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back on line
Finally I can post again, there has been a problem with my computer which prevented me doing most things. And now I've lost the bottom line of things- and that's how I turn it off so this could get interesting.
anyway, a few more pics while I search to try and find the words to go with them whoops, maybe spoke to soon, looks like I have to re-start the PC again |
Sea Crossing
It was time to leave the island which was when things went wrong, I lost the keys, Ok, misplaced- first time in 16 years of travel. And then I also have to admit there was a bit of a language barrier and we missed the proper ferry back to the mainland – it left at the unearthly hour of 4.30 and yet I’d been told it always goes at 6.30am.
This was our alternative boat http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7950-M.jpg The one in the foreground, at least it's got life jackets. And this was the one that Suzi would go in http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7932-M.jpg – an open sea crossing and they crammed a LOT of bikes into what they were treating as a vehicle ferry http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7935-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7938-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7937-M.jpg We think we look great in our life jackets! http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7942-S.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7944-M.jpg We overtook the vehicle ferry as it chugged its way across the ocean. http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7947-M.jpg We still feel it was an added bonus was that we made it safely ashore to the mainland of Madagascar, we could easily still be floating around the Indian Ocean. and our luggage also made it (handy porter service) http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7948-M.jpg As did Suzi and the mopeds http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7953-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7955-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7957-M.jpg And we were soon on our way http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7958-M.jpg |
Oh Dear, RN5 with a Pillion Rider
What I had neglected to tell my erstwhile pillion passenger was that this alternative ferry would dump us on a desolate bit of coast with 30kms of sand tracks to get to any decent road surface
http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...CIMG0221-M.jpg She took it in good spirit and when Suzi wasn’t able to carry the pair of us through the deeper sandy bits, the Librarian got off and walked! http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7965-M.jpg Or ran! http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7962-M.jpg For those of you who have been paying attention, I got her to run on this part as a re-enactment of an earlier pic from this section of sand. I said "I'm Sorry" to her a lot. And if she could ride sand I would have swapped places with her http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7963-M.jpg We ran into a problem with some fishing ropes- these stretch for hundreds of yards from the water across the beach and beyond. http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7964-M.jpg Luckily the librarian was behind me AND she has a loud voice as she was able to alert me before it became a problem. A much needed lunch break at this spot http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7967-M.jpg Typical Madagascan fare, lost of fried things http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7969-M.jpg Something very dodgy looking being sold in the pink bowl wrapped in bits of old paper, we weren’t brave enough to try them http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7970-M.jpg though we had a go at most of the food items A river crossing or three on this route, all educational for my sister. What’s known as a Double Pirogue in the business, fairly standard for bikes bigger than a moped, or so I was assured. The pirogues are tied together and the passengers get in one boat while the bike is in the other. http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7971-M.jpg I usually sit by the bike so that I can hold it steady if anything goes wrong http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7972-M.jpg Back on solid ground... http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7975-M.jpg …or so I thought! http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7973-M.jpg I hadn’t approached this bank with enough revs and I paid the price. http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...CIMG0223-M.jpg The best petrol station in town http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7976-M.jpg And then back on the road alongside the Indian Ocean with the opportunity to grab a quick swim on the beach http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7978-M.jpg Through a palm tree plantation, I’m not sure what kind they are. http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7987-M.jpg Our final picture together on Suzi http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7959-M.jpg __________________ |
She's Leaving
Madagascar - Land of the bright green geckos
http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7990-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7992-M.jpg We're heading back to civilisation http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_7998-M.jpg A large boulder of rock being cut into pieces and sold at the roadside. http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8003-M.jpg Back in Tana, we unloaded the bike. The Librarian had a go at riding Suzi, http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8012-M.jpg and did well http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8019-M.jpg Last street food- some of this sweet stuff, which looks dodgy but tastes nice http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8016-M.jpg We posed for our final pictures together– photos taken by an eight year old, hence the unusual angle. http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8010-M.jpg Then dodging the watchful gaze of the Gendarmerie at the airport car park (their uniform is identical to the one worn in France) http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8025-M.jpg Librarian does a last bit of re-packing (in the airport) http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8023-M.jpg And she’s gone. BACK TO SOLO TRAVEL To say thanks to our host for the great hospitality, I clean his KTM bike http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8028-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8030-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8031-M.jpg The finished product - even Thelma never looked this clean http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8033-M.jpg And then relax with a cold beer and an email session on the computer, http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8037-M.jpg |
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So far so good.
Love the pics and I'm amazed at the number of water crossings. Are you doing that on purpose? Jamie |
G'day Tiffany ,enjoyed your post as always.
Sam (Manicom) put a link on to facebook this morning of your(Radio) interview,i must say i enjoyed your frankness.I have to admit to wondering how you are able to afford to travel so much,makes me reassess what i'm spending money on.Do you think you sister will get behind the bars on her own bike in the future? Anyhow you put life in my day,regards Noel:D |
All Over the Map-with Tiffany!
Butting in on Tiffany's page here to let all her fans know of her Podcast interview up now at Lorraine Chittock. Just scroll down to her picture, click on the download link and VOILA!
Great and fun chat between myself and the Queen of Adventure Riding. bier |
Heading East without the Librarian
Ah, yes Lonely Coates they call me now.
Suzi pops into the workshop Suzi was having a facelift before I left Tana http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8041-M.jpg We'll be setting off east and Suzi is getting this fitted http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8039-M.jpg a reappearance by Arsene the chef who also turns out to be a mechanic as he fits the larger fuel tank to Suzi and changes the colour scheme a bit. http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8040-M.jpg So Suzi and I apparently now have about 300kms range, which will be useful. Heading out of Tana I pass the giant granite boulder which is still being chipped away http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8042-M.jpg I can already see the difference from when I passed this way last time. http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8043-M.jpg and the green paddy fields stretching away- apparently Madagascar is the only part of Africa where rice is grown, I must admit I haven't seen fields of rice like this apart from Asia and err, Iran http://d26ya5yqg8yyvs.cloudfront.net/eek7.gif yep, remember those pictures from a ride I did a couple of years ago?http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8045-M.jpg Buildings change from scruffy concrete to mud http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8047-M.jpg and there's still tarmac on the road In Andasibe, I got roped into doing a jungle walk http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8062-M.jpg this was a guy attempting to get a giraffe necked weevil down out of the tree to show us what it looked like http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8048-M.jpg I won't bother doing all the far away shots, I had to take as we made our way through the jungle catching glimpses of them, here is one of them closer...but what is it... http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8067-M.jpg They've got faces like a koala, no tail and yet they're a type of lemur http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8076-M.jpg called an Indri http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8075-M.jpg |
Did you say "on purpose"?
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I'm as surprised as you are- I'm definitely NOT doing it on purpose as there are lots of delays, all the negotiations and then the actual reality of bobbing across a river, you and your precious bike- usually close to where it meets the sea, and as you know that is often the roughest and most unpredictable water. It makes you appreciate the infrastructure we have in the more developed countries- this harks back to a time when there were few roads and even fewer bridges, or bridges which have been washed away by cyclones..speaking of which... Wait until you see what is coming up. |
Radio Stuff
Quote:
I'm still waiting to get a good enough Internet connection and time to listen to the radio interview- Lorraine and I chatted for quite a long time and I'm now wondering exactly what I said! I'd love it if my sister got into bike travel- no one in my family even rides a motorbike, so none of that lot really understand although they've all had a pillion ride at some point. |
New Friends & Old
http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8149-M.jpg
Bet you didn't know that Madagascar has crocodiles- so there I was thinking what a bonus it is to be able to camp in an African country and not have to worry about lions, when someone took me to see the crocs! Must remember not to camp near rivers and apparently these are just the small ones, look at this croc skin http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8154-M.jpg someone else can do the maths, but I'm 5'6" tall and look who arrived in town? http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...G_8159sm-M.jpg It's Kim, the Korean guy on the Honda whom I last saw on the west coast a couple of weeks ago. Once more we're going in opposite directions but we had a couple of beers over dinner. And then in the morning he headed off into the jungle to look for Indri before heading into Tana where he returns his hire bike and gets his next flight onward to... well I can't think of a more extreme opposite to Madagascar at the moment, he's off to Icelandhttp://d26ya5yqg8yyvs.cloudfront.net/eek7.gifhttp://d26ya5yqg8yyvs.cloudfront.net/eek7.gif http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...G_8160sm-M.jpg Good luck Kim. And no, don't worry folks he hasn't been travelling like that 0 it's just his day kit. Another familiar face ( remember the flat tyre from a while ago?) I was passing through the same village and stopped to have a cup of tea with the family who helped. Antonio wasn't around but his Mum was, and she's carrying around a pic of Antonio sat on Suzi with my sister next to him http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...G_8162sm-M.jpg I think she has got an eye on my sister being her new daughter-in-law! I tried pointing out that I'm the single onehttp://d26ya5yqg8yyvs.cloudfront.net/icon10.gif Mango season has started and my favourite fruit is everywhere and very cheap http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8157-M.jpg and then down the road, just as it started raining I saw these guys and pulled over to see if I could help http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8167-M.jpg |
It Rained
Those blokes were simply out of fuel, and how pleased were they that I had stopped?!
They pulled out an old drinks bottle and had my fuel pipe off in seconds! http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8164-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8166-M.jpg back to their moped- amazed that I wouldn't take any money for the fuel they had taken They headed off, with a cheery wave and... http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8168-M.jpg squeezing on with the hatted one's sister and her basket of shopping which was somehow crammed in between his knees. http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8169-M.jpg The rain was heavy and made the rest of the day a bit grim for riding, I eventually stopped at a town which promised beach bungalows by the name of Tropicana (oh those days of Wham), but it didn't look very tropical, even when the deluge had stopped pouring http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8170-M.jpg Down on the beach they were bringing in the day's catch http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8172-M.jpg |
I Dropped Her
Whoops - wrong title and now I can't change it!
The day started peacefully enough, with watching this guy in the water, up to his neck in the lily pads http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8183-M.jpg I'm not sure exactly what he was doing http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8184-M.jpg Pulling up handfuls of roots and draping them over his makeshift raft. The first river crossing of the day, with a mechanised barc http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8177-M.jpg Watching what appeared to be the whole village in the water perilously close to the massive breakers http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8178-M.jpg getting the fish in http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8179-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8181-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8203-M.jpg Some dirt tracks (no tarmac for a while- or at least some days...no one ever seems sure) these were fun to ride Then the first of the river crossings where the barc (barge) didn't appear to be operating http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8185-M.jpg refreshments were on hand for those waiting http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8189-M.jpg I was most disappointed to find that they had fish in them and so was she to find that I didn't eat fish as there were no other customers However, there was an alternative to the barc http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8186-M.jpg Yep, the good old double pirogue although on closer inspection, this one didn't appear very seaworthy http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8187-M.jpg I held my breath as they heaved Suzi onto it http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8190-M.jpg Though actually, once we got going it didn't seem too bad http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8193-M.jpg __________________ |
I Dropped Her
Just to prove there are some bridges in Madagascar
http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8199-M.jpg It was a day of dirt and sand, the hours went by and the heat built up- I got tired and the inevitable happened Suzi had a lie down http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8214-M.jpg I had a few attempts at heaving her back up http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8218-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8219-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8220-M.jpg http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8221-M.jpg In the end I had to take the bags off. I liked the look of this burnt tree http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8223-M.jpg The ultimate shadow puppet http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8227-M.jpg The sand turned to dirt and I out on a bit of speed, I was hoping to reach a town for the night so that I could have a beer, http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8230-M.jpg Note to self - I've got to stop pulling the Daisy Duck face when I'm riding and then there it was, one more river to cross (I crossed four in total today, but I thought you wouldn't appreciate too many river crossings!) http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8232-M.jpg these guys just really didn't seem to know what they were doing. So I showed them pictures on my camera from other pirogue crossings and so they started to rope these two together http://tiffanystravels.smugmug.com/M...IMG_8233-M.jpg They went a bit more fancy than Suzi and I are used to, with large poles holding the two pirogues together |
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