What was your favorite country on the trip?
Ray: It would probably be Georgia. The country is located right on the divide between Europe and Asia, so it has a unique mix of both continents. It was like traveling back in time to the days of the Soviet Union, where everything looks old and archaic, with mountains and rivers everywhere you look. We were also fortunate that Georgia was just entering spring, so the temperature was pretty nice. The people there were also very welcoming. Georgia wasn’t on the list of countries we originally planned to visit, so everything there was a bit of a surprise, and it was great.
What were some obstacles you had to overcome on this trip?
Nick: The weather, which was always unpredictable.
Ray: And the visas. We got used to the weather by the time we left Europe, but the visas we prepared in advance were starting to run out, so we had to start applying for them. Iran, for example, was almost a dead-end, as we tried to go around the surrounding countries like Afghanistan and Pakistan. We tried to pass through Dubai, but they couldn’t grant us visas since we weren’t in Thailand. We had to alter our plans and find new routes because of this.
What did you learn from this trip?
Nick: I think it makes you know yourself better, to know how far you can actually go. You start to realize what it is you really need. We couldn’t bring too much stuff with us on the trip, and we had to throw things away every day to lessen the load, leaving only the bare essentials, like clothes or tools for fixing our bikes.
Ray: One thing that is very clear right now for me is that nothing is certain. We had to change our route many times due to various unforeseen complications. Everything is always changing, and change can happen at any time. There were many times when we bonded with the locals, only to have to pack up and leave the next day.
Any close calls or dangerous experiences?
Ray: On Crete, we had to set up our tents by this chasm. There was a pleasant breeze in the evening, and it seemed like a great place for us to settle down. Unfortunately, a storm came in that night at around 2am. We couldn’t get a lick of sleep after that, because the winds were threatening to pull our tents out of the ground and into the chasm.
Nick: We really were that close to being blown off a cliff. My tent was actually doing decently, but Ray’s tent pegs were uprooted.
Ray: I had to just lay there for six hours to let the storm pass before I got out.
