UK to Dharamsala

March 2007 - February 2008

Previous Updates

Whilst we're on our journey we will send regular updates as well as a contact number in certain countries.

4 November: Herewith a long overdue update from the last two months. We're still in Iran. And contrary to what our western media lead us to believe this is definitely the friendliest and most hospitable country so far. Though as far as respect for the environment and animals is concerned they still have a very long way to go.

September 25: A little message of support to the gentle people of Myanmar.

August: Herewith some pictures from last month as the caravan struggled along the Black Sea coast under a gruelling heat. Almost in Iran...

3rd July: Herewith some pictures of the last 6 weeks in which we cycled through Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece and now finally Turkey.
We will be leaving Istanbul over the weekend and are very pleased to see some fresh, new people joining in.
We will probably not send any more updates over the summer period but if you want to get in touch you know how to contact us. And if you feel like catching up: public transport isn't too expensive in Turkey.
Finally a word of thanks to all of you (too many to mention meanwhile; you know who you are) that have been supporting the caravan on the road over the last few months in so many ways: a place to stay, some fruit or veggies, or a meal for free, a good chat, the occasional advice, a chai (especially now that we're in Turkey) etc. Bless you all and wishing everyone a good summer holiday!  Thank you.

July 2nd: After some unseasonably cold (and wet) weather in Bulgaria we ended up in the Greek heatwave. Temperatures of at times +40 (in the shadow) made it pretty hard to make much progress daytime. We're in Istanbul meanwhile and will cross Turkey in the next 2 months.

We've been experiencing some problems with our email account over the last two weeks. Thus if you have sent us anything over that period please try to send it again at the email address above and it will be automatically forwarded. If you still want to join us for the last few months Erzurum (by late August, before we enter Iran) is the easiest option.

Just to let everyone know as well that we've decided to turn this edition of the bicyclecaravan into a test-run. We're now gaining experience, checking out the routes, looking for possible camping places, establishing local contacts, etc. in view of a much stronger edition next year. Thus if you're interested in either taking part and/or helping out with things next year please have a good read through the website (see for yourself if you'd be up for it) and maybe get in touch. We'll get back to you when we have the time. Thank you.

MAY 20th: We ended up spending a lot more time in Vienna than anticipated. But there's many good sides to the city: plenty of good museums, parks, good bathing places along the Danube. And plenty of cycling paths that make it a lot easier to get along with a bicycle than with a motorised vehicle. Endless respect to Friedrich Stowasser aka Friedensreich Hundertwasser for his consistency and vision.

After Vienna we passed through Bratislava and Southern Slovakia before crossing the Danube at Esztergom. Nice (mostly recent) cycling paths along the Danube in Slovakia and towards Budapest. Impressed by the number of people that were taking to the bicycle on a Sunday afternoon in the Hungarian capital. We are in Szeget now, ready to cycle into Romania, then Serbia, then Bulgaria...  We're getting the feeling now of having really entered the Balkan. Interesting to notice as well that we've ended up spending a lot less money on food over the last few weeks. Less is more... And with all the fresh fruit and vegetables now available everywhere we're starting to feel increasingly healthy and happily buzzing on our veggie diet.

The pictures relate to our journey from Linz until the border between Austria and Slovakia. More in the coming days.

May 1: We are in Vienna now, which - especially the first day - was very hard, after all those weeks spent mainly on the countryside. We´re staying here for a few more days, then hope to be in Budapest in a weeks´time. Herewith a few impressions of the last few weeks in Germany and Austria.

Saturday 28th April: It's been more almost a month meanwhile that we've been feeling increasingly blessed by the weather. Apart from a few small showers it´s been nearly constantly dry ever since we entered Germany. We´ve taken it easy over the last two weeks and are now approaching Vienna. With the continuing drought, and temperatures easily reaching the 30 Celsius we're not too sure anymore what to think. In the area we´re crossing now the Danube is far below the usual level for this time of the year and the landscape is reminding us more of Southern France or Italy than of (usually wet) Austria in spring...  

The pictures start with cycle-friendly Freiburg, after which we crossed the mountains to the source of the Danube in Donaueschingen. Due to a technical problem we can now only send the pictures as far as (and a little beyond) Donaueschingen; more in the coming days. 

If you want to contact us or join for a few days please send us an email and leave a contact number. For financial reasons we´ve decided not to get a mobile contact for every country anymore. Also: please don´t forget why we are doing this. So - when you have time please have a read through the Tibet - section and have a look at the recommended videos. Thank you.

Tuesday 10th April: We have meanwhile passed Regensburg, and from tomorrow onwards will all enjoy a well-deserved rest of a week or so before heading into Austria and Hungary. Some people will leave the caravan in the coming days, but we are getting reinforcements from the Netherlands, Germany and Austria soon. A big thank you to all the people in the U.K., France and Germany (especially in Heidelberg and Urach) that have helped us through some difficult moments, and also to Gerald (Regensburg) for all the encouragement on Easter Monday. But also to Bas (the Netherlands) and our tireless webmaster who is always there to add the latest updates.

Tuesday 3rd April: Yesterday evening we crossed into Germany, and this morning we arrived in Freiburg. With only one day rest thus far since starting this journey we opted to take it easy and spent quite some time in a friendly bicycle repair shop in town. Fantastic city: bicycle paths all over, and plenty of bicycles, trailer-bikes, roller skaters, etc. all over. Why can't all cities be like this?

Tomorrow we'll try to get over the mountains towards the Danube, and then slowly head towards Passau.

Wed. 28th March, noon: we have meanwhile arrived in Verdun, and have decided on a slight route-change. We lost some time due to wind upfront and some smaller technological problems. Thus have decided to skip Strasburg and instead go straight to Freiburg, via Colmar. Expect us to reach Freiburg around the 3rd of April. Spring has finally arrived, and we're now enjoying sunny weather most of the time.

Friday 23rd March, noon: After some pretty extreme weather (snow in the UK, storm at sea, then nearly being blown off our bikes by gale-force winds in Calais) 8 of us (on 6 bicycles) are meanwhile in Arras, slowly continuing our way towards Strasbourg.

Les Charmes Discrets de la Monoculture

Saturday 17th March: After a week of peddling (and trying to cut down on our luggage) we are now enjoying our first day rest in the house of a brother in sunny Brighton. On Tuesday we will be crossing into France. As soon as we're in France we will publish another contact number. For any non-urgent enquiries you can still use the email address, though it may be a while before we answer.

Always keep an eye on this page for regular updates.