The finish line!
2 weeks and almost 3000km later, we have managed to drag our barely mobile tin bucket of an auto rickshaw from one side of the Indian sub continent to the other. She may have made the finish line on the back of a truck after an epic adventure through numerous village mechanics, and way too many 'we will tell you when we get home' stories - but what a trip it was. Team live and let chai it has been a pleasure.
The breakdown - Part 2
It was late and we were nowhere near any hotels so the mechanics towed us through monsoon rain to the police station. They put us up in a random bungalow and gave us a bit of bread to get by. Then today we pushed Vicky back to the mechanic, but after a day's work she's still not ticking over! Another 30km tow to Guwahati later and we're treating ourselves to a night in a decent hotel. Tomorrow we try again!
The breakdown - Part 1
Yesterday morning was amazing. On a dawn elephant ride we saw a rare one-horned rhino at the jaldapara national park. Afterwards we headed on towards Guwahati...only to break down 30km away. After checking the engine we found there was no spark so changed all the parts we could but with no success. After being towed to 3 mechanics we were told we would have to wait till morning...
Tea, tea and more tea...
After a stunning drive up to Darjeeling we've had a very chilled day drinking tea, learning about tea, buying tea and then drinking some more tea. Finished the day catching up with several other teams at the local.
Into the Himalayas...
Coming out of Bihar the scenery completely changed almost by the hour. First we were in an arid desert, then a dense jungle and on into fields of sunflower crops. We finished the day driving Vicky halfway up to Darjeeling up increasingly winding and steep roads. Eventually we called it a day in Kurseong ready for the final ascent tomorrow!
Bodhgaya Blowout
Captain Calamity (Taz) strikes again! Vicky suffered a highway blowout but a quick pit stop (in 42 degree heat) saw us perform our first ever tyre change - complete amateurs... Later we found a rare bit of peace in India at the birthplace of Buddhism - Bodhgaya.
The road to Varanasi
Edit: Correct video now linked.
Even gridlock is entertaining in India. Vicky is small enough to weave her way through to a point at which locals will help build a ramp so you can get over the central reservation to drive down the wrong side of the highway to get to your exit. The video shows about a 10th of the trucks waiting to get on the motorway...
Oh and then we got to Varanasi, had Vicky serviced and enjoyed a boat ride up the Ganges with the sunset as a backdrop! A pretty good day indeed.
P.S. May not get to blog tomorrow as we'll be at a monastery... I hear they're not the best for wifi
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ytPF6C-wntQ
463km is too much
After watching the sun rise over the Taj Mahal from the side of the road we set out on our way. A crazy decision saw us power through Kanpur and head on to Allahabad. After 13 hours, 463km and being stopped by the police twice, we finally made it to our hotel. Banking these miles means we get a day in Varanasi tomorrow + allowing for the inevitable future breakdowns...
The Taj!
Great progress again today - Vicky performing great again even in the mayhem of Agra. Few bumps and scrapes (mostly against stationary objects) but nothing major. Managed a good chunk of time at the Taj with sunset beers on the rooftop!
Jaipur!
An early rise gave us a few extra hours this morning so we were able to cruise into Jaipur as soon as 4pm. Compared to yesterday; today was pretty event free - that doesn't mean it was without its crazy moments, but our rickshaw (now known as Vicky) ran beautifully. Onwards to the Taj Mahal!
