Allahabad, Dec 6 and 7

Allahabad, Dec 6, 2011.

113 km.

It seems I actually have quite a lot of time for my ride to Bombay, and I don't really want to ride long distances every day. But out in rural Uttar Pradesh accomodation is not so easy to find. The vast majoriity of shops and restaurants etc have signs only in Hindi.

It is mostly my bum that suffers from long days in the saddle, and I have to stand up more and more the later in the afternoon it gets. After 80-90 kms cycling is more pain than pleasure. To make up for that I took another rest day in Allahabad.

Yesterday there was some klicking noise in my bike, that seemed to come from the crankshaft. I posted a Q on Bikezone, an Indian cycling forum, for possible repair shops in this area. One fellow suggested a place only a few blocks from where I stay. I rode over and seems to have been helped by just some oil on the chain. No charge.
This bike has 27 gears and to squeeze all those in the chain is very narrow. Maybe a tiny pebble had lodget itself in there somewhere. Anyway, the clicking is gone now, and I hope it stays away.

Tomorrow I will probably be in for another long day. I have realised from studying the map that I need to head more over to the west to hit a string of towns that looks to be large enough to have guest houses.