At a time when many of his age choose to lead a quiet, laid-back life, 65-year-old Barry Joyce finds happiness in travelling miles at a stretch on his bike, spanning countries and continents, flavouring the local culture and cuisine on the way.
A British citizen of Indian origin, Barry, a retired IT professional, has travelled all the way from London on his BMW F650 Dakar bike to God’s Own Country - a journey spanning over 16,000 kilometres along 13 countries in seven-and-a-half weeks. Except for his journey from UK to France via the Euro Tunnel train service, the entire distance was covered on his bike for which he spent quite a fortune from his life’s savings.
“For me, riding my bike is like meditation. For many people, long journeys are associated with tiredness. But for me it is like rejuvenation,” says Barry, who has also undertaken similar biking trips to various countries in Europe. But his latest trip which took him to countries like France, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Italy, Croatia, Montenegro, Albania, Greece, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan and India, was definitely the most memorable, he says.
‘’The journey was undertaken after months of careful planning. I had to spend days to obtain visas of various countries, of which getting a visa to Iran was a Herculean task due to the strain in diplomatic relations between both countries. Also, I had to procure paper maps of each and every country as I rely on them more than GPS technology. But the most important thing was to select a bike that could withstand such a long trip under varied climatic conditions and my choice of the BMW F650 Dakar did not prove wrong,” he says
“I could have taken a direct route to Asia but I chose to travel further down to South Europe as those sights and sounds offered me a unique experience,” says Barry, who considers his trip through Iran and Pakistan as “hair-raising.”
When I crossed over to Iran, the country was reeling under protests against a controversial Western film ‘Innocence of Muslims’ which allegedly portrayed the Prophet in poor light. I was told to be extra careful, Barry says.
Besides, my cellphone, which was on international roaming, was non-functional during my stint in Iran, cutting me off from the rest of the world. It was a bit scary, to be in a foreign land with no access to communication for miles at a stretch. But that is part of the game,” says Barry.
In Pakistan, Barry was closely followed by policemen on a jeep who trailed a few metres behind his bike throughout his trip in the country. “It was a step to ensure my security,” says Barry, although admitting that it did take out some of the joy from his unfettered biking experience.
Barry entered India through the Wagah border. He went to Amritsar, Agra, Jaipur, Bikaner, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Bangalore and then came down to Thiruvananthapuram, a place where he loves to relax and unwind. “My biggest disappointment was not being able to go to Orissa, where I did my schooling, due to time constraints. I hope I can visit Cuttack soon on my bike,” he says.
For Barry, the 16,000-kilometre trip was also an opportunity to underline his belief in the “universal goodness of human beings.”
‘’In all the countries I travelled, people spoke to me with an open heart, with warmth, love and affection’’, he says, adding that he is game for more cross-country biking expeditions in future.