My Round The World ride (inc top blagging at Spa & The Ring)
Discussion
It's a bit of a long shot but is anyone coming from the UK to Sofia or Istanbul in the next 1-2 weeks that can bring me a synthetic unicef t-shirt that looks as though it's going to cost about £30 to post?
At the moment I'm riding in a cotton t-shirt which gets a bit grim after a day in this heat never mind 1-2 weeks between washes.
At the moment I'm riding in a cotton t-shirt which gets a bit grim after a day in this heat never mind 1-2 weeks between washes.
daz3210 said:
Can we get one in the UK and post it cheaper from this end?
Any idea on weight so I can check?
The t-shirt is coming from unicef UK who sent it to Belgrade but it got returned as incorrect address (don't know why as I'm at the hostel now and the address is written above the front door) and at 34.50GBP to post they don't want to try again as this is money they should be spending on children so I agree with them on this so have asked them to send it to my parents and I'll pay for them to post it to me but I had no idea it was going to cost the equivalent of 3 nights accommodation!Any idea on weight so I can check?
The weight is only going to be about 100g in a small packet.
andy-ski said:
Hi Neilski (cool name btw) my wife is on holiday with her mum in Istanbul from 12th July till 15th July. They're with an organised group but she's happy to meet in the evening or something. Let me know if that suits?
I would be really happy to play a little part in your epic trip!
That would be great and the timing should be about right too (if I ride non-stop!) I've just checked and Istanbul is about 1000km from Belgrade so it would be a push to get there but if I don't make it I guess she could leave it with the hotel reception for me to collect?I would be really happy to play a little part in your epic trip!
Any chance you could drop me a pm through my profile with your address and I'll get unicef to post it to you?
Many thanks.
Map is now bang up to date: http://g.co/maps/vjj5d
Next up is Nis, Sofia, Plovdiv, Istanbul, Tblisi & Baku.
Also clocked up another 1000km just before Belgrade.
Next up is Nis, Sofia, Plovdiv, Istanbul, Tblisi & Baku.
Also clocked up another 1000km just before Belgrade.
Edited by neilski on Saturday 30th June 11:53
neilski said:
andy-ski said:
Hi Neilski (cool name btw) my wife is on holiday with her mum in Istanbul from 12th July till 15th July. They're with an organised group but she's happy to meet in the evening or something. Let me know if that suits?
I would be really happy to play a little part in your epic trip!
That would be great and the timing should be about right too (if I ride non-stop!) I've just checked and Istanbul is about 1000km from Belgrade so it would be a push to get there but if I don't make it I guess she could leave it with the hotel reception for me to collect?I would be really happy to play a little part in your epic trip!
Any chance you could drop me a pm through my profile with your address and I'll get unicef to post it to you?
Many thanks.
Don't plan on spending too much time in Sofia, it's a hole that one must travel past to get to the holy grail which is Istanbul...
neilski said:
That would be great and the timing should be about right too (if I ride non-stop!) I've just checked and Istanbul is about 1000km from Belgrade so it would be a push to get there but if I don't make it I guess she could leave it with the hotel reception for me to collect?
Well I've now made it to Istanbul including a hot, hilly & death-defying 225km from Edirne to Istanbul in one hit yesterday.Istanbul is the most bike friendly city in the world & I won't hear a bad word said against it! Cycling at night is the best, so relaxing.
I'd like to say a huge thanks to andy-ski for offering & his wife for bringing me two brand new, unfaded, crisp, clean unicef t-shirts that I picked up last night in Istanbul.
Not only did I get the t-shirts but they threw in two bottles of English real ale that I'm enjoying right now instead of the 4 months of fizzy pop lager that they sell everywhere on the continent. PH at its very best!
Cheers, and thanks once again!
Not only did I get the t-shirts but they threw in two bottles of English real ale that I'm enjoying right now instead of the 4 months of fizzy pop lager that they sell everywhere on the continent. PH at its very best!
Cheers, and thanks once again!
Great thread
Another mundane Q here
As someone who gets nervous leaving my bike outside a Peak District cafe for the time it takes to order a cup of tea and a bacon butty then what do you do with your bike, gear and expensive IT kit when blagging laps of racing circuits or drinking fizzy beer with the locals till it all goes dizzy in Ulan Bator?
Cheers and best of luck
RRS_Staffs said:
As someone who gets nervous leaving my bike outside a Peak District cafe for the time it takes to order a cup of tea and a bacon butty then what do you do with your bike, gear and expensive IT kit when blagging laps of racing circuits or drinking fizzy beer with the locals till it all goes dizzy in Ulan Bator?
The race circuits were no problem as everyone there was minted with a 911 GT3, Radical, Noble M600 or something equally exotic and doesn't go rummaging through some panniers on a bike hoping to find something better than sweaty cycling kit so all I did at Spa & the Ring was stick it in a pit garage or by the Ariel guys I'd met in the bar the night before and trust people not to steal from me.If I'm just popping into a glass fronted shop for a minute to buy breakfast or lunch I'll not bother locking it but when I go into a supermarket and it's out of sight for 5 minutes I'll lock it up but that still leaves the panniers vulnerable so I have to take a view on whether the area I'm locking it up in is safe and so far I've not had a problem.
If I go to cafés in the evening I'll normally sit outside or back when it was winter I'd choose a café in the middle of nowhere so less chance of being robbed or sit by the window so I can keep an eye on it. When I get to cities and want to be able to explore for a few days I'll stay in hostels and leave it locked up inside with my bags in my dorm.
The main trick is to have a bike that's not desirable to thieves and to trust people because if I spent the whole time worrying then I'd never do anything except cycle or sit & watch my bike. When I went to the Porsche museum I locked it up for over two hours with all the luggage attached and took a punt that it would be ok & it was.
Here are a few of my favourite photos from the last 5 months. Enjoy....
A timber wolf at Merzig, Germany.
Riding through thick fog, Germany.
Sailing boats on Lake Chiemsee, Germany.
Slavin, Bratislava.
Hungarian Parliament Building, Budapest.
Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest.
Crossing a mountain pass, Slovenia.
Lake Bohinje, Slovenia.
Three fishermen on Lake Bohinje.
Lake Bled, Slovenia.
The Alps, Slovenia.
Lake Bled at Sunrise.
Pag, Croatia.
Sunset at Dubrovnik, Croatia.
Sveti Stefan, Montenegro.
A timber wolf at Merzig, Germany.
Riding through thick fog, Germany.
Sailing boats on Lake Chiemsee, Germany.
Slavin, Bratislava.
Hungarian Parliament Building, Budapest.
Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest.
Crossing a mountain pass, Slovenia.
Lake Bohinje, Slovenia.
Three fishermen on Lake Bohinje.
Lake Bled, Slovenia.
The Alps, Slovenia.
Lake Bled at Sunrise.
Pag, Croatia.
Sunset at Dubrovnik, Croatia.
Sveti Stefan, Montenegro.
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