Histoire de mon premier voyage en solo...

Petrol: 1.44 euro/liter..
Sandwich and Coke: 6.5 euro...
Toll for the total journey: 28 euro....
Single room in a decent hotel: 40 euro.....
Rent for a bike for the weekend: 200 euro......
Pleasure of riding at the speed of 150: priceless.......

What do you do when there is a bus and train strike, the country is large but your stay in it isnt… You guessed it right, ul rent a bike and hit the road.. And the bike... a Ducati Multistrada.. Yes this was what my second weekend in France was all about.. Experiencing the power of the Ducati…

I was in France, in a place called Grenoble for office work. Since the time i reached, i was searching for a place where i could rent a bike. But in Europe, biking is only for pleasure unlike our country, where it is also a means of regular commuting. So there are very few bikes, and they usually are the top of the line models. Biking is so uncommon that it took me 2 weeks to find a bike rental shop in Grenoble. Finally when i found one i decided to go for a bigger bike (even though it burnt a bigger hole in my pocket). The baniya in me kept on urging me to go for the 125cc CBR which was hell lot cheaper but somehow the bike enthusiast in me managed to overpower the baniya and made me select the multistrada. One ride on the bike and the baniya had no regrets.. :)
Now from here I had 2 options for the trip: first one was Nice & Monaco and second one was Paris. Paris was 700km away with the road being a plain(& boring) highway. Nice was 500kms away with the road going through both mountains and plains with the last stretch running along the sea. I chose Nice as it was nearer(so i got more time to actually visit the place) and I also would get to ride in the mountains. In the map purple shows the route i took while going and red is while coming back.

So my ride began...For a person who is used to riding 150cc's this was a big time power boost... First I was a bit cautious as everything bout the bike seemed different from what I was used to. The huge tires (160/70 rear, 120/70 front), the spacious seat, an angular riding position, different gear shifts, rear disc breaks and mono-shock. But as I got out of the city and opened the throttle for the first time, I felt the power of the 600cc beast I was riding and the thrill from the acceleration kicked the caution away. It was as if i was flying. Few seconds and I was racing at the speed of 140. One twist of the throttle and I crossed 150. But before I could go further a strong blast of wind hit me. I was wearing a normal jacket which starting blowing up with air like a parachute and the bike shifted 3-4 feet sideways. Again the caution took over and I slowed down. Most of the time, I was cruising at 125-130 (also as the speed limit was 130. And unlike India people are pretty strict about the speed limit in Europe. They have these automatic radars and stuff for measuring the speed and fines are also heavy.) As the journey progressed the wind grew stronger and sometimes it forced me to slow down to 90-100 (which actually felt very slow on the bike). Throughout the route there were signs warning people against the wind. And to make things worse the air was chilled, as the temperate there was below 10 degrees throughout the day.

From Grenoble, I took the autoroute towards Valence and Marseille. Autoroutes are basically 4 lanes highways which have a toll for their use. Speed limits are usually around 110-130kmph. Open road+high speeds=high displacement automobiles. So for company I had the Yams, the Ducatis, the Hondas, the Kawasakis and not to forget the Porches, Beemers, Mercs, Audis and Alfa Romeos and sometimes a Ferrari. Riding the 150 in India I always felt that I had the most underpowered vehicle but there with a 600cc, I somehow had that feeling of deja-vu.




The bikers in France have a great camaraderie for each other. When ever they pass another bike the rider and the pillion always wave. Even while overtaking they stick their foot out to wave. First stop was after getting out of the city. There I did a small photo-shoot of my bike.


check out the sexy ass.. also the broad seat..



So here I was racing against the wind on an expressway watching the big cars and bikes zipping past me. And then IT came... my "faithful companion" who is always there to give me company in all my trips… Slowly and slowly the sky started getting covered by black clouds which had heavy rain written all over them. And then came my friend... the rain...
The ugly looking horizon...


So now with the cold and wind, I was riding in the rain, all drenched without any waterproof, windproof clothing. Once the cold got so unbearable that I stopped in a shelter, took off my shoes and socks and kept my wet feet on the hot engine. The foot was so numb that the flesh got burnt but I couldn’t feel a thing. As I crossed Marseille after riding 2-3 hrs in rain, I saw blue sky in the horizon and thanked god..
What a relief (don’t mind the blur.. was shivering so much that cudnt keep my hand still)

As i moved on the skyline improved..

As the sun was setting I reached Cannes. There I stopped at the beach for some time and savoring the sights and sounds of the city. But in the wet clothes, the cold were getting unbearable. The following pics show how much I was shivering..


some shots at the beach..
















A brief photo-shoot and I was on the way to Nice. I reached Nice around 8.30pm. I found a hotel and then had dinner at a pizzeria. Then I sat in my room, drying my clothes and watching the Rugby World Cup final between England and South Africa which to the delight of majority of Europe, England lost.
The next morning I left for Monaco. Finding the way out of Nice was impossible. One person whom I asked the way, told me that I should continue following the coast to reach Monaco, as even if he told me the way to the highway I wont be able to reach it. Then riding here and there in the city I saw a board saying that the road was going to Monaco. I started following the road signs (inspite of twice people telling me that there is no way to Monaco in that direction). Following this route I came out of Nice and started going up a mountain. So this was the first time I got to ride in the Alps. The roads here are really wide with the speed limit in the mountains being 90. And im am damn sure when those guys on their super bikes cornered, this limit was sweetly surpassed. Also the view of the coast from the top was lovely.


Reaching Monaco I dint know were to go. Planning mein locha ye ho gaya ki I was so excited about the trip that I forgot to find out anything about Monaco. Only place I knew I had to see was the F1 circuit. I was near to the seaside so i first went to a harbor. Roamed around a bit.





Then I asked for the way to the Grand Prix circuit. A policeman guided me to the start line.

From there I rode a few kms on the circuit but it was no different then riding on a normal city road, and it got boring. Also it was almost 12 and i had had nothing to eat since morning. So I left the Monaco circuit and went to a beach and took a lunch break.

After the refueling myself I was ready to head back home. It was already 1:00 in the afternoon and I had a long journey ahead. Just as I started riding back I realized that I was driving behind a red Ferrari Enzo. The car if front of it was moving very slow and so I was able to keep up with it. Admiring the beauty of the car, I unconsciously started following it. After a few kms it stopped and I looked around to see where I had come, realizing that I had totally strayed away from the route I was supposed to take. And there I was standing in front of the famous Monte Carlo Casino. I knew that one required formals to enter the place so I dint get down but I stood outside treating my eyes to the Ferraris( yeah there were more than the one I had followed), Bentley, Rolls Royce and Aston Martins standing outside.


After an eye-full I started towards Nice. I took the autoroute to Nice. Then I saw a sign indicating the way to Grenoble. I found it a bit odd because Grenoble was around 450kms away and the sign wasn’t mentioning any of the places that I passed between Grenoble and Nice. Anyhow, I followed the sign. Slowly and slowly the road changed direction and I realized that I was heading towards the mountains. Then came a sign which said Grenoble – 300 and something kms ahead. My eyes lit up. What more could I have asked for—a mountain route and that also 150kms shorter than the highway one. So began my ride in the Alps. Unlike our country the roads throughout the route were perfect. Broad double-lane roads without any holes or bumps.


But with mountains, came the cold winds. The leather gloves that I had got with the bike were paper thin and I dint have any wind proof lower to wear over my jeans. So if I was chilled on the way to Nice, now I was frozen. With the road going between the mountains, sunshine too was hard to find. Some sights on the way..

^the French countryside..

^a beautiful lake on the way
^ Notre Dam on top of the hill

^ Flower decoration on the street lamp
^ as the sun sets..




After 5hrs of freezing, especially after the sun set, I finally reached back to my hotel. And thus ended a wonderful (if I forget the rain and the cold) experience.

Trip details:

Distance covered: 828kms
Trip Duration: 2 days
Bike rent: 200euros
Cost of Petrol: 60euros
Toll: 28 euros
Hotel rent: 40euros
Total cost: approx 350euros