We...are...done

After spending two weeks in a tiny rickshaw and traveling just over 3,000km (1,900 miles) across India...we crossed the finish line. Woo.


This is an adventure we'll never forget!

Hello Blue City

We logged in just over 300 kilometers today, arriving in Jodhpur just before the sun set. The Blue City as it's called (due to most of the homes/buildings being painted blue) is the last stop before reaching the finish line (in Jaisalmer) on what has been an incredible journey.

Because we drove for most of the day, today's highlights were a ton more smiles from the locals, old and young, as Tiki made its way through a number of small rural towns.

We'll be staying put tomorrow, which is a rarity for us. The plan is to explore the mighty Mehrangarh Fort which is one of the largest in all of India and maybe do some gift shopping. Oh and drink more Kingfisher beers. Gosh, we'd do anything to have a hoppy beer right now. Wait, IPA stands for Indian Pale Ale...where the heck are they?!

Almost forgot some pics. Here's one from yesterday while walking the streets of Udaipur


And a typical view outside our rickshaw. The most we've seen on a motorbike is five.


Tiki (the Rickshaw) gets a break

We finally have some R n' R...currently in Udaipur enjoying our swanky hotel on the water, meals other than Indian and also milder temps. I'm sure our rickshaw is also liking the time off.

Here's the view from our digs


And here's a photo from another team showing us work our way up a decent hill.


On the move...again

Due to excessive driving on our end I'm going to keep this post short. Plus some of us aren't a hundred percent, me a head cold and Terry's stomach is acting up. My theory is he went a little too crazy with chilly peppers he devoured at a roadside stand.

But we did manage to take in the Ellora caves late yesterday which were stunning.

We are currently on route to the state of Rajasthan. First stop Udaipur! Oh and here's a picture of us in front the "mini" Taj Mahal in Aurangabad. Or as some like to call it the poor man's Taj Mahal ;)



A wee bit on the tired side

Almost a week into driving where we are just short of the halfway mark! Today we spent the better part of the morning traversing over a section of the Western Ghats which is a sizable mountain range (note: has nothing on the Himalayas). I will say the views looking back towards Goa were killer.


We are now making our way to Aurangabad which is in the interior part of the Maharashtra state. From there we are planning to see the Ellora cave temples, which is one of the largest rock-cut monastery-temple caves complexes in the world.

There is so much more to see and do, oh and things to avoid on the freeway, including tractors and large oxen. Yep, I just said those things. Alright, best to go. We're all pretty tired from the constant driving but our spirits are still high!


Hard to beat the sunsets of Goa

After a solid three and a half days of driving, we've made it to southern Goa. The journey so far has been more than we expected. The people, food and scenery...all amazing. We even found ourselves in one of the state papers!


We intend to chill out in Goa for another day taking in the chill atmosphere and see the influence on the town and architecture thanks to the Portuguese. Oh and to try lots of vindaloo dishes here. Cheers!!!


Early start - running lights - check

 It's best to be seen when off at first light. As you can see from the pic above, we were good to go! Trent "the engineer" came through in a big way with his solar panel charging / battery powered LED running and flood lights set-up. It actually made the big rigs and passenger buses stay in their lanes for once!

On another note, we made it to Udupi which is about a 150 miles away (south) of Goa.

Reality has hit!

Good to be in Fort Cochin! After a lengthy plane ride from San Francisco we have arrived (with far too many connections). We happened to stop by the United Club and saw the Rickshaws in all their glory. It then dawned on us that this is really happening! 

Testing testing, 1.2.3

Hard to believe in just over two weeks we'll be on the adventure of a lifetime. We look forward to meeting all of the teams!

Safety lights - check!


So much more to do!