My family started to travel a lot when I was a little child and when I was a teenager Dad put the riding bug in my ear. After a few long trips in Europe and Africa we decided to travel around the world with two Suzuki V-stroms, following the first couple’s (1928-36) way around who were Hungarians just like us.
The trip started in 2005 and I started to write a daily log from the beginning. I am currently in Thailand, riding around the forests and mud baths of this beautiful country and the region for almost 10 years now. I hope you guys will enjoy my trip reports and don’t mind my grammar.
Also, it would be great to meet other bikers for long endure trips, share ideas and beer bills.
So here is the story of the first day of my trip.
Day 1. Budapest-Szeged-Border Crossing to Romania-Nagykata-Deva
Odometer: 650 km
So this is it, eight in the morning and the bikes are all warmed up on Hero's square, Budapest. About thirty interested friends and other bikers who are prepared to take us to the border are gathered on this sunny day. Just to add to the feeling, one of the major TV channel's crew turned up for the usual -let's fill the program with something- kind of interview. We have been preparing for this day for quiet a while now. The idea of riding around the world with a motorcycle was in fact my Dad's idea. It came in one Christmas eve when our biker friend Samu surprised us with the book of Zoltan Sulkowski and Gyula Bartha, the first duo to circumnavigate the globe with a motorcycle. Nevertheless we both hooked on it as the motorcycle bug was already in the family for a long time. So this is eight in the morning and finally our dream is about begin. There are around 10 bikers who decided to ride along with us until the Romanian border together with a car with some of my friends and my grandpa in it. We have reached the border without any interesting event, nice riding conditions, good mood, a perfect day to see my beloved country for the the coming many many years.
Crossing over to Romania was probably the easiest border crossing. About five minutes of administration we were already rolling on the roads of Transylvania. As this beautiful area use to belonged to Hungary, communicating with the locals are not an issue. Not as we stopping at every corner for a tea, we are trying to reach the Carpathian mountain before sunset. Our main goal is to reach the Bulgarian seashore by the next afternoon so we really need a long first day ride. The only thing holding us back is the quality of the roads. The constant holes on most of the Transylvanian roads were a sad reminder of the negligence of this region, however, as we approached to the Carpathians the view of the mountains completely made us forget about the shaky road. The Carpathians are the major dividing line between central and eastern Europe with peaks over 1500 meters. I would really recommend this region for bikers as this is probably the best way to get down to Istanbul from Western Europe.
By late afternoon we were already climbing the Carpathians when the first storm of the trip caught up with us making our progress a bit slower. Finally we have reached Deva, a small city inside the mountains. It took us about an hour to find the only one available accommodation which was moderately cheap with its 15 dollars a night/room price.
It looks like I have some problem uploading pictures here. I will try it again tonight when I have a better internet connection.
http://www.facebook.com/riderslog
The trip started in 2005 and I started to write a daily log from the beginning. I am currently in Thailand, riding around the forests and mud baths of this beautiful country and the region for almost 10 years now. I hope you guys will enjoy my trip reports and don’t mind my grammar.
Also, it would be great to meet other bikers for long endure trips, share ideas and beer bills.
So here is the story of the first day of my trip.
Day 1. Budapest-Szeged-Border Crossing to Romania-Nagykata-Deva
Odometer: 650 km
So this is it, eight in the morning and the bikes are all warmed up on Hero's square, Budapest. About thirty interested friends and other bikers who are prepared to take us to the border are gathered on this sunny day. Just to add to the feeling, one of the major TV channel's crew turned up for the usual -let's fill the program with something- kind of interview. We have been preparing for this day for quiet a while now. The idea of riding around the world with a motorcycle was in fact my Dad's idea. It came in one Christmas eve when our biker friend Samu surprised us with the book of Zoltan Sulkowski and Gyula Bartha, the first duo to circumnavigate the globe with a motorcycle. Nevertheless we both hooked on it as the motorcycle bug was already in the family for a long time. So this is eight in the morning and finally our dream is about begin. There are around 10 bikers who decided to ride along with us until the Romanian border together with a car with some of my friends and my grandpa in it. We have reached the border without any interesting event, nice riding conditions, good mood, a perfect day to see my beloved country for the the coming many many years.
Crossing over to Romania was probably the easiest border crossing. About five minutes of administration we were already rolling on the roads of Transylvania. As this beautiful area use to belonged to Hungary, communicating with the locals are not an issue. Not as we stopping at every corner for a tea, we are trying to reach the Carpathian mountain before sunset. Our main goal is to reach the Bulgarian seashore by the next afternoon so we really need a long first day ride. The only thing holding us back is the quality of the roads. The constant holes on most of the Transylvanian roads were a sad reminder of the negligence of this region, however, as we approached to the Carpathians the view of the mountains completely made us forget about the shaky road. The Carpathians are the major dividing line between central and eastern Europe with peaks over 1500 meters. I would really recommend this region for bikers as this is probably the best way to get down to Istanbul from Western Europe.
By late afternoon we were already climbing the Carpathians when the first storm of the trip caught up with us making our progress a bit slower. Finally we have reached Deva, a small city inside the mountains. It took us about an hour to find the only one available accommodation which was moderately cheap with its 15 dollars a night/room price.
It looks like I have some problem uploading pictures here. I will try it again tonight when I have a better internet connection.
http://www.facebook.com/riderslog