alt.1485m~2310m
The landscape on the way was really beatiful. And the ride was really smooth today with following northern wind.
I run across a German cyclist on the way who came from the opposite direction, from Pamir Highway. He was suffering a lot with the wind on a contrary, felt so cold, yet was happy to drink the coca-cora that I had, saying there was no real coca-cora in Tajikistan, except in Dushanbe in where coca-cora was imported from Afganistan(!).
He gave me the news of the Spanish cyclist with whom I wanted to join in the Highway. They'd met near the border, which was already four days ago. I'm afraid I'll have no chance to meet him again. He planned to go to Afghanistan after Pamir Highway. I'm sorry for that. He was such a nice, cheerful person.
Again I couldn't gain much distance today. I went to a small village to buy something to drink in the afternoon, which was located a little apart from the route. Probably that was why. So many kids there were exited to see me coming in with an abnormal bicycle. They gathered around my bike, shouted around, pushed behind, followed me all the way into the village.
I took out my camera to take their picture, which was a big mistake. Many more kids gathered, and even adults. It was a big chaos everytime when I took a picture and showed it to them.
Meanwhile I was invited by a family for a homestay. I politely refused because it was still early and I wanted to go on further. There was a young man who spoke English. I talked with him a while. He was from the same family. I couldn't refuse their proposal in the second time.
In that evening, I was introduced to three or four uncles, three aunts, a brother, a grandmother, and six or seven cousins or nephews. The dinner was great, fried rice mixed with vegitables, jams, other dippings, and cheese and yoghurt both were made from horse milk. (They let me ride on a horse as well. No guide! All by myself.) I asked them to let me pay for staying, but they didn't accept it, saying it was a tradition of Muslim to invite a guest that way.
Next morning, after giving me breakfast, they prepared me lunch as well: bread, cheese and yoghurt. It was far too much to leave with only telling them "thank you". Fortunately, I had a cheap degital camera as a spare for an emergency. A real cheap one, just like a toy, that no one would buy such in Japan. I gave it to the young guy. I seemed happy. I hope he didn't actually have a handy with better quality camera in his bag. He was about to move to Bishkek only with the small bag, for his new life.
1 Oct 2008, KIci-Karakul, 8350km(59km/day)
