When you’re facing more than 24 hours straight spent playing planes, trains and automobiles to get to a new bike launch, there’s plenty of time to replay the wise words of advice that friends and family are keen to offer on the eve of your departure.
This would be my first-ever trip to India, to the foothills of the mighty Himalayas what’s more, and the advice had been coming thick and fast like an episode of The Amazing Race:
”Don’t drink the water, unless it’s out of a bottle, that YOU open.”
“Don’t pat the dogs: if they bite you’ll get rabies.”
“Don’t stop at the roundabouts: just power in and go with the flow.”
”Don’t forget the Gastro Stop pills … you’re gonna need them!”
“Whatever you do, don’t hit a cow: they’re a sacred beast!”
Crikey. I just wanted to ride the new Royal Enfield Himalayan in the Himalayas; now my head was spinning with “rules” to remember. As it turned out, I only drank water out of a bottle; I didn’t touch the dogs; I shut my eyes and throttled on into the roundabouts; I did need to pop the gastro pills one night; and thankfully I never hit a cow.
But I have to say, how good are the cows in India? They’re way safer than many of the other road-users you will confront, because the cows hold a straight line and just keep wandering down the middle of the road. As for the other scooters, bikes, tuk tuks, cars, taxis, trucks and buses — all bets are off! They’ll come at you from every direction… welcome
