The Reason

 

The expedition as all about exploring an incredible country in a very direct way, experiencing everything China has to offer, its people, its food, the landscapes, the mindscapes, the good, the bad and the unknown. I will be exploring the many creative elements to China, the ingenuity of its people, its resourcefulness and adaptability to any situation. These will be explored in words and images throughout this site.

The China Wheelie project will be a detailed exploration of a country and its people from a completely different angle.

 

 

The expedition will also help raise awareness and money for two charities. Sowers action and Care for Children, both dedicated to improving the lives of children in many rural areas in China. Please read the charities link for more information on what each one strives to achieve and how you can make a donation to support these children.

What drove me to the decision to embark on such a journey was mainly due to an insatiable urge to travel and explore. I came to Hong Kong with a head full of traveling ideas, got sucked into the whole city thing and ended up staying here for 8 years. Hong Kong has been excellent, I've had a great time but I've had itchy feet for too long now. I've traveled a lot in China and Asia in general but I still yearned for an epic journey. Years ago it was to ride a horse across mongolia but it was never to be due to my own distractions. This time though its a tricycle around China, and this time its going to happen.

 

 

Its strange really how an idea turns into reality. I started looking at maps, wondering where in China I wanted to go, the more I looked the more I found, until the idea to go everywhere popped into my head. Once it was there that was it. I couldn't put it out of my mind. I'm a stubborn bugger and decided I'd do it, regardless of warnings and hearing other peoples fears.

Funny, you look at a map and you see a perfectly flat surface, covered only by smiles. In reality you know this not to be the case, but something blocks it from your mind as you adjust yourself mentally for the challenge. All negative thoughts get put aside, they aren't ignored, just filed in a part of the brain where they filter in slowly, not allowing them to pollute or poison the idea. Realism I know will soon rain down on my head the moment the trike is on the ground in China, I’ve said good bye to all those that I love and I’m on my own, just pedaling, pedaling, pedaling, trying to find out where all those bloody flat bits are I saw on the map.

China is a fascinating fast changing place, full of contradictions. There is something that I cannot put into words to explain the drive to keep me exploring the country. It is a relentless country of movement and noise. On every inch of the land something interesting is happening, the country is alive, a living breathing mass of the unexpected and the unexplainable.

 

 

Of course there are dangers involved with a trip like this. Road safety, dangers from my fellow man, accidents etc. These are all things I am very much aware of, yet I must trust in my own abilities and capacity to avoid them. My experience so far has seen the Chinese people treat me with an openness and kindness that is rarely found in the west. In fact I feel much safer in China than I do walking down a street in London. You hear many bad things when you are outside of a country but the reality is something completely different when you experience it directly. Bad news always travels fast by word of mouth and the media, and people link on to these stories. Great stories of human kindness rarely get passed on. This is what the journey is all about. Experiencing a country, its culture and its people for myself, and at the same time help dispel some of the myths of China and share an epic journey with anyone who wants to hear it.

 

The areas I will be traveling through are also some of the ones where the charity projects are running or have been completed. I hope to visit some of these if possible. We shall see. First I just need to pedal. The rest will unfold beneath my tires.