Jordan was like a breath of fresh air in the sense of tourism!! They know how to host tourists with thier very welcome saying welcome to 🇯🇴 Jordan!!! Petra was absolutely breathtaking, even with all the tourists , you could still feel the wonder of it all. The road into Petra was spectacular thanks to the friends of the motorcycle club! Iraq proved to be a test of endurance in so many ways, I feel as though this country and its people are still preparing for the next invasion of an enemy.. that proved interesting with all the paperwork jungles and the strict military checkpoints.But the people were very gracious and friendly. Being in the heart of what was once Mesopotamia was once in a lifetime experience. Going to Kurdistan was a whole new education and appreciation for this region and it’s cultural heritage. Getting to meet Douglas , getting invited to his home was really an honour, seeing what his team has accomplished in helping these Kurdish people.

Iran was so incredibly hard and beautiful.. the Persian architecture and art is unparalleled. Seeing the former Shah’s grandeur, one gets a deeper understanding of how the people rebelled against it only to find themselves now in perhaps a bigger and darker regime. I know from my perspective of my time there as a woman there is a tremendous amount of frustration with the young people wanting change, growth .. choice. For that I left with a heavy heart. Armenia gave way to steep mountain switchbacks and charming mountain towns. Beer and wine flowed as well as many spirits! The evidence of former communist country was very apparent with cell block like architecture and lots of references to a gothic style.

Georgia was a slow foodies paradise, a very proud country.. I was very surprised to find out that they have a very unique language and wine and food, music and art. A definite return visit.. for the food, storytelling, music, and a slow way of life that is very appealing.

Turkey.. such a huge and diverse country you can’t really sum up the country in one feeling.. the area we travelled.. being part of the Silk Road in the northeast was fascinating, caravan sweats, lush farmlands with shepherds and thier special breed of herd dog’s the Kangal.. to Kahvalti breakfasts.. Ottoman Empire historical sites around every corner, and the unparalleled Turkish hospitality. Winding roads and chai ☕️!

An overview: an adventure of a lifetime. Going the road less travelled. We loved the sense of not knowing but also the comfort in the fact that most of the details were taken care of. The routes were excellent, some long days for sure.. not for the out of shape or closed minded that’s for sure. A note about the guides.. some were better than others, but JAMA, was above and beyond a guide, Allen also was wonderful, sharing his passion and insight in Saudi, David was easy laid back and very knowledgeable, Allí took all of our wandering a in Iran in stride, and Cheyenne who was brave and funny in times of crisis. We got to make lots of new memories and friends, becoming better ambassadors for our country and a better motorcyclists!

Thanks for the memories,

Hugo and Michele

Jordan has interesting topography, amazing history and archeological sites, lots of tourists, good motorcycle roads, and … beer!

Our few days in Jordan were a good example of why this trip through 20 countries is just a sampler; to really appreciate and understand the various sites and views here, I would've had to do a lot of reading before coming to this country, and maybe one day I will.

Iraq was a mess, to put it mildly. Military and police everywhere. Infrastructure in poor shape. The people were friendly. We never felt unsafe.

Entering the country was a 31-hour nonstop process. Meaning essentially 31 hours without sleep.

0530: 170 km to Iraqi border.

We spent 8 hours waiting to enter Iraq.

Once we got in, there was essentially no stopping for the first 350 miles, as this is a military corridor with tanks, humvees, machine guns etc. everywhere, including every single overpass. We were stopped at multiple military checkpoints, and sometimes these stops took hours. That gave us time to take little naps.

We had a military escort and had to ride in convoy till we get to the outskirts of Baghdad. It took a mighty effort to stay awake on the bike, and this was to me by far the most dangerous portion of the entire 10 week journey. Not riding 20,000 km through 20 countries where some drivers, such as in Saudi Arabia, have completely insane driving habits, but trying not to fall asleep while you're riding in a convoy.

Along with Jordan, Iran was the most interesting country of the trip.

The first thing we noticed was that the people in Iran were the nicest on our entire trip. Civilized, interested, open. Including even government officials (border, customs, immigration, police), whose message seemed to be “sorry for the inconvenience, these are just formalities, we hope you like our country.”

They always wanted to know where we’re from and when they heard we’re from America they seemed to just love it.

More than once did I buy gas or some coffee and the vendor refused any payment. Twice someone invited me to his house for dinner and a place to stay the night. (I did not accept because we had prearranged hotels.).

Billboards with pictures of martyrs are everywhere - on highways, overpasses, in big cities, in villages, alleys, you name it.

Our Iranian guide (who remembered me from 4 yrs ago) tried to tell us that all these martyrs everywhere were from the Iran-Iraq war, but that war was 40 yrs ago and so that is hard to believe. More likely I think is that many are fairly recent casualties from Iran’s state-sponsored terrorist activities around the Middle East and the world. Symbolized by red tulips, martyrdom is celebrated by the fundamentalist regime as something to aspire to. But from talking to and observing people on the street, 95% of the population wants nothing to do with the mullahs or their religious extremism. They just want a good life, prosperity and freedom, and for them America symbolizes that. Many women in Tehran don’t even wear head coverings anymore, just a scarf around their necks so they can claim their head covering just fell down. We didn’t see that in other Arab countries.

Tehran looked surprisingly good, better than 4 years ago. Lots of new construction, traffic, considerate drivers. Beach conditions on the Caspian Sea continue to be horrendous — no change from 4 yrs ago. Ugliest beach I’ve ever seen. Exiting Iran involved a beautiful ride across high mountains: At the border, looking back at the mountains we just crossed. Mountains like these are a perfect natural border between two countries.

Even though Iran was clearly exceptionally interesting, with great history and culture and no doubt the nicest people, I was relieved to get out of there, and the feeling was widely shared in our group. It was the kind of relief I remember from leaving Sudan into Egypt, and China into Nepal. Iran is a place where people are not at liberty to speak freely, where businesses big and small feel compelled to put up photos of the supreme leaders, and where you never know who’s watching/listening or what may suddenly happen to you, especially as an American.

We’ll always have the sunrise over Baghdad.

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