Author Topic: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad  (Read 40468 times)

richie thornger

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #60 on: April 30, 2013, 06:14:30 pm »
In case anybody else is in the Middle East wanting to watch the cycling .....
MIDDLE EAST and AFRICA
Several interested countries can be found. Al Jazeera will broadcast live and we have renewed the contract with Super Sport for live broadcast on pay TV channels in the sub-Saharan area; it was decided to interrupt live broadcast after the big victory of Gerald Ciolek of the MTN-QHUBEKA team at the last epic edition of Milano – Sanremo. Super Sport also screens Moto GP in the area.
from the Giro website
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Donnydid

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #61 on: April 30, 2013, 06:17:34 pm »
Hi Richie

Thanks for your description of your trip and useful tips, lots of good info for me as I will be
travelling across Iran and the 'Stans towards China.
I have a long list of items to take with me and I am trying to work out which ones that I
could really do without!

I plan to visit the Map Shop (Stanfords) in Covent Gardens before I set off on my trip so
I am interested in which maps you are using and whether it is also handy to have a local
printed map to use side by side.

Enjoy your trip and stay safe.

Cheers
Dave

richie thornger

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #62 on: April 30, 2013, 06:31:54 pm »
Hi Dave,
I'm considering going that way myself once i get back to Iran. I haven't decided yet.
I don't think you'll get a better map printed in Iran than say the Givi one.
The other points being the names will be written in latin script so at least you can have a go at asking for the names of places. An Iranian one will be in arabic script but you can at least show it to someone.

When are you thinking of being in Iran??

The decision on what to take and what not can first be whittled down a lot by practice trips at home. It makes such a difference. Then I would leave out anything that can be bought at a regular supermarket/ chemists. Clothing is an interesting one. Apart from footwear I've been able to find everything I could need at second hand markets if not brand new. Something I was surprised by. If I left all my technology behind it would save me 10kg. An iphone does everything. But a laptop is fantastic..oh a camera..a kindle..oops.
I'm still struggling with that.
Everyone has a different idea of whats important.
What things are you having problems with deciding on?
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JimK

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #63 on: April 30, 2013, 07:24:31 pm »
I really like the whole way of thinking that most supplies can be acquired locally. My big idea for maintaining a journal is to buy paper and envelopes locally and mail letters home to be accumulated there.

The Gizi map of Xinjiang is fun - the big town names are printed in three scripts, Latin Chinese and Arabic.

I was in Kyoto Japan once for a few days. One restaurant had models of the various dishes on display out in front, but the lettering was all Japanese. So I spent a few minutes copying onto my little notepad the name of the dish I had picked. I went in a sat down. The waitress asked me what I wanted (I presume!) and I just pulled out my notepad. She was pretty surprised but happy to oblige and I got the dish I wanted, as tasty as I'd hoped.

Same trip, I saw in a guidebook mention of a restaurant that looked fun. I found the right intersection... maybe, anyway. But where is the restaurant? The book just had the name in Latin letters but no Latin letters to be seen on the street! I saw a likely candidate on the second floor across the street. I sat there for maybe ten minutes with the table of Japanese letters, trying to decode the sign. Yup, the right place! They were playing some Eric Dolphy inside which sure made me feel at home!

I should think that place-names on a map in the local lettering would make road signs a lot easier to read! In Kyoto only the very biggest intersections had any road signs in Latin letters. Up in Gilgit, are there Latin letters on road signs?


 

richie thornger

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #64 on: May 01, 2013, 04:43:36 am »
Jim, I like your thinking ;)

On sourcing things locally:
It's nice of course to have your comforts with you. But if you are on a long trip these will run out at some time, so why not save the hassle and weight and start on the local bits straight away. Yeah, they might not have your favourite moisturizer or cotton buds but............
Pakistan is the best combination of cultures I've come across so far. *(excepting that All strict Muslim countries have of course a very different Male/Female role and it's far too complicated to try and get under the skin of in a post here)
On the one hand it's very very different to what I'm used to at home. The scenery, the people, the way of life, the weather etc etc. But unlike some other places with all this to offer there is such a high proportion of English speakers and not just the young educated people. Because of the British rule, lots of older people who have been in the army or  fathers were in the army speak English as well. This is particularly nice when you are in an out of the way place having a cup of tea in some tiny little chai house. You can get to have a decent conversation and understand the place a lot better. That said if you're not lucky enough to find an English speaker, people will speak 2 different languages depending on what side of the river or mountain they live on, particularly up here in the Northern Areas. So learning the lingo is quite hard.
My two favourite phrases to learn when I enter a new place are "Problem" and "No Problem" you can get most basic stuff sorted with these 2 phrases :)
ALL Road signs I've come across so far are in English. None in any other language. To add to this the country has a staggeringly high illiteracy rate. It all makes for a great adventure.
Something else I'm not sure I've mentioned here is that Pakistan is like Turkey,Kurdistan & Iran. Extremely helpful and friendly to the tourist off the beaten path. If you could survive off tea alone you would never need money as long as you where here. In fact I know someone who managed quite well. See this mans blog www.earthianblog.wordpress.com
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Donnydid

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #65 on: May 02, 2013, 09:02:10 pm »
Hi Ritchie

I plan to set off on my journey next March 2014, and what clothing to take has been
puzzling me. If the weather in Europe is going to be the same next year then warm
clothing will be the order of the day, I guess as I move East and the weather warms
up I could post back what I dont need. But then I may need the warmer clothing
when tackling the Pamir Highway, but I hope to get over it before winter begins.
Its my intention to have a few weekends away testing my equipment and getting
used to my Nomad before my trip starts next year.

I guess I would be lost without the netbook, kindle and camera.
Are you taking any video of your trip?
Are you using your camera or do you have a video cam?
I would love to take some video of my trip although not sure whether to invest in a
purpose made video cam or use the camera?
Does anyone else use a video cam such as the Go Hero or can recommend a vid cam
that would do the job?

Cheers
Dave

Danneaux

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #66 on: May 02, 2013, 09:08:30 pm »
Hi Dave!

With regards to a GoPro/vidcam, I will be posting an update here in coming weeks: http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=4117.0

Best,

Dan.
« Last Edit: May 03, 2013, 06:27:45 am by Danneaux »

Donnydid

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #67 on: May 03, 2013, 05:31:22 pm »
Hi Dan

Thanks for the link, it makes interesting reading and I'am looking forward to your future posting.

Cheers
Dave

lovefo#

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #68 on: May 18, 2013, 11:05:30 am »
Hi Richie. Im going to follow your blog as I plan to leave Dublin on a Sherpa soon. Im hoping to cross Iran Pakistan India Myanmar so I will be interested in how you get on. Did you go to Balochistan in the end and was it truly "lawless"?
Here is my blog: http://loveforourworld.wordpress.com/

richie thornger

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #69 on: June 18, 2013, 06:46:31 am »
Hello All, sorry for late replies, been finding my spiritual side with the Dalai Lama up in the Mcleod Ganj in the Himalayas.

I've got a Drift HD camera, which is fantastic, it has a remote control which you can wear on your wrist but the camera has to be on for it to work. So battery runs down. You defo need a HD battery which can be got off ebay for a few quid. not drift though theirs are about 30 i think.
It can also be set to take time delay burst photos which can be good. set to different intervals. I hope that helps. Amy more questions just ask.

Pakistan: I didn't ride my bike in Pakistan and I didnt go south of Lahore. Two czech girls got kidnapped from a bus down there at th same time i was ther but I dont know the details. I met a guy who is going to ride some camels through that part of the world so i will post a link to his fb page.

On the whole the government tries to stop you or escort you when you are in the dangerous places.

and I thought I would put the reply to the Stolen Thorn bike I thought I saw here as well:

apologies for the appalling spelling before, even worse than usual i mean ;)

So after posting the boy rode past me again and I said I wanted to buy it off him. He said it wasn't his. I said tell the owner I want it. he rode off and I never saw him again.

Now before anyone thinks Im being in any way racist by assuming it couldn't be his, this boy was about 18 and his monthly wages would have been about enough to buy the cheapest component on the bike. Not only that but I've been her for over 3 weeks and not seen a single bicycle that would have cost more than a $100. So when a Thorn rides past your eyes pop out of your head.:)

Having done my bit for the Thorn community I went off to the top of Daramkot to watch a small classical Indian music gig in a yoga temple. As you do here. I took my seat on a cushion on the ground and sat next to an Indian man with a great mustache and watched the concert.
Ten minutes in I start getting bombarded with calls and Facebook to trying to arrange a meet up. Embarrassed ,I turn my phone off and go outside to take the calls. When I get outside I see the man who had been sat next to me putting on a Pearl Izumi raincoat. Their are a lot of fakre chinese outdoor clothes here. North Face, Mamut, that sort of thing but no cycling gear. Then a 10 year old boy arrives on the Thorn. I ask the Indian man if its his bike and tell him about my trip. It is his bike and we have a big hug. Then he tells me his name is Dickie and as i'm a Richard this calls for another big hug. Daramkot/Mcleod Ganj and Dharamsala are very huggy places in case your wondering, there is a lot of love here :)

By the way the guy talked about his bike, the passion, the knowledge, his regret of getting hydraulic brakes instead of V and his knowledge of how damned heavy my bike was. I have no reason to believe it's not his. That and the fact that he mentioned how long he spent deciding with Robin on what bike was best for him, meant if it was stolen it was an amazing piece of background research!!!!!!!! (Totally possible in India)

He comes from Delhi, is on a little bike holiday for a bit and has offered to lend me the bike for a few days when he is not using it, as well as inviting to go stay with him at his home in Delhi. Both offers I'm hoping to take up.

So (presumably) mystery solved. I thought you would all be interested in the outcome.

Until I get a bit more time. Keep the questions coming.
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richie thornger

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #70 on: July 03, 2013, 07:03:29 am »
Dickie & Richie & a Thorn in the Himalayas. Probably more chance of finding a yeti than this happening :)

P.S. The TDF is on 'Ten Action' channel if you are in India :)
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in4

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #71 on: July 03, 2013, 09:46:23 am »
Thats a Sterling I think, bit of a rarity these days and increasingly so given their demise.

richie thornger

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #72 on: July 03, 2013, 09:49:01 am »
Certainly is. Weighs about half of my Nomad :(
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Danneaux

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #73 on: July 03, 2013, 09:53:50 am »
Richie,

That café at the side has a very interesting webpage of its own: http://commongroundsproject.org/cafe/common-ground-cafe/cafe

The menu, here: http://www.commongroundsproject.org/cafe/common-ground-cafe/menu ...looks awfully good! Did you try it?

Best,

Dan.

richie thornger

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Re: Richie's World Tour or Go Mad on a Nomad
« Reply #74 on: July 03, 2013, 10:01:10 am »
I have beeń in there yes. Pretty standard fair for Mcleod. Which is why I've been here for over a month!
I'm enjoying some luxuries before getting back on the bike in Iran and back to Indian "proper" :)
I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal labotomy