Friends Around The World

We would like to thank all the people who kindly contributed to our two charities and to all the wonderful people who befriended us around the world and made us welcome in their homes and lives.

Below are pictures and fond memories.  If you see yourself, please leave us a message.

谢谢

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I think the only other adventure type biker we saw. On bridge high up above remote villages and valleys in Guizhou. He was riding from North east China yo Tibet.

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Very kind, peaceful and all round lovely people who made us very welcome.

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Meeting Steve Wordsworth from Hong Kong in Keswick. Steve and I worked together in Royal Hong Kong police (he still does) and he was riding his bicycle from Land's End to John O'Groats.... which he completed successfully  a week later.

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Paul and Marja who we traveled across north k Kenya with. Thanks so much for carrying our fuel and panniers and being such good friends

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Stephen .. my racing snake guide up to the top of Mount Kenya

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Fanny in Masai Mara with our guide

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Yum yum ... SerengetiThank you very much to Ahmed and his family. Sun, warm water and pretty girls... yes its Scotland. Fanny making friends as usualGoing for a ride in Derbyshire with my  friend (from schooldays) Andrea and her Ducati Monster. Getting my six year Chinese driving licence after an all night swotBring your own customs official... in fact its Magdi cadging a life on back of my bikeLeon from Country Trax .. our off road riding instructorLocal witch doctor selling medicinal herbs and mutiMasaai herdsman in .... SerengetiThe kind Sudanese guys we met just before the borderGoodbye Ethiopia -- Hello SudanSorting the bikesAlicia's BMW GS800 lowered for her.. Not much ground clearanceFanny and I riding around DahabThe guys I met at Loch Lomond camping by the water and enjoying the summer of 2013. One of many new friends I made on my trip. Riding a Classic Triumph Tiget which he had since new.  (Derbyshire ...High Peak)Big Bike Sand Course, South AfricaLeon and the guys of the Big Bike sand Course ... doing a bit of off roading in the hills The Country Trax Axle deep in sand...

Bai Jiu and beer with friends in China

Dutch friends who fed us after a rotten day in Switzerland

Lhasa Tibetan girl on a pony New friends high up in Tibet ...Lots of laughter... Lovely people. IMG_1377Top bike ... A KTM 950 Super Enduro... and these guys could ride them. Difficult to keep up. Police in China ... most good.. some not so.... these were nice guys in AnhuiTroudow Pass and meeting a local family on a day tripHaving a Weissbier with Friedl and Winfried in BavariaFitting new chain and serv

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FannyThe Canadian guys Michael and darren  in Botswana after a flight over OkvangoRupert and Joseph Waweru (chief guide) on Mount Kenya. Great expedition.. great people. Fanny with Noa and Jose (RTW BMW riders from Spain) with whom we had many adventures in the Masai Mara, Kenya. Pictured here at Jungle Junction in Nairobi. Our friends, Andrea and Gary who came out to Dahab to stay with us. John and Tony (Dive masters) in the background

Fanny and my aunt, Joan at her home in Cotignac, Provence, FranceTony at a dive briefing ... think he's done it a few times before. Taking ferry over to Isle of Skye with the other bikers. This biker from Durham, who lives on Skye introduced to me and gave me a can of  Avon skin cream all the locals use to ward off the scary Scottish midges.... its really does work. thanks..

Fanny at KTM factory in Mattighofen, Austria

My good friend and neighbour Francois Botha + dawgIMG_0808Cape Town Traffic police and FannyOkavango Delta, BotswanaSorted... I think

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Fellow riders from South Africa .. The Taylor family (Turkey)Nuria and Joken from Basque Country and their baby.Turatech ... nice kit for bikesTuratech in Istanbul, TurkeyAllo AlloFanny with Chinese Ambassador .. 非常感谢你的帮助我们。 Fanny with some tourists in RomeSo that's why GPS was taking us onto a railway ... thanks to staff for helping two plonkers on bikesAndrea and Gary and diving friendswith mini me ... Aswan, EgyptShoppingWe love Turkey ... such a beautiful country and lovely people. Fanny being given the tour of a local boxing gym in Mersin

Andrea in riding kit ... and her Ducati

Making friends in the Highlands of ScotlandThe day was Triumph UK's open day and across the country every Triumph dealership was having a party and allowing test drives of all their models. My friend, Nick Dobson took me to several dealerships and we rode a few good bikes. I really liked the Triumph 800 Tiger, and it would have been a good bike for the UK tour, but there were none available in my price bracket, and I really do not care for the Explorer and the XC 800 is not what I'm after.

Of course you can trust us... look at our honest faces

Some more little friendly friendsWhat a smileNellie and Ellie

Ethiopian kids .. and there are lots of them.

It is always very heart warming to be warmly greeted by complete strangers in far flung places. This has happened to me in the USA, Europe Africa and Asia, but never in the UK. Goodbye Ethiopia -- Hello SudanOur new friends... they gave us coffee and we shared a water melon with them  at what must be the most remote and interesting coffee shop I have ever been to. What fun. Thanks to our customs fixer at Cairo airport we have documents sorted out for another months or so.With an Africa Twin RTW rider in Italy ... met a petrol station as you do

Wiv a bit of art innit.... Rome

Nick, Paola, and Fanny out walking in Paola's home town of Ferrentino, ItalyWith a nice pair of knockers.. Tuscany somewhere. China in PompeiFanny and I with the Pope ... sort of. Tibet with lamasWe were made very welcome at 4,700 meters in middle of TibetFanny making herself very comfortable with new friendsWith Little Living BhuddaLittle Living Bhudda checking our our bikesOur very good friend , Si Ba outside his monastery. We later met him again in LhasaYoung Lama whose only English were Yaks Milk Yoghurt and Rice... with our hostsFanny lighting up a tab from the sacred flame... Testing the bikesTaking Si Ba back up the mountain to the temple to collect his phone charger!!!!Fun and gamesLots of laughterWe met some lovely fellow travelers in Tibet. They always seemed genuinely happy to see us and chat. I think being one of very few, if not only foreigner might have something to do with it. Goodbye to our friends from Tibet. We will come back. One day. Very cold above 5000 meters... but still people to meetOur mechanic in NanjingFlanny and FannyA little friend in Shangri La (Yunnan)  helping himself to Fanny's dinnerFriends and KTM RC8s in KunmingMore friends in China Being escorted out of Changqing city by BMW club membersGirls love bikes A guy selling lotus seeds in Jiangxi Fanny and our host Flanny in Changsha in HunanThis guy saved our bacon.... no fuel for 2 days between Guizhou and Guangxi Off he goes... solo to Tibet on a rather ropey bike. He had fixed it many times but still kept breaking down. Yunnan, ChinaCyclists riding around Dali lake, YunnanMore food ... our kind host in KunmingOur good buddies in Dali More oil and filters please... we look after our bike ... or I should say CF Moto doIMG_4903We made lots of whooly friends in TibetOdd furry friends in Qinghai ... added because we basically never saw anyone else.Qinghai lake ... more furry friendsBikes hijacked .. againQinghaiTibetan girl on a pony

This guy was hilarious ... he played a trumpet in Chengdu People's Park while very odd people pretended to be cat walk models walking up and down a red carpet. Chongqing motorcycle groupsFanny meeting the motor cycle pressLots of picture posing in ChongqingMeeting one of the motorcycle show models ... cant remember her name or what her face looks like ... if I ever did. One of our sponsors... thanks so much for super kit.IMG_0229Oh dear .... more food. Me earning my three dinners a day taking the press for rides around the show groundFanny was a superstar at showPresented with a Hada by Tibetan ridersCF Motos amazing stunt rider ... Hu HaiHow many meals can I eat in a day ... it seems a lot .. and so can Fanny. Local bikersThese police in Hubei were very friendly and kind... in fact with a couple of exceptions that we write about in the diary, the authorities in China treated us well. BMW guys in Yichang BMW riders club helping us in YichangMr ChuLocal bikers ... lovely foxy hat.Riding in northern TibetWhere ever we went in China big crowds would appear to look at the bikes, and especially Fanny. We did it....Finally making it to Shanghai... we had ridden 53,600 kilometers since we left Cape Town. No fanfare to greet us... we  didn't need one .. Fanny and I were together all the waytibet 2Motorcycling ... where ever you are brings a smile to your faceOur good friend, Si Ba whom we first met on the Tibetan Plateau and now having yaks milk tea and walnuts in a local tea house in LhasaTibetan guy in a tea shop in Lhasa.Si Ba and I in middle of Tibetan Plateau

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5 thoughts on “Friends Around The World

  1. What a nice trip, I can’t wait until i get “on the road again” I’m planning my own trip RTW from 2014, Waiting for the new 1190 Adv R, then the 1200GS ADV will have to find a new owner.

    regards,
    Bjørn

  2. come and visit the Philippines some time, there are a few back roads here that would be nice for trail riding and even ATV off-roading (currently I am with CFMOTO distributor)

  3. What an amazing trip – how brave you both are – hope you are back home safe and well. Had a vivid dream the other night about your Uncle Mick (Pilcher) which is how I found your website when I tried to look him up on the web. You mentioned that you visited him whilst in Lusaka please can you tell me if he is still OK – we knew each other very well when I lived in Lusaka (40 years ago !!) and this dream brought back the very happy memories.

    • HI Ann, Rupert let me know about your post. I’m Micks daughter Rosie. Perhaps you didn’t know of me – im almost 40. Mick is still living here in Lusaka. if you would like to contact him, through me, you are welcome. My email is rosiezam@yahoo.co.uk

We are looking forward to hearing from you

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