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Travellers bike stolen in Damascus Syria Travellers bike stolen in Damascus Syria
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  #1  
Old 11 Feb 2010
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Location: Samaipata / Bolivia
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Hello Viggo
Hello Viggo,

thank you for your posts and your email. I have replied to your email before reading your posts.

A Swiss bicyclist told me, that the thieves tried to steal another motorbike (just a few days before mine was stolen) but did not manage to start it. She said the biker was from Norway, and we found your name in the hotel book. So, it was not your bike that they tried to steal.

As I arrived around 20th of January, you did not see my bike. So the biker I will have to look for is German, do you remember the brand of the bike??

At the hotel they told me it is very safe to park my bike outside. Did they know better?

@Samy

Thank you for your thoughts. I agree with you, Syrian people are fantastic, very friendly and welcoming, and living conditions are not easy here. But if something like this happens to you, you see a different side of the country.



More later

Mika
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  #2  
Old 11 Feb 2010
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I don't remember the brand, but it was quite big, looking a bit like yours.
I'm pretty sure the plates were german. I remember thinking about the route you'd have to travel with a bike all the way to Damascus.

Al Rabie is highly recommended in LonelyPlanet, so I don't think they are doing any monkey business. My guess would be travelling thieves from a bad neighbourhood or countries nearby.

I agree with all of you that syrians are very friendly and welcoming. I would like to come back some time.
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  #3  
Old 12 Feb 2010
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Hello Hubblers,

today I met the local motorcycle club here in Damascus, three weeks after the bike got stolen !!!!!

A great bunch of guys, they ride mostly Harleys and Gold Wings, but also Africa Twins and Varaderos. They will try their best to help me to get my bike back. It was very good to talk to them, and we had fantastic arabic food.

As today is Friday (the Sunday in this part of the world), I will start tomorrow again to run around and knock more doors ....

@Viggo
No, I dont believe the hotel staff is connected to the thieves, but if only ten days before I arrived the thieves tried to steal another bike, why did they tell me it is very safe to park the bike outside?

More later

Mika
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  #4  
Old 12 Feb 2010
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Ouch for you and your bike
Hi Mika, greetings from Abu Dhabi, UAE. I'm just another hubbler. I feel so terrible for you and your stolen bike. Besides the emotional loss, I hope you have insurance to cover some of the financial loss.

Ouch.

Keep your chin up!

Shu
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  #5  
Old 13 Feb 2010
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@ doschinos

thank you for your reply. no I dont have insurance and money is not the point.

I started to describe the loss of my bike to the locals here like this:

imagine you come home and your house is gone, there is only a big hole in the ground and nothing left of it. How do you feel if something like this would happen?

Greetings from Damascus
Mika
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  #6  
Old 14 Feb 2010
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Carl Rommel
hello again,

we have the first person that looks like the thief on the picture and he is into big bike here in Damascus .... but it is to early now to tell you more ... but he is from the neighborhood.

the biker traveller I am looking for is Swedish (another bicyclist told me about him), his name is CARL ROMMEL, born in 1980

@Chris pls check the HU website if he is registered and send him an email with my details thanks

More later
Mika
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  #7  
Old 14 Feb 2010
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mika View Post

@Chris pls check the HU website if he is registered and send him an email with my details thanks

More later
Mika
Hi Mika
I've had a search of the HU member list, but it's only searchable by nickname, not real name (also, people are not required to give their real name). I looked at carl/karl/rommel combinations, but no luck. I'll send a pm to Grant who has administrator rights. Maybe he can help more.

Good luck,
Chris
__________________

TBS.com
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  #8  
Old 18 Feb 2010
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no news
Hi all,

no news means bad news.

I am still hunting the thief. Have a look at the picture again, we believe now that he is from Sudan and that the hair on the picture is his real hair. And somebody has seen him ... so maybe more on this today in the afternoon.

Its now nearly a month. The first little report is published in an English newspaper here ... Syria is not an easy place to get the bike back ...

at Chris and Grant. Thank you for checking the names. But this is it, we cant find the name of this mc traveller.

More later
Mika from Damascus
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