Trip of a lifetime – e-biking along the Silk Road.
While others plan a multi-day cycling holiday or go on a short weekend break, Andrea Freiermuth undertook a greater adventure in the summer of 2018: e-biking along the Silk Road through Asia to China. A major project and a long-harboured dream for which Andrea gave up and took on a great deal. Meticulous preparation, route planning, an e-bike repair course and a bit of trepidation about whether everything would go as planned. All at the same time, she quit her job and experienced a great deal of anticipation for a longed-for dream, which had turned from a fun idea to a project close to her heart over the years. Setting off and being free – it was finally coming true.
Andrea set out on her first bike tour aged 21 and bike fever has had a grip on her ever since. Since then, Andrea has mastered many a journey on two wheels and has undertaken a few bike adventures over the past few years. She is an expert in finding the right route, repairing her bike herself and packing her things efficiently. As an experienced cyclist, she also knows, however, that things don’t always go as anticipated and sometimes it’s not possible to follow your original plan.
Last summer, Andrea started in Zurich and first enjoyed hospitality in Croatia, where she eagerly celebrated alongside the Croatians during the World Cup. After spontaneously attending a wedding in Kosovo, she pedalled on to Bulgaria through Montenegro and discovered unimaginable natural beauties. For weeks, Andrea then travelled along the Black Sea coast in Turkey, even completing part of the journey by herself. Encounters in Armenia enriched Andrea’s journey just as much as the certainty of having found a partner for her route through Iran. She then quickly travelled through Turkmenistan to the stage goal of Tajikistan before her winter break. So far, so good.
Andrea was quick to answer the question of whether the batteries would last, as she always found a power outlet somewhere along the way. There was no shortage of accommodation either – whether she was staying in a tent, a hotel or with new friends. Arriving at Dushanbe, Andrea was however forced to change her travel plans at short notice because of visa problems and had to make adjustments to her planned route for better or for worse. The plan to continue cycling from Tajikistan to Beijing after the winter break and the Chinese course she had completed in Shanghai did not come to fruition.
The dream of Beijing crumbled. As an experienced cyclist, however, Andrea knew that things always turn out differently than imagined. So she decided to change her route and left Shanghai on her FLYER in April 2019, heading towards Xi’an with no set destination.
You can find out where Andrea’s journey will lead to and what adventures lie ahead of her in her blog shebikerider.ch. You can also follow Andrea’s adventure on Instagram.
