I came with this idea through several avenues - First I figured out that journeys have the capability of completely transforming people - we find examples throughout history. Only a journey changed Siddhartha into Buddha and Ernesto Guevara into Che Guevara. Even Mahatma Gandhi took a train journey to discover India. Hopefully a motorcycle journey will change me in similar ways. While this is on one hand, I also wanted to travel through whole of Europe stopping at historically important places - by 'historically' I mean WWII, of course. That travel could be on anything - But the freedom a motorcycle offers, particularly if it is off-road capable like the one I have, is unmatched by any other. Pack a couple of bags + tent + sleeping bag and you are ready to discover the world!!
With that said, let me speak about the places I want to see, the route I want to take etc. I have so far only planned the Europe part properly. Imagine I head out east from NYC to London on a plane and start my journey to Madurai from there. I would first ride to the beaches of Normandy where thousands of allied soldiers died on D-Day. Then I would go to Belgium tracing back the routes Guderian and Rommel took during the invasion of France. I definitely want to spend some time in Ardennes, particularly Bastogne where the 'Easy company' from 'Band of Brothers' and others fought so bravely in the winter of 1944. Then I would proceed to the Ludendorff bridge at Remagen, the only bridge intact that Patton's army managed to capture while trying to cross the Rhine. In Germany I would trace through the rise of Nazi party, and, of course, see the "Eagle's nest" at Berchtesgaden. Then I would proceed on to the eastern front, where lies the most important place of the entire European section - Stalingrad, now called Volgagrad. I would spend at least a week in this place where the bloodiest battle in history took place. It would be a privilege to keep a bottle of dirt collected from there. Along with a piece of metal I collected from a restored C-47 that actually dropped 101st Airborne (Band of brothers) on D-Day as well as Operation MarketGarden and also participated in Berlin airlift, I will keep this bottle on a showcase.
So far this is the plan - have to plan the rest of the route. Any suggestions? You may also write about any similar journey you always wanted to take.
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1 comment:
Dinesh your idea sounds good as a thought! Of course you should consider many different things like the timing and avoid winter months in Europe.
To give you a most recent example, InfoSys Founder Mr. Narayana Murthy was profoundly changed when he traveled from Paris to India over land in the 1970s.
http://www.india-seminar.com/2000/485/485%20interview.htm
Political conditions in the Eastern European countries and across Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan do not make it easier for any foreign national to travel by road easily. But that is not to say it is impossible.
I would suggest start with familiar territory as a practice round. Why not travel across the United States? There is so much to see here in this vast country. There are groups of Harley Davidson bikers who go regular cross country trips. You may want to google to find out more. Good luck.
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