Xian and Terracotta Warriors

We arrived in Xian after a long days driving. Jimmy had arranged to spend a few days at his cousins who lives in Xian. On the first day we got on the mountain bikes and went out exploring. As expected the city was massive, spotlessly clean and full of historical gems. We stopped at the largest water fountain display in Asia. It was pretty impressive. Then we continued on the bikes towards the town wall. Its a 16km long defensive wall surrounding the old city. The next stop was the Muslim quarter, bright lights, vibrant colours and amazing street food. After eating our way through the narrow streets, tasting everything that took our fancy, we decided to head back to the van, which was parked on the outskirts of the city....somewhere. It was Friday night and the city nightlife was beckoning. On our way back to the van we got lost, 'I could of sworn it was that way...' we stopped and asked some police for directions. They replied with 'follow us'. We followed the car full of 5 policemen the few km back to the van. It was getting on a bit so we decided to give the night out a miss promising a big one the following night.

We woke up excited because we were going to see the terracotta warriors. One of the big things we were looking forward to seeing on the whole trip. The warriors were discovered by a local farmer in 1974 when he was digging for a well in his field. The site consists of a whole army made from terracotta entombed in three pits by the first emperor of China. The army consists of 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses spread over three aircraft hanger sized pits. No two soldiers or horses are the same, each with their own facial features. The detail on them was intricate enough to identify different hair styles which can be used to distinguish different ranks. The warriors were situated next to the emperors tomb and were said to be protecting him in his afterlife. They were built in 210BC and took 700,000 workers to complete. It was a pretty impressive sight.

Up until now we had been driving on fast but expensive toll roads. One days toll had totaled £120 on one of the big driving days. Jimmy had assured us they were the only option. On our way to the warriors we ended up on a Chinese national road, similar to our A roads in England. It was virtually toll free and allowed us to see so much more of 'real China'. We made the decision to only use the national roads from that point onwards.

On the drive back to Xian the two non drivers bought a couple of beers, we were ready for a big one. We parked the van up and had some pre drinks.  A few Cass Reds and fire waters later we were ready to hit the town. We rode our bikes into town stopping for supplies and also at the fountains again but for the night music/light show. We rode to the central bar street and locked the bikes up. We went to a few bars then ended up meeting some other travelers. After some karaoke we hit a club. A group of Chinese beckoned us over and offered us a drink, and another, and another. I thought something a bit fishy was going on so I stopped drinking and offered my drink to Dunny. He drank it but noticed something hard in the drink so spat it back into the glass. Out came a little black pill. That was our que to leave, we rounded up the group and headed to a different club. After some research the following day we discovered the black pill was most likely opium. Luckily everybody was OK. Our next task was to find the bikes, which proved much more difficult than anticipated. After walking around Xian for two ours we gave up and returned to the van in a taxi, without the bikes. We woke up and went on a search for the bikes. After an hour we found them locked up to the same lamppost, pretty lucky!

We spent the rest of Sunday recovering from our big night out and eating our body weight in Pizza Hut. We really enjoyed Xian, it was on a par with Beijing and Shanghai for our favourite city in China.

Rob.

Delhi

We arrived back to Delhi and dropped my bike off at the shop for them to begin work on the paint job. I swapped it for one of their hire bikes for a few days whilst mine was being painted.

We had about three days until dad's flight back to the UK. We researched things to do in Delhi and started ticking them off. The red fort - an old walled royal settlement and fort, Qutab Minar - an ancient temple and tomb settlement, India gate -  a huge archway war memorial, Janter Manter - an old site used for observing stars and time keeping and a park area. We weren't too bothered about seeing each sight but it was more of an excuse to ride the bikes and gave us a purpose and a route. The ride to the red fort took us down Chandni Chowk, the oldest and busiest market road in Old Delhi, and we ended up going down the wrong side of the road!

On the roads you have to avoid tuk tuks, cows, scooters, cows pulling carts, camels pulling carts, horses pulling carts and the occasional pig. There's no concept of queuing to wait your turn, everyone just fights their way through carving each other up. Considering the amount of chaos and the occasional bump there is very little road rage, people just accept that's how it is and get on with it. Out on the roads there is a big range of potent smells. Rotting garbage, amazing spices from street restaurants, human excrement from open sewers and nice smelling incense.

There are some sad and thought provoking sights whilst walking around at night. You see whole families with young children bedding down for the night on a pavement under a bridge, all huddling under one blanket. You see a significant number of people begging who have extremely bad health, missing or deformed limbs and skin conditions. It makes you really appreciate the healthcare and welfare systems at home. It makes you feel pretty shit after spending a reasonable amount of money on a motorbike which would of been enough to fund a basic shelter for a family. But that money has gone into the Indian economy one way or another which is better then not spending the money at all.

Each night me and dad did the same routine. Walk under the bridge and go to what we named the bridge cafe. Each night we ate the same food, two stuffed naans, a chilli paneer and large chi. The naans are cooked in charcoal fired ovens, they are stuck to the inside of the barrel. We got to know the staff quite well. Each night after food we walked about a mile to Conaught Place, three contra direction roundabouts inside each other. The centre one is about a mile long lined with nice shops and Western takeaways. We had a mcflurry most nights. MacDonalds only sell chicken and make it clear on signs that not pork or beef is sold there. But still tuk tuk drivers, who are normally fighting for our custom, would refuse to take us to MacDonalds because they disagreed with the company due to religious regions.

We went to check on the work being done to my bike. They had stripped the whole thing down to the frame which was also getting painted. It looked like they were doing a through job.

I said my farewell to dad. We had a good week together and I enjoyed seeing what I had heard so many stories about from my childhood.

The lads arrive in Delhi. It was good to meet up with them after 3 weeks apart.

I collected my bike from the shop and it looks lovely, very pleased with it.

Rob

Purchasing some Royal Enfields

36 years ago dad rode his motorbike to India from England. He lived in a small Indian village for 9 months in total. We had decided to try and find the village and re-trace some of his steps and what better way to do it than on Royal Enfield motorbikes.

An Indian company bought the Royal Enfield brand, designs and production equipment from the original English company and set up making the bikes in India in 1955. They are still made here today.

We had arranged to meet our driver from the Golden Triangle, Ram, to show us a place he knew for me to buy one and dad to rent. He didn't show up at the agreed meeting place so we headed back to the travel agent to try and contact him. They also knew a place and began making phone calls. We arranged to see a couple and got in their car. We pulled up in a lay by which was a bit strange because we thought we were going to a garage/showroom. 10 mins later two Enfield bullets turned up. They took me up the road on the back then offered me to ride. I had never ridden a bike bigger than 125cc semi automatic so getting on the Bullet on the busy Delhi roads was a bit daunting. I rode it down the road, stalled it a couple of times then arrived back in the lay by. We went off to think about it over a McDonalds.

We flagged down a tuk tuk and a couple of English speaking Nepalese lads moved over to make space. The driver asked what we wanted and we replied with buy a Royal Enfield. Luckily the English speaking Nepalese were able to translate exactly to the driver what we were after. He took us to a street full of motorbike shops known as Delhi motorbike market. Hundreds of bikes parked up, loads of Enfields and bikes blasting up and down the road. This was more like it. We approached a shop specialising in Enfields and he had two old ones parked out the front with our names written on them. They were such good value that dad bought one and will ship it home as well as an early 60th birthday present. We gave them a good look over and agreed a list of things to do to them. They began work immediately. Mine was older and needed more work, it was given new wheel bearings, new chain and sprockets, new clutch plates, new headset, new brake shoes, new battery and new wheel damper blocks. Basically every wear item on the bike. Dad's was much better to start with but got the same thorough inspection and worn parts replaced where needed.

It took two days to complete the work. We spent most of that in the workshop drinking chi, learning what goes where and checking all the work was completed as agreed. We bought piss pot helmets, glasses, security chain and sorted insurance through the seller. It was an interesting and good two days. The next task was to ride them back to the hotel. We paid the same tuk tuk driver who took us there to show us the way back. We gave ourselves a quick lesson, that one makes you go, that one makes you stop and that one changes gear. We were ready to hit statistically the worst roads in the world in Delhi rush hour! We got to the hotel fine. The bikes are brilliant. 350cc singles, kick start, lots of chrome and almost straight through exhausts. They're not quick compared to modern bikes but they sound brilliant, you can hear the individual firing strokes. After a week of riding we were returning to the shop for a re spray on each bike also included in the purchase price.

We were happy, we had two bikes and were all set for a weeks riding around North India.

Rob

Ride to Amritsar

Continuing dads route from 36 years ago we continued on towards Amritsar. The bikes were going well, cruising along nicely side by side, easy rider style. We stopped every 50km or so for a cup of chi from roadside dhaba's (restaurants). Indian chi is made of mainly milk, boiled with tea leaves, sugar and ginger then strained into the cup, it's bloody lovely and was always a good enough excuse for a 20 minute stop and leg stretch.

It took two days to ride to Amritsar, about 500km. The road was straight and wide but you still had to stay on the ball. There's no real rules on the road, just toot and go. It's predominantly drive on the left but if you miss your turning there's no problem with riding/driving down the wrong side of the dual carriageway.
I got squeezed between a tuk tuk and concrete barrier, good job I had the bull bars on the bike, they protected my leg when I hit the concrete. Each day when we arrived at our destination our faces were covered in black road grime. The air on the roads is pretty polluted.

We arrived in Amritsar,  about 20 km from the Pakistan border, and followed signs to the Golden Temple. The signs took us down the high street full of people. By chance we ended up in an underground bike park with 24 hour security. We parked the bikes right next to the guard then set off to find a place to stay.

We dumped our bags at the hotel and went to the temple. It is the most sacred Sikh temple in the world. It is the same as the Vatican city for Catholics or Mecca for Muslims. The temple itself is covered entirely in gold leaf and surrounded by a holy lake called the pool of nectar. The lake is surrounded by a gated precinct. We removed our shoes and covered our heads before we entered. We arrived as the sun was going down, it was lighting up the gold temple and making it glow. Pretty impressive looking. We went back into town for food then returned to see it lit at night. I think it looked even better at night.

Entry to the temple is free, they offer a free meal for every person regardless of faith and provide a place to sleep for the night. The morals of the place seem spot on and the Sikhs we met seemed very proud of it. The kitchen area was on an industrial scale, huge cooking pots and a massive line of troughs for washing up. Everyone was calm and friendly, it was a nice place to be.  We walked through the temple itself and up onto the roof. It's a lovely building covered in gold leaf.

The following day we left Amritsar and headed back to Delhi. We stopped at a town for breakfast and to have our bikes looked at. My gear selector was contacting the foot peg and making gear selection difficult. I also got my valve clearance adjusted and the chain tensioned on both mine and dads.

We continued back and came across a shopping mall complex. It housed a KFC, McDonald's and subway, it looked very out of place amongst the Indian agricultural land!

We arrived back in Delhi 2 days after leaving Amritsar. About 1000 km done in 4 days. The bikes went very well and are a blast to ride.

Rob

Pipli Khera

We set off on the national highway 1 from Delhi armed with two Royal Enfields.  We were in search of the village where dad lived for 9 months in the 70's. First stop was a town called Sonepat. It has completely changed since dad was here 36 years ago but he knew which road we needed to be on. We stopped at a police station to ask for directions, they were all sat on string beds drinking chi. They obviously had all the crime under control. We declined there offer of chi but followed a cop car back to the main road. He obviously thought we might struggle retracing 100m of straight road! Just up the main road was a big public school with a sign saying English speaking. We pulled the bikes up at one of the four security gates. They were a bit dismissive to begin with but gave in to our pestering and phoned an English speaking receptionist. She sent their private driver to the gate and dad explained we were looking for Pipli Khera. He directed us further 12 km up the national highway one. Back on the bikes we counted 12 km on the speedos. We stopped at a petrol station. The owner invited us into his office and made us chi. Dad explained what we were trying to do and mentioned the name of one of his old friends, Rameshwar Malik.

The owner said 'l know that family'. He got straight on the phone and rang Sanjay who then rang Pankaj. Pankaj, son of Rameshwar, didn't believe the petrol station owner, he said don't be silly. Eventually they were convinced it wasn't a joke so Pankaj and Sanjay were in the car on their way to meet us. Pankaj was a baby when dad was in the village so didn't remember him. However he knew about dad as the Englishman who rode his motorbike too fast. Pipli Khera is a small village in Haryana, a million miles from a tourist destination which made dad's stay there very memorable for the villagers who passed on the stories to their children. Everybody we met, young and old, had heard of dad's stay in the village, it was a big thing for them to have a foreigner living with them.

We left the motorbikes with the petrol station owner and got in Sanjay's car. He drove us to the village and we visited a few buildings where dad used to stay. One in particular was a 1st floor room over a buffalo shed where he lived for three months (photo). The village had changed dramatically, what was a population of 2000 is now 5000 but luckily some familiar buildings were still standing.  When we were walking through the village a few heads popped up, one in particular over a roof parapet wall. The elderly residents remembered dad and were pleased to see him. We had chi in the courtyard, where dad used to park his bike, with the brother of one of dad's old friends and a few locals. Dad was pleased to hear that most of his old friends were still about and we were able to meet up with them that afternoon.

We got back in the car and headed back for Sonipat, where the families were now living. We met Rameshwar, the person dad spent most time with and Sanjay's father, Ved Singh. Dad was again being remembered by people as the man who rode his motorbike too fast. Then back in the car to go and visit an Indian theme park called Chokhi Dhani. It is owned by Sonita and her husband. Sonita was also from the village.
We had a nice lunch then went back to the petrol station to pick the bikes up. Then we rode to Veesan's house where they kindly put us up for the night. We were driven to Sanjay's farm to have a look around. They were harvesting basmati rice and planting wheat in it's place. The fertile land of Haryana allows two harvests per year, one of rice and one of wheat. They showed us their buffalo and cow sheds.

That evening we returned to Chokhi Dhani theme park and met Sonita and her family. There was a Rajistani cultural experience with dancers, music, camel rides, magicians and traditional food. We were invited to Sanjay's car in the car park for a few beers. It seemed to be quite a popular drinking spot because alcohol was not served inside Chokhi Dhani. They ordered pakoras and bhajees which were delivered to the car. After beers we went back inside to the Rajistani restaurant where we sat on the floor and ate a meal off banana leaf plates. It was a good evening which we spent most of the time eating and drinking.

Lots of people we met recalled a story from 36 years ago. When dad was at the village he had to do some work on his bike so went to the bike mechanic in Sonepat. Lots of locals crowded around dad and the mechanic. The mechanic had heard dad's bike was fast in comparison to theirs so asked dad how much horsepower his bike was, he replied with 68. The most powerful bike in India at the time was 8 horsepower (measured in a slightly different way). The mechanic made a joke and everybody laughed along with him at dads claim, he said this foreigner doesn't have a clue, his bike can't be 68 hp. Dad said 'get your helmet'. He took the mechanic out and opened it up down a straight, through an s-bend and over a hump back bridge. The mechanic was actually shaking and white with fear when he got back. We learned on this trip that the mechanic had told his Indian friends some time after that if he was offered every property in Sonepat  (population 20,000) he wouldn't get back on that bike! We went to the same courtyard where the mechanic was based 36 years ago (photo of gates).

Later on in the morning the family barber arrived and we had a shave in their front garden.

We had a brilliant two days with the Malik family and their hospitality was generous and welcoming. It was excellent for dad to return and also for me to see where I had heard so many stories from throughout my childhood.

Rob

India - Golden triangle

Arriving in India from Kathmandu was like going from a third world country to a development country. The airport was new and clean, roads wide, and well lit and the taxi wasn't an old knackered Suzuki Alto. However, as we made our way towards the train station in New Delhi things changed quickly. Traffic increased, roads worsened and litter began piling up. We walked to find a hotel, the area was heaving with people, piles of litter everywhere and a stench of rotting food. Even though it was pretty rough the people seemed happy, smiling and laughing.

Our original plan was to get the train to Agra to see the Taj Mahal and then back to Delhi for mum's flight home.

The next morning me and dad went to try and buy train tickets. We asked 5 different people how to get tickets and got 5 different answers! Anyway we ended up in a travel agency. The train tickets were sold out but the agent organised a car and driver for 3 days which would also take us to Jaipur. It was ideal, mum only had a few days so this way we could do the whole Golden triangle. The Golden triangle is a popular tourist route which includes forts, palaces and the Taj Mahal. Within 30 mins of leaving the agency we were in the car on our way to Jaipur.

We left Delhi, did a short stretch through the Haryana district then into Rajistan and finally Jaipur. Rajistan district is famous for its desert landscape, dancing and traditional food. They still use camels to tow carts for transporting goods.  That evening we visited the royal palace then asked the driver to take us to the Tiger fort hoping for a view over the city at night. The fort was positioned on the end of a ridge, this gave us a 270 degree view of the city below. It's not even a big city for Indian standards but it was still 3 million population. The fort had been converted into a restaurant with tables and chairs in the turrets. It was well worth the trip up.

The following morning we visited the Amber fort, again an impressive building, huge and decorated with gold, marble and gems. We went to an observatory designed buy a king a few hundred years ago to study astronomy. It consisted of large structures used for time keeping accurate to 2 seconds and for observing the stars.  The driver then took us to an elephant sanctuary where the owner was trying to sell us a package where we could stroke, feed, paint our name on it and ride an elephant for an over inflated price. We soon told him he can stroke his own elephant. We got back in the car and set off towards Agra.

On the way to Agra the driver stopped so we could have lunch. He took us to a big, posh, tourist hotel offering an 'Indian experience'. Before we arrived we saw a few local cafes on the opposite side of the road. We walked over and it turned out to be a lorry park with a few huts set up with gas bottle burners, a load of pots of spices and a chipati oven. Perfect. A load of locals turned up, along with the resident rat, and were intrigued to see foreigners eating in the lorry park. £1.20 later the three of us were fed and ready to continue the journey. Ram, our driver couldn't understand why we opted for that restaurant.

One more stop before Agra was a nature reserve. Home to large areas of wetlands, wildlife and a shite load of bird watchers. We hired bikes and rode around til sunset, which was apparently the best time to see the birds. We went up a view tower to overlook the reserve. A few peacocks and water buffalo later we were back at the entrance. It was nice to get out the car and away from the hustle and bustle for a couple of hours.

We arrived in Agra, home of the Taj Mahal. To continue our cultural theme from lunchtime of eating in local places, we got a taxi to Dominoes!

We got up early and went to the Taj Mahal. We had been looking forward to seeing it for a few days. It was bloody brilliant. Not to busy with tourists and free entry because it was world heritage week. We had a tour guide who told us lots of interesting facts. The Taj Mahal is made of white marble from the Rajistan district. The marble was transported to Agra by 1000 elephants. It is the only marble in the world which is translucent. It took 20,000 people and 22 years to complete and was built as a tomb for the third wife of the king. His wife died before it was completed but was still entombed within. The king began to build an identical building in black marble on the opposite side of the river. The kings son wasn't too impressed with the 40,000,000 rupees it cost to build (equivalent to 72 billion rupees today). Coupled with the fact he wanted to be king he imprisoned his father in Agra fort in a room overlooking the Taj Mahal and the site where his black equivalent had began to be built. His father spent his last 8 years imprisoned in the fort.

Feeling a bit temple'd out we decided to use the driver to our advantage. I wanted to buy Christmas presents and post them home. We went to a market road with some lovely smelling open sewers and bought the gifts, then to the post office to send them home. It worked well.

We wanted to drive past the Agra fort, take a photo then crack on back to Delhi. A tour guide approached us and managed to persuade us to go inside and it was well worth it. The guide was an Indian history graduate working towards his PhD. He was excellent telling us loads of interesting facts. One was that against popular belief that the Taj Mahal is solid marble, it is in fact red brick clad with blocks of marble. We exchanged emails and he sent us a 40 page paper he has written about Agra fort. We arranged to meet Ram the following morning because he knew a place where we could rent motorbikes.

We arrived back to Delhi then got a taxi to the airport. Me and dad said our farewells to mum. It had been a brilliant few weeks and we had done so much.

Rob

Patan, Nagarkot and Bhaktaphur

I dropped my passport off at the Indian consulate with the lads. We had to collect the following evening. Back at the van me and dad had a go at adjusting the handbrake. It turned out one of the cables had unhooked from its carrier, probably on the craps roads we had been on. I hooked it back on and adjusted the cable. This wad probably what caused the problem in the first place. Again it drew a lot of attention to the van and us. People appearing to see what we were up to.

The following day we drove the van to Patan Dur Bar square. We found a place to park and walked to the square, avoiding the dead rats along the road. The square was nice, lots of old Nepalese temples and pagodas. We visited the golden temple and palace museum. Was a nice place to have a mooch about. We walked past a row of butchers, some pretty interesting sights! We fought our way through the traffic back to Kathmandu for me to collect my visa. We collected them fine. We had applied for a 6 month multiple entry which are easily obtainable from the UK but they issued us with a 3 month single entry! Changes our plans slightly but not too bad. That evening me, mum and dad had a drink with Stew and Dunny to say our farewells. I would see them next in India and my parents in England.

The following morning we said our farewells to the Panda hotel staff. We had stayed there on and off for over a month. They had let us park Big Sal in their car park and treated us really well. We had a good relationship with the staff and will definitely return again one day. We got in a taxi and headed to Nagarkot.

Nagarkot is a small town up in the hills on the edge of the Kathmandu valley. It is famous for its views of the Himalayan Lang Tan range and the sunrise and sunset. From our hotel we saw a building site. They were building a new hotel, currently 8 floors tall. It was the highest point in Nagarkot town. What an awesome place it would be to watch the sunset we thought. We walked down an alley, climbed over a wall and asked the foreman 'any chance we can go to the top' he said 'no problem' and waved us up. We climbed up through the unfinished carcass of the building, no hand rails, 8 floor sheer drop and not a health and safety aid in sight. There were a team of guys working at the top. We asked how many more floors, they replied with 3 whilst hanging off the side with no harness, no hard hats and wearing flip flops. We watched the sunset which was nice then carefully walked back down.

The following day we walked to a view tower, stopping for hot drinks on the way up. We did a little walk through the jungle then back to the hotel. That evening mum complained of feeling ill then got sick. Shortly after dad got sick then me. We spent the whole night taking it in turns to make a mess of the toilet. Every 20 mins or so we had uncontrollable sickness and diarrhea. It lasted all through the night and into the next morning. We were seriously ill, probably the most ill we have ever been. It was worse than a bit of gone off food, we think it was either dodgy water in our drinks on the way up to the view tower or salmonella in our eggs we had for breakfast. Whatever it was it seriously poisoned us. Although it was pretty horrendous we joke about it now. We lost count the amount of times 'oooh I nearly just shat myself' was said!

The morning after we made the 1 hour bus journey to Bhaktaphur. We spent the rest of the day and night in bed recovering. It was a shame because the town looked like an interesting place. Hopefully we would feel well enough to have a look around in the morning.

Woke up and dragged ourselves out of bed and it was well worth it. It was like stepping back into medieval times. Goats and chickens running free, people still using the wells for their water, loads of trades in the streets, pottery makers, kilns and market stalls everywhere. We went to the pottery square where it was still all made by traditional methods. Tables spun by hand then hardened in the straw fueled open kilns. There was four squares in total with cobbled back alleys joining them together. The town is a world heritage site with lots of renovation and preservation funded by the tourist entry tickets.

We made our way to Kathmandu airport for our flights to Delhi. We had a brilliant time in Nepal and would Iove to come back. The people were friendly, the countryside is unbelievable and towns full of history. But we were starting the next leg of the trip in India and were looking forward to it. India here we come!

Rob

My parents arrival and a few days in Pokhara

I was excited to see my parents after being away for 7 months so got to the airport nice and early. It was cloudy in Kathmandu so their flight kept getting delayed, 6 hours in total. They were sat in Delhi and me in Kathmandu twiddling our thumbs. They finally arrived safe and sound.

It was a Monday evening, they hadn't been to bed since Friday night but the last thing they wanted to do was go to sleep. The hustle and bustle of Thamel, Kathmandu and a good catch up was awaiting.  We met up with the lads and Scottish for a good curry and chin wag.

The next morning I had to hand in my Indian visa application. Then spent the afternoon going to the monkey temple and Durbar square. The monkey temple is situated on the top of a hill with views overlooking the Kathmandu valley. There were hundreds of monkeys running around all over the place. We then went to the Kathmandu Dur Bar square for more catching up over coffee and cake. Then later on back to the same curry house, this time the so called chicken defiantly wasn't chicken. After the meal dad broke the news to mum, much to her horror, it may of been dog, possibly next doors Dalmatian!

We woke bright and early to miss rush hour traffic, we were off to Pokhara for a few days. The van had been parked since we arrived in Kathmandu 4 weeks ago so needed a jump start to get her going, the hotel owner was happy to help. Then we had to repeat the rigmarole with the low hanging cables. Dad was driving and I was shouting instructions from the roof, and as before a crowd appeared to watch our antics. The next task was fuel and put some air in the tyres then we were off on the road to Pokhara. Dad came to Nepal 40 years ago, once on a motorbike and then again in a Mercedes van. He had done the same road both times so enjoyed driving our van and comparing how different it is nowadays.

The road to Pokhara winds through the mountains, at some points you can see the road 50 metres away on the other side of the valley but it's 2-3 km to get there. We stopped a few times for coffee, tea and lunch. At one of the stops a monkey came along into the cafe and up the wall then was shoe'd away. In England you get seagulls being a nuisance, in Nepal you get monkeys!

We finished the 7 hour drive and arrived in Pokhara. The next day we hired a rowing boat and went out on Phewa lake. We rowed across to a restaurant where we got lunch. The view was amazing, massive lake, green foothills then snow capped mountains of the Annapurna range behind. The fish tail is the most prominent mountain at 6993m tall. Its named because the two adjacent peaks resemble a fish tail.

Over breakfast the following day we made the decision to have a crack at fixing the handbrake. We had new shoes and springs thanks to Jordan but needed a new linkage because the original was now a mangled ball of metal. We removed the remaining good linkage for a guide and took it to a machine shop for them to replicate it. The hotel manager kindly took me there on the back of his motorbike. 4 hours  and £15 later we had a new linkage, made from scratch. It is made up of two parts that pivot around a pin, not a simple job but they did it well.

The rear brakes are discs with internal drum for the handbrake. When putting it all back together we were struggling putting the drum back on over the shoes. After a while dad noticed the new shoes were 10mm to big in diameter. We had two options, re-line the old shoes or cut and weld the new ones. We opted for the re-lining. The next morning we found a taxi who was very helpful. He knew where to look for a brake re-lining workshop so we dropped the shoes off. He then took us to a car repair place (somebody's garden) to repair our broken earth strap from the leisure battery. Everywhere was closed so he brazed the broken terminal back together, and very well. We returned to the van with relined shoes and repaired earth strap. In Nepal they repair things rather than replace because labour is so cheap relative to new parts.

Again we had the same problem with the drum not fitting. The new linings were a few mil to thick. We heard a grinder going in a nearby building site so went on a hunt for it. With a bit of grinding of the braking material and filing of the metal part of the shoe they fitted like a glove. When repeating the process on the other side the brake pad separated from its back plate when removing the caliper. Another trip to the brake man and it was soon bonded back together! After a lot of farting about the handbrake was back together (not adjusted yet) and rear electrics working, now time for a well deserved steak.

They next morning we began gathering supplies for a night camping in the van. We bought the makings for a vegetable curry from a guy selling veg on his bike. Got a big bundle of wood from  furniture maker and strapped it to the roof and 20 chipatis. We found a picnic spot an hour from Pokhara and set up camp. We cooked the curry on the tripod over a wood fire. A local farmer came and had a beer with us around the campfire and we told him we wanted to get up to see the sunrise. We woke at 5.30am but it was misty so we went back to bed. 20 mins later theres a bang at the door of the van, it was the farmer waking us because the sun was visible through a break in the clouds. We got up, watched the sunrise and boiled some eggs for breakfast on the fire.

We packed up and headed back towards Kathmandu. We stopped at a cable car which took us up to a temple in the mountains. We weren't expecting much but the cable car kept on going over another tier of mountains to a good sized town. Turned out it was a pretty significant place for Buddhist, Sikh and Christian pilgrims. On the way back we were stood in the que and a guard told us to follow him. He took us to the front of the que, past about 2 hours worth of people. We felt bad but we had paid 4 times the amount for a 'foreigner ticket' which made us feel better about it.

Approaching Kathmandu we got stuck in traffic on a hill. Still with no handbrake mum had to press the brake with her hand whilst dad did the clutch and accelerator. We desperately needed to get it adjusted!

We arrived back at the Panda hotel after a great few days away.

Rob