Oregon to Ushuaia on an XR650L

[ONandOFF]

Originally Posted by Ulyses

You know, I've been thinking about this a lot lately ...[but] ... that doesn't mean I'm going to stop making fun of people who pull over to take pictures every thirty minutes.....

That's great, Bryce; I can see you've put a good bit of thought into this. There really is a lot to it, in a sense. In another sense, we just do what we find most rewarding. I have to concede personality is the bigger contributor, however I also see personalities developing with age. I feel like I'd personally be slowing down and speeding up trying to find a balance.

And of course I too would make fun of people who waited a whole thirty minutes to take another picture of such breathtaking surroundings!

[Plasterman]

Age adds insight to the brevity of life and enlightens one to the importance of simplicity.

Time is the enemy no matter what your age.

[DRRambler]

Well said Bryce. There are an infinite number of reasons for doing a trip like yours. I have to force myself to slow down on bike trips. I have a need to "get there" and miss muchas cosas interesantes as a result.

I'm really enjoying your report. It's a great mix of photos and writing. I appreciate the effort it must take. I'll pay it forward when it's my turn.

[kevinsinvegas]

Thanks for the RR! This is also a dream of mine.

[Ulyses]

Originally Posted by DRRambler

Well said Bryce. There are an infinite number of reasons for doing a trip like yours. I have to force myself to slow down on bike trips. I have a need to "get there" and miss muchas cosas interesantes as a result.

I'm really enjoying your report. It's a great mix of photos and writing. I appreciate the effort it must take. I'll pay it forward when it's my turn.

Thanks! What kind of bike are you planning on taking?

[Ulyses]

Originally Posted by kevinsinvegas

Thanks for the RR! This is also a dream of mine.

Thanks! How's Vegas these days? I lived a few hours away in 29 Palms. And my aunt, uncle, and cousin are from Vegas.

[DRRambler]

Originally Posted by Ulyses

Thanks! What kind of bike are you planning on taking?

I'm taking my 09 DR650

[Ulyses]

Day 90 (January 13, 2013)
Lima, Peru
Day's Ride: 0 Miles

Today was absolutely refreshing. I did nothing but veg around, type some emails, take a nap, and move to a new hostel.

I spent the morning at Starbucks doing emails and such. It's always nice to get some good coffee. It's so odd that so many of these countries produce the coffee that we drink in the states but typically prefer to drink instant coffee. Consequently, getting some actual coffee, even if it is from Starbucks, is a real treat.

Around noon I moved to a new Hostel in the Mira Flores district. It's called Hitchhiker's Backpacker's Hostel and they have a huge parking area, solid wifi, and beds in the dormitorio for 25 Soles ($10). There are actually a bunch of overlanders here, inluding two American couples in Toyota trucks, a German couple in a Westfalia, and some Welsh people in a huge diesel van.

For lunch I walked up the street to the local super market; it was pretty much like a Whole Foods back in the states.



Clean orderly aisles, fresh produce, a large selection of organic food; it all started making me a little homesick.

I spent the rest of the day hanging out with all of the overlanders, sharing stories about our travels, and drinking cheap wine and rum. This evening we all crowded into a Westfalia and went out for Mediteranean food.



It's been a while since I've had a good hummus, but this stuff certainly hit the spot. As we were leaving, I noticed a fro-yo place nearby. It's been so long since I had some good fro-yo; I couldn't resist.



In essence, the Mira Flores district of Lima is where all of the rich people live. It definetly shows. There's tons of gringos, and lots of really nice resteraunts and shops. Still, it was nice to relax today and spend some time with some fellow Americans, eat some good food, and do nothing productive. There really wasn't much to write about today. Hopefully I'll have some more interesting stuff tomorrow. Cheers!

[Ulyses]

Originally Posted by DRRambler

I'm taking my 09 DR650

Man, I just looked at your website, that's incredible! Very well done! I wish I was tech savy enough to put something like that together!

The DR650 is probably the perfect bike for this trip. I've seen a lot of them in Central and South America. Mostly police bikes, but some civiliian bikes as well. Hopefully, if something goes wrong, you won't have a hard time getting parts for it. If my XRL goes down, I'll be haning out for a few weeks (or months) until they can ship a part in from Japan or the states.

[Brown Falcon]

Well I would say that I haven't been impressed with those STI racks so far on your adventure. You have abused the crap out of them, but I would expect better for the money.

When do you think you'll be back in Oregon?

[Ulyses]

A few people have suggested to me that I put up a paypal donate button on my blog so that they could send me money. I was hesitant to do that as I felt that I would be okay without contributions and that the money would be better spent on other people. Still, enough people have mentioned it that I decided to put it up. I know there are quite a few people who actually fund RTW trips doing this kind of thing and I'm not one to turn down a bit of free gas money. If you are interested, click on one of the links in my signature, then click on the donate button on the upper right hand side of my blog.

I'll be honest, even if no one gives me any money, I'll still keep posting a report most every day. I spend about an hour every day uploading pictures and writing. Actually, due to the constant variation in wifi quality down here, most of that time is spent uploading pictures. That's why the writing tends to be a little sub-par and un-edited. To me it's worth it; I enjoy writing about the experience and I enjoy sharing it with people. Even if I wasn't doing a ride report, I would still be keeping a pretty detailed journal.

If you do choose to donate, please know that I will only spend your money on beer, gasoline, bribery of elected officials/police officers, and motorcycle parts. But seriously, all of the money will go towards completing this trip. I will also donate 10% back to www.advrider.com.

Finally, I'm going to pull a page out of jdown's play book. If you do chose to donate, I will gladly scrawl your username (or real name) on my gas tank. Consider it as a small purchase of some real estate on my Honda. If you do donate, please comment about it in this thread so that I can make sure I write your user name (or real name) on my gas tank and get some pictures of it to send to you and post up on the report. Hell, if someone were to give me enough money, I may even be willing to shave my beard....but that would have to be a lot of money....

Thanks again to all of the people who have been reading along and giving me tips, advice, and support. I've received a lot of support from people like you and the adventure rider community in general. It's been amazing to see how this community can come together and support it's own, especially in situations like Justin's. Take care,

Bryce

[DRRambler]

I didn't send anywhere near what it might take to shave that fuzz off your face, but your report has been very helpful to me. Normally I don't want recognition but I want to say that I have no problem contributing and certainly have no issue with being asked. Jammin Jay sells T-shirts, one of which I regularly wear and I direct people to his RR.
Keep up the fine work

[JDowns]

Hi Bryce,

I donated some gas money. I don't currently need it. I'm still stuck in Panama waiting for the Sherpa loveboat.

Tio Juanito on the tank will go nicely with that bandito mustache on the front fender.
See you back in Oregon or down the road someday. Always enjoy checking in on your ride report. Keep up the good work!

Saludos,
Tio Juanito

[alvincullumyork]

Originally Posted by Ulyses

Hell, if someone were to give me enough money, I may even be willing to shave my beard....but that would have to be a lot of money....
Bryce

Sell out!

[Plasterman]

How much to shave the beard?