Globetrotting Kiwis, Christine and Malcolm Clark are a little over
18 months and 8,759 miles into their epic cycling journey, from
England to New Zealand. Their trip is entirely self-funded and they
are also helping to raise money for the Gray Cancer Institute, a UK
based cancer research organization.
Our route took us across France where we received much
encouragement from the French, hyped up by the recent Tour de
France. Picking up the Danube cycle path, we crossed Germany,
Austria, Slovakia and Hungary before leaving the river in Budapest.
Romania gave us a warm welcome and throughout our stay we received
honest hospitality and friendliness. This was in stark contrast to
the warnings we had received before entering the country. Bulgaria
was a totally different place to our experiences 13 years
previously. The two weeks there provided the opportunity to meet
many people and again be on the receiving end of much generosity.
As we made our way through the city walls and down into the
backpacker settlement of Sultanahmet, Istanbul, the strains of
Crowded House blended in with the calls to prayer and the clink of
a cold bottle of beer contrasted with scarf clad ladies scuttling
along buying vegetables. The East of Turkey again showed wonderful
hospitality but also large packs of marauding dogs. These caused
many anxious moments but the Dog Dazer, an electronic device, saved
us from any serious maulings. It was with great trepidation that we
entered Iran and, for Christine, a whole new way of dressing. With
preconceptions of fundamentalism and chador clad women in our minds
we found instead a country struggling with its identity: desperate
to become more developed with a loathing of America idealism but
still coveting the American icons and materialism. However, the
people were welcoming and friendly, the hotels clean and the food
tasty and hygienic. The dual pricing system of all hotels and
tourist attractions was wearying but did not detract from the
stunning natural beauty of the country.
It was a great co-incidence to cross into Pakistan on the same day
of the first cricket test between Pakistan and New Zealand. There
was more ribbing about the test results than any concerns about
border formalities. The ride across the Great Sandy Desert of
Baluchistan was stunning, isolated and contrary to what most guide
books say about the area – safe. With the right frame of mind and
appropriate dress code Pakistan is a truly enthralling destination.
A detour up the Karakoram Highway to the market town of Kashgar,
China turned out to be more complicated than we expected. The
events of the 11/09 closed the borders back to Pakistan and we set
off across Western Tibet towards the Nepalese border. Crossing
passes of over 4,500 metres with temperatures often below freezing,
it was the most challenging cycling we had ever done. Nepal however
welcomed us with friendly faces and calls of 'Namaste' rang
in our ears and we braved the rickshaws and tuk tuks of Thamel to
find our hotel. We are watching the events in India and Pakistan
carefully before we head down onto the plains.
We are now using our journey to help raise money for a UK based
cancer research organisation, the Gray Cancer Institute. For more
details please see our website www.kiwisonbikes.net brought to
you with the tireless efforts of Guildford based Mike Fisher.
Wow! The Beetle is truly humbled – this is so inspiring! If you
would like to contact the Kiwis on Bikes, visit their web site:
http://www.kiwisonbikes.net