Tibet (all)

An ``aventure bicyclétale'', it's a two-wheeled little miracle which combines discoveries around the world, respect of others and protection of the environment. So let's get in the saddle!

After 10 years in Asia, I've decided to go home, to Châteaudun in France. I left on Sunday the 29th of June 08 from Bangkok, I'm on my way.

I began my first bike tour in Asia. A few years after I went to South America for another tour. My latest tour was a year through Africa. I am back in Canada to make enough money for another tour, hopefully this one will last at least 6 years or more. I will have 3000+ photos when I am finish with my Asia section.

This is the website and travelogue of The Project VELAIA. 22 year old velosopher, environmentalist and often minimalistic outdoor adventurer Daniel N. Lang has decided to go around the world by recumbent and upright bicycle after finishing an epic journey of more than 17.000km from Paris to Beijing as a rider of the Beijing to Paris 2007 Carfree Rallye, following coastlines for hundreds of kilometers, crossing deserts during mid summer in the Middle East, Central Asia and China and climbing some of the highest passes of the world under extreme conditions in the starting Tibetan winter.

After Eurasia he cycled Australia, New Zealand and the United States and is now on a tour through the South American Andes, starting in Caracas, Venezuela and cycling his way down to Chile at the time of writing this (beginning of September 2008).

A solo, unsupported and mostly illegal ride from Kashgar in Western China to Lhasa in Tibet along the infamous highway 219. There's already detailed practical information about this tough route available, but nothing I could find which described in detail what the route was like to ride and had lots of big pictures.

This is probably one of the toughest routes in the world a bike tourist could do. The road is terrible, there are long stretches without food or water, much of it is at extreme altitude (5400m max with several weeks over 5000m), many rivers have no bridge and much of the ride is technically illegal.

The reward is astonishing scenery, amazing culture and a sense of utter isolation.

Cycling in Tibet is hard. Why would someone who considers himself to be a quiet normal family man go cycling in such a country. Or more precisely, why would anyone go cycling there at all.

Most people do not know much about Tibet other than that it is rather high up and far away, and so it is. We knew more about this 'roof of the world' than most before we went, but fortunately not everything. But let's start at the beginning; who are we and why did we want to go to Tibet in the first place!

Planète D. is our volunteering and filming world tour on the tandem bike. It's that simple.

We cycle.
We film, edit and share videos.
We volunteer for NGOs.

Welcome to the Wish Tour!

Below you will find the photos and journal from a two-year, 20,000-mile bicycle journey around the world.

Starting in July 2005, this journal will take readers across the United States, Europe, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Kyrgystan, China, Tibet, Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Borneo, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand.

The journey began more than 20 years ago, as the seeds of a dream to circumnavigate the globe were cultivated from a deeply personal and painful experience.

[Absolutely stunning pictures.]

A 40,000 km. 3 year ride through 30 countries, from far eastern Russia (Siberia) in winter, to London England, via Australia. Trying to cover the whole route by bicycle and boat only. I have encountered plenty of good times and a few tough ones, noteably in Siberia (camping at minus forty), Papua New Guinea (pushing my bike down a beach as no roads) and Tibet (in winter).

In the fall of 1998 I set off on a long journey by bike. It covered more than 15000 kilometers and 14 countries. During this trip I was hit by rocks and cars, I was baked, soaked, and deep frozen by the weather gods. Mostly, however, I had a superb opportunity to see some of the most beautiful scenery in the world, meet wonderful people and enjoy the culture of widely differing lands. This site is about my bike trip from Sweden to South-East Asia via Eastern Europe, The Middle East, Pakistan, China, and Tibet. It also contains general information and links on bicycle touring and travelling in general.

A trip from the Netherlands to the USA - over Asia and Australia. The European part goes through Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria and Turkey.

Leaving home for a trip like this is not something one does from one day to the other. Along the way I joked often, saying: ``Yeah, one night I went out, got pissed and I am still trying to find my way home.'' In truth I had no foreign experience; well, none on my own. I had never been to an embassy before, I knew nothing about what's out there. Still I wanted to go, and with some hard work I managed to get my trip sponsored too! Getting ready to leave is always something special. Packing for a holiday, going out for a long weekend... Packing for a trip is even more emotional. Because I wasn't only packing my bags, I was packing all my belongings. Most of them went to storage, some of them into my bags. And with what I packed in my bags that 31st of may 1998, I lived for almost 3 years. What an adventure I was heading forward to... What a story you are about to read!