Summary of Central Asia and the Pamir Highway (Jul - Sep 2018).
Central Asia Tour
Category: Asia
Japan Part 2: Western Kyushu, Kyoto & Hokkaido
Kumamoto, Nagasaki, Yatai in Fukuoka, Kobe Beef in Kobe, Kyoto, Hokaido, onsens, volcanoes, forests and lakes, and kawaii everywhere!
Japan: Deconstructing the Origami Crane
Tokyo, observations of Japanese society, Shikoku, onsens, Kyushu, Yakushima, generosity and hospitality (again), Mount Aso.
Taming the Wild Monkey – My Vipassana Experience
Reflections on a ten-day Vipassana meditation retreat I attended in Kerala.
India Part 2: A Milestone Reached, Thoughts on Begging and Cycling as a Sport
More on Goa, Karnataka, Indian selfie-takers, starers and beggars, Hampi, Mysore, Bandipur Tiger Reserve, descending into Kerala, Kochi, on cycling as a sport, reaching Kanyakumari (which was supposed to be the end).
Hills, Hippies and Beaches: Along the Konkan Coast
Mumbai, rural Maharashtra and the Konkan Coast, Goa and some thoughts on belonging, or not.
Winter Arrives and the Question of Cheating
Getting drunk with the locals in Georgia, Tbilisi, Armenia, cycling through the snow, rescued by the Molokans, a warm welcome in Dilijan, vacillating about getting a bus, Yerevan.
On Loneliness, Adventure and Being Stuck on the Black Sea Littoral
On loneliness in long-term travel, having fun on muddy mountain roads, the Black Sea coast road, stuck in Trabzon and Batumi waiting for my Iranian visa and package from home and rain rain rain.
Turkish Hospitality, Wild Camps and Challenging Questions on the Anatolian Plateau
Istanbul, dealing with a broken smartphone, Turkish food, Cappadocia, on wild camping and magic letters.
Hotels and Motels, A Dead Tortoise and the End of Europe
An anarchist girl with piercing blue eyes, Skopje, friends and food in Bulgaria and taking my life in my hands on the road into Istanbul.
