MARCO

From the moment we and Giuseppe decided to leave for Nepal, we immediately began to figure out the logistics of the trip: it was critical to find a way to get our bikes to Kathmandu, but even more critical was to figure out how to get from Kathmandu to Mahendranagar, 700km further west on the border with India, which Giuseppe would enter after a month of crossing the country. For this we relied on some local guides who helped us with information on where to get tickets and which bus we should take-as you can imagine Nepali bus stations and their organization are far from the standards we know in Italy, but this made everything even more of an adventure. Expectation-wise we were all very excited about what we were about to do, however, we didn't really know what to expect from this trip. Our philosophy has always been to take things as they come, and this allowed us to live the experience in an open and positive way, turning even difficulties into moments of challenging ourselves.

DAVIDE

The phase before departure was an intense time of interlocking logistical and organizational situations, but the fluidity with which things were happening left me breathless.
Thinking about the meeting with Giuseppe and the idea of going to Nepal together born after only 10 minutes of conversation: everything was in harmony.
Every thought toward Nepal was a confirmation that we were going in the right direction, that that land was there waiting for us, and we were there to be welcomed.
Emotionally, a great feeling of peace and a whirlwind of mixed emotions enveloped me in the weeks before departure.

GIUSEPPE

The preparation, leaving aside the specific technical details, was not so different than for other trips. I have been on several trips so I know well or badly what I need and what is superfluous although it must be said that each trip is a school for the evolution of the next trip. We did not do any special physical preparation, just a few miles before leaving. With only a few days to go I felt many emotions, I was leaving my 6-year-old son Thom and my partner Virginie at home, but inside I was serene, I had no great expectations, I was just sure that it was going to be a great adventure.

MARCO

I start with a premise: Nepalis are a fantastic, welcoming and friendly people and they never miss a chance to help you, even in the small way they can. Being treated as guests but also long-time friends, both in the capital Kathmandu and in the highlands beyond Manang, never made me feel out of place. Certainly the occasion when the day after we landed we were called into the house by Chandrakala, an elderly lady who invited us for a blessing, although she did not know us, made us know immediately that we were in the right place. A place made up of good and simple people, and we know how much that is enough to feel safe, to feel somehow at home.

DAVIDE

I felt cradled in every place, the feeling of being in a country of harmony was constant, almost as if we were wrapped in a big hug.
The welcoming nature of these people surpasses all limits and conceptions of Western sharing.
They are as welcoming as we, perhaps, know how to be anymore.
Their eyes and smiles were the most intimate and genuine means of communication.

GIUSEPPE

The day I felt at home was when we were invited by the family of Babu, a very affectionate child who reminded me of my son, and his family welcomed us into their attic and offered us a bed and a very cozy dinner.

MARCO

Often in our travels we find ourselves, once we return, to be filled with lived experiences that we somehow try to internalize. On this occasion, perhaps also driven by the particular nature of the trip, before we left we found ourselves pondering what we could leave to the local people as a sign of respect and gratitude. So we decided to open a fundraiser to support the activities of the NGO Gonesa, which provides education support for young children in Pokhara.
We knew we were doing a good and useful deed for them, but the moment we went to meet the members of the association and the children they help, it was a very powerful experience. Seeing with our own eyes the people we were somehow helping was a profound moment that opened our eyes to the responsibility we should have as travelers and guests.

DAVIDE

Exactly, we chose to operate in this sense after this question began to resonate in the mind: Do we explore? Yes, but what do we leave to the place we explore?
On the one hand we have an exploration dedicated to discovering the nature of places that leave us full of experiences, joy and wonder, welcoming us as guests.
On the other hand, we have the human side of exploration: the connection with the people who inhabit the place, who make you live, feel, breathe it, and who live that environment on a daily basis, compose its roots and are its beating heart.
What can be our legacy? And this is how we chose to partner with VISPE.

GIUSEPPE

The choice to support VISPE came from the Esplora guys, I immediately welcomed it, and I must say that the moment of meeting the volunteers was very powerful. We saw the work they do to help people in need and to ensure that children can study and have a safe place: it shocked me to understand that schools are not only for education but also to ensure a meal a day for these children who could not have it at home.

MARCO

I admit that it was not immediate to return to our 'normal life'. So many situations, such as packed clubs and the hustle and bustle, I put up with them much less now. I happened to talk a short while ago with a friend who, listening to the stories of the trip and teasing me, compared me to those people who after a week in London almost struggle (or do so on purpose) to remember Italian. The truth is that we were in a place that is totally different from the world we know, especially in the Terai region. We had some very strong and very profound experiences, experiences that marked us and encounters that we will never forget. Not because we have to 'boast' in any way that we have been there, but because I assure you that when a family that does not even have beds to sleep (for them) hosts you in their home as if you were the oldest friend, when the house lacks even the front door and any kind of comfort, I assure you it is a profound encounter, a bit destabilizing, but one that will stay with you forever.

DAVIDE

Every bike ride starts with a starting point and turns into an extraordinary adventure. But in the end, what remains of a cycling trip? What remains is the unique connection between people and landscapes, the essence of an experience that goes beyond simply moving from one place to another. 

What remains are the deep genuine experiences, the awe of seeing the Himalayan range for the first time, of going to the land of the high peaks beyond the Courtenays, where one breathes a thin air, as if time did not exist: it is all so concrete and real that returning to this Italian reality gives rise to such a sense of gratitude. Gratitude is the greatest feeling I carry inside, because here they don't teach us how to be, and there I got to see people happy with the simplest things, grateful for the life we are given every day.

This has been fueled even more by the sense of unhappiness I read in people's eyes, so damned stuck in a harmful and alienating system. It is also to them that Explore speaks, and it is also why we will continue to explore, and from here that the desire to leave continues to feed, with immense gratitude for the opportunity to do so.

We have already planned a trip to an even wilder land: Mongolia.

GIUSEPPE

What's left from the trip? Coming back from such a trip is always quite difficult, in a few hours you find yourself in the usual reality and it can happen that you can feel almost annoyed by some common mechanisms. I think travel opens the minds and the spirit. The bike trip is a philosophy, a meditation, a state of exaltation and effort: sweating to get to that point that is not necessarily established and budgeted. 

Metabolize such a journey how do you do it? You don't metabolize you leave for another trip!