Location: near Ranakpur, India
| Lat/Lng: |
25.11768, 73.47195 |
| Kilometers: |
100 |
| Time in the Saddle: |
05:07:03 |
We found a great spot for breakfast, serving aloo parantha (potato stuffed flat bread) and tea. While eating, we met a very helpful and friendly Indian doctor who we spoke with for a bit. The people at the small restaurant were awesome. They even kept bringing us free samples of different dishes, so we could test out all of their food.
After looking at the map and finalizing our route, we said goodbye to the shop owners and headed out.
Unfortunately, the first 40 km or so followed an extremely busy road. There were hundreds of trucks travelling the same route in both directions and we were driven off the road about 10 - 15 times each. It was like being back in U.P. Fortunately, we soon turned off the major road, onto a small, less traveled route through the sandy desert landscape.
As we were riding, two older men in their 50's or 60's waiting for the bus flagged us down and asked where we were from and if we would join them at their house for tea. We said that would be excellent and walked, pushing the bikes, about 2 kilometers to their home in a nearby village. We sat down for about an hour enjoying tea, soda and snacks talking about their work in India and the future of India and China. Although both men grew up in this small desert village, they both now live in large cities due to their work.
When we finished, we continued on towards Ranakpur temple, but had a short detour as Meredith got a flat tire after riding over a huge, spiny thorn. We pulled over to a small store to patch the tire and had lot of company as we worked. Riding out of this small town, huge willow trees lined the road, filtering the setting sunlight, as the gentle breeze rustled the leaves draped from the tall branches.
As we continued along the road, we were greeted by a German couple on a motorcycle who have been travelling the last two years. After stopping to talk with them for a while, they mentioned that Ranakpur had only very expensive places to stay, but they would ride ahead to their guesthouse and ask if we could set up our tent on the grass. Surprisingly, the guesthouse owners agreed, as long as we ate dinner and breakfast there, and the couple, Woody and Silkie, let us take showers in their room. We had a great dinner together, talking under the clear sky late into the night...
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