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Cycling East
  • Silke und Hauke
ago 2017 – lug 2018

Cycling East

Un’avventura di 315 giorni di Silke und Leggi altro
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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Time for a selfie :-)
    Thank you, Nariman!Endless cityThanks for this day, Tural!Oh yes!Where East meets West

    Diverse Baku

    19 novembre 2017, Azerbaijan ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    Baku is historical, Baku is fascinating, Baku is chaotic, Baku is delicious, Baku is developing fast, Baku is full of interesting people, Baku is vivid, Baku never sleeps, Baku is hilly, Baku is the "City of Winds", Baku is full of palaces (key word oil boom) - in short, Baku is an impressive metropolis.
    We stayed four nights at Nariman's place who is living with his cousin Nabi. From the balconies of his flat in the 19th floor we had great views over the city. During our stay we got to know more family members including four nephews and were kidding around with them while Nariman's mum and aunt prepared traditional food like Dolma, Kutab and Plow.
    One day, of course, we met our friend Tural again who is currently jumping from one radio or TV interview to another after more than 2 years on the road. Our day was really amazing, thanks again for everything Tural! Even for him strolling around the old town and the city center was quite interesting as some places had changed. We climbed the Maiden Tower, which had actually been the city's main landmark before the famous flame towers were built.
    As you can't pass a town in Azerbaijan without a park or monument which is dedicated to Heydar Aliev, you can not only find parks in Baku, but also the Heydar Aliev Center with its remarkable architecture. We saw different exhibitions varying from Azerbaijan history and culture over puppets to Chinese contemporary art - and a lot about "him" (which you can easily skip without remors if you don't want to spend a whole day). We also met some of Tural's friends, had a tea with Dimar and his son Murat and a great feast with former colleagues. This evening we should also learn that an Azerbaijani never drinks alcohol without a toast on something so that everybody took time to propose a toast. And never forget that the last toast of a night is always dedicated to the parents!
    To get rid of the hangover, the men joined early next morning to have some Khash: Heavy soup with cow feet, along with cow tongue and stomach as sides. Sounds disgusting, but helped.
    Entering the metro which is built so deep that it also serves as a bunker (and photographs are forbidden), reminded us of video scenes from the metro in Tokyo, solely there are no "pushers" (yet). There was no chance to enter, so we went up again, but going down there had been absolutely worth it just because of the beautiful mosaics in compliment to the famous poet Nisami. People in this region love poetry!    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    3End of a perfect day
    The lions' queen2Dancing ancestorsWelcome to the moonBlub blub blub..Fresh mud

    Qobustan sites

    21 novembre 2017, Azerbaijan ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    Our way south out of Baku along the blue shimmering Caspian Sea was in the sense of oil production. We passed countless kilometers of pipes, refineries and flames of the burning waste gases along the road. Yes, Azerbaijan is the land of fire!

    The lazy two of us reached the Qobustan National Reserve one hour before darkness so that we had to camp in front of the gate. The policemen promised to take care during the night against a small obolus. Somehow we had mixed feelings but in the end it was the right decision to stay.

    The next morning, the museum of the reserve turned out to be the best museum we've ever seen abroad - it was absolutely worth to make a slight detour to get there. We then climbed up the mountain behind the museum to see the prehistoric rock art of the people who had lived there at least 20,000 years ago. Not only the petroglyphs but also the bizarre rock formations are really fascinating.

    Leaving the reserve, we just tackled some of the famous mud volcanoes when a taxi driver insisted on taking us the 10km up to them because it would be impossible with bicycles and the wild dogs would bite us. We declined with thanks and an hour later we had climbed the volcano site, without any bite :)

    The funny noises of the bubbling mud which scared us easily with a fresh splash in the face, hardly made us to stop watching the
    moving mud. At sunset, we had the volcano all to ourselves and were again fascinated by the surreal landscape.    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Goodbye Azerbaijan!
    Using load space properlyRoad workersSalâm Iran!A new buddyCurious Iranians

    Crossing the border to Iran

    25 novembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 7 °C

    Although the southern region of Azerbaijan is famous for its tea, and the green of the grass and the trees seemed to be exceptionally intense, the main thing on our mind was the border crossing to Iran. Did we cover all the bases? Do we carry enough money? The excitement increased steadily..

    With tailwind in our backs, we decided to become test drivers of the new motorway to Astara, praised the road workers for the great job they've done and couldn't believe that we had already reached the border to Iran.

    After the Azerbaijani border officials had kindly reminded Silke to put her headscarf on, we proceeded and set foot on Iranian ground for the first time, directly followed by some requests for selfies.

    It didn't take long and we were invited for kebab by Karamat, an Iranian cyclist who has been almost everywhere on earth with his bike. After an exciting day, we had some very relaxing hours of sleep in Mojde's cosy home. Thanks again, the two of you!

    Next morning, women exercising on the ubiquitous gym equipment in the parks caught our eyes and they did not hesitate to make contact with us - we could really feel how curious Iranian people would be and imagined how the following weeks could look like.    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    We miss you a lot!
    Visiting Teymour's English classesRooshanak & Silke :-)Route planningCracking nuts - how to do it rightIranian dinner

    What a hospitality!

    28 novembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    It all started with a marathon through several classes of an English school and ended three days later with a heavy-heartedly good bye.

    Teymour, Rooshanak and their son Nima incorporated us in their family and from the beginning it felt like we were a part of it. We went to the sea and countryside together, visited other family members and saw their houses. We had great conversations, lots of laughs and enjoyed delicious food.

    We learned a lot about family life in Iran, cultural specifics and habits, how to play the Santoo, teacher motivation, problems of the educational system, independency of the government and still protest, the sadness of Iranian music, Iranian jokes about the wedding night and that women are actually not allowed to ride a bike (and policemen turning a blind eye to it).

    We were fascinated by their beautiful carpets, slept, ate and sat on them and made the mistake too say how much we like them so that Teymour's uncle asked us for an address to send a carpet to.

    There is so much on our mind about these days that we hardly find words. Thank you for a great time and everything you did for us!    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Famous olives from Gilan province
    Largest lake on earthJuice stop with MohamedThank you Mohamed!

    Via Bandar Anzali to Rasht

    30 novembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    Cycling along the Caspian Sea was characterized by beaches littered with trash and cars stopping us to give us bread, fruits or sweets, to take pictures or to invite us to their homes. Whenever a car pulls over in front of us, this is very likely to happen and we were told that many Iranians view foreign tourists as 'messengers of God'. What can we say?

    In Bandar Anzali, we met Mostafa, Jalal and his wife Nushin who hosted us, showed us around in the city and invited us for some kebab.

    On our way to Rasht another cyclist unexpectedly joined us on his bike. It was Mohamed. We cycled together and spent a great day at the old bazar, the city center of Rasht and had a tasty dinner in his favorite restaurant.

    We love these bazars and the mindset of the Iranians.    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Where life takes place
    Happy cyclingLots of climbing.... brought us to an altitude of 1540m a.s.l.Nut shopping at the bazar

    Crossing the mountains to Qazvin

    2 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ⛅ 1 °C

    Coming from the Caspian Sea, there is no other option than crossing the Elburs Mountain Range to get South in Iran. So, these days were about climbing, wild camping and the first night frost on our trip.

    The two nights in our tent gave us a handle to take a few deep breaths and to reflect a pile of impressions from the first week in this country (details will follow).

    In Qazvin, Hamid welcomed us to his home and a bit later, we found ourselves within a severe family conflict. However, Hamid insisted that we should stay and his best friend came to smooth down the differences. They figured out that a family trip (or 'party' how they called it) would solve the conflict and we squeezed us into a Saipa Saba with 7 people, drove to a 'Santa ice cream shop' and high up into a mountain park - in the middle of the night!    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Tea time in a bookstore
    Ali's family in....Nazar AbadTasty Sangak baked on small stonesHow to do LavashCrazy about cycling

    Approaching the insanity

    3 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 5 °C

    It was obvious that we were getting closer to Tehran: The challenge to ride slalom between the cars became more and more intense, we passed several power plants and industrial areas and the smog became a beige grey wall hiding everything further than a few hundred meters around us - insane!

    We realized the incredible dimensions of this monster city when we reached Karaj, a suburb of Tehran 40km from the center which has more habitants than Berlin. It is said that more than 20 million people live in the metropolitan region of Tehran - again insane!

    We stayed with Abbas, Molud and Siabash in Karaj and they took care of our bikes the next day when we went to Tehran by
    metro. Abbas even gave us insight into a bakery he owns. The Iranian bread culture is ubiquitous, no meal happens without any of the various types of it, queues in front of the bakeries at rush hours make them easy to find. Other than the bread we're used to, the Iranian bread is only tasty when still warm - our favorite is definitely Sangak which is baked on small stones and thicker than Lavash.

    Some other aspect of our interaction with the people who treat us with an unlimited kindness, hospitality and readiness to help: We did not expect that the people would pay us that much attention and feel that some of them take us too fast into their hearts or express their love, especially when the communication is difficult or we did only spend a few hours together. It usually feels weird and we don't know what to say. And makes it even more difficult to explain ourselves if we can only stay one or two nights :)    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    In the courtyard of the Golestan Palace
    Picturesque mosaics everywhereEndless BazarFreedom?1Crazy traffic!

    The capital

    4 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 8 °C

    Yes, we made it to Tehran - by metro from Karaj!

    Even though taking the metro sounds like a convenient and unchallenging project, we should be taught better. The closer we got to the city center, the more crowded became the train until finally various men rudely pushed and shoved each other in order to get into the train.
    As we wanted to stay together, we made the mistake to go into the same (mixed) compartment not considering the 'Women Only' sections. The consequence: While entering the train a few men touched Silke on purpose.. The exclusive sections for women initially seemed weird to her but they promptly became reasonable!

    First sight on our list was the the Golestan Palace which impressed us with its effortful and beautiful tiles and mosaics, mirror decorations and treasures from the whole world.

    As we said before, we love the bazars. But the one in Tehran is way too bustling and too large. More than 10(!) kilometers of a labyrinth make it probably the largest in the world and we decide to escape after a short stroll.

    Another sight is the Azadi Tower which was renamed after the revolution and means 'tower of freedom'. This seems grotesque to us because the freedom of the people in Iran has been severely limited since then. After sunset, we spot an Iranian couple quickly kissing in the cloak of the tower. Is this why the tower became the symbol of the modern Tehran? A still and hidden bypassing of the rules?

    Noticeable: Whenever people reveal us as Germans or we make the mistake to expose us, it may happen that people start showing us pictures of Nazis which they received in WhatsApp groups like 'NaziNews' with hundreds of members or even do the Hitler salute on a bazar.
    If we shake our heads or ask the 'why'-question, these people react with incomprehension. A questioning of things or clarification doesn't seem to be common for many Iranians...

    Another anecdote: The weight lifting world championships are on TV and we became aware of the manipulation of the media in Iran. An Iranian, Sohrab Moradi, wins the gold medal and during the award ceremony he refuses to shake the hands of the American lady who gives him the medal. He says a few words and the lady seems to understand and accept. This is what we see on the Iranian TV.
    But our host shows us the whole ceremony on his smartphone: The other men on the podest, from Uzbekistan and Lithuania, shake her hands, of course, after receiving their medals and Moradi tries to explain himself for almost a minute whereas she reacts visibly shocked and uncomprehending (physical contact in public between men and women is forbidden for Iranians).    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Let's stay here overnight
    Ubiquitous plastic trash & scrap1Mario Kart?Beloved ones

    100 days on the road!

    7 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 8 °C

    People like statistics, and so do we.
    We've left our home 100 days ago and ended up at a salt lake in a desert in Iran today. Here are some numbers:

    Distance cycled: 5066km (incl. 41km of sight cycling)
    Cycling days: 74
    Avg. distance on cycling days: 67,9km
    Longest cycling day: 101km
    Max. speed: 64km/h
    Wild camping: 32 nights
    Host: 31 nights
    Hostel/Guesthouse: 21 nights
    Hotel: 8 nights
    Official camping spot: 5 nights
    Ferry: 2 nights
    Rain days: 8 on our bikes, 3 in a warm accommodation
    Flat tires: Hauke 2:0 Silke
    Hitchhiking: 0
    Climbed passes >1000m: 2053m (Georgia), 1574m (Iran), 1300m (Azerbaijan), 1284m (Iran), 1008m (Bulgaria)
    School classes visited: 14
    New acquaintances; consumed bananas, nuts, noodles: Uncountable

    May the next 100 days come, cheers!
    Silke & Hauke    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    The Fatima Masumeh Shrine
    One of many beautiful mosquesThe salt dome - A hidden gemThank you guys!

    Holy Qom

    10 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ⛅ 5 °C

    Qom is the second holiest city in Iran after Mashhad and an important pilgrimage destination. We became aware of that at least since Ali, our host, asked Silke if she could put her chador on (a few minutes after we met). Which chador? Luckily, she carried a long, black summer dress, her black jacket over it, finished. By the way, the Iranian word for 'tent' is 'chadore' which describes the look of this piece of clothing very well, as you can see in the picture :)

    The reason for the holiness of Qom is the shrine of Fatima Masumeh who was the sister of the 8th imam, a well-respected strong woman. After her death she was buried at this place.

    Ali has been a great host for us during the two days in Qom. He invited us into a cosy, historical tea house and even took Hauke into the shrine secretly which is actually strictly forbidden for foreigners ('Look down, maintain a low profile, and enjoy!'). The atmosphere was incredible, people walking around the giant, cubic grave, touching the pure gold, along with the sounds from the prayers of hundreds of people, awakening memories of TV scenes from Mekka - so we're really lucky to visit this place on holy Friday!

    Another highlight of our stay in Qom was a short trip to a relatively unknown, reddish mountain called 'Salt Dome' with Ali and his brother. Climbing down to the salt lake, admiring the views of the surrounding mountains, and wandering around them felt a bit like being on mars. Having a blue sky above and a diamond of pure nature
    in front of us finally led us to stay there also for breakfast. So we had Iranian chai, Lavash with cheese and carrot jam as well as boiled eggs. Of course, we salted them by the use of lying around salt crystals. What the nature is able to create, will forever remain beyond mankind's search.

    So far, Qom has been the city which fascinated us the most in Iran. The holy atmosphere at and around the impressive main square, the beautiful lighting of the numerous minarets and domes, and noticeably less rush compared to all other Iranian cities we've seen, made it a unique experience.    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Tea time!
    Good bye Qom!Persian Garden in KashanFirst time hitchhikingCurious donkeysSunrise over Abyaneh

    From Kashan uphill to Abyaneh

    12 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 4 °C

    Paying entrance fees to get into old Iranian houses with dome roofs you can find in almost any village, as well as paying for hammams without being allowed to swim there. Both didn't really knock our socks off so our visit to Kashan became just a half day cruise on our bikes and a few hours in the beautiful Persian garden north of the city. Apparently, the city does a good job to attract tourists and has developed an effective infrastructure for that.

    And then it was time for our first hitchhike- and we should even do it a second time that day! We were not quite optimistic as we were cycling on a calm side road but from the ten cars passing by in the afternoon we easily could stop two empty pickups and each of them took us for a few kilometers up the hill to Abyaneh, a relic of ancient Persia.

    When we reached the historic village at dusk we were quite surprised by the coldness up there (we're sure that it would have been different if we had cycled all the way). So this was the first night we ended up in a hotel in Iran and really enjoyed having a cosy room just for us.

    The buildings of the 2500-year-old village were made from a mixture of red clay, mud bricks, wood and straw and require a lot of maintenance and renovation, especially after rainfalls. But, except from electricity, gas pipes and some tin roofs, Abyaneh has withstood modernization and retained its traditional integrity. However, during this time of the year, most of the 300 inhabitants live elsewhere so that we only met few people in the narrow, steep alleys.    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    1Starry winter sky
    Reached the pass..1.. totally exhausted!3A place to stayAbandoned village150km downhill to Isfahan

    Crossing the mountains to Isfahan

    14 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 4 °C

    Uneasy feelings dominated as we left Abyaneh in Western direction, on a road only dotted on our maps nobody would recommend us. But our courage should reward us during the next days. We didn't meet anybody, enjoyed the pure
    silence and felt that we could reach for infinity in the starry winter sky.

    We climbed and partly pushed our bikes up on rough gravel to an altitude of 2875m and the surrounding landscape was so overwhelming that it took a while until we realized that the following 150km to Isfahan would be a single downhill run :)

    While the pass has been the highest we've climbed so far, the night has been the coldest on our trip. Minus 15 degrees made even the water in our tent frozen.    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Imam Square
    Si-O-Se Pol BridgeMt. Sofe

    Oasis town Isfahan

    19 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 7 °C

    At least since 'The Medicus' made his way to Isfahan to learn from the greatest doctor of his time, this city became legendary and the name sounds like music in our ears.

    We were expecting a green oasis with many parks and gardens, but at this time it wasn't (anymore?). Since the government built a dam to lead the water elsewhere, and rainfalls became a great rarity, the Zayanderud river is dried out and the beautiful bridges seem a bit out of place. However, Si-O-Se Pol, the 33 arch bridge, is still the town's landmark and we enjoyed a stroll at dawn when the lights came up.

    We loved to cruise through the city with our bikes, even along the bazars and into a mosque through the backdoor. The huge Imam Square is the place where (tourists) life takes place and countless shops offer reams and reams of handicraft - it can be really annoying to escape the salesmen and tourist guides, so take your photos and hide in the crowds on the bazar :)

    The Armenian quarter impressed us with a familiar and relaxed atmosphere and they even had a Christmas tree. The exhibition about the Armenian genocide and the history of Armenians in Isfahan was really moving and it seems like the peaceful coexistence and interactions of Islam and Christianity could be exemplary. The Armenian Vank Cathedrale shows an unique architectural mixture of Islamic elements like colorful tiles and a dome and Christian elements like wall paintings, an altar and a bell tower.

    Although the bureaucracy felt like acting in a bad movie, we finally got our Iranian visas extended by another 30 days.

    And not to forget: A big thanks to Reza and his family, who hosted us for two of the four nights we spent here, together with two other cyclists from Germany, Jan & Hannes. It was great fun to climb a mountain in the middle of the night!    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Legendary!
    Old caravansery321

    Happy coincidences

    23 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 7 °C

    It happened that we met Valerie & Steijn from Holland on the road a few kilometers in front of the last village before the desert. We stocked up our provisions for 300km of an environment hostile to life and decided to have a nice falafel lunch together - at a sandwich bar where we should meet Gabriel & Lorenzo from Spain.

    We loved to cycle with this group, soaked up the pure beauty of the landscape together, had warming campfires to extend the evenings outside, sharing exciting stories of our journeys. And there were a lot: Lorenzo alone could tell stories for ages after more than 20 years on the road with his bike. None of us will ever forget these days. You could say that 5 upcoming legends were cycling and camping with a true cycling legend :)

    There are hardly any words for these amazing days guys!    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Zoroastrian fire temple, yeah!Hostel under cyclists control

    Desert town Yazd

    25 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    Life works different in desert towns like Yazd and it did not only happen once that somebody went out to buy some staff and returned with empty hands. The city literally falls asleep in the afternoon while temperatures usually reach unthinkable highs. The roller shutters come off, people disappear (you'll mainly see tourists wondering what's going on) and traffic comes to a halt. If you go back out a few hours after dark, it is surprising how feasty and vivid it is then - like nothing had happened in the afternoon. Everyday's life takes place in the mornings and nights.

    Although we've smacked our way through Iran quite well during the last weeks, there is still so much food to discover: Sesame paste mixed with grape syrup on bread has become a fancied, energy-rich cyclists breakfast for us and we finally learnt what to use saffron for, how it looks like before and after cooking and how it should taste. The endless variety of pastry betrays us to stop at the bakeries again and again. We can smell them far in advance... Not to forget the ubiquity of fresh, juicy fruits and vegetables, nuts and dried fruits, food is our fuel!

    It has been the first time we stayed in a hostel in Iran and would definitely not be the last time. There were 10 fellow cyclists and we loved to hang out in the cosy courtyard, shared fruits, drank liters of tea and coffee and plundered the breakfast buffet together :)

    The cityscape is characterized by narrow alleys between low houses typically built of ochre mud. Wind catchers and minarets rise above and several roof terraces offer great views over the roofscape and at the surrounding mountains. Some Zoroastrian architecture is remaining and so does a fire temple contain a holy fire which is kept burning since almost 1000 years. Don't expect an overwhelming fire, a visit of the temple is more about a glimpse at Zoroastrian history.    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Merry Christmas!
    Exploring Yazd4:-)Best Christmas gift! :-)Our Christmas dinner on the 25th

    Merry Christmas from Yazd in Iran!

    26 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    What can you expect of Christmas while cycling through Iran? Not that much! At least, Isfahan has a large Christian community in the Armenian quarter where it is celebrated. But we left the city behind us a week ago and didn't expect anything. And so did the unpredictable happen...

    By chance, we met 4 other cyclists from the Netherlands and Spain on our way to Yazd through the desert and cycled together for a few days. And cycling simply connects people... it turned out that there would be 20 cyclists in Yazd these days, so why not having a Christmas party together? Thanks to Silvio & Lena for the spontaneous organization and a great evening! The 20 of us could even enjoy 1.5L of homemade wine :)

    Most of us are staying in the same hostel and we're having a very relaxed time together which makes this Christmas a special and unique experience while temperatures reach 25 degrees during the day.

    Now we're going to hit the road again with a lot of nice group cycling, Persepolis and Shiraz ahead.

    Impressions of our journey from Ghom to Yazd via Kashan and Isfahan will follow.

    We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a great time with your beloved ones!    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Reached the pass
    16k!CruisingUsual break near the roadUsual break in the villageWhat a rascal :)

    From Yazd to Shiraz

    30 dicembre 2017, Iran ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    When you find a nice spot for the night with other cyclists it can be quite amusing to watch everyone performing their after-cycling rituals, like yoga, stretching, gathering wood for a fire, doing a quick wash and so on. Gabriel usually sleeps outside and just puts his sleeping mat on the ground, builds his 'kitchen' around so that he can sit and relax in the middle, cook food and tea without moving. And from time to time, everyone disappears in stellar directions to relieve oneself.

    Stopping by in a village with such an amazing group to grab some food and stock up provisions usually attracts the whole village, it rains invitations, selfies and we have difficulties to continue. We sometimes ask ourselves if these people have no job and nothing else to do? And also class times seem to be very short in the countryside... instead even 10-year-old kids know how to ride a motorbike (not scooter!) - with 2 or 3 younger brothers behind! But there are many kids who like to follow us on their mountain bikes as well :)

    We had chosen quiet side roads to get to Shiraz and were once again impressed by the beauty of the landscape and how fast it could change, from beige sandy deserts to sharp grey mountains, from steep canyons to red soil and reddish hills, to greenish vegetated mountain slopes and back and forth - wow!    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    1
    1:-)Dancing around the fire at midnight:-)

    Happy New Year from Tashk Lake

    1 gennaio 2018, Iran

    We wish you all a prosperous and healthy 2018!
    We bumped into the new year with 12 fellow cyclists from the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, France and New Zealand on a dried out salt lake. We cooked plenty of food, had campfire twist bread, delicious cream puffs and chocolate pudding. Our bonfire reached its peak at midnight and our resolutions are all the same: Keep peddling and living our dreams.

    Comments on recent protests against the government:
    It's said to hear that people were killed. We hope that there will be freedom of speech and the right of free assembly one day in this country and that the people never lose their courage.
    When we see that well educated Iranians make their living by selling nick-nack on the bazaars we feel that it's reasonable to protest against unemployment and rising prices.
    However, we didn't notice what's going on until we received your messages and checked the news. Some internet applications had been blocked and we encountered slightly more policemen while entering Shiraz. Nevertheless, we felt safe at any time and the locals we talked to so far are all criticizing the exaggerating media coverage. We can hardly judge if this is the case.    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Tomb of Artaxerxes IIIThe first palms!The 'Gate of All-Lands'

    Stopover in Persepolis

    2 gennaio 2018, Iran ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    It is more than 2500 years old and the remains are still highly impressive - this is Persepolis, an ancient symbol of the power of the former Persian empire.

    The Persians build it on a huge terrace they cut into a mountain and incorporated Egyptian, Babylonian, Assyrian and Ionian ornaments into the pillars, walls, palaces, squares and other buildings.

    Definitely a must see!

    It was time then for the five of us to continue to Shiraz and get a shower after 8 days without :)    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Holy shrineNasir-al-Molk (pink mosque)Shopping spicesProper goodbye dinner

    No wine in Shiraz

    5 gennaio 2018, Iran ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    It was not the perfect season to visit the famous gardens but we saw other things like the beauty of the first lights in the 'pink mosque' and the holy shrine 'Shah-e-Cheragh' (probably the last one we would see in Iran). We cruised through the city to ascertain that everything is calm and peaceful and spent some time to maintain our bikes, to free them from all the dust, salt and sand of the weeks before.

    In this country, it's always exciting to get something done, like getting shoes repaired in Shiraz. You usually just ask randomly chosen people who send you to someone somewhere who sends you to someone somewhere else and so on. Thus, Hauke dipsy-doodled through the city, met tons of people, found himself on a lot of selfies and ended up in a pharmacy where he was fed biscuits and sticks of cinnamon and told to wait for an old man who would appear at the corner of a street sometime. Eventually, the shoes got fixed by this old man and the experience would be remarkable.

    Contrary to this, Shiraz has also been about a sad story because we had to say goodbye to Valerie & Steijn who want to be in Nepal by the end of January to help building a hostel for kids of a remote school. Time passed by rapidly but the last weeks with you two and the others were really incredible, see you in Nepal guys!    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Canyoning :)
    Valley of infinityThanks for a great evening!Dinner preperationLunchbreak with Gabriel

    Iranian Grand Canyons?

    7 gennaio 2018, Iran ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    After we had climbed the 2000m pass south of Shiraz, we thought that was it - 250km downhill back to sea level from that point on. But then we recalled the terrain map of the southern Iran. Fan-shaped mountain ranges are laying parallel to the coast. It felt like our road was cutting through the sharp ridges of them and our navigation app said it all: 2800 more meters to climb in total make 4800 height meters downhill, nice!

    The road is hard to beat in terms of scenic beauty (if you like mountains). Dramatic canyons, vertical scraps, serpentinous creeks, dry rivers and beautiful valleys reminded us of 'The Land Before Time'. Unimaginable how it would look like if there was more water, maybe in spring?

    The Red Crescent, comparable to the Red Cross, provided us an oasis for relaxation. We had heard that they would accommodate cyclists and we never had the timing to stop by at the end of the day. But this time it was perfect. We had just cycled a new daily record with 117km and then there was their building next to the road. Let's try it! They opened their door, let us in, cooked delicious food, offered us a shower and a bed and we spent a great evening playing ping pong and Iranian card games together. Thanks for everything Mohammed, Reza, Peyman, Ali, Achraf and Erfan!    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    Back in the summer :)
    2Last mountain before the sea!?1There it is!First gulf sunsetBurning 24/7

    Persian Gulf!

    9 gennaio 2018, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    We cycled as close as a few hundred meters to the sea until we could see the Persian Gulf for the first time - tension till the end, and still 1 hour till sunset. It was perfect timing, wasn't it? The feet of the mountains reach all the way down to sea, but we could easily find a spot for the night and then there was this unspeakable feeling: The summer is back!

    From now on, we could sit outside as long as we want, the beauty of the coastline ahead, no more mountains to climb. But first, we had to pass Asaluyeh.

    The area around it is pure madness, refineries and burning waste gas as far as we could see. The engineering achievement is certainly striking as the oil pipes are coming straight through the towering mountains and the region employs tens of thousands. But what about the consequences for the environment and the people living there around the chimneys and under an ever-present ochre grey smog cloud? What comes after the oil and gas?    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    3Clearing the wayHey BuddyLet's rest?

    What a great ocean road!

    11 gennaio 2018, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    We left Asaluyeh and the highway behind and the road was ours then. Just Gabriel, sleepy villages, the ocean and a fresh sea breeze, a few camels and turtles, and us. The villages were indeed so sleepy that we're afraid our tires on the gravel would wake the people up.

    The remarkable rocks, sharp ridges,
    formations reminding us of dinosaurs,
    picturesque beaches and palms tempted us to rest again and again and some laziness sneaked in. We went without pitching our tent from now on, sleeping under a clear sky, the sound of the sea in our ears, watching the fascinating, fluorescent microalgae in the waves, waiting for the green turtles to lay their eggs and counting falling stars to fall asleep.

    To be continued... :)    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    1
    BeachArt1Welcome to our kitchen!

    Endless great ocean road

    14 gennaio 2018, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    We easily noticed that people are dressed different in this region: Turbans with colored checks are common and there are ghosts passing by on motorbikes, their bright white clothes fluttering in the airstream. The women are wearing colorful dresses with metal masks on their noses. Even the mosques and minarets look more modest and we're missing the blue tiles. The clue are the many Arabs living here and being the majority.

    The landscape is partly adorned with cisterns and we're wondering how life looks like in summer as it goes already pretty slow at this time. But surprisingly, we also spot verdurous fields with tomatoes, beans and peppers surrounded by date trees and the powerful green appears almost surreal to us.

    When locals advise us against taking a road, we take the challenge, of course. After all, we want to stay at the coast! But this road has definitely been impossible for cars: Deep, sandy creeks, coarse gravel and rocks. We had to push our bikes many times which reminded us of Samuel's Iceland stories, save that we stayed dry and could jump into the sea anytime :)

    Can you ever get enough of this coastline?    Leggi altro

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  • Silke und HaukeCycling EastViaggiatore
    1Camels by the sea
    Another...1..masterpiece of natureBandari life2Breakfast with camelsQeshm's northwestern point is a gas station

    The dolphin island ..

    17 gennaio 2018, Iran ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Qeshm is the largest island in the gulf and has not only the shape of a dolphin but also many of them along its coasts. Master nature has created an exceptional geology on this island through seismic activity, water and waves.

    To make visitors aware of the bizarre geosites, the local government has created a protected 'Geopark' in corporation with the UNESCO a few years ago. Thus, tourism is still in the beginnings which made the island perfect for us to discover places off the beaten track.

    The Chakooh Valley shows nature's talent to erode spectacular canyons and on the west coast we found our island escape - there were just the camels and us, perfect for some relaxation. We could even swim naked during the day, certainly a special experience in the Islamic Republic.    Leggi altro

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