TravellingStrom

Mayan Prophecy Countdown

I am behind yet again, but you knew that I guess. It has been a busy week with not much time to update anything 😉 My SPOT device is buggered so no more tracks until I get a replacement, the story about that will evolve.

Monday 11th

This was a catch up day with at least one post later on but the main issue today was the visa for Kyrgystan. Simon came with me and we deposited the US$110 into the correct account down at the post office, then sent the passport and application off to Geneva, hoping it would arrive by tomorrow. That was one concern out of the way, the next was oil and my tyre repair. The local Suzuki shop is just 100m away but as it turns out, closed on Mondays, bummer, but not a major hassle.

Simon had taken me for a run yesterday arvo in the car to a few different spots that I would need to find, an electronic shop and a bike shop were two of them. After the post office, he took me to Silverstone Park, the bike shop where he introduced me to the owner and left me to find my own way back home. Not such a big deal, take the number 2 tram across the road and it will drop me back at his place 😉 So, riding gear was what I needed and they had a range to choose from, but after specifically saying I needed wet weather protection AND it has to be cool enough in the desert, I chose the IXS range of ventilated jacket and pants. The legs were a tad long, so he called up and ordered the shorter ones and they would be here tomorrow, great stuff. It was not cheap, but after the misery I had been in and realising how much wet I was going to get involved with, it was a necessity not a luxury.

The clothing was sorted, next was a tank bag. I have to say here I was happy with the PacSafe bag I had but all the zippers were now stuffed and it was time to make a decision. Ryan from PacSafe had not been able to come up with a new zip for the base, so now I had to replace it. This was a tough decision as none of the ones available had all the features in the one unit. One bag had this but not that, the other was the opposite, or too small, or the map display window was too small. In the end I also had to allow space and a location for my electronic charging system. I brought it down to 2 choices and would make up my mind when I picked up the riding gear.

I did go home with something though, a set of new heated grips and controller, to replace the failed unit, and was given a big discount as well, apparently the magic words “World Traveller” does wonders here :). Once I had navigated my way back home, Sepp drove me to Conrads, the electronic shop as it was now raining again. Here I found a 12-3V converter and a few other items I needed and this would allow me to power my SPOT device from the bike.

Later in the day the sun came out and Simon took me for a drive to see some Lucerne sights and to meet some people for drinks, plus the European Cup soccer was on and the people go crazy for the game over here. So, here are some pictures of Lucerne and even Mt Pilates was out 🙂

It was a late evening, and we had a nightcap back at his place, while chatting 🙂

Cheers from Lucerne
TravellingStrom