Douglas Maitland

Douglas Maitland
Of Keep Karma & Curry On
On the The Rickshaw Run Spring 2011
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Home!

We're home!! At least Charlie and Doug are. Graeme's in Gantok, Sikkim, the furthest north state of India at the base of the Himalayas. We almost ended up there also the other day after the three of us took a wrong turn out of Darjeeling.

As we've been awake for 33 hours straight we're not going to do too much of an update right now. A hot bath and a power nap seem to be in order. However, it seemed important to put the final pin in the map.

It's great to be back but it's mixed emotions. Looking forward to finally looking through the photos and posting some up.

Once our brains have rested and we can actually figure out what has happened over the past 3 weeks (it's a total blur) will get a proper summary up. 

Douglas Maitland
Of Keep Karma & Curry On
On the The Rickshaw Run Spring 2011
HIGHLIGHT ON MAP
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Hurrah!!

We've done it!!! We're at the Hotel Pinewood in Shillong and it's all over! Apologies for anyone worried that we'd gone a bit quiet. It turns out there is no phone signal at all in the Northern States.

So we're done! It's been one hell of a long slog and we're glad it's over but at the same time sad that the adventure has finished.

Everyone's in the bar regaling stories from the past two weeks. It seems some have had quite the interesting time! It's clear that we've been very lucky. No major mechanical or security problems. Long long days of driving but generally pretty plain sailing. Some buttock clenching moments thought!! Missed the victory parade this morning through Shillong but that was at 11am and none of us knew it would be so early. Everyone was aiming for the end of Saturday as a target. Shame. Off to the finish party shortly so We can't hang around and chat but the general feeling amongst us is that it has been an amazing experience and an incredible challenge. Every indian we met said what we were doing was crazy and impossible but we've done it. Even experienced Rickshaw drivers said it couldn't be done. We'll write a full summary when we're back but we just wanted everyone to know we're safe, we're finished, and we're looking forward to seeing some of you when we're back

Now we believe it's Pimms o'clock!

Take care everyone and hopefully see most of you soon.

Keep Karma & Curry On!

Douglas Maitland
Of Keep Karma & Curry On
On the The Rickshaw Run Spring 2011
HIGHLIGHT ON MAP
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West Bengal, India

Sunrise over the himalayas was stunning. Too misty 2 c Everest tho. We had a long slow slog back down today. Incredibly steep roads. Brakes totally worn out, 1st gear pretty much gone, lost ANOTHER exhaust bolt, horn stopped working. Just need to limp to the finish! Need to do some serious distance tmrw if we're to get to shillong for saturday afternoon.

Douglas Maitland
Of Keep Karma & Curry On
On the The Rickshaw Run Spring 2011
HIGHLIGHT ON MAP
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West Bengal, India

We're in love with this place. Everyone waved to us on the way up. 1 lady we passed even said "Welcome". This whole area feels so different from the rest of india. Staying in an amazing hotel. We have our own lounge! Met up with 2 other teams in the hotel. Swapped stories. Now preparing ourselves for a 4am start as we're all going 2 watch the sunrise...over Everest!

Douglas Maitland
Of Keep Karma & Curry On
On the The Rickshaw Run Spring 2011
HIGHLIGHT ON MAP
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Bihar, India

Feel like we're in the home stretch. Sleep deprived & not eating properly. Bindi is starting to struggle. Hoping we can limp across the line saturday. Were asked to do a TV interview earlier but had to decline as we were a right mess and needed rest. We've reached new levels of living in filth! Our t-shirts should be burnt at the end. Aiming for darjeeling tmrw. Bit off route but want to have at least a little R&R somewhere nice.@

Douglas Maitland
Of Keep Karma & Curry On
On the The Rickshaw Run Spring 2011
HIGHLIGHT ON MAP
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Bihar, India

Finally the end of a VERY long & challenging day. Having left at 5am we seemed to cross forests, paddy fields, desert &mountains. 500km! Bindy coped excellently although we think her gearbox might be stuffed. Travelled along the worst road yet. Looked like it had been used 4 target practice! Also unknowingly travelled through bandit country which may explain why the locals looked both confused and less impressed by our presence. Finally we decided to push hard and head for Patna. However traffic and rain slowed us so much that it fell dark. Driving a tuk tuk in the dark in the rain is buttock clenching! Turned out ok in the end. Nice hotel although Patna's really grim! Night all.