycling and manage the pass of 3900müM. At the top, countless Tibetan prayer flags blow in the wind. Warmly packed we enjoy the beautiful view. The nice thing about cycling passes is that mostly after the pass shows a whole new area. So we come into a narrow, green valley with large stately homes. We find a good hotel and enjoy the warm shower.

The next morning is the royal stage to the next larger city Xiangcheng (Xiangbala) on the program. Royal stage because a 60km long gravel road with partially sandy sections waiting for us. We are making very good progress and have a long lunch break. After three hours we reached the mountain pass 4300müM. The route continues on gravel and some climbs we tackle until then the road is sandy and extremely dusty. After six hours cycling we find a nice spot on a beautiful stream on 4300müM. In the morning we are greeted by a yak herd and a shepherd. We have never seen such big and beautiful yaks even with calves.

The descent in this sand and dust almost more exhausting than the climb! Again and again we are fogged by passing trucks and cars. After being shaken up for an hour, we reach with great relief asphalt again in Ranwu. A quick detour to the Hotspring is unfortunately disappointing and so we are back on the drive to Xiangcheng.

We left the Yunnan region with the pass and arrived in Sichuan. In Sichuan, the area and the people have changed a lot. It is drier, very barren in height and at the bottom of the river it has oasis-like, green terraced fields. The people are very friendly, have a very dark complexion and speak Tibetan. Instead of “ni hao” is now called “hallo” and with our Chinese translation app we sometimes get stuck, because many can only read the Tibetan script. To our great disappointment our SIM card does not work anymore. That means here in Sichuan apply extremely high roaming charges for our Yunnan card. In a few hours, the monthly credit is used up.

After five hours driving, we arrive dusty in Xiangcheng at the hotel. Luckily, we are already in the room when it starts to rain and to our great surprise we can take the dusty bicycles into the carpeted room, where we shower them off in the large bathroom. To our delight, Guy and Kamilla are still here and we exchange our experiences once more.

Total distance: 232.22 km
Max elevation: 4333 m
Min elevation: 2675 m
Total climbing: 4382 m
Total descent: -4621 m

China – Shangri-la

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Wait and see! Days 284-296

In the city of Shangrila we start the visamarathon the next morning. To get the registration confirmation, we cycle to the police station. But only the second station can issue the confirmation of registration. At PSB (Public Security Bureau) we find everything closed. What now? It is Friday and according to opening hours, it should be open. But fortunately an official waves us in. We are kindly informed that the registration confirmation is not enough. It takes: A written travel report, a filled visa form and for a special document we must cycle to a foto studio at the other end of the city. The requested form is created for 80yüan (12.-sFr.) and we get 8 additional passport photos. We can definitely use them again later.

On Saturday we go with all documents to the PSB. Oh no! The office is closed again, even though they clearly promised us that it will be open. We see that the projector is running and the light is on. Curious we nock at the door. But nothing happens. Andi discovers a telephone number and soon a dynamic officer arrives, opens the door, puts on some Chinese music and sets up her office table while we are sitting tensely in the waiting room. Then it’s our turn. Oh no, the passport copy is missing. But somehow it works without. After one more photo, fingerprints are taken and 160 yuan per person (24.-sFr.) have to be paid. In five working days we can have our visas and passports back again 😳. No, we do not want to wait that long! The officer tells us that this is fast and that in other places it even takes an entire week. As we finally ask, when we can pick up our visa, she says: “Okay, come back on Monday!” We can hardly believe it! What was that? A joke? We can even call the officer on Monday on here mobile when we leave, so she is in the office when we arrive. Incredible! That’s China!

We use the time to discover all the delicious Chinese food: We try Dumblings, yak cheese, Chinese-Burger, dried yak meat, butter-Milk tea (not our liking), hot soymilk, nudels, wantan (kind of stuffed dumplings in a soup), yak yoghurt und flatbread. But in our absolute favorite restaurant, which is very inconspicuous and has just three tables, we were served with nice different dishes with vegetables and legumes. The friendly cook and her daughter offer us the last meal for free. Meanwhile we can eat easily with sticks.

Every day we stroll through the pulsating market. In contrast to the sleepy old town, which was built around 2002 and burnt down four years ago to 70% and completely rebuilt again, the market is extremely lively.
We stock up with blankets, hot and thermos bottles, since heating is unknown here. But they have mattress heaters, which we will miss in the coming stages over 4000müM in the tent. In addition, Judith needs a replacement sleeping mat, but unfortunately there is only Chinese quality here…

Kamilla and Guy the cycling couple from the USA arrives. We are pleased to see them again and we have a wonderful time. They introduce us into the cool “Bananagram-Game”, which we handicraft our self later.

On Monday the officer has no time and we should return to the office on Tuesday. On Tuesday the cycling couple Stefan & Jessica and Juanita arrive, so we are 7 touring cyclists in the same hostel😀 We have a very exciting exchange with intensive planning discussions. Because all are frustrated with the too short visa for such a big country and with the complicated Chinese administration. It is frustrating how the visa determines the itinerary and the speed of our journey. So Jessica, Stefan and Juanita are too early in Shangrila (In Shangrila extension is only possible in the last week of expiry) and can not extend their visa yet, but this rule does not apply to the next PSB. There, they have to be before the last 7 days of expiry. However, to get there is just not possible by bike, so they have no choice but to go by bus to Leshan.

On Tuesday we can finally pick up our passports with the new visas. However, Andi’s cold has gotten worse and we are waiting for a few more days. After almost two weeks in Shangrila, Andi’s cough cured and we head for Litang. During the last months we have discussed a lot and researched, where our journey should continue. We finally decided how and where to go after China! Flight is booked. But we keep it secret 😀.

China – Lijiang, way to Shangri-la

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No walk in the park, but worth doing! Days 275-283

9 months we are already on the road. We use this to warmly thank all the dear people, who kindly supported and helped us before and during our journey! 🙏
On a small side road we cycle the last kilometers through the blooming landscape to Lijiang. In Lijiang we have a picnic in a park. Even in this touristy town Lijiang we check into a cheap, new hotel for 40 yuan (6.-sFr.).
We visit the old town of Lijiang, enjoy the beautiful view over the rooftops and dive once again into the bustling market. In the evening we meet Guy and Kamilla, the cycling couple from the USA and we have a very exciting exchange.

After two days of rest in Lijiang we cycle in nice, but very windy weather, off in the direction of the Leaping Gorge. We choose the way through the snow mountain national park. At the entrance to the park they charge 100 yuan (15.-sFr.) per person. Fortunately, Judith remembers the blog from a German cycling couple ride-worlwide.com that they did not have to pay. We also manage to convince the guards that we only cycle through without visiting the park and can cycle for free through the park. The landscape with the larches resembles the Engadin. The scenery with the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain is beautiful and we roll over the highest pass on our trip 3200m asl. There are a lot of cars filled with Chinese tourists who go to play golf, to take pictures with the yaks or to the gondola. Some even carry an oxygen bottle. Especially at the lake with the yaks, we can only shake our heads over the scenery.
The second ascent has it, as a cobblestone road leads up to the top. We destroy some height meters until we then set up our tent on 2900m asl. The campfire warms us and a worried Chinese admonishes us that we also need to extinguish the fire well. It is very dry.

Andi is plagued with diarrhea and so we are glad that the next day we have a 1700m downhill. The view of the third longest river in the world Yatze is unique! On the terrace fields, the grain is being harvested, mostly tied by hand to sheaves. The ferry takes us in Daju to the other side for 50 yuan (7.50 sfr.). The wind whips through the Tiger leaping gorge straight into our face, while we fight up the partly sandy gravel road.
Andi does not feel fit and so we cycle to a lookout point in the Tiger leaping gorge and then turn towards Shangrila.

We rest for one day so that Andi can regain his strength. Meanwhile, Kamilla and Guy have arrived. Our paths separate again. We drive without luggage only briefly to the viewpoint in the gorge. Without luggage, it drives quickly and we fly past the ticket booth. This we notice only when someone calls us from the old inconspicuous cottage. Later we are stopped by two security men who want to see our ticket, which costs 65yuan (9.-sFr.) per person. We explain to them that we did not see a sign and that we do not want to go hiking and only want to drink tea in the Guesthouse. This is okay for them and we enjoy the view into the canyon while we eat a Naxi bread. This is a flatbread, which is baked in the pan.

Then we roll back to our hostel and with luggage we climp the winding road and enjoy the sensational view just before Haba on the beautiful terrace fields. In the cozy living room of the guesthouse, the owner cooks us a fine dinner. Andi’s belly still rumbles a bit, making the hard climbs even more exhausting.

In Dugou we visit the white terraces. The natural are very beautiful, but further down artificial terraces are being built. We can only shake our heads.

In San Ban we find a good shop with lots of vegetables and fruits to our delight. However, the infrastructure here at this altitude and in the small villages is usually poor.
We camp at 2800m asl and wrap ourselves warmly in the sleeping bag. It is very cold and the wind is blowing around the tent. Brrrrr! In the morning we are grateful for the warming sun and we bravely crank up the further altitude of today’s stage. It goes over 3600m asl! The beautiful view rewards us once more. Shortly before the last pass of 3700asl to Shangrila we camp on 3300m asl at a bus stop right next to the road. We did not find any other flat place and we were just too exhausted to ride even further and we did not want to stay even higher up! The night was cold again. In addition, Judith’s six-year-old Exped-sleeping mattress is now broken too! It has opened a bladder at the dumbest moment! So it was not a restful sleep.

Fortunately, in the morning we are greeted by the warming sun and we cycle the last few meters up to the highest pass of our travels 3700m asl. The air is thinner, the grass drought and the firs smaller. The next valley is barren than the one before. Yaks, horses, goats and pigs graze in meager meadows. The villages look abandoned.

The state farmhouses are partially decayed and some are newly renovated. Our food supply is gone and our stomach growls. Once again there is no restaurant and in a shop there are only sweets and noodle soup. We cycle on and hope to find a restaurant. We stop just before Shangrila. We eat very fine, but it has never been so expensive! So surprised and shocked by this high price we can do nothing but pay and in the future be more careful and ask in advance.

In Shangrila the hotel search becomes an odyssey! Since we need a hotel for the extension of the visa with permission for foreigners. We rattle off all the hotels that would gladly accommodate us and suit us, but it always turned out that they can not register us because they do not have the permit. Finally, we find one, which is just more four times more expensive.

Total distance: 297.23 km
Max elevation: 3703 m
Min elevation: 1612 m
Total climbing: 6023 m
Total descent: -5056 m

China – Dali, way to Lijiang

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Spring is here!, Day 270-274

With the new, exciting audio book about China and its history, it climbs by itself the last pass and then down to our first destination, Dali. First we arrive in the big city Dali. Only 15 kilometers later is the touristy, but very beautiful old town. Before we meet our Warmshower host, we see the USA cyclists Guy and Kamilla, who have been on the road for two years now and will be cycling the same route as we do. We will definitely meet again on the way.


Heimat shows us the local market and the beautiful, but unfortunately very touristy old town of Dali. We enjoy having Continue reading “China – Dali, way to Lijiang” →

China – Kunming, way to Dali

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All seems Chinese to us!, Day 262-269

We land in the middle of the night in Kunming. Everything seems Chinese to us! Fortunately, we experience a great readiness for help of the Chinese here. We are even spontaneously invited by Chinese Anderson for dinner and introduced to the Chinese language. We are overwhelmed. Organizing the SIM card proves to be very difficult. Everywhere we are sent away again. The area where we stay, is very Muslim influenced and so we find our beloved dates at a shop in front of the mosque. The next day at lunch we meet the Pakistan students. They invite us to their home. We have exciting conversations with many good tips for helpful apps. In China, Google, Whatsapp and Facebook are blocked. Installing VPN’s proves to be very difficult, only ExpressVPN works really well. We enjoy the fine tea and the Pakistani dinner. With their help, it is a piece of cake at the university to get the SIM card. This big and warm hospitality touches us a lot! Even the taxi costs back to our hotel are paid!

Well packed in the warm cycling clothes, which we had to dig out of the deep of our bags, we cycle towards Dali. Unfortunately, this stage is not so nice, as it is a larger road with moderate traffic. We are all the more pleased to enjoy the first hotpot at noon. In the evening we find a great, cheap hotel in the small village. For dinner we are even presented with vegetables from the garden.

With these pleasant temperatures, we can take it slowly in the morning. The area is very nice now. First, the little-used road leads along a river. Then there are many terrace fields, which are planted with different vegetables and on which is worked efficiently by hand. It is also longer light until half past eight and so we camp with beautiful views and our flashlights come late into operation.

As far as Lucheng, we are struggling with headwinds, with dusty roads, with many trucks and with a six-lane road, luckily not too busy. The highlight of the day is the old town in Lucheng. In the evening, the strong wind and thunderclouds keep us from camping.

The next morning we drive finally again a nice pass with a pleasant climb. At lunchtime we stop at a small restaurant. We simply point to the dishes of the other guests. Mostly in the restaurants there are big refrigerators with a glass wall. Then we point to the vegetables we want to have and are then looking forward to what is served. As in Thailand, we have to say explicitly that we do not want MSG, sugar or soy sauce, because that’s the only way our stomaches do not rumble. The strong wind keeps us from tents this evening. We are looking for a hotel, which is not easy with the Chinese characters! But we managed to find one.

Total distance: 419.74 km
Max elevation: 2454 m
Min elevation: 1478 m
Total climbing: 4173 m
Total descent: -3900 m

Thailand 2

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Now we can breathe again and stow our breathing protection cloths at the bottom of the bags, because in Thailand it is noticeably less dusty. However, it means double concentration, because it is left traffic again and the Thais have the second most traffic accidents worldwide. The area is very nice! First, the little busy road with beautiful views over hills and then we enjoy a refreshing downhill. The lunch we make at a rest area with a little hut for us even with electricity! It is again stiflingly hot. Only at 15:30 clock we continue cycling. After shopping, we hike up the next climb, which proves to be extremely steep once more! Unfortunately we do not find a place to sleep as planned. So we fight to the very top. Only after sunset we arrive sweaty on the top. We find a nice place with a wonderful view, but we have to do without a shower.
We are exhausted! The last days and the stage in Laos were extremely tough! Fortunately, it is mostly downhill. We take it easy, have a coffee and in Bang Song Kwae we eat our beloved Pad Thai. Surprisingly, it is a hearty hamlet. When we discover a washing machine and the owner shows us her hostel, we take it with great pleasure! The owner of the hostel is also a teacher. It’s just the summer holidays. She likes to show us the school. Here English is an important subject. Several times she wishes that Judith comes to teach English at her school. Yes, who knows maybe later … In the evening, there is a party at the river. The music is extremely loud and unpleasant for our ears even with ear plugs!

We use the break to plan our trip to China more precisely. We realize that our 30-day visa is way too short! This is a big problem now. If we plan to travel from Laos to China as planned, then it will only take us two weeks to get to Dali into the region where we want to go. After only 23 days we would have to be in Shangri-La, where we could then extend the visa by 30 days. That’s just not enough time and as much stress as we had in Iran, we did not want to have it again. In travel reports from other travelers, we read that for the same reason, they did a 14-hour bus ride in a sleeper. We don’t feel like riding in a bus for such a long time, so we decide a little reluctantly for the variant aircraft. We are a bit frustrated and we feel other-directed! Once again we question whether we really want to travel to China or not. In the end, we decide to travel to China and book a flight from Chiang Mai to Kunming.
Ironically, after the second night in this hostel, Andi wakes up with red, itchy spots all over his body. He must have had nocturnal ant visit 🐜🐜🐜🐜🐜 The hostel owner drives us to the hospital, where Andi gets a soothing ointment. We continue cycling. The track is very nice, even if it is always peppered with very steep climbs. In the evening we cycle to the nearest pharmacy, as Andi’s ant bites are extremely itchy again! Once again we are allowed to spend the night in the open auditorium of the school.
The next morning, we buy vegetables and fruits from the market for the next two days. It goes up to the Pu Chi Fa and in this area we will only come to small villages. For the first time we drive past a mango plantation. The track is beautiful and the road is lonely. Only when the road turns into gravel and gets even more steep, that we have to push our steel horces in the midday heat 3/4 hours, we realise why the road is so lonely. After a lunch break with the most beautiful view we fight our last climbs to the nice, asphalted mountain trail. Now we have almost all vertical meters and with the most beautiful view we cycle to the village below the Pu Chi Fa. We camp at a campsite ⛺️, enjoy the beautiful sunset and look forward to the cooler temperatures.

The next morning we cycle up to Pu Chi Fa. Wow, this piece has it all again with these steep street! Despite asphalt, we have to push. Why build the Thai only such steep roads? Also on the downhill it has extremely steep sections in it, ski slopes are nothing in comparison! Luckily we did not come up from this direction!
We stay overnight in a cozy hostel after shopping at the Sunday market and cooking a fine dinner. The next morning, the last raindrops fall. There was heavy rain during the night. We make ourselves comfortable on the way on the nice flat road along the Mekong to Chang Kong. There we organize a bus to Chiang Mai and find a cheap accommodation. However, at night it pays off that sometimes it would be worthwhile paying a little more for an overnight stay … The mosquito net is so holey. that it does not help. It itches us all over and when we turn on the light, we see little animals crawling over the mattress. If we crush them, they leave a trail of blood. We pack our inner tent and put it next to the pool. After two hours, we wake up again, as it starts to rain. Since we only set up the inner tent, we have to move quickly under the roof. What a night! Fortunately, the next day we can just sit on the bus to Chiang Mai for 5.5 hours.

In Chiang Mai, we stay six days. At the Triplecat bike shop Andi can replace his Brooks saddle and Judith’s saddle gets for 100 baht (3.-Fri) a new leather cover. We also replace Judith’s tires and Andi’s rusty chain. The heat in Chiang Mai dampens our exploration. So we enjoy ourselves in the cool cafes and restaurants …
On April 3rd we say goodbye to Thailand and fly to Kunming. We are looking forward to the adventure China.

Conclusion: We have taken in northern Thailand one of the most beautiful routes. Unfortunately, at the end we saw much less than planned from northern Thailand, but we were somehow saturated by Thailand and it became unbearably hot. Thailand has changed a lot in the past years. The island KoLanta was a clear highlight of Thailand. Free camping in Thailand is extremely easy, as it is easy to camp in public places such as schools or border crossings. So Thailand would be the perfect cycling destination. But beware the Thais are tuning the cars, motorcycles, tuktuks and even trucks and thunder loudly over their perfectly paved roads. This can be extremely dangerous, as the traffic accident statistics show. In addition, the roads are extremely steep, which makes cycling not so attractive.

Laos

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One hour late, the night train arrives in Nong Khai. We take our bikes and head towards the border to Laos. Suddenly it crashes and Andi’s saddle is broken! Andi has no choice but to continue cycling. In Vientiane we stay overnight on the monks’ ground at Phat That Luang Park. In the morning, we will go to the China Consulate with carefully compiled documents. The documents are briefly studied and after a short nod, we will be sent back with the order to deposit US 64$ at a Chinese bank. In addition, we are assured that we can pick up the passports again on Monday. Wow, that was not five minutes and only half price than in Bangkok. We can not quite trust the thing yet and are prepared for everything. In the meantime, we cycle a tour to Vang Vieng, so we do not have to sit around for 4 days.
After cycling for 1 hour, Andi’s bottom hurts a lot, it does not seem to work with the broken saddle. What now? We try to get back to Vientiane by hitchhiking. Since it is already getting dark, we give up and decide to camp here. At the sleeping place, Judith finds a packaging material, which is perfect support for Andi’s saddle and with Eris adhesive tape we stick the cracked spot together again. So we try to continue our planned tour. For once, we are grateful to the Laotians for simply throwing the garbage on the roadside.

Early in the morning we are heading towards Naxay. At noon we enjoy our lunch break by the river at the village square. Of course, we are quickly surrounded by an interested group of children. The girls enjoy Judith and sing two simple international English children songs, that Judith can sing, too.
When it has cooled, we continue. The road gets bad to our surprise and Judith makes the painful experience after more than 9500 kilometers of pedaling, that braking with the front brake on gravel is taboo. Luckily, she comes away with a few bruises and small abrasions.
We are moving forward slowly and again and again we are dusted by passing trucks. Just before it darkens, we ask a truck driver for water, as washing the grazes has strained our supplies a bit. This evening, there is only a catlick 🐈.

A probos cat the next morning hangs on a stand at the roadside a wildcat, which is sold well immediately. Even the squirrels find buyers. Now we also know, why the Laotians are working with the shotgun in the fields. Hunting time is here year in year out.

We are lucky, that it rained during the night and therefore the road is not so dusty. Thus, the occasionally passing trucks are okay. A steep climb leads to a large reservoir and construction site. The hydropower is expanded here in large stems. At the market in Namngon we try to find out if there is a ferry, that will take us over the reservoir and save some altitude. Until the end we do not know if there is the ferry to Laksaosy and drive the 20km gravel road down to the lake. We breathe, when we reach the jetty and do not have to go back, even if the next ferry leaves again the next day. (They drive only once a day and only in one direction!) We like the place at the jetty and have no problem to stay over night.

The crossing takes almost three hours. In the evening we arrive in Vang Vieng. We try to rent a motorcycle, to get our passports and the China Visa in Vientiane. However, without passes, no one gives us a motorcycle 🙁 Thus, we are at 6:00 o’clock the next morning on the road and stop a minivan, which brings us in 3.5 hours on a bumpy and winding road to Vientiane. The same route we take back in the afternoon in only 3 hours. Exhausted and happy with our China Visa in hand, we enjoy the beautiful. but very touristy town of Vang Vieng. So, we managed to get the China Visa, on caravanistan.com we read about some failures in various countries.
No photos

The next day we continue to Luang Prabang. After only a few kilometers we are surprised by a strong rain shower. Luckily we can stand in time. After 15 minutes it is over again and we continue cycling with an improvised mudguard on Judith’s bike. Thanks again to the Laotians for decorating all their streets with plastic. The landscape with the rocks is very beautiful. At Kasi we decide to drive the new road Route 4, which is less traveled because of the steep road and should have a better view. Wow, yes the pass has it! It is extremely steep! 😅 But it was worth to take this road. On the pass we treat ourselves to a fresh coconut 🥥 and look forward to the racy descent.

When dimming, we find a nice place to sleep in a terrace rice field. Suddenly a buffalo herd stomps out. The bull comes towards us with its big horns. We are not feeling well anymore and we are retreating. After a while, they are no longer interested in us and move on again😅 and we can go back to our bikes and campground. A little later, the cattle-keeper comes with his three boys equipped with flashlights and baskets. They show us, how they collect frogs. Frog legs are probably also such a legacy, from the French colonial era, as the baguette, which is found here on many places.

The next day at sunset, we arrive in Luang Prabang. We spend only one night in Luang Prapang and the next morning we go with the food filled bags on the adventurous stage to Hongsa. Adventurous because it is a very sparsely populated area and we do not know exactly the condition of the road.
On the Openstreetmap it is marked as unpaved. With the ferry it goes over the Mekong.

At the beginning the road is well paved. However, soon we drive on gravel. It is built diligently. Again and again we are fogged by passing trucks. The people in the villages and small settlements are very poor. The population is very young. We do not see a lot of old people. Rather, we see many pregnant and breastfeeding women and many children. These usually wave to us joyfully and laughing. Once again, communication is extremely difficult. Since a longer distance of 75 kilometers without village comes with many vertical meters, we want to fill up our drinking water at the last village. However, there is no shop in this village Nalai. The locals show us the village well, where we fill up our water supply, and we can wash ourselves. Judith is a bit sick the whole afternoon, as the soup was probably not fresh at breakfast in the hostel. So, after the shower, she had to vomit on the village square. This, of course, everything under the strict observation of the locals. The dogs quarreled over the vomit and thus the mishap was eliminated as well😂 Just after the village we see a nice sleeping place on the other side of the river.

The next day we fight bravely up the steep climbs and over the bumpy track. On top of a pass we stop. To Andi’s great joy promptly an ice cream-seller passes. 😋 In spite of 4 hours of pedaling we only get 25 kilometers on this day. The next morning it goes down for the majority and partly on super finished, new asphalt. This road connecting Chiang Mai and Luang Prabang is a dramatic project into the landscape. By felling the trees, it is now very barren. Today we are on the road for 8 months. The slope has it all. We are moving forward slowly. It is a big construction site. We have to cross rivers, be fogged by the truck’s dust, and Andi falls down a steep, dusty ramp. Luckily there is a waterfall just beside the road and Andi can wash off the dirt. Shortly after Hongsa it goes back to the Thai border. For Laos we got a free 15 days visa, which unfortunately is over.

Conclusion: Laos is a very poor, but also young country. The people are extremely friendly and you are always greeted with a laughing “Sabadii” (hello). The roads and infrastructure are a lot worse than in Thailand. This is particularly reflected by the schools and education. For simple bills, such as 1/4 of the kilo price, it requires special support from Judith. Touring Laos by bike is a lot more adventurous and we liked it a lot better than Thailand. We can highly recommend Laos. Tourism is bound to increase as the country is booming and the support of China, his big brother, is visible everywhere. We would have liked to see more of Laos, but unfortunately we had to skip the planned second visit.

Thailand 1

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Early in the morning we land in Krabi. Our bicycles are already waiting for us. Air Asia convinced us very much, very uncomplicated handling of the bikes. We build them together and cycle to Koh Lanta, where Andi’s godmother is waiting for us. In the Funky Fish Bungalow we are warmly welcomed by Eri. The next day we visit the dental hygienist. We enjoy the fine and varied Thai food here. Already at night Judith feels feverish. She has probably caught a cold flu on the plane. After three days, Judith is fortunately well again, but she still needs a few days until she is fit enough for cycling again. Finally after 8 days we are back on the road again.

By boat it goes to Krabi and from there in the direction of Ao Nang. The way there is very nice with these exciting rocks. Ao Nang, on the other hand, is extremely touristy, so we go straight on. Fortunately, the track is very shady and has little traffic. When it dawns, we ask at a shop, if we are allowed to camp here. To our pleasure they allow us. As it gets very hot around noon, we set the alarm clock at 5:15 am, pack up our extremely wet tent, have breakfast and cycle already with the first daylight. It is very green again. Our way leads through palm oil, rubber tree and banana plantations. The highlight of this route is a gravel road through the jungle. We’ll make a long lunch break in the shade. Shortly before Kao Sok we are allowed to camp at a football pitch. The dimming of the headlight system is left to us. The next morning, as we feel our bags in the dark, we frighten back. Our arms and legs are burning and we quickly realize that we slept on an anthill. 😳 We quickly pack our things and free our ants 🐜 🐜🐜🐜 infested bags. After a whole hour, we managed to get rid of those nasty little animals. In Kao Sok we recover in a coffee from this morning exertion! Even after a shower, we always have the feeling of being attacked by biting ants. At 15:00 o’clock we continue on a small pass and look forward to the airy descent. How beautiful passes are! 😀 Before it darkens, we find a place to sleep under the palm trees.

The alarm rings again early in the morning and once again we pack the tent totally wet from the high humidity at night. The landscape does not change so fast here. There are many monocultures. The first time we see a Cashnewnuts tree.

In the evening we can camp at a school. What a luxury it is to camp with light and electricity. Well rested, it will go to Ranong the next day.
In the heat of the day we arrive exhausted in Ranong. Since we like this town, we are looking for a cheap accommodation and stroll in the evening through the evening market.

We cycle along the border to Myamar. Another night we stay at a school. We are very grateful that the Thais are so uncomplicated! 🙏 This evening, we are presented by two families with bananas. We can not refuse this gift and will not have to buy bananas in the next few days😀. When Andi wants to lock his bike, he notices that the rear wheel is touching the frame. As we observe the tire closer, we notice that a spoke is broken. We remember that the backpack ribbon came into the wheel. This must have been the cause. Luckily we have light and the spoke is replaced quickly.
No photos

On the way towards Chumpon we meet the German cyclist Stefan. We try to help him fix the tent poles of his MSR tent. We wanted to buy a MSR tent in Bangkok, because the zippers of our tent are broken. Mhm, we think this over again 🤔 A little further than Chumpon we find a very nice place to sleep right on the sea. We enjoy our breakfast with a beautiful sunrise. The road here is very busy and we meet Thai cyclist on race bikes from time to time. At lunchtime, we stop by a coffee and ask for a fresh coconut. Unfortunately, they do not have one, but they organize some and give it to us for free!😀🙏

The landscape here is very much influenced by the palm oil plantations. Luckily we come back to the sea in the evening and behind a school directly on the beach, we camp once more at a beautiful place👍😀 The breakfast tastes great with such a beautiful sunrise. We pedal the last few kilometers to Bang Saphan Noi, where we want to take the train. Once there, we learn that we can take the night train and the bikes we can easily take for 100 baht (3-Fr) with us. Thus, we explore the town and meet many Swiss and Germans, who spend the winter here. We quickly realize that this place has some nice coffees and good restaurants to offer. In the night train, it is cooled down a lot. Luckily we have a warm sleeping bag. When we arrive in Bangkok in the morning, it rains. Since it is Friday and we can get our Chinavisa only on Monday, we are looking for a cheap accommodation. Which is not so easy!
We use the time in Bangkok to do some shopping and repair our tent. The two zippers at the entrances replaces Judith patiently by hand.

On Monday we go to the China Application Center. After a long queue our visa application and hotel bookings are not enough. They still wanted to see our plane tickets, although we try to explain to them that we are cycling. We also have to write a confirmation, that we finance the trip ourselves. We quickly realized that the cross at “unemployed” they do not like. They also want to see a bank statement. Without further ado they send us away and we have a lot to do! This means, we book a flight in a travel agency, we recreate the visa application with the cross at “employed” and put us on Tuesday again in the queue, this time with an express request. We are more successful, but we still need to explain, why our Thailand visa expires. We leave the visa center with good cheer and hope for a successful issuance in two days. On Wednesday we are asked to send an email with a statement to the Visa Application Center, explaining why we traveled to Turkey and Iran. On Friday, 4 days later, we are unfortunately informed that the China Visa, despite Express request now takes 1 month. We can not wait that long! So we try to extend our Thailand-Visa, we cycle to the other end of the city (25km). However, the immigration office closes at 15:00 as expected at 16:30 …. not our lucky day! 😢

After an intensive planning weekend, we try to proceed with one of our plans and apply for an exchange pass at the Swiss embassy. Unfortunately, this does not work, because the Swiss law does not allow to travel with two passports. The problem is, that the place of exchange must be in Switzerland, not at the traveler abroad. This in turn makes a second passport for cycling unusable, because you have to have both passports when crossing the border, as the exit stamp in one pass and the visa for the next country in the other pass. Brilliantly, this would be so you could send the unused passport on a journey after traveling through the border, to obtain a visa in your home country, as this is often much easier, you get longer visas and avoid tedious waiting times at consulates. By the way, this is possible for the Germans and Austrians!!

Since this plan did not work out, we organize the night train to Nong Khai, to cycle from there to Vientiane in Laos. So we hit two birds with one stone, because we do not have to extend the Thaivisa and we apply here again for the Chinese visa. According to our research, this should be easier there.

Sri Lanka

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In the middle of the night we arrive at the airport in Negombo. Our Airbnb host organized a tuk tuk for us. To our surprise, both of our bicycles fit in perfectly. After a short night we build our bikes together and make our way to the kitespot in Kalpitiya.

The heat and the high humidity almost kills us. It starts to rain in Chilaw about half way to Kalpitiya. The first rain since a long time. In a bakery shop we find a dry place. Here we discover the delicious Rotis. Unlike in India, these are wrapped peta breads available with different fillings, vegetables, meat, fish or egg. In Chilaw we find the first supermarket since a long time. We ask around for a reasonable accommodation, which we find after a long zic zac ride. Early the next morning we drive the last piece to Kalpitiya. The expensive prices here for food, lodging and kite hire hit us hard. After much back and forth we decide to stay and find a acceptable accommodation in Kalpitiya. The lagoon has several kite resorts. We settle at Srilankakite Resort, where it is possible to launch directly from their bungalows. All other resorts must take a shuttle bus to the other side of the lagoon. In addition, the owner Fabio of Srilankakite is a Swiss Romand, who has discovered the lagoon first. He’s a multiple snowkite champion and the best kite dude on the lagoon! So we are in good hands. On Sunday we start kiting. The first day Judith takes a refresher course with instructor Erwin. On Monday she already manages to stay upwind. She is still coached by Steffen. So Andi can concentrate on his jumping progress. Even without coach Judith is in best hands. The beach boys always keep an eye on here. We also enjoy the benefits of renting the equipment so after a drink at the bar we do not have to look after our kites as they have already been packed away by the beachboys in the meantime👍

Kiting is even more exhausting then cycling. So we take a dolphin boat trip as a rest day and enjoy that the wind picks up only around noon and we can sleep in. In addition, we have yet found a cheap and beautiful place near Srilankakite in the Kite Life Resort. With our bikes we are very mobile and cycle the bumpy road to Kalpitiya for shopping.

Together with the two Austrians Lisa and her mother Elisabeth we make a sightseeingtour to Ella. By taxi it goes to Kandy. Kandy is teeming with tourists, who want to catch the 11am train. After a six-hour train ride we arrive in Ella. The train ride in and of itself is a huge experience. We enjoy the train surfing at the door and have the best view of the green, hilly and very fertile landscape. Tea plantations, fir forest, terrace gardens and rainforest alternate, while the train slowly climbs up to 1900m ASL. The railway was built in 1858 by the British.

In Ella, a very touristy village, we stay overnight. Because of the bad weather Lisa and Elisabeth go south for whale watching. We defy the rain and stay with our plan. In the afternoon we use a dry window and walk to Little Adams Peak. That was really nice. The next morning we travel by train to Haputale, where we make another hike through the tea plantations. It is very nice, even if the view is missing because of the fog. Since the train ride is too slow, we go by tuk tuk directly to Nuwara Eliya, where we then change to the bus to Kandy. We long for our bikes, because we feel that we do not really see much of the area while traveling by bus. In addition, we are tired of long sitting. The next morning is again extremely exhausting, because we travel with the public buses back to Kalpitiya. The ride on the honking buses is exciting, but extremely long. I took us the same amount of time as traveling by bike!

We have two more kiting days with best wind conditions. Judith can now ride upwind and the first few turns succeed her.

At sunrise, we cycle back to the airport on Sunday the 4th of February. It is the national holiday of Srilanka. Everywhere we see the national flags blowing. At noon we find a fisherman’s hut on the beach. The fisherman Fernando asks about our names, religion and leaves the fishing to Andi. Unfortunately, the big catch is missing. Religion is very important here. Fernando proudly shows us his cross. Although Srilanka has 70% Buddhists, we mostly meet Muslims and Christians. Because Kalpitiya is 70% Muslim. There are women, who even wear gloves and facial veils, that cover the whole face. Religion is very present. Whether the Catholic taxi driver, the Islamic tuk tuk driver or the Hindu bus driver all pray for a good trip and do not hesitate to stop and pray at the roadside near a mosque or a statue and let the guests wait.

Conclusion: We had a great time in Kalpitiya with kiting and an exciting break from cycling. The lagoon is really great and very windproof. Unfortunately the whole area is extremely overpriced. The competition and the jealousy between the resorts is extreme! Srilankakite even had a fire two years ago. Unfortunately we did not see much of the island except our short sightseeing tour to Ella. But we are convinced that Srilanka is a great country to travel by bike. The infrastructure seems to be better than in India. In the bigger places there are good shopping possibilities. Srilanka is a very popular tourist destination. That’s why it’s hard to find budget accommodation. Mostly we did not find the price-performance ratio well adjusted. We found this tiring, since Andi no longer had a sleeping mat, so we were dependent on the hostels. Culinary we especially liked the Rotis, which are partly extremely spicy. The Hoppers became our favorite snack: in small pans, a kind of rice omelette is prepared and if you wish you can have it with a fried egg in it. This was the only thing, that was not too hot! The Sri Lankans love it extremely spicy and sweet. We always had to be careful not to get extra sugar in our fruit juices. Also getting an unsweetened coffee with milk was usually an impossibility, as they use sweetened condensed milk.

Indien

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Confused, incredible India and with that most is already said😂 In the Lonely Planet we read that even experienced travellers reach their limits. Reading this calmed us a lot. After some Indian experienced travellers advised us not to travel by bicycle in India, we were suddenly unsure whether the bicycle is the right means of transport for India. Finally we decided to take the bikes with us to Bangalore.

In Bangalore we were warmly welcomed by our Warmshower.org Lena and Nikhil. Lena is German and has been living in India for 5 years and now together with her Indian husband Nikhil. She is an ambitious cyclist and successfully participates in the booming cycling races in South India. Nikhil has a bike shop. Finally they encourage us to travel India by bike, because the small streets are really good and usually very quiet. Their enthusiasm grabs us and we are looking forward to cycling again. But first we disassemble our lowrider, our heavy double stand and Nikhil helps us to change our hydraulic brakes to a well tried and tested mechanical brakes. Nikhil and Lena introduce us to the delicious Indian food. We try the Dosas “A kind of omelette with rise”, which is filled differently, Roti “flatbread” with the most varied Masalas “spicy vegetables or meat dishes”.
After almost a full week in Bangalore, we weave our way through the chaotic traffic of the city towards Goa.

It is jostled, honked, overtaken and suddenly a cow has to be dodged. It becomes fun as the barrier at the railroad crossing is down. It is being pulled out of the lane and opened up the whole width of the road to the barrier, for us arriving a little later, it looks like a one-way street. Only when the barrier goes back up and the oncoming traffic tries to get through on its lane we realise the chaos.

As soon as we are outside the city on small streets, we are almost alone. To our great surprise already in the first village nobody understands English even though it is the official language! “Country?” and “Selfie” are usually the only words that they master.
To make matters worse, the language almost changes from village to village. Once they speak Hindi, then Kannada and Telugu 😳 When someone speaks English, it is very difficult for us to understand them, as they usually speak very fast and it still sounds very Indian. Also the pronunciation and emphasis is extremely important. They do not understand our beloved “curd” yogurt until we write it down. And that’s not all! To further confusion and hinder the communication comes the head wobbling😂 If we stop in a village we are immediately surrounded by a huge crowd of people, mostly men. If we ask them, for example, where we can buy bananas, then nobody knows anything. They look at each other, start discussing with each other, and wag their heads. We rarely get an answer and we have to look for ourselves. We and our bikes are gazed in amazement. The gear shift is always an issue as well as our gas bottles. We are often asked for the cylinder. Some even say that it needs this for the gearshift.
The landscape and the super lonely and beautiful streets we like a lot! All the reports we have read that India is not optimal and too dangerous to travel by bike, we can not confirm at all! We have to say that, on the contrary, we feel that India is the best cycle country for us in terms of landscape and lonely and small roads so far!

For our first lunch break we stop in a small village. Since we assumed that we will always find shopping opportunities, we have packed no supplies. Now it turns out that there are usually no shops in the small villages or just kiosk-like. So we ask for a coffee, which is specially prepared for us. In India you get very good coffee, mostly with milk in a very small cup. More and more people from the village come to admire us. Then the son of the teacher is called, who invites us to his home. The teacher speaks some English to our pleasure.
He proudly shows his bathroom, which has a kind of bathtub with cold water, and in a kind of clay oven it has warm water. The toilet is in a separate building and is shared with the neighbourhood. Everything is very clean. After the refreshment, homemade chapatis with rice, curd and vegetables is served. It tastes delicious, but it’s a bit unusual for us to eat with our hands for the first time and to have the entire neighbourhood as a spectator. “After the meal, even a good Nikon camera is taken for the photos. The teacher wonders that Judith does not wear jewellery and proudly points to his wife, who is full of jewellery. Finally, a red dot is put on Judith’s forehead and her cheeks are brushed with yellow powder. This little blessing ritual is repeated by three women. Strengthened and touched by this warmth we say goodbye and cycle to the Hindu temple recommended to us.

Already as it darkens, we arrive in Madhugiri, where we find a good, cheap accommodation “Lodge”. In Indian style we start the next day with a Dosa and drive through the beautiful landscape. At noon we are again invited by a teacher for lunch. He later takes us to his school. It is a public school and a girls class with 150 students greets us screaming, we feel almost like pop stars and Judith even has to sing with the girls. On the way we stop at a family, which is busy with the peanut harvest. They are happy for our interest and give us some peanuts. Since they can not see how awkward we open them, two women skillfully peel the peanuts in no time for us.

As it dawns, there is a real migration of people from the fields to the villages. Women, men, children, goats and cows go home. In the fields peace comes. We see this as a perfect opportunity to camp free, which according to the reports we read in India is not possible. Without anyone having discovered us, we manage to set up our tent. To be on the safe side, we hang our food bag on a tree to keep nocturnal visitors away from the tent. In this mountainous and rocky area there should be bears and monkeys.
Early in the morning we pack our things, after we were discovered by an Indian.

Arrived in Hampi, we cycle through the temple ruins and admire especially the beautiful rocky landscape with the banana plantations and rice fields. Before we cross the river by boat, Judith buys some bananas. As soon as she holds them in the plastic bag, she is surprised by a cheeky monkey, who swiftly scurries away with two bananas! 😳 When Andi buys again some bananas, the saleswoman has to protect us from the monkey with a stick until the bananas can be stowed safely in the panniers. On the beautiful island there is one hostel after another. Only here in this area may the tourists be accommodated. We find a nice spot in “the Goan Garden”. We get to know many backpackers and many climbers who come to Hampi for bouldering. Again and again, we and our trip are given great interest. We enjoy the fresh shakes, the fine food and the romantic sunsets on the rocks. We are not the only ones who enjoy the beautiful views about the rice fields and palm trees from the rocks.
The next morning, we eagerly await the five-member Canadian family. The meeting was organised by our next Warmshower.org host. Wow, the family has been traveling for four months on their one-year trip. The three boys (13, 15 and 16 years old) are very independent and dutiful. Although they were allowed to take a one-year break from school, they voluntarily follow an online school course. The two parents Rick and Tanya are very keen to travel and are very travel experienced. As a family, it is already the second longer trip by bike. When the boys were 4, 6 and 7 years old, they cycled through the USA. There is no end to our astonishment. This encounter with this family was very inspiring for us.

Although Andi would have liked to stay longer in Hampi, we continue our journey to Hubbali after three relaxing days to our next Warmshower host Vivitt . Large corn fields, sunflower fields, chilli and cotton plantations characterise the landscape through which we cycle. After a long day of cycling we finally find a suitable place to sleep next to the Goverment Guesthouse.When we are already asleep, the owner comes back and calls us until we are both awake again. What he wanted exactly, we never found out. However he seemed very disappointed, when we refused to get up again. The next day Judith feels sick after breakfast. At noon with help of some coconut milk she can vomit and feels a little better. We are looking for an accommodation, because Judith desperately needs a rest. At night she gets fever and diarrhea. Despite our caution, she must have picked up something. The fact that Judith can not continue cycling soon becomes clear and we do not leave until the next day. In the evening there is a knock on the door. The owner of the guesthouse asks if we want to eat something. Andi orders chicken with Roti for 8:00 pm, which the owner confirms with a shake of his head. At 8:30 nobody nows anything about this order maybe they just wanted to know what we strangers usually eat when they nocked at our door and we discussed the food.

Fortunately, Judith is better again and luckily it is not far to Hubballi. In Hubballi we discover a decathlon shop, where we happily buy some things. We are warmly welcomed by Vivitt’s mother and grandmother. Vivitt comes home from work after 9pm. At dinner, for the first time, we get clear instructions on how to eat with our fingers. There are very strict rules and this must be practiced! The rice is formed into a small ball in the plate, loaded on three fingers and then pushed with the thumb into the mouth. No wonder it was amusing for the Indians to watch us eating, when we lost some of the rice or Andi held his head back and let the rice fall from the top of his mouth 😂 With a heavy heart, we say goodbye the next morning to our new Friends, because Christmas approaches and we want to be in Goa by then. It’s unbelievable how fast we put the Warmshower hosts in our hearts.

The next three days are very tough for Judith. She is still weak. Our route leads us through the jungle and we camp for the first time there. Luckily we see the tiger only on the posters on the roadside however we see a hand-sized spider and monkeys. On the second day we descend on a winding, busy and steep road many meters down to sea level. On Christmas day we drive the last kilometers to Goa. Happy, but very exhausted, we check into an Airbnb hotel, where we will stay until 1 January.

We and our legs finally need a break. Traveling in India is extremely exhausting! We rent a scooter and explore the various restaurants and beaches. Unfortunately, the New Year’s Eve party in the well-known Hilltop with the world’s best Goa DJs is fully booked and the tickets, which each cost 75 swiss francs, are then too expensive. Especially on New Year’s Eve the power supply often goes out. Power failure is part of everyday life in India.

On the 2nd of January we are back on the bike and are cycling along the sea, is a lot of fun. In Agonda we make another rest day. Amazingly, and to our disappointment, the infrastructure and restaurants are very poor outside the tourist areas. The traffic and especially the buses with the extremely loud horns depressed our mood. Luckily, just before Gokarna, we find a sensational campground just at the beach. On Judith’s birthday we cycle to the well-known OM-Beach. A steep path over a pass leads us to this bay, which is finally accessible by a steep and long staircase. Since nobody wanted to take care of our bikes, we decided to omit these tourist restaurants and drive on. Too bad that we have received so little support. Tourism can break many things. A small ferry takes us across a river to Nirvana Beach. We are aiming for a campsite, but they demand more than ever before. Tired we drive on an extremely busy road and find a little overpriced hostel, but Andi manages to push the price. Such experiences to fight for prices and to realise that so much more money is demanded from tourists is very tiring. Andi’s stomach is also rumbling and we have to say that this time Andi has picked up something. We discuss a lot about the onward journey and going for kite surfing in Sri Lanka which was a topic since our start. The next morning we decide to book the flight from Goa to Colombo. So that means to cycle all the way back again. We are looking forward to the return journey as we know in advance exactly where we will eat and spend the night. The thirst for adventure is a bit flattened. A sign that we need a break from being on the road. At the beautiful campground near Gokarna, Andi is curing his gastrointestinal upset. And again, Andis Expedmatte breaks down. Fortunately, he still has warranty and Exped sends him without hesitation a new mat to Thailand where we will be in February. At the airport in Goa, we show the Indians how we can package our bicycles and how they fit so easily into the small propeller plane. In the middle of the night we arrive in Sri Lanka.

Conclusion:
India is a very exciting country and the part we saw is perfect to travel by bike. The Indian cuisine tastes great, but unfortunately it is not found in the small villages.
It is often said that one either loves or hates India. We can not really say both. We just did not get so warm with the Indians. We had extremely nice and warm encounters, but unfortunately very rare. It certainly also had something to do with our constitution, that we were tired and both were once ill. We were very disgusted by some Indians. It is spat when it is just right for the man. Next, the loud, deafening horn of the trucks and buses extremely annoyed us.
Kerala has to be very beautiful and we would still like to cycle there one day. But the decision to fly to Sri Lanka was the right decision for this moment😀

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