Wednesday 18 February 2015

At last - ready for the off!

After a long frustrating saga getting an Indian visa, I'm finally on my way tomorrow morning. Part of the problem was that the embassy in Lisbon is not contactable by phone or email..........unbelievable! I travelled down to Lisbon and spent two days queuing outside the embassy, the first day they turned everyone away after the first 25 applicants, The second day was also fruitless, after arriving at 7am to be first in the queue I left at 11am empty-handed because the 'systems were down'. As the embassy was shut for 3 days of the following week due to Indian national holidays (Grrrrh) I reluctantly put my passport in the post. Five working days turn-round time - not a chance! I ended up rescheduling my flights twice..........the total cost would have paid for a rather nice road bike  : /

Never mind!  I still have 50 days of cycling in India which is probably enough to lose the 5kg of belly I've acquired hanging around in Portugal.

So, Sandra is taking me and bike to Valenca tomorrow morning to catch the 08.25 airport bus. Then it's Easyjet to Gatwick, Emirates to Mumbai, overnight stop Mumbai, then JetAirways to Thiruvananthapuram.....try saying that when you've had a drink!

This is as good as my bike-packing gets - I hope it's enough to keep the airlines happy.

I will attempt to get a data SIM card for my phone in Mumbai and will let you know how the journey is going.

4 comments:

  1. Hi Mick,enjoy your trip and keep safe.Will look forward to further updates.Makes my trip to John o Groats in June look a bit tame.Mick

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    1. Well done Mick..so your fit and raring to go...still time to join me for another spell of desert camping : )
      BTW I'm over your neck of the woods at the end of May.......fancy meeting up for a beer and giving me some tips on nappy changing?

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  2. Replies
    1. Makes grim reading......about 3 weeks behind schedule and 50km accomplished : I
      Kerala is great, Maria and I have already decided we are migrating here next winter.

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