17
May 2018 – I checked James Sr.’s house again to make sure that I
didn’t leave anything behind. James Sr., Elis, and James Jr. have
left already for the store. I set about loading my motorcycle and
getting organized. I put on my red riding suit pants and backed my
motorcycle out to the curb. I walked back to the house, put on my red
jacket, locked the house up and set about leaving. It was a sad
moment. I hated to leave but I had to go. I wanted to be back in the
United States by 1 June 2018 and I needed to get my dupa in gear.
These people fed me and let me stay at their house for a month. I
didn’t want to put them out for that long, maybe two weeks. The
shipping of my motorcycle gummed up all my best laid plans and in the
end it never happened. I walked down the hill from the house out to
the gate. I pulled it shut, said good bye to the place / house and
locked it. The gate is 8 feet tall / 2-1/2 meters tall. Security is a
big concern so everybody lives behind tall fences and gates.
I
rode my motorcycle down to the store to say good bye to my friends.
James Sr., Elis, James Jr. and Robson. They all saw me off. I asked
James Sr. to guide me out of town to a by-pass road so I didn’t
have re-ride the road construction I rode into the city. When we got
to the by-pass road he stopped and shook my hand. We said our good
byes again. He promised he would be in Sturgis, South Dakota again in
August. It’s the annual Black Hills Motorcycle Rally. He gave me
Voo Livre Cards with the pictures of Jesus and Mother Mary on them. I
put them in my top box because I didn’t want to lose them or any of
the luck that they may bring.
I
straddled my trusty motorcycle and set out toward Irati, Parana,
Brazil. It was odd to be out riding again after a month of not
riding. I found the hotel I wanted to stay at quite easily. I was
staying at Hotel Monte Libano. It was a new hotel with a pleasant
staff. The room rate wasn’t excessively high and they provided
meals in the evening and a breakfast in the morning. I unloaded my
motorcycle and got settled in my room and then started researching
routes I wanted to take to Buenos Aires. I never really told James
Sr. the route I was planning on taking, just to keep life simple. I
wanted to cross into Argentina where I would have least probable
problem with my motorcycle title. I have spoken with Dakar Motos and
they have stated that the title must be correct beyond a shadow of a
doubt. If a discrepancy is found the bike would be impounded in
Customs / Aduana. It would be held there till the discrepancy was
resolved before it could / would ship to the United States. This is
not something I took lightly. I went to bed that night saying, “I’m
on the road again.”
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