Advice sorely needed, ending my trip in Brazil / French Guiana
Hello fellow riders!
I am on the tail end of a trip from Montevideo, Uruguay to the North of Brazil, having driven the bike initially down from Canada in 2014/15 and storing it in Uruguay while I worked in 2015/16. I’m currently in Salvador in the North-East of Brazil and I’m deciding what to do now, as I have chosen to sell my bike and ideally I’d love to get Euros instead of Reis and would probably end up getting a better price in Guiana as it’s a part of France.
Getting there won’t be a problem but I’m concerned about French bureaucracy and them impounding my bike at the border since I never renewed my Canadian plates which expired in December 2014. This has never been close to a problem in Latin America, but being the French have their rules I’m concerned about getting stranded at the border and losing my baby.
Basically I’m wondering if anyone has any first hand advice on how strict this border crossing is on the French side and whether its worth it for me to make it there to sell my bike or if I should stay on the Brazilian side and try get rid of my bike here. I’d rather have Euros, but if I risk losing my bike over this I’d rather sell it here in Brazil.
On that note, does anyone have any advice / contacts for selling a bike in Brazil? I’m aware you’re “not allowed” but I was talking to a police officer who told me that it is still widely done to sell a bike “without papers” to a mechanic or farmer.
Thanks! Drive safe everyone
Julien
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