Our passports were valid until 2012, but, due to our last journeys, there was no space left for new stamps and visa, so we had to apply for new passports. In October, November and December we had so much work in our wine bistro, that we let the preparations slide, which nearly became our undoing.
Elke and me took our old bikes to Erfurt to our friends Madlen and Gerith. We had met them on our last world tour in Nappa Valley, California and we all cycled from Alasky to Mexico, together with their Husky Sam. For me Gerith is an absolute bike freak, no one knows more about bikes than he. For his brother owns a bike shop in Erfurt, he agreed to overhaul our bikes completely, to prepare them for our world tour. It was clear: It wouldn't be easy, for our bikes already have 40000 kilometers under their belt.
From now on, time was slipping away. It was good to have friends, who felt close to our culinary world tour and who come to our aid.
For Elke and me finally decided to go to India, we charged our friend Jenny to organise our flights, she is a specialist in matter of oversea travelling. Werner is the absolute specialist for computers, he organised a new notebook, on which everything for sending e-mails and processing pictures was installed. Brother Dieter is a camera freak, he knows everything about a good camera, we need for our journey. The most important is the storage of our pictures, which are invaluable for us. For our financial adminstration we authorised Elkes brother Armin and my brother Klaus. They hopefully assure, that we don't lack anything on our adventurous trip. Elke's father ist responsible for our mail. He opens and orders it and handles incoming requests. Our friend Holger monitors our reports, that everyone, who follows our trip in the internet, has fun while reading them.
We brought our large farewell party on New Year's Eve to a successful end, with great commitment of our friends. With Marion Adams, a restaurant manager, we found a good successor for the 'Stachelvino', so we can now fully concentrate on our trip.
Countdown is on, we had 5 weeks left for the last preparations. I asked Elke, what actually was still to be done. She got nervous and explained, that we have to find a tenant for our appartment, to sell the car, need vaccinations. She was right, like many times before, we needed to speed up.
One year ago we got to know the musician Eddy St. James, he was looking for a little ready-furnished appartment at the Weinstraße. When he saw the appartment he was excited right from the start. He took it over with his girl friend for two years. It took a load off our mind and when Alfred Mueller called and showed interest in our car, everything seems to go according to plan. Many friends invited us to farewell parties, my weight increased from one to another. The last one started on January,17 2009, with over 100 friend who attended. They came from 700 kilometer around, even Madlen and Gerith with our newly overhauled bikes - now nothing could go wrong.
Next evening with stood before our doctor, who vaccinated us against typhus and rabies. Against rabies one needs several injections. Now only our India visa were missing. Elke and me made our way to the Indian embassy in Frankfurt, where we applied for a 6 months visa, which we received without complications.
Only two days until departure. We grow nervous more and more. The bikes are packed into two special cardboard boxes. Elke packs our complete equipment into our bike bags, which itself are packed into two specially manufacture sacks, for we can only check 2 pieces of baggage at the airport.
The last evening before departure. Once again we meet friends and neighbours and open some bottles of good wine for the last time. Waking up next morning, I think about how I feel. My puls speeds up, I feel my adrenalin raise, like a scalded cat I jump out of my bed. I ask Elke if we have money, passports, credit cards, vaccination cards and visa. Elke screams, don't go crazy! Peter already waits with his Sprinter truck. We store the bikes and bags, everything happens very fast now. Until now Peter, my ex-brother-in-law, always brought us to the aiport, when we started to one of our trips and he picked us up when we returned. For Elke and me this has always been good omen and will hopefully be this time too. Actually one should think, that we are professionals in terms of travelling, but everytime before we start I feel jitters. A state in which I hardly have control of myself, it's like floating. The trip to Franfurt goes according to plan as well as the baggage check. My brother Klaus, sister-in-law Hanne and my friend Remy surprisingly come to the aiport to say good-bye. Hanne has 10 freshly baked 'krebbel' with sugar for us. Elke and me scoff the last pieces of homeland, before we vanish in the customs office.