Thursday, July 30, 2009

IMPORTANT IF YOU READ THIS!

Dear Friends :)

I hope you can make me a favour.. for some strange reasons, not everybody might have received this link. So you would do me a HUGE favour, if you spread the word of this page (and the pictures on picasa.com)

so if you work in ABB, you might see friends of mine, that don't have the link

if we know each other from Psy-Parties in the woods, then there might be other people from my family, that might be interested to hear about this.

if we used to play Life Action RolePlays together, then there might be other members of the "fellowship" :)

if you were in my role play group, make sure the other dudes received that link at least once ;)

and we lived together for a year, let those other fellows know about this blog.

THANKS A LOT! :D

I miss you all and I'm grateful for the time we had together (and may have in the future).

when I started this, I didn't like the idea of a blog, but now I'd like letting know my friends about this.. so it's their decision, if they check it out from time to time (I won't be mad, if you don't ;) haha ;) :)

good vibes to the world and carry on! :D

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

..the town of rocky tocky and an unexpected wedding..

dear friends and family :)

once more I feel like catching up.. there happens so much all the time! you just get a glitch of it.. to document all of it, if just too much :P

hmm.. there are some people who haven't get the link to this blog yet.. so probably have to send it to all of you again.. sorry for the inconvenience ;)

for those who got my email with the links.. I might have been a little bit too harsh, about not having personal contact ;) hehe :) I mean.. my mailbox remained mysteriously silent (as you would have taken it very serious ;) and it would be sad, if I wouldn't get a single email of anybody for 1.5 years.. so feel free to comment, commit or whatever you feel :) I'll find time somewhen to drop a few lines back..

so.. after the last post at Watson Lake, I run into some Swiss guys, that were traveling after being in a language school and we had a great evening! :) eat some pasta and discussed about life.. I tried out my hammock and it totally rules :D (just better to do that in mosquito less areas ;) ..I patched myself up in the morning (shower and stuff) and head then down the Cassiar Highway to a place called Dease Lake, where I turned in to a dirt road to Telegraph Creek. I actually wanted to climb the Mt. Medziza (you should google a picture of it, then you know, why I wanted to stand on top of it! :D
so after 112km, I just figured out, that there is no way to get there.. wether 5 days of hiking after crossing the river with a canoe or flying in with a float plane (out of budget once again ;)
anyway.. the ride there was pretty thrilling (you should check the pictures on picasa.com) you just come one time too fast into a curve and you are as totaled as your bike is ;) you probably rather survive a jump off the 5th floor than that. but anyway.. it was not a problem. you just are very, very aware and drive very slowly. So I'm still alive, but having a lot more experience, driving my bike ;)
when I got there, I found a ghost town.. I mean.. half of the houses are inhabited, but half of them have been abandoned decades ago. makes them pretty creepy and full of stuff.. there was a lot of catholic french written things lying around in the old church.. even a fridge in another house (hmm.. now I wonder, what was inside.. should have opened it ;)
yes.. had a nice time there.. slept on the balcony of the old church, so it was another night for free ;) hehe :)
there was also a wedding that night and I got invited (as everybody was invited). they had absolutely delicious food there and some wine.. but the party itself wasn't a lot of my taste. OK, I'm not into weddings anyway, but it was kinda closed community and half of the people were just there, because they are supposed to be there.. others were really drunk (pissed, fucked up or shit-faced, as people would say here ;) hehe :)
this happens mostly to native people (Indians), who don't have an enzyme in their liver, that's needed to digest alcohol. So what happens is, that they just get fucked up really quickly (remember the old western movies, where they had the drunken indians, because of the fire water? ..it's truly like that.. :-/
so I had to drive back that road the next day and moved on to Kitwanga.. (actually even a little bit more, so I broke my driving record.. made more than 600km that day).
was totally crushed in the evening and found (after some less friendly people) a very nice guy camping out there.. he invited my dinner and me had best discussions about spirituality and philosophy.. he's just a great guy! :) fire fighter and on vacation :)
oh.. do I have to mention, that it was just GORGEOUS to drive down the Cassiar Highway? I just love seeing all the nice things around.. OK.. no wildlife so far, but I think, these fellows just run away, when they hear the motor sound.. anyway, how much fun is it for an elk to hang out at the road? :D so I might still have to watch discovery channel to see the bears ;) hehe :)
at a certain point, I figured out, that I can lift my bike up by myself.. it was again like pulling it over. wasn't driving fast.. one time by sliding backwards. then I have to unload the things on the back, grab it in the right spot and lift it up again.. takes me less than 5 minutes, but of course, sucks doing it (for it should not happen ;) but so far everything fine.. it would also be very costly to have a crash at higher speed, so I naturally try to avoid ;)

then from Seeley Lake (close to Kitwanga) I had a easy day (but hell of a sore ass already) to get to Vanderhoof (no, it's not in the netherlands ;) where I met Richi, the husband of my deceased god mother. he lives in a very, very beautiful and quite spot in a very decent house.. so I slept in a twin bed and could my limbs stretch out ;)
we had nice discussions the whole evening long and I could do some on the pendent work.. pictures upload, clean my stuff, wash clothes.. and service the bike.
he is an excellent cook and I eat delicious and healthy food (yes, it's possible ;) fresh salmon with potatoes and salad and a fruit salad for desert :)
this morning I was busy getting my things ready and then we went visiting Karma (yes, that's a name ;) in Prince George. I got my own phone number here and found a place, that had a new tyre for my bike. the old one is pretty worn out, but it's just 65 bucks to get a new one and I will appreciate the better grip it will have :)
tonight I stay here (checking out the night life ;) and tomorrow I head back to Vanderhoof.. wether my friend tells me, she likes also camping out for a few days in Jasper (in the Rocky Mountains), I would start already tomorrow to Prince Goerge (back and forth and back and forth ;) change tyre and oil, stay for the night and then go to Jasper and down through the Rockies.. weehaaa :D it's just so totally cool driving around here! :) BEAUTIFUL!

ehmm.. that's it so far.. 

if anybody thinks, leaving all behind and traveling that far is hard, then you're wrong! ;) it's just totally awesome, inspiring, lovely, fulfilling and hell a lot of fun! :) it's pretty easy in fact and fit's my personality ;)

have a great time and be blessed! may the sun shine bright in your life (especially in Switzland ;)

Friday, July 24, 2009

..discovering new land..

so.. here we are :)

for those who want to google-earth it: I started in Tok, passed through Chicken and stayed a night in Dawson City, then a long ride down to White Horse, where I slept last night and now I am in Watson Lake.. I hope, they have some pics in Google Earth.. I'll upload mine in a few days.

hmm.. that was really exciting so far! :)
a beautiful road (mostly dirt ;) through the Yukon.. plenty of space, fun to ride.. and a lot of beautiful scenery around. I'll have the pictures speak for that later ;)
the boardercrossing was very easy.. just a lady giving you a stamp. that's it :)
I arrived then in Dawson City, a very small and beautiful town (lot's of colored houses :) just very touristy.. there was a festival at the weekend, but I missed it.. never mind, there are others ;) ..I found myself a shack of an abandoned house, that was for sale and bunkered my things there. I would have spread out my mat and slept there, but crashed in a tent on the other side of the river (Yukon river rocks! ;) after we had a jam session at a bonfire over there.. actually, I wasn't even 24hrs in that place, but met a lot of people!! many of them stay around for the summer and the city is so small, that you ran into each other all the time! :) ..it's maybe 5 min walking from one end to the other ;) ..it was a short, but intense time and enjoyed people and place a lot!

the next day (just little bit hangover ;) I rode dawn to White Horse.. that's a longer distance, than my homecountry from east to west plus north to south ;) ..it really gives you an idea about space and distances! :) ..arrived quite late and the guy I supposed to meet didn't write back.. so I found myself another shack of another abandoned house, just 7 min from downtown ;) hehe :)
I just find it very, very, extremly very boring to spend money for a room to sleep.. rather meet people or find myself such a place (because pitching the tent every night sucks ;) ..lazy Markus ;) hehe :) ..and it's fun and adventurous (I learned that from my former room mates in Switzerland ;) ..when I got back to the place at night, it was pretty creepy and I decided to sleep outside.. but was about to play guitar in the city center, so I just picked the instrument and went back.. so playing, at a certain point, to guys showed up and I ended up sleeping at their place, in a hard tent out in the woods.. and a comfi matrass and a cozy blanket ;) what a good night! :)
we walked quite around a bit, before we got to that place.. so I have seen White Horse at night from the sacred, old native burial ground.. pretty awesome experience! :)

this morning ran into another Swiss ExPat, that settled down there.. there are plenty around! :) it's a decent spot to end up.. so why not ;) just 7 month of winter isn't what I'm looking for ;)
had a good ride to Watson Lake (it seems to be a junction only ;) and maybe I turn around and enter the coastal highway further south..
it's just beautiful to ride a bike and see all this lands here!! even if it's sometimes a bit more complicated, it's great to be on road like this! :D (I couldn't do that cycling anymore ;) it takes just forever to get somewhere ;) hehe :)

yes.. that's it in short version :) ..it's obviously pretty censored here, but as I can't share everything with everybody (at least not so informal through internet), I have to leave out some very cool experiences ;)
I anyway can't tell, how people would look at me, after they read all this.. but hey, it's me! :) if you like me, then you have to take me the way I am.. and for this trip: this is just the right thing! :)

okay.. have a good time and gonna hear from me in a few days I guess.. :)

miss you and have a good time!

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

..new friends, a rainy good bye and sudden changes..

yay.. finally time to free my mind and catch up with my blog!

I had a greattime in Anchorage! ran into people, with very good energies.. the week-end, my friends took me out in the woods, where the "Gypsy Undergound" band (they play awesome psychadelic rock) had a stage built, with lots of space to hang around! :)
I eat great food.. organic, vegan and also fresh salmon :) we spinned fire and made music and wherever they eye reached, there were artistic vibes! ..I've seen the first time in my life a fire rope-dart and a fire contact ball and they just rock! :D haha ;) ..need to practice more ropedart and get one of those!!!
they installed a shadow screen and it was just so cool, to do wierd stuff behind it.. shadow screen is a winner! ;) ..hmm.. finally after two days of enjoying ourselves in all imaginable ways, we split up and for me, it was also time to move on, if I want to make it to Prudhoe Bay and back down to the Shambhala music festival. In just a few days, I met dozen of totally amazing people around Anchorage! :D ..and I know, it would be a nice time, to stay there and hang out with them! :)

of course it was raining the next day, when I started.. went to the ministry of traffic to get a personalized license plate.. gonna let you know, if it worked out ;) and head for Fairbanks.
on my way, I decided for some reason to turn in onto the old Denali Highway (that's a blast! 80 miles of dirtroad through the wilderness! :) I rode my dragon with 65 mph through hills and plains ;)
.. for some other reasons I decided to move on and on, to finally end up at a place, sitting on a bar between motorbike riders and some guys with a laptop. decided then to check the distance from where I was to the festival and figured out, that I assumed a little bit wrong.. about 1500 miles wrong.. ups.. (for those who don't know 1 mile = 1.6 km). So if I want to make it to Prudhoe Bay, I don't have any spare days and would have to drive every day 300 miles.. it's just not how I like it. So I decided quickly, to change all planned ahead and go directly for Canada, so I have enough time to drive down without getting "pain in the ass" ;)
as I left so many things behind, I didn't actually need, I gave also my spare 2 gallons fuel tank away and drove to Tok.
it's kinda sad to leave Alaska that quick and I'm not prepared yet for Canada (could I ever have? ;) and it would have been nice to see the road to that outtest point of Alaska, but it's not going to happen this time. I also don't feel like to drive a lot of miles, but more meet interesting people and have an unforgettable time ;)
so on my way here I drove first from Paxson to Delta Junction.. totally beautiful!! :D and then 110 miles down to Tok.. totally boring road.. trees on both sides and enough distance to the road to spot mooses. you could see miles ahead, because the road is just straight :P
so I ended up with 75-80 mph (highway limit is 65 mph) and it would have been all right, if I didn't get too much used to it, so I still had this 75 mph, when I reached city limit (55 mph) and the police car passed. hmm.. they appearently radar you when you pass by, so I saw some flashing lights in the mirror and a car stopping. not enough.. for panicking a minute, I somehow turned in a street ? to loose the police in the forest? and ended just in a backyard of a house. hmm.. so I got off the bike and there is also the officer arriving (there was no siren, to mention that ;) haha :D it was not ALL that dramatic ;)
anyway.. with this real ackward feeling, when you know, you did something wrong, every single cell of my body yelling for merci and understanding.. and feeling REALLY sorry, he broke that down to a 90 dollar ticket.. phew ;) I wouldn't have my license anymore in Switzerland, I guess ;)
but yes.. foreigner + being nice and burning good Karma ;) hehe :)
so at least I have now my bike checked.. it's not stolen, it's correctly registered and the insurance card was enough. didn't need international driving license.. swiss one is OK :)
got a good story at least ;) hehe :) even if it are not the ones, that I'm trying to tell.. ;) would have probably spend that money for better things as booze ;) but in the end, it doesn't matter. you don't get always the best deal out of life, if you're traveling, might spend too much for a cab or being ripped off at the market.. it doesn't matter in the end, because you always run into these priceless moments, where you met nice people and have been invited to something.. situations, that fill your heart with love! :)

so here I am.. in Tok.. washed my bike (and loved it!!) haha :D ..it was a mosqito cementary on the front and Denali mud wall from behind.. so it just looks really nice again ;)
and the more other bikes I see, the more I like mine.. it looks just so damn good!! :D
it's incredible, how many bug commit suicide on my visier :P they just get smashed within miliseconds and make a noise between "fshh" and "clack" (the second ones are REALLY ugly!) I'd like to see the insect, that spreads so much guts on my helmet ;) hehe :) ..started to write a song about them ;)
now, as my mind is freed, I'm looking forward to hang out at the camp site and play guitar and practise with my double sticks. got tons of new ideas, after meeting these cool guys in Anchorage! :D

gonna keep you posted and have a good time! :)

Thursday, July 16, 2009

..back in town..

So here I am, back in Anchorage, sitting on a couch, with the greatest people of town! :D having truly awesome experiences! there was just the evening when I arrived this fire spinning practice downtown in the park and showed me the place, where I would find it, lent me a bike and there I went.. I found the spot, but nobody was there (was actually two blocks down ;) but ran into someone on the street, who belongs to the group and took me along.. then it was just such a warm and nice atmosphere! found friends within minutes.. talked about a lot of stuff and deep stuff. got inspired to go to the burning man and backed up with my plans to go to the Shambala music festival.. oh.. I have to party a bit! :D ..you life just once, and I want to tell my kids ;) hehe :)
I probably stay for a some days more.. there are just so good vibes around!! makes me feel incredible happy!! :)
gonna keep you up to date.. had a great day, as they mostly turn out to be. I tell you, to look at the life with the eyes of a child, being open minded, open hearted.. it just totally works out! (you should try it ;) hehe :)

where swiss people may end up.. :)

Hi there :)

I have kinda catch up with my story ;) even if I don't feel like commenting a lot, I'd like to share some of my unbelievable stories with you ;)

..the last day in Seward, I used to climb Mt.Marathon (what a funny name ;) ..every 4th of July, 300 people would "run" up and down that mountain (more are not allowed, because it's already dangerous enough ;) ..so I met Mario, a German guy on the bottom and we made our way up.. it's about 1000m and took us an hour to get to the top (including the minutes we used to get our breath back, while watching the breath taking scenery ;) 
..we had a little snowball fight on the top and then ran down as it's like walking on the moon, because of the loose gravel.. you get a quite thrilling speed jumping down :D ..took us 25 minutes to be on sea level again :)

the next day, I headed for Homer.. my heart filled with pure love to all the people I met so far. It's incredible.. it just started and I met already so many nice people.. open minded, heart followers, that understand my being on the first sight! I felt so welcome in all these places and still am, where I'm sitting now! :D ..I feel, that I could live my life in any place, and that's a great feeling!
in Homer, I hooked up with some people, that had a RV (motor home) down there and helped them cleaning their boat. I was invited to Chili and Lasagna and decided to leave my recently bought camping stuff behind.. I don't have room for it, would need a lot of other stuff as well (like food ;) and I'm just not into cooking.. still not.. so better make a sandwich, roll a potato into foil or put a can into the fire ;) ..but somehow it seems, that we tend to need these things, in order to figure out, that we don't need them ;) :P
but it's a good feeling to leave things behind.. kinda makes you more free! :)

so I camped out two days at the "spit" (the half Island in Homer) and met the right people in the right moment.. went out the next day to visit the russian town (where my bike got surrounded by horses ;) ..I drove my bike along the beach (it was low tide) and got pretty excited about it.. so excited, that I somehow oversaw a bump and managed to break both of my mirrors, bend  a pannier and a blinker (no Mom, don't worry, it wasn't dangerous! ;) hehe :D just a scratch for me and a minor flesh wound for the bike (but someday I have to learn how to fix it, right?). So on my way back, I met Brigitte from Germany, who leaves here for years with her Husband Willi from Switzerland, Aargau :) he had all the tools we needed and I shaped that pannier back in no time :) it's even better than before and we got the broken screw out and this very afternoon I got them mounted again. ..the right people in the right moment :) they invited me for dinner.. pesto and salad from their garden with fresh mushrooms.. just so delicious!! :D
met other guest, who stayed with them, got also invited to their place (thou I didn't make it then) and got a contact here in Anchorage, that gave me the address of a friend, who has two BMWs, so I'm eager to talk to him! :)
I left out all the expensive stuff.. as flightseeing and bear watching.. I just don't like to spend a lot of money for experiences like that.. they come for free and are best, if unexpected.. HAHA :D the next day I saddled my bike and drove back to Anchorage.. 340 km.. it's enough for a day.. gonna try to keep my daily routes shorter than that. (especially with a bike packed that much)
there are quite some people from Switzerland staying there and I unfortunately didn't have time to visit them all, but I'm sure, it would have been a good experience!!

oh.. I have to mention that: when I arrived, there was this bald eagle sitting on the beach and eating on a fish. So I approached carefully and got to close to 5m.. just sitting next to him and admire him, until he finished and spread out his wings and climbed in the airs again.. was just amazing!!

Saturday, July 11, 2009

a fish story

hmm.. it's already 22.15 and still as bright as it could be.. midnight sun rules!! :)

I arrived in Seward and due to some lucky circumstances, I ended with very nice people, having a great party, making new friends and having a lot of fun! :) oh yeah! the trip has begun!!
the last time, I just stayed overnight and was camping alone.. but this time, it's just an awesome, incredible experience!! :D I feel blessed by life and hope, that I can pass something on of if..

so I heard about the Exit Glacier hike (that was a good exercise! :) just brought way too many layers with me and was sweating a lot. but once on the top, I sat down, meditated a while and felt the elements coming together.. the warm sun, a refreshing breeze, the water flowing under the ice and the solid ground below me. Nature here is beautiful and finally I got time to hike around..

the evening, we had a tasty Alaskan BBQ with fresh caught salmon (it couldn't be better! :) I'm known for not being a huge fan of fish, but this salmon was just delicious! :D
later on, I went to town, going out in a bar (I cycled to town.. no drunk driving of course ;) and met some very nice people.. actually, they are just great!! :D
I got invited that very evening to a boat trip to catch salmon out in the Alaskan sea.. I would never go on a charter (touristy) tour, paying a lot of money for.. but being out with friends, that show you how to fish, on the biggest yaught in Seward (maybe even in whole Alaska, because it belongs to a billionaire), catching fresh salmon.. some people would die for that ;)
oh.. now I'm ruined.. totally spoiled.. this almost can't be beaten by another fishing trip. it was just totally awesome!!! :D could call it the best day in my life :) (so far ;)
all I had to get was a fishing license for 20 bucks.. I could not even have afforded the gasoline, the two 1200 HP engines consumed.. you might check the pictures out.. even caught a King Salmon (they are far more rare than the Silver Salmon). oh yeah.. learned a lot about fishing.. and will be forever grateful for these fulfilling moments! :) traveling rocks totally!!! haha :D you should try that! ;)

now I'm going out.. it's Saturday and let's see, what the evening holds for me :)

Arrival and the first days..

Dear family and friends,

I'm still not sure, if I should write email and blog in English or German, but I try it in English first, so it becomes even more international ;) and you might profit in the sense of learning a few new words (I hope my grammar won't be all that bad ;)

I managed to pack my bike (hell do I have a lot of stuff.. needed some army bags from a backyard sale, to mount everything on my bike ;) might even leave something behind, to get a better bike handling..

I stayed at two different couchsurfing places over night and enjoyed a lot! was a great time in Anchorage!! (not as the last time, where I had to camp out alone somewhere). Somehow everything seems to work out better this time and I enjoy this "starting-help" of the universe :)

I'm now pretty familiar with anchorage.. drove a lot up and down to get my things done. bought some camping equipment (and got my VISA card canceled, because it passed the limit ;)
even if they don't even have wheat here (that's imported like everything else except for fish ;) they brew a lot of different beers in Alaska and I'm on it to try as many of them as possible.. ;)

after three days, I had prepared everything and headed down to Seward..