A few power outages throughout the night. No big deal but you definitely notice the difference once the fan stops spinning.
Breakfast in the hotel having given the bikes a quick clean off and a little oil. Also the chance to give a quick inspection and adjust a few screws gradually working themselves loose. For a place with such a hard name to pronounce (recognisably for the locals) this is a place I could come back to. Back out to the highway along the same road we came in upon. Again dodging rickshaws and cyclists but with a different intensity in the morning.
Consistent sections of fantastic tar or concrete makes the riding feel progressive as the landscape remains largely the same. Large flat segmented fields some already sown with rice others waiting for further water accumulation. Little to no signage especially when compared to West Bengal makes things a little more tricky. In most of the small villages at least one of the stores normally has a sign which helps but you really need two to get confirmation. Our road atlas is also not very assistive so we are forced to stop and confirm as we go.
Cross a large healthy looking river. Strange bamboo contraptions on the far side. Stop for a photo and notice that a boy is using the closest and smallest. It turns out to be a net system to catch fish, I guess. He is not having much success. Two crossed bamboo lengths are tied at each corner of a large net, another is used as a lever to raise and lower in and out of the water periodically.
Stop for chai at a road side dhaba hidden behind trucks. Served by a young boy with one glazed pupil from glaucoma. When we go to pay the owner waves us away.
Rub spots slowly working themselves to an annoyance level. Again finding a consistent spot to sit comfortably through the ride is a challenge.
Ride past a guy recording us on his camcorder, standing beside his black jeep just parked on the road. Tired at the time so decided to take a break not much further along the road. The camera guy follows us in his car and then also stops. A local journalist interested in what we are doing. It is hard sometimes in knowing what information to provide both from a third party interest but also from the protection of our own security.
Locals harvesting by hand some of the rice crop and then spreading on the unused side of the highway to dry. Also pass chillies being laid out in a similar arrangement.
Large Elephant chained to a large tree near a dam of water scratching itself on the tummy with a tree branch.
My shirt appears to be slowly rubbing tortuously my nipples off. Last night a little bored and decided that chest hair was looking more like Mike Myers as Austin Powers than Sean Connery as James Bond. Unfortunately I have now realised that the hair was on protection duty.
So many people asking our details. A few wave us over and we choose instead just to wave back. The stops are great but we would not make it anywhere if we stopped every time.
Okay Nalbari give me a sign, I think as we continue to cycle along the signless highway. A second after I thought it and plodding through the crank cycles I was scanning the horizon and spotted a cross. Well I guess it is a sign but not the sort of sign I was originally considering. St Johns church and school, quite coincidental as I attended a St Johns college back in Australia. Great mosaic on the front and the sports fields are being vigorously appreciated and appear in quite good condition which is great.
Three guys across the road wave us over and then offer us drinks. Over discussion identify that they are Bodos which is interesting as again the perception to date from outside the state is of local discord over autonomy. However these guys could not be nicer.
Two girls in local costume are introduced. According to LP it was one of the requirements within Bodo that girls wear national costume.
This is interesting as this was one of the identified causes of friction in Bhutan between Bhutanese Bhotia and Nepali immigrants in the South. A Tata truck driver also joins in paying for our cookies and water. He has little to no english however which makes things quite difficult, but is very nice. He even suggests we throw the bikes in the truck as they will be in Guwahati tonight. Decline the offer and say goodbye to the other guys.
Spot the turn off the highway to Nalbari, thankyou Bodo people, unsigned like Bogaigaon and similarly distant from the road, but the rail crossing as described was hard to miss.
Nalbari undergoing roadworks and does not have the same level of chill as Bogaigaon. We struggle to find a hotel as similar to the last few large towns/cities it is hard to find a central point. We are feeling pretty tired.
Paparazzi mobile phone users, not answering questions just taking shots, regardless of whether smiling or not. No pushing, no graving and very little touching but after a big day of riding, being swamped by people who do not attempt to read your very evident mood is hard. Not to mention the traffic jams we caused every time we stopped in town. People would gradually build up, drivers or riders would slow down to see what was going on and for anyone want to get anywhere the road became effectively blocked.
Eventually a young guy on a Motorbike offers to lead us to Hotel PremodalPriya Bar. Only ac rooms available, but at 700rup the room is quite good. Very helpful staff
We compare red patches spotting the nastiest and discussing the most painful. If doing similar again I think I would spend much longer assessing seats, the bigger and bouncier are not always the better but either we are still unhardened or our seats are a touch too unforgiving. Rear suspension would be nice, but just another thing to potentially have to repair. Our front suspension is going fine though we are hardly putting under any pressure with off road down hill and consistent weight.
Notice a guy across the hall peering through a key hole. Not sure on the specifics and he doesn't seem overly concerned at being seen doing so. Mental note to cover the key hole in future. In some ways I couldn't give a rats but knowing the curiosity factor best not to entertain.
Set up our room joining our beds to achieve our mosquito net camp. In this place we have ac, fan, mosquito burner but best not to encourage the little suckers. We elect to only use the fan as though still 30 degrees in the room it feels weird to be too cool otherwise.
Breakfast in the hotel having given the bikes a quick clean off and a little oil. Also the chance to give a quick inspection and adjust a few screws gradually working themselves loose. For a place with such a hard name to pronounce (recognisably for the locals) this is a place I could come back to. Back out to the highway along the same road we came in upon. Again dodging rickshaws and cyclists but with a different intensity in the morning.
Consistent sections of fantastic tar or concrete makes the riding feel progressive as the landscape remains largely the same. Large flat segmented fields some already sown with rice others waiting for further water accumulation. Little to no signage especially when compared to West Bengal makes things a little more tricky. In most of the small villages at least one of the stores normally has a sign which helps but you really need two to get confirmation. Our road atlas is also not very assistive so we are forced to stop and confirm as we go.
Cross a large healthy looking river. Strange bamboo contraptions on the far side. Stop for a photo and notice that a boy is using the closest and smallest. It turns out to be a net system to catch fish, I guess. He is not having much success. Two crossed bamboo lengths are tied at each corner of a large net, another is used as a lever to raise and lower in and out of the water periodically.
Stop for chai at a road side dhaba hidden behind trucks. Served by a young boy with one glazed pupil from glaucoma. When we go to pay the owner waves us away.
 |
| From Siliguri (West Bengal) to Guwahati (Assam), India May 2011 |
Rub spots slowly working themselves to an annoyance level. Again finding a consistent spot to sit comfortably through the ride is a challenge.
Ride past a guy recording us on his camcorder, standing beside his black jeep just parked on the road. Tired at the time so decided to take a break not much further along the road. The camera guy follows us in his car and then also stops. A local journalist interested in what we are doing. It is hard sometimes in knowing what information to provide both from a third party interest but also from the protection of our own security.
Locals harvesting by hand some of the rice crop and then spreading on the unused side of the highway to dry. Also pass chillies being laid out in a similar arrangement.
 |
| From Siliguri (West Bengal) to Guwahati (Assam), India May 2011 |
My shirt appears to be slowly rubbing tortuously my nipples off. Last night a little bored and decided that chest hair was looking more like Mike Myers as Austin Powers than Sean Connery as James Bond. Unfortunately I have now realised that the hair was on protection duty.
So many people asking our details. A few wave us over and we choose instead just to wave back. The stops are great but we would not make it anywhere if we stopped every time.
Okay Nalbari give me a sign, I think as we continue to cycle along the signless highway. A second after I thought it and plodding through the crank cycles I was scanning the horizon and spotted a cross. Well I guess it is a sign but not the sort of sign I was originally considering. St Johns church and school, quite coincidental as I attended a St Johns college back in Australia. Great mosaic on the front and the sports fields are being vigorously appreciated and appear in quite good condition which is great.
Three guys across the road wave us over and then offer us drinks. Over discussion identify that they are Bodos which is interesting as again the perception to date from outside the state is of local discord over autonomy. However these guys could not be nicer.
Two girls in local costume are introduced. According to LP it was one of the requirements within Bodo that girls wear national costume.
This is interesting as this was one of the identified causes of friction in Bhutan between Bhutanese Bhotia and Nepali immigrants in the South. A Tata truck driver also joins in paying for our cookies and water. He has little to no english however which makes things quite difficult, but is very nice. He even suggests we throw the bikes in the truck as they will be in Guwahati tonight. Decline the offer and say goodbye to the other guys.
 |
| From Siliguri (West Bengal) to Guwahati (Assam), India May 2011 |
 |
| From Siliguri (West Bengal) to Guwahati (Assam), India May 2011 |
Spot the turn off the highway to Nalbari, thankyou Bodo people, unsigned like Bogaigaon and similarly distant from the road, but the rail crossing as described was hard to miss.
Nalbari undergoing roadworks and does not have the same level of chill as Bogaigaon. We struggle to find a hotel as similar to the last few large towns/cities it is hard to find a central point. We are feeling pretty tired.
Paparazzi mobile phone users, not answering questions just taking shots, regardless of whether smiling or not. No pushing, no graving and very little touching but after a big day of riding, being swamped by people who do not attempt to read your very evident mood is hard. Not to mention the traffic jams we caused every time we stopped in town. People would gradually build up, drivers or riders would slow down to see what was going on and for anyone want to get anywhere the road became effectively blocked.
Eventually a young guy on a Motorbike offers to lead us to Hotel PremodalPriya Bar. Only ac rooms available, but at 700rup the room is quite good. Very helpful staff
We compare red patches spotting the nastiest and discussing the most painful. If doing similar again I think I would spend much longer assessing seats, the bigger and bouncier are not always the better but either we are still unhardened or our seats are a touch too unforgiving. Rear suspension would be nice, but just another thing to potentially have to repair. Our front suspension is going fine though we are hardly putting under any pressure with off road down hill and consistent weight.
Notice a guy across the hall peering through a key hole. Not sure on the specifics and he doesn't seem overly concerned at being seen doing so. Mental note to cover the key hole in future. In some ways I couldn't give a rats but knowing the curiosity factor best not to entertain.
Set up our room joining our beds to achieve our mosquito net camp. In this place we have ac, fan, mosquito burner but best not to encourage the little suckers. We elect to only use the fan as though still 30 degrees in the room it feels weird to be too cool otherwise.
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