Traveling off the beaten path
Welcome to Carawanserai – my personal space where wanderlust meets the freedom of the open road.
I was born in 1958 in Bern, Switzerland, where I also completed my studies. Later, I trained in electronics in Neuchâtel, La Chaux-de-Fonds, and then spent two and a half years in Edinburgh, Scotland.
My career began with a well-known machine tool manufacturer, where I started travelling for work. After a few years, I wanted to broaden my horizons and moved to White Plains, near New York, for three years, before returning to my former employer in Switzerland.
It was in New York that I bought my first motorbike, a Kawasaki 450. Not long after, I treated myself to a Honda Magna V65-VF1100C… and I absolutely loved it!
Work took me to the former Soviet Union, Japan, and Korea, and that’s when I discovered my passion for Asia. Later, I became responsible for sales in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, South Africa, and Egypt, as well as making numerous business trips to China, India, Vietnam, and South-East Asia.
In 2007, I spent nine months living in Tokyo, in our Ōmori office. In June 2022, after a full and rewarding career, I retired.
During one of my trips to Asia, I visited an old friend living in Perth, Australia, a country that immediately fascinated me.
In 2018, my good friend René gave me a book about two young men who rode their motorbikes from Stuttgart to Australia (Good Bye Lehmann by Stefan Fay). I devoured it in no time and was so captivated that I suddenly felt I had to do something similar. And that’s how this story begins!
Inspired by that book, I mapped out a route that would take me from Switzerland to northern Europe, through Latvia, Russia, then across the Central Asian countries, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, before heading on to Iran, Pakistan, India, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and East Timor, and finally shipping my bike to Darwin, Australia. A journey of roughly 51,000 km over the course of 12 months.
To prepare, I read other travel stories, followed blogs, watched YouTube videos, and researched every country I would pass through, climate data, gear reviews, packing lists, maps… the lot. In 2021, I sold my Honda VFR1200 and bought an Africa Twin Adventure Sport DCT. Bit by bit, I gathered all the gear I needed. My plan was to set off in spring 2023, shortly after retiring.
But in 2020, COVID-19 changed everything. Myanmar, which I had been longing to visit, closed its borders. I was forced to adapt the route, deciding instead to ship my bike from Kolkata to Bangkok.
Then, in February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, resulting in sanctions, including the suspension of Russian visas. That meant another major change: the new route would run through Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Turkey before entering Iran, with the hope of looping back through Central Asia. But once again, disappointment struck: the borders of Turkmenistan and Tajikistan remained closed. This was especially frustrating, as the legendary Pamir Highway and the Ak-Baital Pass at 4,655 metres had been a dream of mine.
Eventually, official confirmation came from Iran, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan: land borders were still shut. After years of planning, I had to face the hard truth, the project had to be cancelled.
But I never give up!
A new plan emerged: Morocco. The idea was to leave home on Sunday 16 April, spend the night near the Pont du Gard in southern France, and then take a ferry to Tangier, arriving on 19 April.
To find out what happened next… follow the blog!