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  1. #1 A little jouney to my homeland 
    C-Moto Not-so-Noob
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    Jun 2010
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    Portugal, Porto
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    A few months ago I decided to buy a motocycle... I endo up with a I-moto SM 125 (portuguese name for a Qingqui QM200GY-B (A) with 125cc).
    Surely, the reactions of my friends were enthusiastics :
    - what? chinese?
    - Those things fall apart after a few meters...
    - Etc, etc...
    Never the less I buy 'Little China' (thats her nickname) and she looks just fine (at least for me):



    DSC00154.jpg 

    Then a set to myself the goal of proving that its possible to travel with a 125cc... so a decided to visit my homeland in a rural (now I'm just a city boy) area of Portugal named "Trás-os-montes (translates to behind the hills).
    Of course once again I was presented with very positive reactions:
    - what? In a chinese byke?
    - Those bykes broke as hell ... you will never get there
    - Call me to pick you up...
    I do not know, but can you see some trend here?

    However my mind was made up so I had to resolve some practical things like "how can i put a top case on little china?"... in Portugal I couldn't find any rear rack for this byke, so I decided to build one myself.
    Here is the result of two days of hard work (my first job working with metal - and I fill proud ):



    1.jpg 



    2.jpg

    The journey total 650 Km (both ways) as you can see in google maps... start in Valongo, ending in Aveleda (city of Bragança):



    mapa_viagem.jpg

    So the big day came, and here they are (ride and rider) at 7 am, looking good:




    3.jpg 

    Oooppss... it seems I can only put 5 pictures in a post
    Is that correct?
    Anyone knows how to show bigger pictures?

    I'll keep the report in another post...






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  2. #2 Re: A little journey to my homeland 
    C-Moto Not-so-Noob
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    So here I am again... like I was saying " So the big day came, and here they are (ride and rider) at 7 am, looking good"

    4.jpg

    One hour late I arrived to my first obstacle... the mountain of Marão:

    6.jpg

    7.jpg

    One thing I learn... 'Little China' is a very fun byke to ride, but (a big but) climbing is not her best quality
    So after being almost in the top of that mountain I decided that 'Little China deserved some rest... ok, the fact that my ass was numb, had also some thing to do with it... and as you no know, we riders, deserve only the best, so I stoped in the hotel of Marão... a very cozy place to stay:

    8.jpg

    9.jpg

    continues....


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  3. #3 Re: A little journey to my homeland 
    grumpy old sod jape's Avatar
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    central victoria, australia
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    Hi there Jonas, a great start to a ride report.
    I am glad you are showing that a small machine is so much fun - no-one can complain at getting to the top of a mountain with a pack, without having to walk! Of course it is slow but when life is taken slowly, it is better. Don't listen to your friends laughter! Why spend many thousands of dollars on a 1000cc dakar type machine or a cafe racer to just ride a few Kilometers around home and see nothing on the way? Lighter bikes are easier around town and in the bush, it is only the open roads that slows them down and it is much faster than walking! In the village where I was born, my grandfather bought the first ever 'moped' many many years ago. It lasted him thirty years of daily use and it was always loaded with tools and soon all the old people of the village bought one because there were no buses and few had cars. It was amusing to visit because it was like a cartoon, all these people buzzing around on mopeds!

    The only way to get larger photos in your post is to put them in an external server like photobucket and post the link in your text. But the small pictures we see enlarge if we click on them if we are logged in, so all good.
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  4. #4 Re: A little journey to my homeland 
    Senior C-Moto Guru euphonius's Avatar
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    Dear Jonas,

    I have a friend whose slogan is, "Motorcycles aren't for everyone. Too bad." I'm relatively new to the sport, but I'd echo Jape's view that it's just you and the bike -- "ride and rider" as you put it -- that matters. You clearly already have a close bond of trust with Little China, and this is good. Treat her right, and she'll do the same for you. Solo riding through glorious countryside is a blessed thing. Can't wait to hear more about your adventure.

    I'll also echo Jape about posting pix. There are free services like Flickr where you can upload your pictures, then have links to them in your posts. That way they appear in larger format in your text, without the reader having to click the thumbnails.

    Welcome to MCM, a great place for iconoclastic riders like us!
    jkp
    Shanghai
    2010 JH600 "Merkin Muffley" (in Shanghai)
    2000 KLR650 "Feezer Ablanalp" (in California)
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  5. #5 Re: A little journey to my homeland 
    C-Moto Not-so-Noob
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    The views were amazing ... and look, thats my road:



    jape / euphonius, thanks for the tips about the photos

    After driving for about 2 hours I stop near a city called Mirandela to refuel 'Little China' .... ok, I confess... my ass was protesting again:




    The landscape has changed dramatically (those are olive trees), thats a more dry environment:



    It is just starting to look like the place I was born.... and, yes thats one more mountain a have to climb:



    Now thats the looks of my homeland...
    The pictures look a little bit gray, but thats not a problem with my camera... thats due from the smoke of wild fires, witch was my companion throughout the journey... in the return i'll try to take a few photos without smoke (I hope).


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  6. #6 Re: A little jouney to my homeland 
    grumpy old sod jape's Avatar
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    The new pics are showing larger, look good. That country is very similar to where I live now in Australia, dry and on fire in summer! Thanks for the ride report, enjoying it. 'Little china' holding up well, better than your bum anyway. Are the roads tarmac or gravel you are riding? Must be fun cruising those long curves. I would be distracted by the views and fall off I think!
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  7. #7 Re: A little jouney to my homeland 
    Senior C-Moto Guru euphonius's Avatar
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    Amazing country, and also reminds me of my home turf in northern California. It's dry and hot in the summer, but cold and foggy on summer nights. No surprise that we call this weather pattern a "Mediterranean climate".

    Great seeing the bigger images. (Maybe you can now go back and edit your previous posts!) Where are you now hosting these images? Looks they are coming from this strange URL http://lh4.ggpht.com/

    thanks again for a great little ride report, and looking forward to the ride back...

    cheers
    jkp
    Shanghai
    2010 JH600 "Merkin Muffley" (in Shanghai)
    2000 KLR650 "Feezer Ablanalp" (in California)
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  8. #8 Re: A little jouney to my homeland 
    Duct tape savant felix's Avatar
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    Guilin, China
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    Hi Jonas,

    Thanks for the ride report, it's always great to see what other people are riding in different parts of the world. Portugal looks like a beautiful country, and little china seems like a fun bike to explore it with!

    Never let others mock your decisions. End of the day, you're the one crossing mountains and country on two wheels while they are at home. Ride safe and have a blast!
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  9. #9 Re: A little jouney to my homeland 
    Life Is Good! ChinaV's Avatar
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    Guangdong, China
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    Howdy Jonas,



    That looks like a whole lot of fun! Good looking ride as well. Thanks for sharing with us.

    Cheers!
    ChinaV
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  10. #10 Re: A little jouney to my homeland 
    C-Moto Not-so-Noob
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    Quote Originally Posted by jape View Post
    The new pics are showing larger, look good. That country is very similar to where I live now in Australia, dry and on fire in summer! Thanks for the ride report, enjoying it. 'Little china' holding up well, better than your bum anyway. Are the roads tarmac or gravel you are riding? Must be fun cruising those long curves. I would be distracted by the views and fall off I think!

    I am traveling through a mix of 70% tarmac and 30% gravel roads ...
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