Obstacle race to Thailand

Be prepared for a bit of a headache, which is what has come to me these days in trying to figure out how to continue on my journey to Australia. Then again, we have told ourselves repeatedly, this is not a “Valtur vacation” story.

It is Saturday morning, I have only arrived in Kathmandu a few hours ago, and I am already reasoning out what options there might be:
First I do yet another check and have confirmation that Myamar is not crossable by land, as customs is closed.
I also try to find out if the Vespa is shipable from Bangladesh to Thailand, but even this assumption leads to nothing concrete.
However I were to get there in Thailand, you need, in addition to the visa for me to do, a Vespa permit, which is issued against a set of documents to be presented. They tell me 20 days to get the permit and a cost of 400 usd for single entry and 650 usd for multiple entry. Thanks to a contact on FB, I get a name of someone who can help me with this practice.
Multiple entry is required in case you decide to visit from Thailand also Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. Laos and Cambodia no problem for visas and Vespa, Vietnam on the other hand there is a Vespa entry problem, to be understood, a bit like Thailand.
At 9:30 a.m. I already have an appointment with an air freight broker referred to me by Mario, an Italian living in Bali, who I also met on FB. With him I have to consider all possible shipping scenarios.

Physically with the arrival in Nepal I am recovering, psychologically I am still tried, also in relation to all these difficulties on the continuation of the journey.
I reflect on the fact that perhaps weighing on the situation is that I have not spoken to an Italian since June 3 in Yazd, Iran (25 days) and have not crossed paths with a traveling motorcyclist since June 8 in Quetta, Pakistan (20 days) where I was with Irishman Chris Donaldson. Even here in Nepal I couldn’t find any bikers, nothing at all.
In fact, about ten days ago I remember traveling in India, I passed a motorcycle traveler coming from the opposite direction. It was a flash, a moment, we waved goodbye and not even time to realize where he was from. For a second I even thought, “I’ll reverse course and catch up with him and have a word with him,” but by then he was gone….

We meet at the broker’s house, where he has his office on the ground floor, inevitable tea with milk and start talking about the possible scenarios. In my head I have three:
1) Direct flight to Australia, to Sydney, Melbourne or Perth.
2) Flight to Thailand in Bangkok
3) Flight to return to Italy, to Milan or Venice
None of the three solutions appeal to me, but something has to be done, so let’s have them listed and then I’ll decide.
One of his co-workers arrives, and we begin measuring the Vespa assuming we remove mirrors, windshield, front and rear rack, tires, all to minimize clutter. By doing so, the dimensions of the wooden crate to be custom-made for the Vespa become 185x71x125 in height. With these dimensions, the maximum weight is 266 kg, of which 70 kg is for the wooden crate, leaving 196 kg for Vespa and luggage, which is fine. It’s Saturday and he promises me quotes for Monday night.

Over the weekend I rest, enjoy the city and its surroundings as a tourist, and begin to see the necessary documents for the Thailand visa. I go ahead and also fill out the first online form, following which the embassy would then schedule my appointment.
I am also beginning to look at, for the various scenarios, the costs of flights for me.
Inside I am not quiet, I have some experience on shipping quotes, they are rising everywhere and I have a very clear feeling that bad surprises will come.
It’s Monday and punctually come the quotations:
– Thailand: €2,150 + my flight + Vespa visa, we exceed €3,000
– Australia: €4,350 + €1,500 for my flight, total almost €6,000
– Italy: €2,450 + €700 for my flight, total more than €3,000
Worse than I expected and still far from my possibilities. I think all day and all night, somewhat sleeplessly, about what to do, all the air solutions are not viable, except that of returning to Italy…. If I have to be honest, bad moments of discouragement.
I decide to try everything: my Indian visa expires on July 12 and provides for multiple entry. This morning, Tuesday, I immediately go to the Indian embassy where, however, they insist that land customs is not open to tourists. I, however, from Solauni I went in, and as far as I know there are two others open, but I don’t know which ones they are, I have to try to find out. Apart from the closed/open customs issue, I can attempt to re-enter India, take advantage of it and visit Varanasi, famous for cremations on the Ganges River, and then head to Bangladesh, hoping that I can find a sustainable way forward from there.
I also contact the Bangladesh Vespa Club, which is very active to see from their social media presence. They respond immediately and wait for me with open arms. I state my problem, they don’t have an immediate solution to propose to me but they try to see.

In the meantime, tomorrow I leave for India and then we’ll see. These days I have realized that the problem of rising air costs will be no small matter.