Fujian for beer

[ChinaV]

So Felix mentioned something about hitting Fuzhou, and then something about the possibility of beer there, so I figured what the hell, let's give it a go. Four days of riding and roughly 2500 kilometers took me over the following route.



Many months since the Wee Strom had seen action, I was so happy to be back on the road with her.



I've never seen traffic as bad as what I experienced in the first few hours of the ride. Multiple traffic jams, accidents and thousands of vehicles stuck and going nowhere. Sometimes I could see the toll highways as they passed overhead and even they were at a complete standstill. Something terrible is happening to the roads here in China, and I live in fear of having to drive anywhere in my car as traffic has reached a crisis level.

It took me a few hours to get back in the groove of China riding, but I soon returned to the flow of dodging obstacles and incessantly honking my horn. Finally I made it into the countryside, and stopped for a little break. Seems like the countryside has gotten so much further away than it used to be.



Tried to make the trip mostly X and S roads, and enjoyed a nice mix of sweepers and twisty's as I made my way north out of Guangdong.



I spied a group of large bikes and decided to join in. We eventually stopped for a chat and they invited me to tag along. I'm not a big fan of riding in large groups, but it was late in the day, and I figured it would be fun to hang out for the evening.



We made it up to the town of XiaYang, just over the Guangdong/Fujian border. All of my new found friends were local "Guangdongren" so they quickly located nice accommodations and delicious food.



And plenty of ice cold beer! Splendid group of people and a fun time was had sharing tales, as all bikers do. Thanks for the great dinner guys.



It had been a long day for everyone, so we were off to bed fairly early. I went back to my humble abode to swim some laps in the ridiculously huge bathtub. It's quite amazing what a couple hundred Yuan gets you for a night



The next morning was sunny and warm. (note to Sabine... I don't think it ever got bellow 20ºC all four days.) Felix and I had agreed on meeting in JianOu, so I was up early and rolling by 7:00.



I decided to stick to my plan of S and X roads which started out well enough as I passed through the rural countryside. This was a nice little sugar cane farm that I stopped at for a peek.



Fujian is quite mountainous and I was pretty much going up or down all the time.



Then the roads got bad, and I mean really bad. Lots of construction and mud with plenty of obstacles to keep things interesting.



I passed this cool little covered bridge, something I'd never seen before on previous journeys.



The scenery was good, but the roads were really taking their toll on me. I figured I had plenty of time to get to JianOu, but at this point, I was struggling to make 30-40 kilometers in an hour.



Stop for a rest.



Finally reached JianOu and was happy to find Felix and his friend DaoFei had only been waiting about 10 minutes. We found lodging for the night and then hit the town for some beers and boasting.



JianOu is a river town, and lots of local people enjoy eating crayfish. I'm not a fish fan, and I had also seen the condition of the river, so decided to pass on the local delicacy.



None the less, we manage a big feast with plenty of cold brews and lots of good conversation.



That was the trip up, try to get the return journey posted soon.

Cheers!
ChinaV

[jape]

Goodness, you guys over there certainly have fun! I wish I was young again. You are probably in China at the best time when still ancient and traditional rubbing shoulders with the modern. And bang for the buck so to speak. Sounds like gridlock and peak oil are about to coincide, could get really nasty. But of course with that number plate you will be fine! I'd get a gun as well though, people get hungry in three day, hundred kilometer road jams and fat (relatively) foreigners will be first on the spit. Probably tastier than polluted prawns too.

[TexasAggie]

I am a bit jealous of the Wee Strom. Noticed the license plates in the front and back symbolize your attention to the details of Chinese culture in more ways than one! Enjoy the trip!

[ChinaV]

The number plate thing is just a photoshop trick. If you go back through all the various ride reports I've done on my V-Strom, you will see that the number changes in almost every picture. Just one of those little things I do because...well...I'm weird like that.

Cheers!
ChinaV

[TexasAggie]

I found it hilarious to see the reference to good luck numbers, especially number 8. I also thought maybe you had maybe found a circular route to registering a Wee Strom.

[Pfaelzer]

Nice Ride!

too bad I couldn't hook up with you guys. We missed each other for just one day. I arrived in Fuzhou on Monday. Looks like you passed through Yongtai Valley south of Fuzhou? Pretty nice area... That's where I had my "frog experience" recently... Nice pictures - looking forward to see the return ride.

Cheers,
AW.

PS: Gonna be at HWB2 in Dongguan tonight.... Wanna come?

[moilami]

Impressive. All that rurality everywhere and then suddenly that kind of very, eh, lost the word now. Darn!

Anyway, thanks of the interesting and inspiring report and pics.

[Gardo]

that is awesome thanks for sharing, My last trip to China in Nov 2010 I was only there for 2 days and had to head back to Hong Kong the remainder of my visit i loved the Tsingtao beer in the warmer days and my Guinness at night. didnt have a chance to ride out there but i hope for my next trip I will

Thank you again

[MJH]

I now I really think Gardo is a mole.....

[Gardo]

I now I really think Gardo is a mole.....

Hey man I was brought up on Shaw Brother's movies and Bruce Lee, I learned to eat with chop sticks by the time I was 3... wait maybe i am a mole