Sun 08 Jun
Nothing much doing. Spent the day by the pool after doing a little early morning exercise.
Mon 09 Jun
A couple of things were planned for today. The first was to check on the bike’s whereabouts, then pick up my hire care, then see about a ferry.
The first was taken care of when the shipping agent sent me an email saying the ship had arrived, which I knew already and they would be in touch.
The car hire was one of my worst experiences yet. Firstly, someone got the airport wrong! I know I put in the correct one when I searched to start with, but clearly I didn’t check when my options came up, as I arrived at the airport selected only to find the car was at the other airport 80km away! Contact with the booking agent, carjet.com, based in Spain, was fruitless. Nothing they could do.
Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC) is a new thing, that will, apparently, in the next while, replace Dubai International (DXB). Meanwhile, it is a ghost airport; everything is there, except the people to staff the various desks, so no-one is available at the car hire counters.
Left with little choice I had to revert to Carjet and make a new booking. Delivery in 2 hours (1300) was promised. This deadline passed and it was 1600 by the time I was sitting in the car. Then I was asked for a) a much larger deposit than indicated on the booking voucher and b) a huge insurance excess of nearly €5 000, instead of the €700 asked by Carjet! Calls to both the local office – the car delivery guy agreed that this excess was excessive – and to Carjet were to no avail; “If you want the car, you’ll have to agree to what they want, said Carjet, “or make a new booking!” 🤬
I used a Spanish company once before, in Toulouse, and they tried to screw me also; you have been warned!
Late in the day, as it was, I decided to try to get some hard information on ferries, which was singularly lacking online. I went to the shipping office recommended on a couple of websites. They weren’t there! The day was going from bad to worse.
Then, a stroke of luck! I met Abdullah in the lobby of the building the ferry office was supposed to be in. He called several of the numbers listed for said company; finally, one was answered, and after a lengthy conversation, we discovered that this company did not manage ferry crossings to Iran.
We then found a contact for the actual shipping company, and a very helpful chap, provided all the information necessary. I can leave on Thursday night, if I’m ready, but he didn’t recommend that as on Friday – it’s an overnight ferry – Iranian customs are closed. I’d have to spend the day/night at / near the port and complete customs clearance on Saturday morning. “Better to wait until Monday”, he opined. This may prove to be good advice, but today’s ferry was cancelled due to bad weather, so …
So if anyone is reading this in a search for information on Dubai/Iran ferries, here’s the lowdown:
Tue 10 Jun
Slack day waiting on some contact from clearing agent. None! Took a ride to a mall to pass the time, which was as dull as you might expect. I did find some essentials I wanted before going to Iran; even a mega Carrefour!
Weds 11 Jun
Another slack day.
Visited the Al Hili office and got first hand info on ferry timings and procedures. I can’t make any booking until I have all the necessary documents, some of which are with the clearing agent.
Went to clearing agent office. People were very pleasant and helpful, but essentially said they were at the mercy of the cargo consolidator; they could only clear the bike once the container had been unloaded and they had been informed by the consolidator. Hopefully this would come that afternoon, or tomorrow morning at the latest. They promised to help me get some fuel at the port and with further promises of contact as soon as they heard anything ringing in my ears, I left.
Getting to these offices from my hotel is no easy matter; it takes at least an hour and a half, more if the traffic is heavy. A useless fact: Dubai has a population of 4 million and every day there are 3,5 million vehicles on the road!
Nothing from the clearing agent by end of the day.
Thur 12 / Fri 13 Jun
Well once again, on Thursday, nothing happened, so I was resigned to catching Monday’s ferry to Bandar Abbas.
Finally, on Friday just before 1100, I was informed that the bike was ready for pick-up. I got myself to the appointed spot only to find that my office contact had forgotten it was Friday, and the guy doing the handover had gone to prayers, which on Friday last longer than other days – about an hour!
Ninety minutes later I was reunited with my bike with no formalities at all. I had it taken to the nearest petrol station, and there fitted the mirrors, checked tyre pressures and oil, and filled up with fuel. It started after a few turns of the motor.
The bike felt extraordinarily heavy after the little Suzukis we had used in Iran, but once moving all was well. I found myself riding into a headwind, which was not comfortable; since the wind seemed to get stronger as the day wore on, this reinforced my plan to ride early in the morning and stop by afternoon.
When I got back to the hotel, I learned that Israel had launched an unprovoked attack on Iran, putting all my plans up in the air. Someone or something, it seems, is conspiring to make this trip as difficult as possible; first India/Pakistan and now Israel/Iran.
Sat 14 Jun
I spent the weekend watching TV updates on the developing conflict; Iran naturally retaliated to the unprovoked aggression. I also checked out my bits and pieces that Had been on the bike, essentially, since NZ. There were a few problems.
Firstly when I attached my stove to the gas canister I bought in Carrefour, it didn’t work. I cleaned the stove thoroughly, but his made no difference; it seemed that the bearing on the canister wasn’t being pushed down by the pin on the stove.
The other annoyance was that my mini light/pump wouldn’t charge; there was no obvious reason. Having tried every cable and charger I had, I took it apart and resolved nothing.
I researched an alternative route to Turkey through Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and western Iraq. This was unattractive as it would involve long, long stretches along arrow-straight roads in oppressive heat, even if I did only ride in the early mornings. The latter part in Iraq, would take me along the course of the River Tigris, close to the Iraq/Iran border.
I researched the sites of the attacks, and the location of Iran’s nuclear sites. And I waited to see what would happen. I was cogniscent of the fact that I opted to change my plan in India, at considerable cost, only to have things settled before the date I had planned to cross the border.
I had advice from friends and family; all suggested that I should take to “safer” option; “better to be bored than dead” was one comment. All this was very true and I very much appreciated the concern, but when I looked at the sites of American bases in Iraq, which could potentially become Iranian targets, I thought that my alternative route was barely safer, if at all. The only “safe” option would be to ship the bike and fly home myself.
Sun 15 Jun
I went looking for a different gas cylinder this morning and came across the reason some people might come to Dubai; can’t imagine sunbathing in this heat myself, though.
Having found a different gas cylinder that worked with my stove I was happy. I didn’t have the same success with my pump, unfortunately.
It was while sitting in Times Square – a mall in Dubai, not the NY version -that I made my decision. Assuming the ferry was still running tomorrow, I would go to Iran, change my route to stay further west than I had planned, and avoid major cities, towns and give any potential target sites a wide berth. Being close to Iraq, if the worst comes to the worst, I would cross the border and escape.
Mon 16 Jan
I hired a car for the day and I left early to reach the booking office as it opened at 0830. When I got there, it was already packed with a horde of noisy Iranians trying to book a ticket. All flights had been cancelled and everyone was now trying to get a ferry.
Packed like sardines, it quickly became oppressively hot. I managed to worm my way to the counter where only one person was taking bookings. I managed to attract his attention and was directed to enter the office, behind the counter.
There , I learned two things: first the computer system wasn’t working properly and then, after an hour of waiting, that the ferry was full and I had no chance of a seat! Conrad, my brother, suggested that I should park the bike and go home for a while, and, after considering the only other possibility – riding through Saudi, Kuwait and Iraq in temperatures up to 50ºC – I decided that this was the way to go. All I had to do was find somewhere to store my bike.
I discovered a place called Biker’s Café, which seemed like a focal point for local bikers, so I resolved to go there and see if I could find a contact who might know of a storage facility.
It is a cool place, even from the outside.
I was introduced to the owner, Saeed, who immediately said he could, and would, help.
Saeed has a link to Belfast, or to N Ireland at least; he used to race rally cars and his co-driver was from Belfast; coincidences continue!
Anyway, Saeed displays bikes in the café, some of his own and some new models from dealers. He had a CB750 café-racer on display along with several large BMWs.
Saeed happily agreed to keep my bike for me; he would display it for a while and when not on display, he would store it safely.
He happily agreed to keep my bike for me; he would display it for a while and when not on display, he would keep it safely stored.
So, happier than I had been for quite some time, I returned to the hotel, booked myself in for another night and looked for a flight home.
Tue 17 Jun
Not much to do today except pack and relax. Funny how such a simple procedure can expand to fill a day. My extended checkout time was 1600, so I used the time to inform my relieved family and friends of my “decision” and arrange a few things at home.
My flight is at 0200 on Wed morning, so after checking out, I sat by the pool a while, waiting till rush hour passed, when I would ride the bike to the Biker’s Cafe, pass a few hours having something to eat, and then go to the airport.
This has not been the most straightforward leg of my odyssey. At times I have felt very frustrated and despondent, almost like giving up. But then I reminded myself that Odysseus didn’t have it all his own way either, so I girded my loins, put my head down and carried on.
In spite of the trials – in the 5+ months since I left Home in January, I have only been riding for 6 weeks –I am determined to finish this round the world adventure.
À bientôt! 👋
Belfast-2-Belfast-By-Bike 