March 25, 2014
I can't have been the only one who saw this coming: Surely?!
It was another glorious sunny day as I carried on east with snowy mountain ranges on both sides. I was continuing to use smaller roads as much as I could, although they still had too much scary traffic on them. Regular readers may remember 'Pothole Slalom' from way back in Ukraine and will no doubt be delighted to hear it has been commissioned for a second season: Pothole Slalom is back for a new series with added challenges! This time the competitors find themselves in Georgia, where as well as weaving around huge potholes, they must now also avoid colliding with a variety of farm animals!
I was stopped very often by people at the side of the road, most of whom seemed quite friendly, none of whom spoke English. A few times I was stopped by very drunk people. I have to say it is one of my least favourite moments travelling when I come face to face with a drunk man who talks to me in a language I don't understand and gets angry when I don't respond. How do you deal with that? And it was a situation I was facing more in Georgia than anywhere else I'd ever been. The most noteable occasion was when two men sitting on a bench called me over and I stopped before I realised how drunk they were. One of them, a red faced, slightly balding man with a white beard that made him look a little bit like a sunburnt Santa Claus, poured me a glass of wine and walked over to me. Despite his drunkenness he did seem to be quite friendly. Actually a little too friendly as he moved in for a kiss on the lips. "Whoa! That ain't gonna happen buddy!" He looked at me, put his arm around my neck and tried again to pull my head towards his. I was beginning to think the entire male population of Georgia were closet homosexuals. Or in this case not so much in the closet. I pulled away from him just in time. He offered me the glass, no doubt thinking I might let my guard down after a couple of drinks. I looked at the wine. There was something dubious floating in it. "Nope, that ain't gonna happen either buddy. Thanks anyway, it was really lovely meeting you, bye then."
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As the sun was setting at my back I was starting to look around for a place to camp when I came across a number of cars parked at the roadside up ahead and for some reason a lot of people in a field just next to it. Drawing closer I saw the reason; a car was in the field, roof caved in, windscreen shattered, a real mess. It had obviously just been in an accident. I noticed another car with a cracked windscreen and there was a truck also in the field that may or may not have been involved. It wasn't clear exactly what had happened and as I'm not a doctor and my only contribution to the effort to help would have been to say "English, English?" to everyone, I decided not to stop. But as I passed I could see at least one person trapped in the back of the car which had obviously flipped into the field, and it certainly didn't look good for whoever was in the front. 'I can't have been the only one who saw this coming, surely?' I thought.
Today's ride: 94 km (58 miles)
Total: 15,258 km (9,475 miles)
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