Advertisement
Published: November 16th 2010
Edit Blog Post
It’s a simple story. It’s a story about contrast. It’s a story about the big city and the small city. So it’s a Tale of Two Cities then! It’s about what 250 rupees buys in two different places.
Is it an important story? Not really in the scheme of things. But I just thought it might be useful to note for anyone out there thinking of transporting their motorbike across India. And there are lots of you out there right? !
So here’s the deal. I wanted to take Gladys (that’s my Royal Enfield) to Delhi from Bhubaneswar so as to ride her on what I now call the Great Himalayan Bike Odyssey with my friend Mark (and his ‘Camel’ which is the name of his Royal Enfield).
We did this in September 2010. Not counting our ‘rest’ days, we rode for 5 days to get to Leh in Ladakh; then another three days to ride back to Spiti Valley in Himachal Pradesh; then back via Kinnaud and Kulu (three more days riding) and
Packing at Bhubaneswar 2
layers of straw for good measure again to Delhi (a day). We rode through mud and water and rocks and dust and sand. Occasionally we rode on good roads! We rode over high mountain passes and through valleys and plains amidst snow capped surrounding peaks. It was a truly fabulous adventure.
And Gladys survived it all bar having to have a smashed headlight and the crash bar replaced, but that’s another story. I dropped her 6 times, but one was not my fault! A distraught cow ran across the road and bumped me over! What could I do?
Anyway I digress. The point is that after thousands of miles of often arduous conditions, Gladys got back to Delhi in pretty damn fine condition.
But she got back to Bhubaneswar bruised and battered. What happened?
At Bhubanewsar, the capital of the state of Orissa, the deal is that you get your bike packed by a packing wallah outside the station before booking it on the great Indian Railway system for transportation anywhere in the country. My wallah was fantastic. He was an artisan at packing bikes. He did so many layers of careful padding, including the last layer of thick straw. He covered
and padded and sewed every bloody last inch and instrument and appendage on the bike, leaving of course the wheels and clutch lever free so that Gladys could be wheeled around. This guy knew his trade and there was no question about the negotiated price of 250 rupees being money well spent.
Gladys arrived in Delhi in great condition, despite all the abuse I am sure she received from those less than careful employees of Indian Railways as she was nestled amongst that days packed fish cargo from Puri in the luggage compartment of the Rajdhani Express.
But coming back the other way? Some guy claiming to be a packer did an atrocious job attempting to adequately prepare Gladys for the return journey. I had to instruct him on many points about packing this and that. I had to have him repack things at least three times before I (rather stupidly as it turns out) gave up. It was all round a ‘bad’ job. There were no ‘several’ layers. The padding was simply stuffing some old pieces of rubber up the clumsily sewn Hessian bagging.
Cost? 250 rupees (negotiated because I “knew” the price). But in retrospect
a rip-off and the easiest 250 rupees this amateur had ever made, it seems.
At the other end? Thanks to Indian Railways ‘super care’, the damage was: two dings in the petrol tank; a ding in the muffler casing; another at the end of the muffler; the back license plate bent; the front mud guard bent; the crash bar bent (well that’s what its for right?).
Gladys is again mad at me! What to do? Well, I could learn to pack my own bike next time? But somehow I don’t think there will be a next time. I might just stick to riding her to wherever.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.118s; Tpl: 0.01s; cc: 8; qc: 24; dbt: 0.0926s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Marguerite
non-member comment
Good Girl Gladys
Great yarn Paul and I have more respect for Gladys than ever. Hugs Marguerite