July 07 Onwards

Well as promised, I ended up taking a holiday from travelling last week.

In fact, I stayed at a sweet old Catholic fella's house on an island in the old Arabian for most of it.

Now though, I'm in the middle of mad Delhi as it goes, and I'm chilling out in yet another top notch pad.

Can't be bad, eh?!

I mean, they even had some Deep Purple playing at the place as I was grabbing some scoff downstairs this morning.

And that was right up my street ;o)

But onto the scandal that's in the city now anyway.

And there was quite a bit of it knocking about when I visited the capital's post office yesterday actually.

Because not only had some cheeky sod who worked there already opened up a "poste restante" parcel they had waiting for me...

But he'd also managed to slash open my 100 quid rucksack (which was inside it) with a knife...

Have a good old rummage through all of it's personal contents...

And then tape it back together again as though nothing had ever happened!

Ha ha!

I was well shocked when I found out about it at the time!

But at least I did so there and then in front of witnesses I suppose!

And yes, I guess I did quite enjoy losing face in front of them by getting stuck into the heated debate that followed as well ;o)

Hmmm.

Having said this though, it didn't give me as much satisfaction as when I had a tv reporter come up to me in the street today...

Because do you know what question she asked me funnily enough?

"What don't you like about India Sir?"

And even though I think I disappointed her at first by saying that I really did like the place...

I must admit that it soon became a case of lights, camera, action when the old slashing the bag incident cropped up into our conversation!

Oh, and she reckoned I was going to be gossiping about it on a national news channel this evening as well ;o)

That'll learn 'em!

Ha ha!

Enough of me babbling on now anyway.

Because as I hinted last week, it's time for me to fade out of this little blog of mine I'm afraid!

As in a couple of days time I'm meant to be meeting my dad for a 9 day tour of the golden triangle up here ;o)

What a great experience it's been though, eh?!

In fact, it's hard to believe I'm due to be getting a flight back to the UK in 11 days time you know!

I mean, it hardly seems like two minutes since I gave the old boy my mobile phone last July and told him to look after it for a year!

I remember the day quite well actually, because I was well nerved up at the time!

But back to the present moment.

And before I do go and let this site start gathering dust with all the other blogs out there on the information superhighway...

And I then disappear off into a world of my own as I dream about touring Europe in a C-Reg Mk III in the future...

(Well providing I can work my leave allocation ok on that one!)

I just want to say one more thing to you all really.

And that is a big "thank you" for sharing my travels with me.

Because what with there being 9,763 hits on this site since I opened it up 2 weeks into my adventure, there is no way I did this on my own.

In fact, I'm taking the above as the biggest compliment I've ever had, and I mean that!

Oh, and one more final thing now(!)

If you haven't done so yet, and you are lucky enough to find the time and space in your life to go travelling for a while like I did?

Well I apologise, because these aren't my words (as they are the words of a friend):

But there's all shapes and sizes doing it out there you know.

So get out there and get rocking ;o)

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20 facts about my year away:

1) Total number of countries I either transited, visited or stayed in: 10.

2) Favourite country: China.

3) Total number of nights I spent on a bus/ferry/train: 18.

4) Longest time duration I spent on any one particular train: 6 days.

5) Most exciting place I visited: City of Zhengzhou, China.

6) The country's history I found most interesting: India.

7) Total number of towns/cities I either visited for tourist reasons or used as a functional part of my journey: 56.

8) Total number of different beds I slept in (oo-er missus!): 73.

9) Nicest border guards I came across: The Myanmar officials at the Thai/Burmese border.

10) Erm, "strictest"(!) border guards I came across: The Russian officials at the Russian/Mongolian border.

11) Total number of kilometres I cycled: 1,620.

12) Most impressive tourist attraction I saw: Angkor Wat, Cambodia.

13) Best feeling of the year: Getting a local stare at me with that unmistakable "What on earth are you?!" look (the one they gave to me if they had never seen a Westerner turn up on their doorstep before). Magic!

14) Best "travelling" experience I had: Making a mess of it at the Laos/Cambodian border.

15) Speed at which my Master could kick somebody: Off the scale. (I felt it before I saw it in one particular demonstation. Amazing. In fact he was the most programmed man I have ever had the pleasure of meeting before!)

16) Weirdest nightclub I visited: Heart of Darkness (Phnom Penh, Cambodia.)

17) Most beautiful girl I saw: An Indian Barbie for sale in a toy shop on the subcontinent.

18) Favourite 24 hours of my travels: My birthday.

19) Scoff of the year: Home made Chinese dumplings.

20) Beer of the Year: Beer Lao.

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Please click on this link to see a full version of the image entry called "Map" if you like (it shows the route I took from start to finish):

http://www.blog.co.uk/community/profile_photo_sizes.php?item_ID=2602835&size=o

****

*THANK YOU EVERYBODY*

****

For Isabella when she grows up
To Mum
xx x

I'm sorry to have to go on about nothing for a bit as I start penning this little beauty up, but it was funny the way I opened up this uncletravellingmatt web thing wasn't it?

In fact "A sober introduction from a guy who is buzzing" were the exact opening words I used on the original blog I wrote, as I was finishing off my one year stint in Chelmsford's bedsit land. (This was before the Great Firewall of China blocked my access to xanga and I cut and pasted my original entries onto this one).

Well anyway.

I'm nearly at the other end of blogging it now, as it's almost time for the finishing part of my trip away!...

You know; the part where I meet up with my Dad in 10 days time (get in there!), and then after me spending 9ish days with him, I also hop over India's troublesome borders on a magic transporting machine of course don't I; to then put on my Where's Wally gear, do a quick train/bus journey combo back through Europe, jump on a P&O in France, make friends with a trucker at the ferry bar, pose for a snap with him up on deck with those beautiful white cliffs in the background, and well, phew, pretty much finish it off all pretty nicely indeed...

Ha ha!

But the strange thing about it though...

Is that I've run out of steam now haven't I?!

And to be honest really, I'm sat here in India at the moment right (me being the big soppy ape that I am), and all I'm thinking to myself is that I can't wait to meet my old man up in Delhi and be able to say to him: "Do you know what mate? I've missed you! Fancy a Kingfisher?!"

Because after the week that I've just had, and yes, at this point I could go on and tell you about the joys of coming across railway kiosks that only seem to sell the likes of "Wonder Cake"; oh and of me being able to finally enjoy seeing some cows get stuck into chewing some decent cud because the monsoon rains have started to kick in over here (even if some of them were neck-deep in the gush at the time)...

But man.

There was also a point during the past few days when I was put into a situation where I had a casualty doctor laughing at me, a taxi wallah's wife I hadn't even met before praying for me, and a sweet old guy in his 70's I was renting a room from telling me that if I needed some readies for any services rendered, he was willing to lend me some bless him...

This being the sort of situation where I tend to appreciate the sheer beauty of the good people in life by the way, whilst I'm also feeling like I'm wanting to tell the people who are looking at me as though I have got a hoop in my trousers to go and boil their heads as well...

So.

It's with this in mind that it's time for a holiday from travelling now me reckons.

Just to sit still for a while and think to myself what a fantastic year it really has been for me.

And for those of you who are interested, the first part of which will hopefully be in a nice hotel somewhere that has slashed it's prices because it's the tourism low season over here...

And the second part of which will be to have the chance of a lifetime with my Dad, as we take in the likes of the Taj Mahal whilst looking back at the glory of being at Wembley at 15:37 on 21st April 1991...

I really can't wait for that bit actually!

But anyway...

Then after this it will hopefully be a case of me jumping back home on a plane with him in order to spend some quality time with my family and mates of course...

Before I slope off down to Bethnal Green to live with my pals Reg and Mick until I get my feet back on the ground...

And then meet up with the man with a bit of gold on his shoulders (who allowed me to do all of this in the first place)...

So I can go on and start saving up for the latest Wednesday home shirt and that Capri 1.6 laser I've always been after...

Oh, and that's not to mention me getting myself back into society, drinking cups of tea, trying to join a football team, getting used to walking down pavements that are nice, even and straight, and getting myself introduced to my mobile phone again as well of course!

In fact, when I look at it actually, I suppose I could say that I've got my work cut out really haven't I?!

Ha ha!

But don't you go worrying though.

Because, like I say, in the meantime I do have a nice holiday to be getting on with...

Oh and it will be on this that I will be typing up my final written blog entry as it goes...

This being out of pure courtesy if nothing else...

Because, to put it quite simply, the support I have been given during this past year has been nothing short of amazing, and I really do mean that.

Well anyway...

I'd better get going now and get rocking...

Take care and speak soon ;o)

As a quick update for you, I ended up leaving the city of Madurai the day after I spoke to you last, and after a few days worth of travelling I reached the Land's End of India on Sunday (which is where I am writing this now).

Actually, here are the final Merc-o-meter readings for you to look at if you like:

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Total number of towns I visited since leaving Chennai: 11
Total number of kilometres I cycled: 870ish
Overall Heat Rating: Like being in a sauna that never switched off.
Total number of times I had to get off the road pronto because of double/triple overtaking manoeuvres: More than 20, less than 25.

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Oh, and for those of you who are interested, here are 3 facts about the Indian Land's End as well:

1) It's proper name is Cape Comorin/Kanyakumari, and it is a small town that is situated in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

2) It makes up the southernmost tip of the mass of land that was an island in the sea before it crashed into the continent above all those years back (this is how the Himalayas were formed by the way).

3) The rough triangular shape of it down here means that you are able to see where 3 different masses of water (the Bay of Bengal, the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea) all join up and meet each other.

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Well anyway... back to my travels, and you wanted to check out the state of this strange goodnight John-Boy establishment I had to sleep in the other night!

I mean, I know it only cost me a quid or something and that you get what you pay for, but even so, the bare-bones room I was given was so basic and weird, that all it had in it was a small bed, a red lightbulb and not a lot else!

In fact, it was that far out in there, it was like I was stepping onto the set of a Quentin Tarantino film or something when I walked into the place at first!

Oh, and because I couldn't find any food I could recognise when I was out and about at the local shops a bit later on, it soon became a case of me having to tuck into the single melted toffee I had on me for dinner as well, which ended up adding to the comedy value of things of course!

Ha ha!

The joys of being out in the middle of nowhere, eh?!

Needless to say though, despite me having to put up with all this randomness for a while, it all made sense again when I was pedalling alongside the foothills of the Ghat Mountains a couple of days later...

And when I finally did make it down to this Land's End place I am at now (and I saw sea, sea and sea pop up on 3 sides of me at the end of my journey)... well that was something pretty special too as it goes.

In fact on the subject of which, take a quick look at these if you like (don't worry, there's only 4 of them!)...

Thinking about it actually, it is quite a nice part of the world for me to be visiting when I look at it really (the old Land's End I mean).

I must say it's a shame that the clouds have been blocking the morning sunrise I've been after since I got here though...

But hey... at least this overcast weather has been providing me with a good enough excuse to ignore the Ray-Ban men who have been trying to sell me their fakes every five minutes or so...

Because all I need to do when they come up to me is point up to the sky and walk off... ;o)

Well anyway, sorry to keep it short this week, but I'd better go and put this latest tour of mine to bed now I suppose, as the 4 days I spent with this bug in Madurai recently has in turn meant that I'm a bit behind schedule at the moment I'm afraid!

The thing is you see, I have to be up in Delhi in just under 20 days time in order to meet a partner in crime of mine (this being my Dad!), and there are still loads of things out there for me to see in the meantime, as you could probably well imagine!

I tell you what though... if there are any of you reading this who do fancy doing a similar thing to what I have just done in the future, I must highly recommend the old coconut string they have out here to you actually... as it ended up coming in quite handy as I was travelling around.

Ha ha!

As did my compass for when I was trying to work out which way to exit a couple of the bigger towns funnily enough!...

Hmmm...

As for the local bicycle I was using out here however??...

Well maybe I got myself one that was made on a Friday afternoon or something, so unfortunately I will have to pass judgement on that one for now!

But having said this, it did end up being quite funny when I went and sold it to a waiter at the hotel I was staying at yesterday...

Because first there was the official handshake as the deal was being struck at lunchtime...

Then there was the wife having to suffer a one-and-a-half hour bus journey in order to come and deliver the dosh...

Erm, that in turn was followed by a weird sweaty-brow incident and the whole going back on the handshake attempt of course...

And then at the end of it all, there was also the impromptu handing-over ceremony in a car park that was witnessed by the world and his wife as well!

Ha ha!

All in a day's work, eh?!

Speak soon ;o)

As a quick update for you on my travels, I left the eastern coastal route in Tamil Nadu recently as it goes, and I ended up travelling in a westerly direction towards the city of Madurai (this being so that I could get myself nicely lined up for the final part of my journey to India's Land's End).

Unfortunately though, as excited as I was when I finally hit the "Big Smoke of the South" late last week, I came down with a strange mystery bug within 24 hours of getting there, and so as a result of this it has all gone a bit pear-shaped on the tour front for a while I'm afraid!

Ha ha!

Despite this however, and on the geek side of things(!), this has meant that I have been able to get stuck into reading a few things about the country I am in at the moment, which has been pretty cool...

Oh and speaking of which actually, if there is one important thing I am going to highlight on this blog of mine whilst I am here I suppose, it's the fact that I'm finding the history between India and England nothing short of amazing you know.

But anyway... it's not my place to go on about it here of course, so for the moment here is the latest gossip on the old Merc-o-meter front for you to read:

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Number of towns I have visited since leaving Chennai so far: 8
Number of kilometres I have cycled so far: 630ish
Heat Rating: Still on the "Very" side (up to and over 41 Celcius apparently).
Number of times I have had to get off the road pronto because of double/triple overtaking manoeuvres: More than 10, less than 20.
Anything else important that needs to be thrown in there too:
1) I held my first ever real-life cannon-ball the other day.
2) I got chased by 2 very athletic dogs recently as well.

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And back to blogging about the stuff that relates to when I was out and about on the road up until late last week... and hmmm... well... I must start off by saying that my experience of the usuage of horns on the subcontinent so far has been something else!

In fact when I look at it right, the beepers seem to be that loud and used that much out here, that if the truth be known, I am seriously thinking it wouldn't be a bad idea for me to buy a massive car battery, strap it to the back of my bicycle, and rig up a special honk-honk device of my own really!

I mean, I was even walking down this busy narrow street the other day, and I'm sure that when this fella tooted me I felt a rush of air between my ears!...

Ha ha!

I don't think I'd ever heard such a disgustingly loud sound in an enclosed space like it at the time before! (Or felt one for that matter!)

Actually, as a quick insight for those of you who haven't been to this part of the world yet, here is my own interpretation of the sounds of the beeping culture in Tamil Nadu for you if you like (and this is to be taken quite literally by the way!):

Motorbike Horn = Car Horn
Car Horn = Lorry Horn
Lorry Horn = Train Horn
Bus Horn = Ferry Horn

And when I look at it ok, the thing is I can deal with all of the above of course (especially when I am pedalling away now, as instead of the beeps intimidating me like they used to, they just reassure me that the driver behind me has actually seen me)... but even so, come on though... don't be sounding those ferry horns when everybody is trying to sleep at 2am in the morning, please!

Well anyway... change of subject now, and yes, this is a cheesy thing to say I know... but I must admit that it has kind of felt like I've been watching a live tv documentary whilst I've been travelling through the sticks at times recently...

Women whose vibrant clothes have been splashing bright colours across the otherwise bland fields they've been working in... the poor old man at the roadside who looked as though he needed a pulse-check 5 days ago... the big animal who had an argument with a bus that nobody had done anything about... the strange fella who stopped me in the middle of nowhere because he wanted to either 1) eat my camera or 2) eat the profits from selling my camera as well...

In fact, it's fair to say that by the time it did actually come to me getting to the big sprawling city of Madurai last week, I was in very good need of the Kingfisher that the waiter had just frothed-up all over my table really!

Actually, whilst I am on the subject of drinking in this part of the world quickly, have you ever been to the bars out here before??

Because if you haven't, and I don't know if this is to do with the forbidden aspect of drinking alcohol in this particular state I'm in, but I must say that the alcohol venues they have dotted about the place are very shady and secretive you know!

I mean, I was that shocked at the mist of darkness that surrounded me as I entered the first one I visited a few towns back, that I ended up starting to walk out of it because I thought it was closed!

Ha ha!

Despite this though, I am pleased to say that the restaurants out here (and the dishes they serve up) are a bit more colourful... but even so... and this next bit reflects badly on me I guess... I will be the first to admit that I am finding the vegetarian nosh that's being dished up for me in the smaller towns a tad hard to deal with at times...

This being even more the case when I consider the fact that I'm only meant to be using my right hand to eat it with as well I suppose, as this makes scooping it up well difficult for me! I end up in a right old mess at the dinner table, as you could probably well imagine!

Anyway... bring into the equation the godsend of the posh looking hotel I was staying in last week however (for the price of a UK fiver may I add), and I was well happy on the old food front wasn't I?!...

I'd arrived there at around 10 in the morning after cycling 85ish km you see, and the guy on reception told me that if I was quick enough, I would be able to tuck into the complimentary continental style (yes continental style!) breakfast that they had on offer at the place...

Get in there!

In fact looking back on it, I don’t know what the local businessmen eating there knew what to make of me as I pushed my way through the door of the elaborate, gold-trimmed buffet bar at first!...

Because there I was in the thick of it right, with my white shirts that had turned brown from 3 days worth of dust, the dozens of handkerchiefs I had wrapped around my head, oh and me being in need of a good shower to say the least, and I was going for it wasn’t I?!

Scrambled eggs, cereal, fruit juice, cups of tea, the lot...

I couldn't get enough of it!

The wonders of comfort food, eh?!

Ha ha!

Putting the wonders of this hotel buffet aside now though, and I tell you what, I wish you could see what these other Western food places here are serving me up on occasions you know...

I mean I've even had cereal that's been given to me with boiling milk to pour on it a few times since I've been here (and I don't think I could torture the poor cornflakes like that first thing in the morning really, bless them!)...

Then when I was feeling a little ill yesterday, the cream of tomato soup that was brought to me ended up coming out with none other than bread and jam too of course!...

Oh and speaking of which actually, that last one almost beats the time I was in China last year and my English mates ordered themselves a hot dog each in order to remind themselves of home as it goes...

Because when what they asked for did finally come out to the table we were sat at, they too found that the squirt of tomato sauce on top of them had been replaced by strawberry jam!

Ha ha!

Well looking at it, I suppose their red nature must have made them both look a little bit similarish to the poor Chinese chef who was responsible for designing the dish(!)... especially if he was trying to copy a picture of a hot dog out of a Western cuisine magazine or something at the time maybe?!

Anyway... jokes aside, and it's back to me being a big wet girl's blouse for now I'm afraid, as I try and get over whatever it is I have come across out here!...

Rock on and speak soon ;o)