A few days ago Friedel had the chance to talk to Chris, the host of the Amateur Traveler podcast, about our time in Iran. It was a fun hour chatting about a wonderful country and perhaps some of you would like to listen in so check on the site to download the show. Chris also has an amazing archive of over 130 shows on all parts of the world, worth adding to your “listen-to” list.

Going even further back, around Christmas we met a couple Americans, Andrea and Michael, travelling around and they did an interview with us. We haven’t seen this video yet because connection speeds are just too slow but the rest of you can enjoy it.

They tell us Samarqand is a beautiful city but it’s pouring rain outside and how can you see all the ancient buildings when the heavens are open and water is falling from the skies with full force? There was nothing for it but to do a bit of spring cleaning instead and for us this meant digging out all those things we’ve wanted to share with you but haven’t. Why haven’t we? Well, you know, it’s complicated. So much to do on a world bicycle tour, so little time! Anyway, finally we found the time and here you are, a spring present from us.

First there’s an interview with six German fellows (correction: five Germans and one Lebanese, listen to the show and you may understand) who we met carrying guitars at the Iranian-Turkmenistan border. They’re hitching to Mongolia and singing along the way and they were kind enough to sing a song for us.

Then you’ll find a second mini-show where we introduce you to Carl, a French Canadian who we met way back when we were just green cycling tourists, hardly through our first month on the road. This interview has really been hanging around a long time and it’s high time we shared it with you so put on your headphones, sit back and enjoy.

As a third bonus, take a look at the site of Michel, a French guy who’s staying in our hotel in Samarqand. He’s going around the world on a recumbent tricycle and his motto is one we can really identify with: don’t dream about your life, live your dream.

 

 Show 15: German singers: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Show 16: Meet Carl: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

You can spot a fellow tourist a mile off in this part of the world so we quickly realised we had company when six fair-skinned young men with musical instruments walked by our campsite. We were eager to find out what their story was so we hurried up with our packing and rushed off to meet them at the border gate. In this short time, they seemed to have disappeared but it didn’t take long for an excited truck driver to come up and tell us that some Germans had walked straight past the entrance and were now trekking unwittingly into the Iranian countryside.

“You go find them,” he said, or something like that in Russian. Friedel set off on her bike, only to be attacked by three ferocious dogs who tried to take a chunk out of her bags. Next it was Andrew’s turn, this time in a car with an Iranian who was equally curious. A few minutes later the group returned, crammed into the car with all their guitars. They turned out to be members of Germany’s version of the Scout movement, hitching all the way to Mongolia and singing German folk songs as they go.

We couldn’t resist interviewing them and recording a small performance, which we hope to post once we get to Uzbekistan.

It was only the start of what turned out to be a very interesting day. Crossing into new countries is always stimulating for the senses and Turkmenistan was no different. It took us about two hours to get through the border formalities, most of that on the Turkmenistan side. Immediately we noticed the number of women working in positions of authority. It seemed Turkmenistan’s public face at least was rather different from Iran.

A young man in a white coat was the first to greet us. He looked more like a doctor than a border guard as he wrote our names in a book and quizzed us on our choice of football team. “Ah, German. Bayern Munich?” he asked, looking at Friedel. Then his eyes moved to Andrew. “England. Stephen Gerrard!” (more…)

Today we’re singing the praises of the humble hammam. We didn’t really start to use the public bathhouses until Bijan introduced us to them going across the Dasht-e-Kavir desert but now we’re converted. For only 5,000 Rials – about 50 U.S. cents – you get a scrub up in your own private room. What could be better than that after a few nights of camping? Freshly washed, we spent the last of our remaining Iranian cash and rushed off to see what the border guards would make of our visas, with one exit date stamped as today and another dated for tomorrow. They were clever fellows and quickly realised their mistake as well as the fact that we wouldn’t be allowed to enter Turkmenistan today. We were assured there wasn’t a problem for us to stay one more night in Iran and so we went in search of a quiet place to camp. We were surprised to find a tranquil, grassy field just a few hundred meters from the border post so we lazed around for the rest of the afternoon, taking a last good rest before our dash across Turkmenistan. The weather was so mild and inviting that we didn’t even put up our tent but spent the night under our tarp with the fresh breeze blowing across our faces while we slept.

We’re almost to the border but Iran wasn’t about to let us go without a final farewell show of her hospitality at its best. The country’s kindness started in the morning when we stopped at a small shop for some food and asked where the bakery was so we could buy bread as well. “It’s closed,” the woman said, thinking for a second and then running into her home to bring us two large rounds of bread she’d bought that morning.

Not long down the road, after reaching the peak of a small mountain and cruising down the other side, we cycled out to the beautiful Rabat-e-Sharaf caravanserai, set in green farming fields a short distance from the main route. The holiday period for Iranian New Year isn’t quite over so although we arrived at the caravanserai in the morning, there were already a few families spreading out blankets for tea and midday picnics. We thought we’d picked a quiet spot for our extended lunch break but it wasn’t long before a large family showed up and of course our bikes attracted their attention, particularly of one man. (more…)