Paul's Epilogue

Right – first thanks for the interest you have taken and those who have donated money many thanks I feel very embarrassed and humbled by your contributions.

As you have probably gathered Simon has written the Blogg on nearly daily basis and my contribution to it has been zero. I’m not sure if that’s ‘cos Simon doesn’t trust me or just thinks I’m incapable. So the following are my thoughts on the trip.

Ok – What was it like? It was dirty, filthy and it really does smell. Not surprising as there is open sewers in most of the towns we visited. Our digs were not the same type of places you stay in Goa when you are on holiday. For example on our first night six of us stayed on the upstairs landing in a chocolate factory, the mattress were made of hardboard and we each had a flee bitten blanket (we were in the mountains so it was cold) to keep us warm. OK so all you have to do is find the nearest boozer feed up and a few good sized drinks – snoring? Well that’s what I thought too, however this is India and apart from the tourist areas and expensive hotels India is to all purposes dry!

Plan B – eat as much as you can and lie shivering until morning comes – purchase more clothes.

For the sake of brevity I’m going to split the rally up into four parts –

Before New Years Eve- these were eye opening days, fast learning curves, being run off the road, finding holes in the roads as big as creators and drinking dancing at the New Years Eve party. The photos on the blogg with the trucks pushing us off the road happened on the first morning 6 times while I was driving – we lost count at 26, just couldn’t be bothered any more – I was interview straight after the experience and babbled making incoherent mumblings which most of my friends will know. However this was stoned cold sober and in a likely state of shock. I’m sure everybody (apart from myself) will be suitably amused when the film comes out.

Part of the trip which does not make the headlines is the petrol stops. Our rickshaw would do approximately 100km per tank full we therefore had to fill up every two hours. This little exercise took 30 mins every time we stopped. On top of that the petrol attendants were not used to 2 stroke engines, and kept forgetting to put the engine oil into the tank before they filled it up. To combat this Simon and I would fill our tank up from a 10 litre containers and then refill the container. Of course this entailed either myself or Simon getting covered in petrol. The dirt was beginning to be ingrained.

By New Years Eve and the rickshaws needed their first service and of course two of the convoy required new front ends. After a morning of repairs a meeting was held and we decided to remain where we were and dance the night way. I pulled – he seemed very nice but all together a bit too forward for my liking?

From New Year (Simon drove on New Years day) Days followed into each other as we headed north. 6am engine start, 7am comfort stop, 8am comfort stop, etc. etc. The Rickshaws started braking down and things started falling off at regular intervals and the accidents were becoming more regular. Each evening we’d find a mechanic to reattach or fix the machines and each day the roads or accidents would break them again.
The dirt started to become ingrained in our skin as each evening the dribble of cold water started to be less appealing, each team member started reusing the clothes day after day as each decided they would have to be thrown away in Darjeeling.

The convoy came to an end on day 10 as we decided to make a direct run for Darjeeling while the others would take a route through Nepal. Our first day on our own we took the back roads through tiny villages on dirt tracks – we were lost. The rickshaw broke down so many times Simon decided he was going to change me extra for the amount of petrol I was drinking.

Day 11 and West Bengal had a general strike – nothing moved on the roads – except our rickshaw. The strikers on the back roads allowed us through with a shake of our hands and a Happy New Year. However that evening back on the main roads strikers were stopping all traffic, we managed to pass one mob by driving down a slip road, they leapt after us, striking at the rickshaw with clubs in their attempt to stop it. We carried on deep into the night to distance ourselves from the rabble.

Party Time Our final day, we drove up into the Himalayas, leaving the heat, dirt and dust behind us. The clean fresh mountain air was most welcoming. Arriving in Darjeeling and it was straight to the best hotel in town. We were the 8th (ISH) team to arrive, gin and tonics all round and a piping hot bath, luxury. Stepping out of the bath smile on my face large G&T inside me, I pulled the pug out of the bath and the bath water emptied over the bathroom floor – well this is India.

Ok so general details –
I lost a stone in weight
It took one bath and three showers to get the dirt off.
Simon and I did not come to blows
We partied for two nights and then I went to bed. (Simon kept going)
I was interviewed by BBC radio Kent in Tunbridge last week – not sure if they will invite me back, I don’t think my comment on Simon and my new business venture http://www.suckmyrickshaw.com/ was viewed as family entertainment. I have written an article for a travel mag – and TV channel South East want to talk to us regarding a daily interview on our next trip.

Will there be a next trip? I did look at the Rickshaw Run site. The next trip is in the summer across the Himalayas and for those with a touch more time the second leg of the worlds second Rickshaw Run will thunder on through Pakistan , Iran and yes all the way back to the red busses and gridlock of London .

On the day I got back the answer was NO. Not a chance, you have to be kidding!
However, as they say watch this space?

Paul

Calcutta / Kolkata: 13th - 18th Jan 2007

Miscellaneous photos

I've included a couple of photos here that didn't really fit in elsewhere. The pot holes don't look too bad in the photos....but to give you an idea of their size if the roads had been less congested one of us was going to lie in a hole to show how deep they were.

The photo of the two on coming trucks is taken from the side of the road where we had driven to avoid a head on collision! Similarly the second photo of a truck is taken as we were heading off road again! We stopped counting the number of times we were sent "off road" a week into the trip when we had already passed 20!

The traffic policeman in the photo held up a very busy spaghetti junction whilst we repaired our fuel pipe problem in the middle, and then allowed us free-reign of his junction whilst we re-grouped into a convoy again

Darjeeling and the Celebrations

When we took delivery of our Tuk Tuk we had 20 km on the clock....so we managed to cover 3924km on our journey! The Bombay Bucanneers (Ingo and Sam) and Spirit of Lassi (Fabien) arrived the following evening....having managed a very brief visit to Nepal (allowing for the cost of the visas, it cost each of them a dollar a minute for their visit!.....But they were still the only 2 teams to take the rickshaws out of India)

Following the arrival of the first teams there had been a party every evening - and things didn't change during our time there. Joey's bar has now hit the international scene as the place to be.

On the friday all the Rickshaws took place in a parade through Darjeeling (led by a brass band of which each member seemed to be playing a different tune). The procession ended in a school (most of the kids arriving on our rickshaws) where there were a few short speeches, further brass band action, traditional dancing and then another football match (the series ended a draw with one victory each)

9th January: Day 13

Siliguri - Darjeeling



The end of the adventure! Woke up early-ish and set off for the finish line. The route took us through winding mountain roads (much like those around Munnar at the start of the trip) and small villages perched overlooking huge drops. There is also a "toy train" that ran along the same route as the road (seven and a half hours from Darjeeling to Siliguri - compared to the three hours it took us to go then other way in a Rickshaw!) As we drove into town we saw a couple of Rickshaws from the several teams that had been racing and had arrived about four days earlier (Rajasthan Raiders, Calamity Crew, Shrimpers).



Booked into the best hotel in town (naturally!) and then met up with Will and Spence (Calamity Crew) who had organised a football match against the locals. So whilst Paul went in search of a tailor, I was one of a team of rolling subs who lost a 7-a-side match 11-9 against a team of small boys - we blamed the altitude (about 3000 metres) of course!!!

8th January: Day 12

Suri - Raiganj - Siliguri

Whoops - left the spare petrol can at the hotel! Fortunately the lack of petrol that caused the engine to cut out every 200 metres once we had left Suri wasn't due to a lack of fuel in the tank.... so more sucking and blowing duties that Paul kindly agreed to perform (I think something may be going on between him and the Tuk Tuk behind my back). So another visit to a mechanic!

Strike day throughout West Bengal....the first problem we had was buying fuel - but taking a photo of the petrol attendant and his friends was all that was needed for him to become a scab and break the strike! The other problem was the road blockades: a double edged sword as they meant no lorries or buses on the roads, but did hinder our journey. The first few we encountered were friendly and we passed through waving. Other teams we met on the way (Dave/Lou/Oli, Mat/Mike, Mat/Caroline) also found the waving approach worked. As the day went on though the mood changed. We managed to run one small road block that the locals had forgotten to keep adequately guarded (we weren't going to stop to give them time to finish their lunch and make their way back to the road!) Later that day we tried to follow an ambulance through a blockade....and had the roof hit by sticks - the guys involved looking surprised that we didn't decide to stop to let them hit the Rickshaw more! Finally at the next blockade we were cornered. This was a large blockade on the motorway, with armed police in attendance. Paul was able to stay with the rickshaw (and another rickshaw runner - Julian) - but I was led away to listen to the speaker. The crowd were friendly (and very short!) and kept pointing out to the organiser that it was pointless me being there as I couldn't understand a word. But he insisted I stayed so I got my map out to show the guys around me where we had come from and soon had most of the crowd helping me with our route to Siliguri. Having had his thunder stolen the organiser soon decided to let us through early (much to the disappointment of the Indian drivers present who had already been waiting all day instead of 30 minutes!)

The strike officially ended at 6pm, but as some blockades decided to do an encore, the congestion on the roads was horrendous. We tried an alternative route through some "roadworks" - something everyone in the UK must have considered at sometime? - but found that these particular "roadworks" were genuine and so had to turn around.

Originally we had planned to stop driving about 6pm and find a hotel. BUT the towns were too congested to enter and there was some trouble brewing in a few areas so we decided to continue to Siliguri which would be far enough from the strike zone to be safe.

7th January: Day 11

Midnapore - Bishnupur - Bankura - Lost - Very Lost - Suri

We didn't make particularly good progress today! We had three mechanic stops (see photos above) - the exhaust needed repairing three times, and the front suspension once (following a brief period of "Airtime" the previous day after hitting an unmarked speed ramp at 60 kph). In my defence the ramp was on an A road in the middle of fields! Paul also managed to improve the ventilation in the back of the Tuk Tuk by impailing us on a stationary lorry carrying steel cables - he was trying to weave through a traffic jam at the time.

One of the mechanics decided to direct us through a small rural village on mud tracks instead of taking the main road - I don't think some of the farmers had ever seen a rickshaw taxi before - or at least 2 fat white south londoners driving one!

We arrived in Suri and struggled to find a hotel. The state of West Bengal had declared a total strike and there were blockades and rallies throughout the town of Suri. At the time we didn't know it was a strike and were a bit alarmed to find ourselves in the middle of a mob asking if there was a five star hotel in town (there wasn't!)

Eventually found somewhere to stay, and spent the evening in a restaurant listening to piped music based on 70s TV programmes (eg the Brady bunch) - a bit like eating in a lift or a supermarket!

6th January: Day 10

Sambalpur - Kharagpur - Midnapore



It was decided to temporarily dissolve our threesome last night - "Spirit of Lassi" and "Bombay Bucanneers" have more time available are are going to try to enter Nepal with their Rickshaws....however, Paul is flying back from Bombay on 13th of January so we have to head straight for Darjeeling in case we have any problems en route.



A picturesque drive today, during which we think we saw King Louis' Palace from the jungle book. Found a three star hotel in Midnapore, and had a guy drive into the back of us on a motorbike (at about 2 km an hour - so no one was hurt but he did look a bit stupid as we'd been stationary for some time!)

5th January: Day 9

Raipur - Sambalpur

Made great progress today until our fuel-tank fell off - this slowed us down a bit. Managed to re-attach it using tie-wraps (our Swedish friend Ingo who had them in his repair kit refers to them as "Cat-Stranglers!). Also needed to do a bit of fuel tank blowing and sucking (I'll let you guess who did what) to get the rickshaw going again....a process we had to repeat many times over the next couple of hours - but it now runs fine again.

Had a late lunch at a motorway "family restaurant" - in the middle of a tropical country they had a plastic palm tree in the garden. Now in another nice hotel (I think our days of roughing it are over now....but don't tell the other teams...they just think north India is more expensive than the south) and heading to West Bengal tomorrow

4th January: Day 8

Jagdalpur - Raipur

The day started with a press call - so just like being back in London - damn these paparazzi! Having sorted out our mosquito infestation in the rickshaw we set off along more rough roads. There's a waterfall near Jagdalpur that's 2/3rds the size of Niagra Falls - I was navigating so we missed it. Stopped at a shack for petrol today - met some great kids who helped with our translations - and at one point I ended up running the mechanics stool trying to sell engine oil to the locals - I didn't make him any money but I was given a funnel to help us fill the Rickshaw's fuel tank as a reward. Arrived in Raipur and decided to stay in a nice hotel. Everyone is on the mend now - so we dined out on pizza, vege burgers and cheese sandwiches....well the whole point of the trip is to experience the real India. Also interviewed by the press during one of our stops today - the article will hopefully be emailed to us so we can put it on the site for you to read (in Hindi!)

3rd January: Day 7

Tuni - Visakhapatnam - Jagdalpur

We've had enough of motorway driving and so are heading into the mountains to take a more scenic route. We were quickly rewarded with better scenery, and then worse roads, and finally Sam and Ingo's (Buccanneers) exhaust falling off! More road-side repairs courtesy of Ingo's supply of wire. Stayed in suite in a great hotel in Jagdalpur - and managed to find a mechanic to fix the exhaust. But we now have a hole in our gasket which has ruined our "stealth mode". Sam (and Fabien to some extent) have now joined the bowel-casualty list - only Ingo has escaped so far so I might have to do something to his toothbrush to even things up. It was just me, Ingo and Fabien for dinner tonight.

2nd January: Day 6

Guntur - Vijawada - Tuni

Wahey! More motorway driving! It is now Paul's turn to be unwell - a role he has thrown (sic) himself into whole heartedly - none of this feeling slightly off your food stuff - more like an attack of cholera! When Paul is driving I make sure I sit on the right side in the back in case he needs the left hand side for emergencies! We stuck Paul in a room by himself tonight to try to recover whilst the rest of us dined off banana leaf plates in the cleanest looking restaurant we could find (I think we might be joining Paul tomorrow!) Had gin and sprite as a night cap (drinking out of water bottles cut in half ) - although I'm not sure if sprite has the same antimalarial properties as Tonic water with quinine.

1st January: Day 5

Mamallapuram - Chennai - Velore - Ongole - Guntur

A nice early start to the new year - and what better way to spend it than on a motorway! Left at 6am which was fortunate as the concept of a bypass has yet to be considered here. The "motorway" went straight through the centre of Madras (Chennai)! A very dull day spent dodging trucks that had decided to travel up the wrong side of the motorway (actually a very common thing - sometimes they even try to overtake each other!) Our rickshaw broke down shortly after a refuelling stop (too much 2T oil we think)...so myself and Sam (Bombay Bucanneers) took their rickshaw to a local village to collect a mechanic and drive him back to the motorway for a bit of "Road-Side Recovery". During the process we somehow managed to swap our dodgy spark plug with the Bucanneers' one - but I think they now want to swap it back! We also picked up a passenger on his way to work in a dairy. The only other "event" was being stopped by the police in Ongole, who demanded a backhander to let us continue (even though all our documents were correct and we aren't able to break the speed limit - we've been trying to unsuccessfully since the start of the trip and have only come close with a bit of a run up and a steep downhill gradient, helped by the fact that Paul and myself are still a bit on the heavy side despite over a week of local food). Still the police were nice enough to show us the way to a dodgy hotel that we left a few minutes later when they also asked for a large "deposit"! - which is why we carried on to Guntur

31st December: Day 4

Spent New Years Eve at the sea-side - relaxing by a pool in a posh hotel (we were staying at the hostel down the road but they didn't seem to mind!) We decided to take the day off as it was 2pm before the running repairs (aka crash damage repairs) and oil changes had been completed on the rickshaws.

About half the teams converged on the resort for a New Year's Eve party - another swanky event - except for the twenty-odd dirty, tired, and later drunk Rickshaw racers. Midnight was seen in drinking Gin and Tonic and dancing to a Bangra-band. I'll try to load up my footage of the locals dancing later - they really know how to "dance as if no one's watching!" All the locals at the party were very friendly and very male - one young man in particular seemed to enjoy placing his hand on Paul's leg! I tried to reassure Paul that it didn't mean anything and was just the local culture, but I think he knew I was making that bit up.