http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/ Paris to Sydney, 2005-2006 en-us It's a short ferry rideacross the river from Thailand into Malaysia. Since it is Friday afternoon, most everyone in this Muslim country is praying. If they're not praying, they're certainly not hanging out at the customs office. We're anticipating a... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001948.php We're making one last foray into Laos to pick up the bike after Dave's collarbone's three week recovery in Thailand. Back on the plane to Ubon Ratchathani, back on the bus through customs into Laos, back on the bus some... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001946.php The Lao doctor told Dave to stay off the bike for a month so his fractured collarbone (incurred during The Pakse Bovine Encounter) can heal properly. Dave's been bearing up like a trooper; but unable to do much of anything... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001945.php Right side, left side, right side again. Side of the road one drives on, that is. Cruising over the Mekong River via the Thailand-Laos Friendship Bridge, you're on the left. But as soon as you touch Lao soil, it's over... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001944.php The advantage of an airplane is that it saves you a bunch of time and gets you across Nepal to Thailand when you are not allowed to take your big bike into Myanmar. The advantage of a motorcycle is that... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001943.php You notice three interesting things about Nepal shortly after crossing the border from India. 1) The road is good. 2) Fog shrouded tree-cloaked hillsides curving round terraced triangles of dormant and sprouting fields o' something make it suddenly all quite... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001804.php The Golden Temple is a pretty mind-blowing introduction to India. This holy Sikh sanctuary in Amritsar is our first stop over the border from Pakistan. Visitors can stay in cavernous lodges on a donation basis and dine for free on... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001722.php Uncertainty about road conditions after the massive October earthquake has sent us detouring outside the Karakoram Highway to the Swat Valley. This is said to be one of the prettiest areas in Pakistan, a popular retreat for tourists and Pakistanis... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001656.php It's all downhill from the top of the 4733 meter Khunjerab Pass. We're happy to stop for a breath of rarified air near the post confirming our arrival in Pakistan. For just another snowy ridge looking down onto yet more... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001652.php Two failed Torugart Pass-crossing attempts later and two expiring-today visas in hand, we have resignedly bitten the pricey bullet. This means hiring a vehicle both to carry us and the bike over the icy snow to the China border as... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001633.php Between exiting Tajikistan and entering Kyrgyzstan one encounters a barren sweeping mystical no-man's-land where trucks crouch sadly in abandoned resignation and nature snickers mockingly over the generally accepted definition of the word "road". It appears that a huge landslide has... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001565.php Border crossing? WHAT border crossing? According to our map, three purport to cross from Uzbekistan into Tajikistan. However not a soul, from travel agents to police, seems to have the slightest knowledge as to whether any are in fact open.... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001567.php You don't want to sneeze funny in Turkmenistan because you'll probably be fined $582 and prohibited from returning to the country for thirty-five years. With this mindset hovering over the day, 5 year ban stamps blazing in passports, we tiptoe... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001466.php We've had a long-standing impression that the ferry crossing from Baku to Turkmenbashi would necessitate shadowy dealings and bribes to everyone from cargo boys to captains in order to get the motorcycle illicitly tucked away on board. Scenario part 2... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001445.php No surprise that rain in Georgia before the Azerbaijan border would mean rain in Azerbaijan across the Azerbaijan border. Inhabitants of dozens of cars stalled in a long line are draped in various stages of soggy boredom over their cars'... http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/tstories/mcmillan/001404.php