Hot damn I can read my blog!
I'm in Karimabad along the Karakoram Highway. The first "town" with internet access since I left Kashgar 2 weeks ago. Here is a recap of my cycling "adventures".
Day 1- This was a very stressfull day, trying to get everything together for the trip. What compacted this already intense day was that things between Caroline and me were breaking down. I tried to talk about it with her, but with no luck. I almost left alone from Kashgar but then decided it might be ok because Dave (www.velodesoie.com) would be traveling with us. When we finally left Kashgar at 3:00, Dave road up on his recumbant bicycle which was a suprise for me. The first 50km to Upal were flat but the last 10 included some rain. Upal was a small town with very minor, but pleasant, accomadations. This day I realized that traveling with a recumbant bicycle is more like a parade than anything else. As you pass through towns, the people who aren't too busy laughing, follow the recumbant for a good distance. After a while its not uncommon to look back and seen 10 children following us, and everybody on the side of the road laughing histaricly. I have enjoyed this immensely.
Day 2- We rode from Upal to the Ghez checkpoint on this day. We stopped in some pleasant Uyger villages, and started to see some amazing moutain scapes along the way. The day ended up being 70km which was a little too much seeing that 35 was starting to move uphill. We arrived at a small house at the Ghez Checkpoint just as it was getting dark and spent the night there.
Day 3- We took a small road to Upper Ghez looking for dried fruit and found a village very untouched by tourism. We decided to spend the day there. Many balloon hats were made and I spent a good couple of hours playing with some disguctingly cute children. The village was maybe the first place where we started to meet people who identified at Kyrgyz (people of Kyrgyzstan). This day I hiked up to an even smaller, very greecian, village, whose beauty rivaled that of Yubongs, and spent time with some extremely kind and beautiful families. That night we slept in tents in some walled gardens.
Day 4- We cycled up through ghez canyon. This was only 40km, but by far the hardest and most grueling day. The canyon was amazing though and our first taste of the Karakorum moutains. We saw a huge rock slide that day that included boulders the size of cars. It really sounded like nearby thunder rolling through the canyon and was close enough to send us cycling. That night we reached an amazing area that looked alot like a tidal flat at the base of some sand dunes. This was in sharp contrast from Ghez canyon and a shock to find when we emerged. That night we stayed with a family of Tajik people (from Tajikistan) in a house that smelled more like goat than I though was possible for anything other than a goat.
Day 5- We cycled 40km to Karakul Lake on our first truly poor road. Along the way I met a man on a motorcycle from Seattle who had been traveling around the world for over 2 and a half years. At Karakul we stayed with a Tajik family in a traditional yurt. The food was good, but some of the area was very touristy and there were clashes between the locals and Han Chinese Tourism.
Day 6- We decided to rest at Karakul for the day. The lake was very beautiful and we had some colorful experiences with locals in Karakul Village.
Day 7- We began cycling to Tashgargan. The first 25 Km were pleasant on good road but I soon realized that the rack on my bicycle had come loose. I didn't have a replacment screw so I ended up having to fashion something simple with an electrical outlet prong and some tape. After 25 km we climbed to the second highest pass on the Karakorum at 4100m. The road was dirt/rock and not so good. When we crested the somewhat dissapointing pass, we found the worst road conditions possible. It turns out that the Chinese are completely rebuilding the road from the pass to Tagarma (40km) so the road that had existed was completely removed. We reached Tashgargan that night at nightfall exhausted. This was when the everything fell apart between Caroline and myself, which made the next couple of days very akward.
Day 8- Foriegners are banned from using internet in Tashgugan so I was only able to watch people play Diablo, and not touch a keyboard. I bought the last of the essentials for the trip and prepared for Pakistan.
Day 9- We had been told, and were therefore prepared, for the fact that we could not bicycle over Kunjerab pass. The Chinese goverment would not allow it, so we were forced to travel by bus over the border to Sost in Pakistan. The day was very intense and the beauracracy was so thick you could walk on it. It took us over 4 hours to get through customs and onto a bus bound for Pakistan. This day was also the most interesting becasue it contrasted so heavily the China and Pakistan people. When we finally reached the boarder, we showed our passports to some very stern and quiet PLA's (peoples liberation army) who then just stood frowning on the bus for 10 minuted before letting us pass. When we finally crossed the border a cheer rang up from the people in the bus and there was a 90% increase in smiling among the people from Pakistan. When we reached the Pakistan checkpoint the bus stopped and out ran a army officer with no shoes on and a gigantic smile. People leaned out of the bus and he shook there hands. After a very short while he stopped looked the at the bus for less than 30 seconds and waved us through. This experience was a very pleasant shock for me. When we reached the entrance of the Kunjerab National Park (where you have to pay an entrance fee), I was grabbed by some jovial park officials who took me to see Leo. Leo turned dout to be a baby snow lepoard who's mother had died, and was being raised by people working at the parks gate. So, I got to hold and play with a baby snow lepoard which was very fun. I also got a little cricket playing in. Finally we reached Sost and found a decent hotel. The amazing contrast of kindness in China and Pakistan is still taking some time to get used to.
Day 10-We stayed in Sost and hiked to a gorgous village on a platua. The people were all Tajik and very liberal. Everybody was kind and there were woman everywhere talking and enjoying themselves. The children we wonderful and some balloon hats were made.
Day 11- Dave and I hiked to some small villages with, again, wonderful people. We were given more fruit than we knew what to do with, and saw some gorgous scenery. This is also the day that Dave and I parted ways with Caroline which was an uncomfortable experience, but ultimetly good for everybody.
Day 12- Dave and I headed for Passu on bicycle. It was 40km but all downhill. Despite this being an easy trip I had a sinus infection and collapsed after just 2 and a half hours of cycling. In Passu we stayed at the Shisper View Hotel which was great. The manager was a fascinating man and it was a quiet place very similair to a french villa. That night I was feeling up to crossing the 800 ft suspension bridge that is famous in Passu. Its hard to describe the bridge except to say that it seems like it came right out of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
Day 13- I rested and saw the Passu village.
Day 14- Dave and I cycled 80km to Karimabad. The road was rough, a little scary, but mostly downhill. At one point we found an abondoned ruby mine and went exploring inside. Karimabad is the first signaling of Pakistan. There are Less Tajik people, western food can be found in the resturants, and there are tourists everywhere (western and Japanese).
The internet is extremely slow here which makes doing anything on the web difficult. As soon as I find good internet I will write more which should be in the next couple of days. I'm getting more excited about traveling to India. I will apply for my Indian visa soon when I get to Islamsbad and then take a short trip to Pashwar which is a very safe city near the Afghan Border. Telling people I'm American has been no problem so far and I have had some really good conversations. Pakistan is safe, kind, and very welcoming. I'm very happy to be here.
Lastly, I have an msn messenger account now under username tragicallydorky, soon I will buy a microphone and then I can talk to people if you catch me online.
Hope you are all well.
Day 1- This was a very stressfull day, trying to get everything together for the trip. What compacted this already intense day was that things between Caroline and me were breaking down. I tried to talk about it with her, but with no luck. I almost left alone from Kashgar but then decided it might be ok because Dave (www.velodesoie.com) would be traveling with us. When we finally left Kashgar at 3:00, Dave road up on his recumbant bicycle which was a suprise for me. The first 50km to Upal were flat but the last 10 included some rain. Upal was a small town with very minor, but pleasant, accomadations. This day I realized that traveling with a recumbant bicycle is more like a parade than anything else. As you pass through towns, the people who aren't too busy laughing, follow the recumbant for a good distance. After a while its not uncommon to look back and seen 10 children following us, and everybody on the side of the road laughing histaricly. I have enjoyed this immensely.
Day 2- We rode from Upal to the Ghez checkpoint on this day. We stopped in some pleasant Uyger villages, and started to see some amazing moutain scapes along the way. The day ended up being 70km which was a little too much seeing that 35 was starting to move uphill. We arrived at a small house at the Ghez Checkpoint just as it was getting dark and spent the night there.
Day 3- We took a small road to Upper Ghez looking for dried fruit and found a village very untouched by tourism. We decided to spend the day there. Many balloon hats were made and I spent a good couple of hours playing with some disguctingly cute children. The village was maybe the first place where we started to meet people who identified at Kyrgyz (people of Kyrgyzstan). This day I hiked up to an even smaller, very greecian, village, whose beauty rivaled that of Yubongs, and spent time with some extremely kind and beautiful families. That night we slept in tents in some walled gardens.
Day 4- We cycled up through ghez canyon. This was only 40km, but by far the hardest and most grueling day. The canyon was amazing though and our first taste of the Karakorum moutains. We saw a huge rock slide that day that included boulders the size of cars. It really sounded like nearby thunder rolling through the canyon and was close enough to send us cycling. That night we reached an amazing area that looked alot like a tidal flat at the base of some sand dunes. This was in sharp contrast from Ghez canyon and a shock to find when we emerged. That night we stayed with a family of Tajik people (from Tajikistan) in a house that smelled more like goat than I though was possible for anything other than a goat.
Day 5- We cycled 40km to Karakul Lake on our first truly poor road. Along the way I met a man on a motorcycle from Seattle who had been traveling around the world for over 2 and a half years. At Karakul we stayed with a Tajik family in a traditional yurt. The food was good, but some of the area was very touristy and there were clashes between the locals and Han Chinese Tourism.
Day 6- We decided to rest at Karakul for the day. The lake was very beautiful and we had some colorful experiences with locals in Karakul Village.
Day 7- We began cycling to Tashgargan. The first 25 Km were pleasant on good road but I soon realized that the rack on my bicycle had come loose. I didn't have a replacment screw so I ended up having to fashion something simple with an electrical outlet prong and some tape. After 25 km we climbed to the second highest pass on the Karakorum at 4100m. The road was dirt/rock and not so good. When we crested the somewhat dissapointing pass, we found the worst road conditions possible. It turns out that the Chinese are completely rebuilding the road from the pass to Tagarma (40km) so the road that had existed was completely removed. We reached Tashgargan that night at nightfall exhausted. This was when the everything fell apart between Caroline and myself, which made the next couple of days very akward.
Day 8- Foriegners are banned from using internet in Tashgugan so I was only able to watch people play Diablo, and not touch a keyboard. I bought the last of the essentials for the trip and prepared for Pakistan.
Day 9- We had been told, and were therefore prepared, for the fact that we could not bicycle over Kunjerab pass. The Chinese goverment would not allow it, so we were forced to travel by bus over the border to Sost in Pakistan. The day was very intense and the beauracracy was so thick you could walk on it. It took us over 4 hours to get through customs and onto a bus bound for Pakistan. This day was also the most interesting becasue it contrasted so heavily the China and Pakistan people. When we finally reached the boarder, we showed our passports to some very stern and quiet PLA's (peoples liberation army) who then just stood frowning on the bus for 10 minuted before letting us pass. When we finally crossed the border a cheer rang up from the people in the bus and there was a 90% increase in smiling among the people from Pakistan. When we reached the Pakistan checkpoint the bus stopped and out ran a army officer with no shoes on and a gigantic smile. People leaned out of the bus and he shook there hands. After a very short while he stopped looked the at the bus for less than 30 seconds and waved us through. This experience was a very pleasant shock for me. When we reached the entrance of the Kunjerab National Park (where you have to pay an entrance fee), I was grabbed by some jovial park officials who took me to see Leo. Leo turned dout to be a baby snow lepoard who's mother had died, and was being raised by people working at the parks gate. So, I got to hold and play with a baby snow lepoard which was very fun. I also got a little cricket playing in. Finally we reached Sost and found a decent hotel. The amazing contrast of kindness in China and Pakistan is still taking some time to get used to.
Day 10-We stayed in Sost and hiked to a gorgous village on a platua. The people were all Tajik and very liberal. Everybody was kind and there were woman everywhere talking and enjoying themselves. The children we wonderful and some balloon hats were made.
Day 11- Dave and I hiked to some small villages with, again, wonderful people. We were given more fruit than we knew what to do with, and saw some gorgous scenery. This is also the day that Dave and I parted ways with Caroline which was an uncomfortable experience, but ultimetly good for everybody.
Day 12- Dave and I headed for Passu on bicycle. It was 40km but all downhill. Despite this being an easy trip I had a sinus infection and collapsed after just 2 and a half hours of cycling. In Passu we stayed at the Shisper View Hotel which was great. The manager was a fascinating man and it was a quiet place very similair to a french villa. That night I was feeling up to crossing the 800 ft suspension bridge that is famous in Passu. Its hard to describe the bridge except to say that it seems like it came right out of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
Day 13- I rested and saw the Passu village.
Day 14- Dave and I cycled 80km to Karimabad. The road was rough, a little scary, but mostly downhill. At one point we found an abondoned ruby mine and went exploring inside. Karimabad is the first signaling of Pakistan. There are Less Tajik people, western food can be found in the resturants, and there are tourists everywhere (western and Japanese).
The internet is extremely slow here which makes doing anything on the web difficult. As soon as I find good internet I will write more which should be in the next couple of days. I'm getting more excited about traveling to India. I will apply for my Indian visa soon when I get to Islamsbad and then take a short trip to Pashwar which is a very safe city near the Afghan Border. Telling people I'm American has been no problem so far and I have had some really good conversations. Pakistan is safe, kind, and very welcoming. I'm very happy to be here.
Lastly, I have an msn messenger account now under username tragicallydorky, soon I will buy a microphone and then I can talk to people if you catch me online.
Hope you are all well.
posted by Robert at 9/25/2005 11:46:00 PM
4 Comments:
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Hi Robert,
I am so so so glad to read your last entry. When you don't write for a while I start to get nervous. I have picked up the phone several times to call Anne but I figure she does not need me to stress her out. Anyway, this last entry was incredible. I am curious as to what happened to Caroline. Did she decide to travel through Pakistan alone? On your next entry can you expand on the contrast between the Chinese and Pakistan people? I am learning through your adventures. I am also so glad to hear that you feel safe in Pakistan!!! The media has really portrayed the contrary.
Love Becka
That was a rewarding and satisfying entry. Looked at Dave's website and enjoyed it a lot. Loved the picture of him with bike and all he carries with him, too! Nice to "meet" one of your road trip friends.
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