At the age of 25, she didn’t know how to ride a bike. Five years later, we were cycling together on the washboard roads of Kyrgyzstan. Pashmina Binwani, a cyclist and travel writer from Kuala Lumpur, doesn’t care about speed or meeting other people’s expectations. Instead, she is trying to find her own path and […]
Bicycle touring inspiration: Pashmina Binwani – it’s never too late to learn cycling Read More »
Staring at a pair of feet next to my face, I tried to sleep. I put a sweater under my head because I loathed the stickiness of the sofa under my cheek. The deck bar of the Bari-Durres ferry filled with a cheerful crowd, getting drinks and laughing loudly. It felt like they all knew
There are places where you go because you really want to, and there are those you visit because you happen to be nearby or they are just on the way. I never dreamt of travelling to Sicily, but I took the opportunity to visit when I was in Malta. Being less than 2 hours ferry
My Sicilian struggles Read More »
When I ask why he wanted so badly to cycle the Soviet Union, Pat Patterson laughs: Because it was there, and they told me I couldn’t go, no, nyet! This 82-year-old energetic man from California has spent more than 7 years cycling the world and was the first American to cross the USSR by bike.
Bicycle touring inspiration: Pat Patterson – first American to cycle the Soviet Union Read More »
During 6 days of volunteering on the border-crossing in Medyka-Sheginhe, I saw hundreds of people who left their homes and headed towards the unknown. They were not looking for a thrill of adventure. On the contrary, they only wanted safety. The war forced them to leave Ukraine. Here are some stories I heard on the
Stories from the border Read More »
Every time I visit the Balkans, it’s like coming back. Although, I’ve never lived there, I feel this Yugonostalgia, missing something I never knew. Maybe in my previous incarnation, I was driving a Yugo or Zastava for a state-planned vacation? The South is paradise lost, wrote Kapka Kassabova in “By the lake”. Her story about Lakes Prespa and Ohrid gave me an impulse to visit North Macedonia.
Paradise lost – cycling in North Macedonia Read More »
CouchSurfing references are a tricky matter. They should be your compass in the quest for the right host. My only negative CS experience happened despite 80 splendid references on the host’s profile. Moreover, it took me 13 months to write him a review. It made me wonder if we can rely on the references at all. How often are things left unsaid? Why is leaving an honest reference so difficult? What can we – solo traveling women – do to be safe (and protect others) while CouchSurfing?
Silence ain’t golden – using Couch Surfing as a woman Read More »
I felt their eyes on me.
“You alone?”
“No, my husband is right behind me,” I answered knowing that they will find out that my husband either wears an invisibility cloak or does not exist if they stay at the road for a while.
It was like in a base camp. I mean, besides electricity, fast wi-fi and the shop around the corner where you could swing by in your flip-flops. Also, we were in Kyrgyzstan’s fourth biggest city and none of us was even close to being a mountaineer. We were all regular tourists. The mood was truly basecamp-ish, though. We would maniacally check the weather forecast and played cards for hours to kill the time. Sometimes the noise of squealing tires followed by the rumble of crashing cars drowned out the monotonous sound of the rain on the tin roof. Another jerk went through a red light on the intersection in front of the hostel.
Kyrgyz Tales, Part 3: Jottings from Karakol Read More »
I don’t remember his name. Let’s just call him “Mister Five Thousand Benefits”. He joined us at the beach in Tong and, while sharing a watermelon with us, was trying to convert us to Islam.
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