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January 2, 2006

It's already more than a month that I'm back in Switzerland. At the end of October, after having crossed the whole of Russia, I left snowy St Petersburg to ride the last kilometers back home to Central Europe. The European Union expanded eastwards during the time I've been away so it was only the short trip to Estonia that brought me back into the EU. It's still a long way from there but it instantly feels much more like home. This was probably the reason why I rushed through the Baltic states and Poland to get to Western Europe. I slowed down through Germany and Holland to visit some people I met on the trip before I finally crossed the border and got back to Switzerland on November the 24th, after 927 days of travel. Nationality looses some importance when you travel through many contries but I caught myself having some patriotic feelings when I set foot on my homeland. I always hoped to come back home by road, the same way that I left, and it really is special to get into known territory kilometer by kilometer. But all too soon you think you've never been away. Not many things changed in Switzerland, far less than you'd probably think. But this is probably what makes you feel home. Everything is as expected. It has been all different during the trip. About 3000km in the air, close to 12000km on boats and, of course, 98000km on the road, the place to be. It was a time of constant change, almost every day brought something unknown. New countries, new landscapes, new cities, new people, new climates, new food and sometimes new problems, too. It was a wonderful experience, excitement day by day and above all, unprecedented freedom. Thanks to all the people I met around the world - some of them for longer, some of them for only a very short time - and who helped me along the way. You made the trip! In the meantime I already did some acclimatisation work including some time in the army (you have to do that here in Switzerland, honestly) but it will still take some time to really get back into daily life. It's so different to traveling that sometimes I think I just read a book about my trip but didn't actually do it. Getting home also means to get back to work again and this actually sounds quite exciting to me. I wish you a very exciting 2006, too, in good health, lots of success with what you do (or not do) and hopefully some travels as well.

October 26, 2005

I'm back in Europe, Russia's Route 66 is behind me. But it's a little bit longer than the American original. I rode 12,000km since Vladivostok and since I crossed the Urals I'm officially back in Europe. It feels European for a long time already and since Moscow inclusive the croweded city centres, fastfood and all the other luxuries from the west, tourists in perceiveable quantities and many wealthy Russians. Russia's cities are something else from the rest of the country. You don't need to stray out far of the city and the roads get bumby again and the flashy restaurant becomes a wooden shed again. But even in the cities Russia can be tough on you. Looking for hours to find a hotel accepting foreigners and having a guarded parking. It doesn't end with that. Five minutes to lock a hotel room, the red tap is there but no hot water, three minutes to pull a curtain, flushing the toilet five times until it's not leaking any more, the ATM promises English but continues in Russian, queueing up and paying once for the bread, once for the fish, once for the drink, and, and, and, ... But this is the real Russia as well as its people who don't get annoyed about that at all and, of course, the vodka which you probably need to get indifferent enough. There is now something typically Russian for the first time: It's snowing here in St. Petersburg. Until it melts I'm going to stay here. And then it's back home through the Baltics, Poland and Germany. And should the weather get better I'm not really that much in a hurry.

September 19, 2005

Russia, how many misconceptions I had about this country. The times when you had to walk the streets with a plastic bag instead of a daypack to cover your wealth are long gone. Especially in the cities there is not much to be seen anymore of a desolate Russia. Most city centres are newly renovated, the buildungs from the time before the revolution all shine, the stores are full with whatever you want, Russia is up and running. The sins of the Soviet times can be seen outside the centre in the form of gray residental blocks in rows and smoking industral sites. Less civilised it got as well when I left Russia's far east heading to the west. The road is partly quite bad and where there never has been a road it's often just a long road works site. I didn't ride the more than 2000km of unsealed road without any problems. A big piece of rock tore a hole into the engine, some hundred kilometers away from the next town. Luckily there was a road workers camp closeby where I was helped with liquid aluminium to close the hole as actually everything gets repaired in Russia. At the other end in Chita you get back to civilisation hypnotised of endless long rides through the forests of the Russian taiga. There's noch much choice crossing Siberia, from one city it's on to the other, Ulan-Ude, lake Baikal, Irkutsk, Krasnoyarsk. In fact Siberia is by far not as lonesome as one might think as there is a railway for more than hundred years already. Right now I'm in Tomsk, more or less on the latitude of Kazachstan's eastern end but at nearly 60 degrees nord. It's almost only cold at night, the days having best autumn weather with clear skies and much sun. There are 2000km to ride to get over the Ural mountains and thus after more than two years back to the European continent. Soon I have to think about my return. But until then I think there will be some chilly rides on the bike.

August 18, 2005

After nearly two months my time in Japan came to an end. Japan, the country of the heated toilet seats, the pocket ashtrays, the trafic lights without end, the unbearable summer heat, the best Asian cuisine, the endlessly working salarymen, the Japanese ladies with their high heels and their handbag always in the ellbow and for me it also was the country of the rain. It was demanding and exhausting to travel through Japan. The only obvious thing of Japanese culture in modern Japan probably is the excellent cuisine. Apart from that the quiet Japan is hard to find, the country is extremely commercial. Advertisments are everywhere, in the subway, along the road, on the screen at your restaurant table. What money can do here is done. The result is much concrete in purpose-only buildings, bypass roads and railway routes. But architecture that survived industrialisation and the many earthquakes can be found as small islands of wonderful temples surrounded by perfectly desinged gardens. But Japanese culture as well is the very formal way people treat each other, a society where respect and loyality are everything. The crime rate is low and you never hear somebody shout. With all this correctness you may miss the spontaneous side of life and many simple things are sometimes much more complicated than they could be. In the meantime I arrived in Vladivostok and the Russians are very helpful people as well but it's over with Japan's formal politeness. Sometimes you're stunned about the answers you get when you ask for something. Nevertheless I got my bike through customs and I really enjoy the European atmosphere here in Valdivostok. Unfortunately I don't have much time, the winter is coming closer and today has brought some cold and wet weather which makes me quite nervous. The crossing of Siberia once was the first idea for the big trip. Now I'm going to do it on the way back home. But with a bike as old as mine I wouldn't have left. I still hope to be in Moscow in two months, if not it's going to get cold, very cold.

July 28, 2005

For six weeks I'm in Japan now and the country gave me on of the hardest time on my trip. It started with much (very much) rain in the southwest. Camping grounds are rare in Japan and youth hostels are not really cheap neither so living outdoors gets a little bit more demanding. With the perspective of travels in countries with less adequate medical services I decided to have my inguinal hernia fixed here in Japan. One week I had to stay in the rain around the Kyoto area before I was admitted to the hospital for three days. After a couple of more days of rest I finally left Kyoto just to have an accident shortly after. A car bumped into my rear while I was waiting at a trafic light. Nothing happened to me and the bike took it quite good as well. With some delay I arrived at the Wolrd Expo but the only reason to go there may is curiosity. It's a very commercial thing and thus quite expensive here in Japan. A taifun recently brought a lot of rain again but in the meantime the weather is good again, actually too good, that is, terribly hot. But still, even with the hardships of traveling, Japan is still fascinating. Its cities are horribly demanding places but in contrast to it there peaceful and beautiful temples, the Japanese bathing culture is very relaxing and the cuisine is top. Right now I'm in Yokohama, the neighbouring city of Tokyo and once again found a home for a couple of days at a friends place. Time now to prepare the trip home.

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