February 21, 2016
To Paithan: this is bicycle touring again
As we cycled today, the road gradually deteriorated from nice smooth asphalt to somewhat smooth asphalt with narrow uneven edges to a very bumpy road with potholes and brutally painful cycling on uneven asphalt. The last 12kms after the dam of the Godavari River was the worse. Then riding into Paithan, there was road construction on the main street which made it a very dusty city. We make our way to the Parkway Hotel. It's a basic clean room for 800 rupees.
The traffic is less on the secondary main roads except for when we came to junctions with other roads. We have left the Western Ghats and are on the Deccan Plateau. The landscape is drier, we climb a bit before a fantastic 6km descent to a fertile agricultural plain and 70kms of relatively flat road. Very little cloud cover today and by afternoon the sun is hot.
After 7pm, the start of the dinner hour, we go to our hotel restaurant but they don't serve food only drinks. Across the street looked like a restaurant, only they too did not have food. Both places, men waved pointing down the street. People try to be helpful. We start walking and two young men on motorcycles stop and ask to help and they give us a ride to a restaurant.
People at the next table ask to take a selfie with us. They asked if we were cycling, and then said they had seen us on the road. The owner of the restaurant gives us a brochure about a lodge he has opened, Abhinandan Lodge, and he wants us to stay there. We try to explain we already have a room. Then another man who speaks better English joins the conversation and says "You are my brother, you are my sister, this is the best place for you". Again, we try to explain that we already have a room. Patrick tries to explain about google maps and he needs to have the lodge listed. In the end, he shows us a link where the lodge is located Justdial.com. Now we know of two possiblities in finding rooms in India,the other option is Ayo Rooms.
Tomorrow is a shorter day in distance, we are just hoping the road surface improves.
Today's ride: 95 km (59 miles)
Total: 13,240 km (8,222 miles)
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