And that's a wrap!

 

We crossed the finish line.  Thank goodness.  For what is is worth (nothing, if you are actually curious), we were one of the top ten teams into Jaisalmer.  And, just as suspected, our two days of driving from Jaipur to Jaisalmer were full of obsticules to overcome. 

The road from Jaipur to Jodhpur represented the last really long leg for us to drive... about 330 km.  In order to prepare for this leg, and the last, we had Belle worked on by a mechanic on a day-off we took in Jaipur.  Initially, the road was glorious and we were making incredible time.  But, in a story that has repeated itself nearly daily over the course of the Rickshaw Run, roads turned bad and expectatinos needed to be adjusted.  And, despite some TLC in Jaipur, Belle decided to playt with us, insisting that she rather would do with out her muffler.  Over the last 150 km of the day, we stopped nearly every 20 to 30 km to open upt he back panel and tighten all of the bolts keeping the muffler attached to the vehicle.  No matter how tight the bolts were, 20 km later they were loose, if attached at all.

 

Once we reached Jodhpur, we went to a mechanic immediately to really tighten everything down.  Suprisingly, once done, all of the sounds that were accociated with a loose muffler were still there.  Upon re-inspection, we discovered that we had warped Belle's frame along the road somewhere, likely thanks to the countles craters in the roads, and the frame of the rickshaw was convieniently in contact with the muffler, assuring us of a noisy last day of driving.

Also, we were reminded of our proximity to Pakistan with the constant presance of military vehicles and convoys on the roads, along witht this little reminder outside the gate to an Air Force base on the approach to Jodhpur.

 

Belle was on her last legs.  We knew this and got ourselves emotionally set on a long, long last 280 km of driving to Jaisalmer.  At first, the drive was alright... sure the roads leaving the town were less than desireable, but it is that way in every Indian city.  But as hour two on the road hit, the roads turned truely bad.  And then, Belle really decided to give us casue for concern.  The spark plug would not stay clean.  Then she started overheating.  The P-Town Ricksters were really grinding it out.  Oh, and there was a nationwide stike called to protest the introduction of large western retail stores into India, leaving us to question if were would even be able to get a mechanic if we really had a bad breakdown or buy petrol if we ran dry.  But, just as things started looking really bleak, Belle sensed the finish line was close and gave us a solid last two hours on the road, bringing us into Jaisalmer and across the finish line.

 

Lot of festivities were planned for the weekend, but after a very long and at time frustrating experience in India, we decided to grab an early 18-hour long train to Delhi in order to give us plenty of time to rest getting on our planes.  This also gave us some time to see Delhi, which, with all respects to the finish line celebrations, was a great decision.  We have had a fabulous last day in india, seeing some great sights and experiencing yet another side of India.  And, should we have expected anything else?  Yes, we've been beaten up on the road, overwhelmed by street vendors and have struggled at times to find solitude from the masses of people.  And just as we began to think we have seen enough of India to last a lifetime, a great day in an incredible city has allowed us to contempate a return.  Typical India. 

 

(Mis)Adventure Continues

Detailed blog entry to follow shortly, including details of a vicious one-on-one water polo match and more uses for duct tape.

The journey continues

Traffic jams, monsoon rains and truck exhaust in Kanpur.

Days 4-6... Reality sets in

We've now traveled just about half the way across India (1,360 km down, and 1,575km to go) and, as was bound to happen eventually, the adreniline from the newness of the adventure has begun to wear off and the inevitability of the road in front of us becomes clearer everyday. There have been amazing experiences so far, and there is bound to be plenty more! So, whithout delay, a recap of the past three days!

Day four saw us leave from Siliguri in West Bengal towards the state of Bihar, exactly we were unsure.  Our plan was to see how the day treated us and pick a destination enroute.   Despite some rough roads initially, we found a great four-lane highway and made great time.  After logging in 200 km by midmorning, we decided to put all of the chips on the table and head to Patna, a city over 500 km from Siliguri - clearly we were on fire, how could it go wrong!  And just as we got comfortable and sure of ourselves, India did what India always does when you let your guard down - kicks you where it hurts the most.  Great roads turned into moonscapes. And expected arrival time of around 4.00 pm turned into 8.30 pm.  in all, the day saw us on the road for nearly 15 hours, way more than any one person should spend in a rickshaw.



Belle is a trooper, but she took a beating.  Her muffler became detached from the frame and had to be secured with duct tape. It also started to loosen from the engine, but with our mechanical guiness we were able to solve that poblem with our wrench we packed.  The air hose from the filter to the carborator jostled loose as well and was held in place with zipties.  And a rear strut bent, which is not fixable unless you can replace it.  But Belle kept chugging along and got us to Patna.  



We also left our mark on the local traffic as well.  We tagged the sides of two stationary trucks, were run off the road by many others and sideswiped a cycle rickshaw - the fault of which we have left to someone else to establish.  With Belle's silm frame, we thought that we could squeeze between a bus and large truck, next thing you know Belle's roof rack is caught on the back of this truck and the front wheel is up in the air doing an impressive wheelie - the truck must have backed up...at leat that is what we are going with. Just another day driving in India.

Our plan for Day Five was to get the rickshaw serviced after a good night's sleep and hit the road around noon.  However, India had a say in the situation and reminded us that monsoon season wasn't eactly over yet.  The roads turned into rivers (who knows what is in that water) and we were assured that mechanics don't work in the rain.  So, we changed our plans and decided to spend the day in Patna, focusing on getting Belle serviced and getting a little rest ourselves.  We spent the day eating some new foods, watching plenty of cricket on TV and saw some of India that is a little further off the main roads we have been traveling.


We even got some odds and ends to "pimp" (the technical Indian term for spurcing up a rickshaw) Belle up, including a picture of Genesh to clear any obsticles in our path.  We can use all the help we can get on a trip like this. The plan is to have Bell fully pimped out before the finish line, with new items from each of the towns/cities we visit.

Day Six found us on the road nice and early and Belle was in top form.  The trip from Patna to Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh was relatively uneventful, which is exactly the way we like it.  And we arrived in Varanasi early in the afternoon, allowing us to do some sightseeing.  Imediately, we noticed that Varanasi is unlike any part of India we have been to so far.  Everywhere else, we have been viewed with curiosity, confusion and/or humor.  This, however, is the first place we have been to with a noticable western tourist presence, making us targets for vendors of all sorts.  Also, Varanasi is an incredibly spiritual city, with temples and rituals taking place all over, including public cremation along the banks of the Ganges.  And, of course, India had to do what she does best, having it rain on us while experienceing it all... just to make sure we are always a little uncomfortable. Two hours ealry, before leaving the hotel, we discussed that rain jackets might be a good idea, but hey we are from Portland we can handle a little rain...by time it was all said and done, we looked like drowned rats!

Tomorrow, the journey continues.  He are halfway across the sub-continent, our stomachs continue to work as god intended and Belle is purring.  And, inevitably, India will have a say on how we experience it all.

<p>14 hours of driving to...

14 hours of driving to Patna yesterday means maintenance on a rickshaw this morning and hopefully a short(er) drive to Varanasi today.  More details to come!!

3 days down, no lack of adventure

Alright, 3 days of driving down and we are still alive.  Actually, we have been doing well compared to some of the other teams.  We heard a group of 18 had to be escorted by the military after being cought out past curfew.  But you didn't come to this blog to read about them... so an account of our adventures!

 

We left Shillong and Belle (the name of our three wheeled chariot) was humming.  We made our way out of the mountains and rainforests of Meghalaya state and into the river plains of Assam.  As dusk fell, we found ourselves between towns with no hotel lined up yet.  In the tiny town of Dudhnai, we managed to upset a policeman by going through a roundabout the wrong direction and hitting one too many potholes and breaking an eneine mount bracket. Luckily, while asking around for the location of a hotel, we ran into an incredibly hospiable group of guys who not only helped us find a place to stay, but took us under their wings for the night, introducing us to all of their friends, feeding us- including multiple plates of fried silk worms, which were really good- and giving us great advice for roads.  And, seeing that this little town never gets any visitors, we were minor celebraties to be introduced to everyone who would answer their phones.  In the morning, our mechanic turned out to be a 12 year old boy, who's knowledge of our rickshaw would make any greesemonkey proud.

This town is not a tourist destination...which means hotels of any comfort do not exist. We did learn that the word hotel is loosely used...it also means restaurant during the day for truck drivers, but no beds. The local crew guided us to a "hotel", but in name only. This hotel lacked any sign (still not sure the name of the place, one night stay was $6), and consisted of a concrete buidling between the local liquor store and mechanic shop. There were no signs of any luxuary living here, with plywood beds with a sheet over it, and a communal shower that woudln't pass a health inspection in any country (updated immunizations needed to enter)!!

 

 


Day two took us from Dudhnai in Assam to Allpourduar in West Bengal, which was a good day's drive that really got Belle rolling.  Before taking off, the crew from the previous night came out to see us off and introduce us to more of their freinds, while making sure our rickshaw was properly fixed.  We had a good day of driving through beautiful country that, though the roads were rough at times, the scenery made up for it.  We were introduced to the foothills of the Himalayas and the many rivers that flow down to the Bengali plains.  And, just like the day previous, we broke the rickshaw as we approached the day's endpoint.  But, luckily, one of the bellboys at the hotel knew a mechanic and by the time we sat down to relax for the night, the rickshaw was fixed. This time we found a hotel with proper beds and AC...well there was an AC unit, but didnt work. After hours of work by a repairman, he determined that the entire town voltage was reduced due to the demand. Apparently the voltage was too low to allow the AC unit to work, so instead it blew out warm air until we woke up in the middle of the night freezing cold...all part of the Indian adventure. 

 

 

 

Which brings us to today.  The roads were terrible, but the scenery even better than the day before.  We shoved off at 6.30 and put in a relatively short day, arriving in Siliguri by noon.  Though we may have ended the day early, the roads were bumpy enough to test Belle, who held up wonderfully, and us.  As you can imagine, Rickshaws aren't built for comfort.  But the day was adventurous, taking us within 5 km of Bhutan through more jungle and some mountain foothill gorges.  We even ran across some groups of monkeys, the dominant male of one group not particularly taking a liking to Andrew, chasing us down the road.  The rest of the after noon we spent relaxing at a nice hotel, getting in some naps, and some good food (no silk worms for us this time). 

Tomorrow we are off again.  We hear tales of the roads being better, so the distances we can get in everyday should get much better.   So, the plan is to make our way to Varanasi, Agra and points westward.  And, as always, we will do our best to keep everyone in the loop!

Happy travels!

 

And we are off.. tomorrow

So, after a few days in Shillong, India learing the little we can about our rickshaws, the little we can about driving them (we seem to be proficient at stalling) and the little we can about the route we plan on taking, it is time to shove off first thing tomorrow.