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Mongolia - Geneva - Paris - Martinique - Mongolia - Russia - Kyrgyzstan - Kazakhstan - Scandinavia

Tuesday

5/4/2010

I met Yan, my best friend ever, in 1964 at school. He was the 1st of the class, I was the last ! We connected immediately and I learned a lot of life with him, like independence, challenge, freedom... Together, we raced car, sailed the Mediterranean, motorcycle Japan and many things like that. He becomes an architect, lived 5 years in Japan and back in France raised a family of 4 daughters. He died in 1994 when a car crossed the freeway and hit him from the front !

I still carry Yan with me everyday in my travel, we would have love sharing that experience together.

Yan oldest daughter is Shalimar - Director & screenwriter short movie - , she came at the Closerie des Lilas with one of her sister Thanaële - mechanical engineer and own a motorcycler Yamaha Ténéré. On July 20, 2008, Shalimar wrote me an email "I wanted to ask you if, sometime, you were taking passenger with you and if yes what are the conditions ? I am very interested with Mongolia"

I told her simply, that the main condition is that she had to be comfortable to riding behind me on the sidecar what ever the weather condition, sleeping on the ground or eating what ever there is knowing that it may not always be easy but i could garanty her meeting amazing people and that nothing who pleased me more than sharing my travel with her for a while.

I am very happy that Shalimar will arrive at Ulaanbaatar in a couple of day for 3 weeks, we are going to ride to the Gobi desert and go East from there through the Altaï mountains.

I am finishing the preparation of the sidecar, taking my time and relaxing.


1970, Yan and me flew to Japan, bought 2 Yamaha trail 125cc motorcycle and toured the country for 2 months


Sunday

5/2/2010

I am done on the electrique, it all works great. I still have to lower the windshield for the summer set up - change a couple of gas line and I will be done by the end of the day.

Tomorrow I will re-print my booklet Mongol-French and meet a guy to get a piee of isolation to make a protection on the gas exhaust et the rear and sort all my stuff again. I know I will came back to Ulaanbatar so I will take only what I really need.

 

It was a close call: I went to the Naraantul Market with my sidecar. Seeing it was too crowded, I U-turn to get out. A group of 5 homeless guys half drunk took this oportunity to pretend I rode on the feet of one of them ! They saw the oportunity to make a few $ out of me. When they grab my handle bar, I realize I was in trouble.

I told them I was moving to stop a little bit further out of the traffic. And there I went full speed through the slowly moving traffic driving my sidecar like a maniac  like I was used to do in Paris in the 70's. It's amazing what your instinct of survival makes you do, I was flying.
My lesson is that I was foolish to go to the market with my sidecar on a sunday, the busiest day of the week.


I changed my speedometer that was not doing too well.
Thank you Madina from Ural Seatle who send it to Jessica in California and gave it to me in Martinique.


None of the electrical contacts on my bike had corrosion after 2 nasty winters. Thank's to the silicone grease !


Saturday

5/1/2010

I worked until 4 am to remodel my Mongol-French dictionary I lost in Lake Baikal. It is beautiful, I go print it this afternoon.

When I wake up, I went to look with a fresh head for my electrical problem. It took me 30 minutes to find it and it is very reassuring that it was a clear cut wire. So far I saw no traces of corrosion on all the contacts. I did put Silicone grease to all of them with Giorgio during my preparation and after 2 hard winter, it is a succes.

Note: My 2008 Ural has a blinker relay that is made for 4 bulbs. I installed a simple switch between the left and the righ blinker so when the swicth is on and I activated either left or right blinker, I have now "Hazard lights". The broken wire you see on the photo below is the cable going to the switch from the left to the righ blinker.


STOP SEARCHING !!!   I found the problem, a clear cut wire.


Friday

4/30/2010

I am almost done on my electric trouble shooting, just one more bad contact to find tomorrow morning. In Ulaanbaatar I cannot find motor oil above 10W40 !!!


If you have an idea on where is my bad contact, don't hesitate to write me !!!


Thursday

4/29/2010

I have good progress on the sidecar, the starter is repaired, the rear saddle seat is repaired and we did a new mount directly on the frame, mounted the new little digital voltmeter that I bought in Paris - the one I had never worked, replace the Harley Davidson Police saddle by the same one - it was all cracked, Jean-Louis bought a new one for me in New York, he send it to Jessica in California, she bring it in Martinique and I bring it back her.

Tomorrow, I will trouble shoot all my little electric problem that occured at the end of the winter.


The new bar supporting the rear of the saddle seat is welded directly on the rear subframe.
Note the rear light from the 1972 Geneva busses, mounted on toilet pipes by GIorgio is like new after 2 winters !!!


Wednesday

4/28/2010

My starter need more work, it was not the coper contact , it's in the bobine element, the spokes are all good and that is very exciting news for me after what the sidecar endured during the winter, I changed my oil, and spark plug, I went from the winter spark plug NGK #4 to  #6. I still have to trouble shoot electrical problems and a few other things. Did not find a welder yet !

 

PS: Lately, since I am in Ulaanbaatar, I have been changing daily the photo of the opening page of my web site, just so you know.


I don't know if you noticed, but it did not took long for me to get my weight down again !!!


Tuesday

4/27/2010

I am running across town to get things done. Like the extention of my visa for 90 days, finding a welder to fix the seat on my rear fender, getting a moden for my computer, printing my Mongol booklet I lost, meeting my Australian friends and Chinzo...


"When I came back from Lake Baïkal with you, everything was easy by compare of what we did together, but now,
I just came back from 2 weeks vacation in Bali with my wife and it's hard to go back to work after that !" - Chinzo


Monday

4/26/2010

Pick up my bag from Aeroflot, drop my starter to Chinzo to un-weld the backelite cover $ clean the coper contacts inside, drop by my favorite dentiste, and back at the guesthouse. Traffic is very dense in Ulaanbaatar, Chinzo was not at his office.


Sunday

4/25/2010

I am in a new guesthouse for me "Oasis". It was recommended by Chinzo as the prefered guesthouse for the bikers. The first bikers will arrive here in June only. It is far from the center, and has no internet @#$%&! but it's very clean and comfortable, the sidecar is safely inside the garden where I can do my maintenance from outside. Yesterday, I dismounted the starter to clean the coper contacts inside.

I slept 15 hours and I feel great.

 


Saturday

4/24/2010

8:00 am, just landed in Ulaanbaatar. My bag missed the connection in Moscow.
It snowed a little during the night. Trying to call Batbold to get my sidecar.

 


10:30am, I got the sidecar, it started at the first shot, feels good to be back on the sidecar after this long break !


Friday

4/23/2010

I had a great few days in Paris under a shiny sky, just walking around, going to the movie theater and seeing a few friends.

I will take my plane to Ulaanbaatar this afternoon and will arrive there tomorrow Saturday.

 

From Paris airport, going to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia:

 

I want to see the stars at night when I wake up,

I want to be there at sunrise and sunset,

I want to breath the fresh air of the wood, the mountains and the steppes,

I want to meet people I don't know who are not like me,

and share with them a space of time,

everything I missed in my life everyday

 

Laurent (going to Kyrgyzstan in May)

 


Monday

4/19/2010

We were about 50 at the Closerie des Lilas. Most from Paris but a 2 Germans ride 500 miles to come from Germany, 5 or 6 came from Alsace 300 miles and 1 came from Netherland 350 miles.

Fabrice I met on the Carretera Australe in Patagonia came as well as Patrick, one of the Pieds Nickeles from the Krystal Rally, the full crew of le Pieds Nickeles from Kyrgyzstan was there (blue sidecars), Marc I met in Kazakstan was there.

Also came, Micheline and Francoise from the Paradis Latin, Claire from Dutilleul, Alain and PerfideAvion from the Ural Est Motorcycle forum, Pinpin, Etiennne le Petit Rigolo and many other people I did not know before.

Thank you to all of you who came, it was fantastic for me to be with you.

 

I was able to change my plane ticket to Moscow and Ulaanbaatar from tomorrow to Friday on Aeroflot at the Champs Elysées office.

 

PS: Please SEND ME YOUR BEST PHOTOS from the CLOSERIE des LILAS!


At 6 pm, we were about 20 already and by 8pm, we were up to 50 !


Sunday

4/18/2010

Just arrived from Geneva to Paris by the train, on time to sniff the spring lilas and have a drink with many poeple tomorrow night at the Closerie des Lilas.


Saturday

4/17/2010

I am still in Geneva with Giorgio, I take the TGV tomorrow to go back to Paris and I will sniff the lilas with a lot of friends monday startting at 6 pm at the Closerie des Lilas.


My wife Lorraine choregraphed "The Rocky Horror Picture Show". The "Première" is friday 16 at 8pm in NY.


I took a plane ticket from Geneva to surprise her at the opening of the show tomorrow night.


Unfortunatly, all European flight to the USA are cancelled tomorrow due to the Iceland's volcano eruption !!!


Thursday

4/15/2010

To my beloved Lorraine:

"I wanted to be with you at the premiere of your show you how proud I am of you. Iceland decided an other way, but know that it does not changed anything on my feeling about you.

I love you"

 

Yuruul


Monday

4/12/2010

I got my shot on my finger this morning, no problem, it should be effectlive within a week. I Just arrived in Geneva with my good friend Giorgio. The Marcel Pagnol's Lifestyle did not changed a bit !!!


The sidecar is levitating on the water attached to his spaceship in space !!!


Sunday

4/11/2010

I just came back from Dordogne (South West of France) and I am just on time for me doctor appointment tomorrow morning in Paris.

Rich time there  meeting people i care a lot.

What pleased me the most was to meet the new owner of les Cantaysses, Alain and Martine. Les Cantaysses is the only house (farm) I owned in my life and that I had to sell 20 years ago. Alain and Martine moved 3 month ago to les Cantaysses and do organic fruit and vegetable on the 12 acres of the farm. For the first time I feel, that les Cantaysses have a meaning like when I was there 35 years ago.

I was very close to Franck who introduced me to Dordogne almost 40 years ago.


This photo of Franck and Christine was taken 2 weeks ago during the vacation in Bali.
Franck died abruptly the day after his return home in Dordogne !


Wednesday

4/7/2010

I spend the day with my 2 sister Marie France and Isabelle and Bernard who broke his arm last week.

To night, I had dinner with isabelle childrens, Greta, Victoria, Paul and his girlfriend, Heinui who is coming back from 6 months of relaxation in Japan and Laurent with his girlfriend who want to go to Kyrgyzstan next month (the state of emergency will certainely be lifted by then !)

Tomorrow, I go visit my 2nd family in dordogne. It's a farmer family who's all the generation still live under the same roof since ever.

My good friend Frank in dordogne died last week. I will also visit Francoise, the mother of my 2 oldest daughter Eve and Lucie.

I will be back in paris sunday april 11 because i have a doctor appointement that monday for a finger that lock too easely.

Then I will go to Geneva visit my good friend Giorgio and I will be back next weekend to Paris.

Come sniff the spring lilac and have a drink with me, Monday April 19, starting at 6 pm, at the bistrot Closerie des Lilas (corner du boulevard de Port Royal et du boulevard Saint Michel, metro Port Royal, Paris). I would be very happy to see you there before I take my plane for Mongolia the next day.


Come sniff the spring lilac and have a drink with me Monday April 19 starting at 6 pm at the
bistrot Closerie des Lilas (corner du boulevard de Port Royal et du boulevard Saint Michel, metro Port Royal).


Tuesday

4/6/2010

Just arrived in Paris, having breakfast with my sister isabelle, my other sister Marie France was still sleeping.

Paris is beautiful and again it's weird for me to be there...


Sunday
4/4/2010

My vacations in Martinique are coming to an end, I will fly to Paris tomorrow night. I would like to visit my friends at le Pelonier in Dordogne  and Giorgio in Geneva before I go back to Mongolia on april 20.
PS: don't miss Jessica's video from la Martinique.


My vacation in Martinique was only pleasure, thank you Brigitte and Denis.


Tuesday
3/30/2010

Sailing a week in the Grenadine Island with Denis was superb. I feel the same freedom on a sail boat that I experience while riding my sidecar around the world.


During the week sailing the Grenadine Island
I was thinking of Pourou my friend nomad in Mongolia
who is moving his herd of sheep and camel in the Mongolian's steppes at this time of the year


Tuesday
3/23/2010

Jessica and Andrew left yesterday morning, we prepared the boat for our trip, we are leaving this morning for a week around the islands in the south.


Tuesday
3/23/2010

Jessica and Andrew left yesterday morning, we prepared the boat for our trip, we are leaving this morning for a week around the islands in the south.


Saturday
3/20/2010

I thought I had finished all my stories and I just had to put together a little video on lake Baïkal, but I think that I will do a new story before that on " How to survive by +105ºF !"
Tuesday, I go with Denis on his sail boat for a few days around the Carabean Island.


My beloved Lorraine and Milou went back to New York this morning.


Self portrait in Martinique


Sunday
3/14/2010

PM: Lorraine, Jessica, Andrew, Milou and I are together at Brigitte and Denis's house in Martinique.


What a fantastic lunch it was with Bernard and Marie France, french hot paté with salade and fresh baguette.


Watch out, the moment is important, my first bread and butter in a cafe at Paris !!!


Saturday
3/13/2010

I checked in a the airport of Ulaanbaatar, Lorraine left New York last night, Jessica and Andrew are leaving California as we speak, life is pretty good.

Prepare the crabs Brigitte, we are going to be there pretty soon.

The next story is "Lost in a maze of ice"


Friday
3/12/2010

Tomorrow morning, I take a plane to go to Martinique, Caribbean Island where I will be with my beloved Lorraine, Jessica et Andrew at my ex brother in law Brigitte and Denis. The programe will be sailing boat, crabs and lobster !

I will fly by Moscow, Paris (1 day) and Fort de France.

I will come back to my sidecar in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia in April !!!


In the next couple of days, I will experiment a thermal shock of 130ºF between Lake Baïkal and Martinique !


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