Phase 3 - Getting Closer to my Dream

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Uma and I are on the road again. We left Cyprus for Switzerland at the end of March, via Turkiyë, Greece, and Italy.  

Uma hid in the trailer as we crossed the border to Turkiyē to avoid further problems with documents for her,  which had been the case when crossing into Northern Cyprus. We took the ferry the next day to Taşucu. We spent two days there with a fellow cyclist I met from Germany and enjoyed our time together.  The next morning, Uma and I started out again, headed to Antalya. I managed 30 kms. cycling with Uma, but it was very hot and there was a lot of uphill climbing on the bike. The terrain, combined with the heat and the weight of our provisions was very difficult for us, so I decided to hitch a ride to Antalya with Uma. We waited all day long on a main road near the beach, but no one stopped for us, so we headed to the town.  The next day, we found a driver of a bus going to Antalya.  We again waited all day, and finally, late at night, the driver came and took us to Antalya. 

In Antalya, it was very hot as well. Uma and I managed to catch a bus to the port. We had to wait for three days to take the ferry to Fethiye due to the ferry schedule. There we met a cyclist from Liverpool.  The cyclist, Uma and I took the ferry from Fethiye to Athens, which took 20 hours. When we reached Athens, I found out that I needed to cycle 200 kms. to get to the port in Patras in order to take the ferry to Italy.  As I was in a hurry to get to Italy, I decided to take the train from Athens to Patras. The biker accompanied us. The next day, we cycled 50 kms. to reach the port, and then we separated and he continued on his way to Alagna. Uma and I almost missed the ferry, but we were able to board the ferry to Ancona in Central Italy. After 24 hours on the ferry, we arrived in Ancona in the evening.  From Ancona, we took a train to Milan, where we spent five days at a friend’s house. After our long journey, I needed a few days to rest and disconnect from everything.   We then continued on our way and reached Switzerland in the middle of April, having covered a distance of 2,500 kms. 

I am working in Switzerland over the summer months,  saving money and getting closer to my goal of travelling around the world by bicycle with Uma.

We will soon be starting the next leg of our trip across Asia.

Uma’s Story

My little doggy life is full of adventure again. I am enjoying running beside my human dad and exploring outdoors. Sometimes we get on this strange thing that moves with lots of people standing near us. People come close to me, but I am well-behaved and friendly with strangers. At other times, my human owner and I start moving again, but on water. It is hot outside, but I can’t jump in.  I don’t really enjoy this part of our adventure as I cannot run freely, but my human dad makes sure that I am as comfortable as possible. My human owner and I sleep as there isn’t much else to do.

Now we are in the same place every day. My human dad is away at work all day, and I miss him.

“My expectations at the outset were that travelling the world by bicycle would be more difficult. From my experiences, I have realised that it is simpler than one thinks.”

I have maintained our peripatetic lifestyle in Cyprus, travelling around the island by bicycle with Uma, setting up camp here and there, and playing the guitar to save money for the next leg of our trip around the world.

It has been a time for reflection about my past travels through Western and Eastern Europe and thoughts about our future travels.

I was worried initially about how Uma would adapt to travelling by bicycle and how easy it would be to cross borders with her. From my experiences, I have found that travelling the world by bicycle with my dog is actually simpler than I thought it would be. I have also found that most people are inherently good. 

Communicating with Uma along the way has been easy. When starting off on the road, Uma touches my leg with her nose. She then stays by my side. When I want Uma to stay on one side of the bicycle, I indicate with the leash. Sometimes, depending on the terrain, there is no need to put Uma on a leash. I don’t speak with Uma much when I am on the road. When she gets ahead of me, I pull a bit on the leash so she won’t go off somewhere. If she is behind me sniffing something and is slowing me down, I purse my lips and make a sound for her to stay by my side.  If I am going very fast, she runs in front of me and barks for me to stop. This is how Uma and I communicate with one another.  

Uma’s training along the way has been experiences on the road. I am no longer worried about her safety off-leash when we are travelling from one place to another. Uma doesn’t know how to sit or give her paw, but she does know how to cross a street properly, in tandem with me. That is the difference between a trained dog and a polite dog. I did not want a show dog. I wanted a dog that could accompany me on my travels around the world.  

We have faced hardship along the way. Our travels have taken us across different landscapes. Mountains, plains, deserts, forests. We have encountered rain, wind, cold, and heat. When traversing from Germany to the Czech Republic, I had to climb over logs and through heavy foliage after a storm to get through with my bicycle and our provisions. I have also got lost during our travels, very lost in the forests of Hungary. I like it when I am lost. It is all in the mind. It is a challenge. You encounter difficult situations and you keep going. I do not use a compass. I have followed my instincts along the way to navigate. I have not relied much on information technology either during our travels. I used Google Maps in Western Europe to track the kilometres we covered. In Eastern Europe, I used Guru Maps and worked offline. 

Uma has taken all of this in her stride. She has turned out to be a wonderful travelling companion. She has weathered the difficult terrain and conditions with me. Uma has shown incredible endurance throughout our travels, and she has used her instincts and kept wild animals at bay. Encountering and overcoming hardship along the way have shown me that both Uma and I ready for the next leg of our trip together across Asia. We will soon be out of the comfort zone that we have become accustomed to in Europe. Distances will be much longer in Asia and finding food will be scarce in remote areas, so I have prepared for this with a trailer to pack an additional 30 kgs. of Uma’s food. 

Leaving My World Behind

I have left everything behind, my family, friends, home, routine.

Uma and I have encountered many people along the way. But we have also been alone much of the time. Solitude is wonderful. Loneliness does set in sometimes. In the Anatolian desert, I would not see people for days on end. I missed my family, my friends, my home. I would train my mind to think about different things. Think ahead.  I would train my mind not to think. Look at the vistas. Read a book before going to bed. Reading books on personal development, on mental development, have helped me through our travels.  Meditation also helped me in the Anatolian desert. It helped me to connect within myself. Meditation has helped me through the most difficult part of my quest to travel the world by bicycle with Uma. 

Uma and I will soon be on the road again.

Uma’s Story

I am with my human owner. Every day with him is a new adventure.  He lets me out of my box, so that I can run beside him while he is cycling. I know what my human companion expects from me now. He understands what I want as well. Sometimes I stop and sniff things, or I run ahead of him. He makes a sound to let me know that he wants me to keep up with him, or he pulls on me for me to stay by his side. I let him know when he is going too fast for me and I am tired by running ahead and barking at him. I am now better able to sense my human owner’s needs, and he mine. I sometimes sense that things are difficult for us, but I know that whatever happens, my human companion and I will get through it together. 

“Our travels thus far have taken us across different landscapes. Mountains, plains, deserts, forests. Uphill, downhill, curving roads, blocked roads. Cities, towns, countryside. We have encountered rain, wind, cold, and heat”. 

Making Our Way 

I did not prepare extensively for our trip before leaving Madrid. Along the road from Western Europe to Eastern Europe, I have had ample time to go online on Instagram and follow blogs by Basque travellers, from whom I have got tips about the route and what to expect along the way.

We continued by bicycle to Germany, where we spent a few weeks. We took a train from Munich to the border of the Czech Republic. Travelling from Western Europe to Eastern Europe was a cultural shift for me. People viewed me differently. I was no longer a hobo, a vagabond, a drifter, someone travelling aimlessly from one place to another. People were friendly in Eastern Europe and approached me and wanted to talk to me and find out about my travels.  I also discovered that their perspective about dogs is different as they are free to roam on farms and in villages. 

On the way from Germany to the Czech Republic, we experienced a severe storm in the morning. The sky became darker, the clouds denser, and the winds picked up and became increasingly violent, with trees bending and swaying. My adrenaline rushing, I pedalled faster and faster, looking for cover for Uma and I.  In the aftermath of the storm, 20-metre trees had fallen and were strewn on the road. The wet undergrowth reached my knees, and I had to climb over logs and though heavy foliage, carrying my bicycle with our provisions. It was physically very difficult. I had many cuts and bruises on my hands.  Uma stayed close to me and made her way through, jumping through water, through foliage, and over and under logs.

In the Czech Republic we saw fields, white fields, and forests with lots of wild animals. Uma enjoyed chasing rabbits. The cost of food in the Czech Republic is cheaper than in Western Europe, so we were able to eat more.  My weight had fluctuated with all the pedalling and difficult conditions, from 70 kilograms down to 63 kilograms, and then back to my normal weight. We met up with the Czech family from Workaway and stayed with them for a week. They were on holiday there. Their children didn’t know that Uma and I were coming, so this was a big surprise for them. They were very happy and excited to see us. 

Continuing our way through Eastern Europe, we travelled on to Slovakia, where we stayed for two weeks. Slovakia is flat and very green, and it has many churches. This was the beginning of our sleeping in cemeteries where there is water available for washing. In the heat of summer with soaring temperatures, we needed to shower at least four times a day. Cemeteries are calm places and are outside villages, which tend to be crowded. We slept in cemeteries often. Sometimes people saw us sleeping there, and I would hide as they thought it was disrespectful. Uma did her business in cemeteries, which I was not happy about. Our sleeping in cemeteries would continue in Hungary and Serbia. 

We travelled on to the Balkans, where the landscape is mainly fields and forests. We crossed from Slovakia to Hungary over the Danube. We had little contact with people there.  Uma enjoyed Hungary, especially the rivers and the fields. We spent a week sleeping in a park in the centre of Budapest.  We stayed on an island for a week waiting for a delivery from Amazon. I needed a foldable solar panel for charging my battery pack and my shaver. There I met four men from Germany and England travelling by bicycle on their way to Israel.  It was nice meeting other travelers like me. We spent two days together.  They thought it was fantastic that I was travelling around the world with Uma.

On to Serbia, where I rented a small flat with one of the men we had met from Liverpool in England. Serbia is like living in the past, with people working in orchards and riding bicycles. Unspoiled my modernisation. We encountered a lot of stray dogs that Uma enjoyed playing with. Uma was freer to roam around in Eastern Europe.

From Serbia, we continued to Bulgaria and spent a week in Sofia, near the border of Greece. I love Bulgaria and the people.  They are hardy people. We encountered a strange situation there at nighttime.  We went into a village that was not lit. It was silent and calm. The darkness and silence of the village changed abruptly as I turned the corner on my bicycle, to flashing lights and loud music and a scene outdoors with a large gathering of people from the same family in a corner, eating and drinking. Children were running and playing. The gathering came to a standstill. People were staring at Uma and I. I went up to them and asked for water.  They looked at me strangely. Then they invited me to eat with them.  They kept asking me to eat with them.  It was eerie, leaving the vibe of the village darkness and silence to this. It was also very late, so I declined their offer. I cycled outside the village to a field and set up camp for Uma and I for the night.

We continued our travels to Greece but only spent two days there. I was eager to get to Turkiyë. People were very friendly in Istanbul, and many people approached us.  I was anxious at first. I preferred being in the forest in the outskirts of the city. The people who came up to Uma and I thought I was a hero, travelling around the world by bicycle with my dog.  I am now less self-conscious about my travelling the world by bicycle with Uma and more confident within myself.  It was hot in Istanbul, so I would cycle 20 kilometres in the early morning with Uma before the heat set in. We would spend all day in the mosques where it was cooler.  Uma and I spent three weeks in Istanbul at a friend’s house, waiting for a trailer to arrive. As I was planning to continue travelling through Asia and food would be scarce along the way, I needed space for an additional 30 kgs for Uma’s food.  

Uma and I travelled on from Istanbul to Yalova by ship, which took us three hours. Our difficulties started there. There was a problem taking Uma with me, so I had to put her in the trailer and hide the trailer behind a wall. When we crossed over to the south, I developed punctures in the tyres. In Istanbul, I had changed the tyres for even worse tyres. This was the result. The tyres had over twenty punctures over a two-week period, so I had to change our route.  In the beginning, I was able to fix the punctures, but these got progressively worse. It took me a week just to travel 50 kilometres.  We then continued to Anatolia in central Turkiyë, where I got punctures in the middle of nowhere.  Four flat tyres. The nearest town was 9 kilometres away. We were stranded. I hitchhiked in a van for 600 kilometres with the bicycle, the trailer, and Uma. It was very tough for us.  Thankfully, I was able to get to a bike shop in town and get the tyres fixed.  

In Central Anatolia, Uma and I camped in a wheat field. At dusk, I heard bells, and a shepherd and his flock approached us. He spoke a little English, so we were able to communicate. I accompanied him for a few kilometres, and we drank çai, Turkish tea. The next evening, the shepherd and his sheep stopped by, and he offered Uma and I a meal and lodging in his house for the night, so we could accompany him and his sheep again the next day. It was an unforgettable experience. 

We continued along our route. I had planned to continue travelling east, but I changed our route for Cyprus where I have a friend with a house. I had to find work to earn money, and Uma and I needed to rest after all our travels. I took the ferry from Turkiyë to Northern Cyprus, where I was asked for a serological test for Uma for rabies indicating that she has immunity to the disease even though I presented her pet passport with her vaccinations.  As the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is not part of the European Union, it is not included in the Pet Passport Travel Scheme. 

I was told to take Uma all the way to the border of Southern Cyprus for the serological test. I told the port officials that I needed to go by bicycle to accompany Uma. We eventually got to the Southern border, but dogs are not allowed to cross the border. I was informed there that I needed to go back to Northern Cyprus, but when we arrived there, I did not have a serological test for Uma to enter the Northern side. I was told to hide in the car with Uma to cross the border. The officials at first asked me for €5 to cross the border, but then I was given two options: either Uma would be taken into quarantine and I could go to Southern Cyprus for the formalities and come back to take her, or I could pay €200 for the serological test and then take Uma. I paid for the test. Uma was taken from me from 2 pm until 8 am the following morning. It seemed like an eternity. It was very stressful for me, and I could barely sleep that night worrying about what was happening to Uma. 

Uma and I are now staying in Cyprus, where I am earning money playing the guitar.  During our time here, I returned to Europe for a month in November and left Uma with a friend. I wanted to see my family and friends. Back in Madrid, it was as if time had stood still. Nothing had changed. It was as if all the kilometres I had travelled through all the countries had simply been a dream. But it was real. I had changed.

Uma’s Story

Being with my human owner, I have never been afraid. We have travelled together to many places and met different people. I have run through fields and forests, jumped in rivers, and chased other creatures. I have always felt safe with my human companion. But now, some strange men came and took me away. I did not know what was happening. I was not afraid in the beginning. But now I was. The men put me in a cage by myself. It was cold against my skin, and I couldn’t get out. They started poking me and sticking something in me. After that, they left me.  I was all alone now.  Where was my human owner? Why was he not with me? When would I see him again?  I must have closed my eyes to stop thinking these fearful doggy thoughts. When I opened them again, my human dad was there.

Uma and I have been on the road away from home for a year and half.  We have travelled 6,000 kilometres. We are well rested, having spent several months in Cyprus. It will soon be time for Uma and I to move on.

“Had I made the right choice in taking Uma away from a stable home to this? Had I made the right choice in choosing Uma as a travelling partner? I felt very sorry for Uma, believing that a life on the road with me was not for her.”

Finding Our Way

I did not give up on my quest to travel across Europe and beyond after Murcia. As difficult as it had been hitting a real ‘low’ and having little desire to continue our trip, there have been moments of immense pleasure along the way in discovering new landscapes, people, and different cultures. The freedom of pedalling on a bicycle, stroke by stroke, and facing the elements and nature have given me a tremendous sense of achievement and satisfaction.  

After spending four months travelling through Spain, the next leg of our road trip through Europe was to France. We took the train to Perpignan as the landscape was a bit boring and it was hot. We were a sight to behold, Uma and I, with the mountain bike and our supplies. People on the train approached Uma. Uma adapted well on the train and mostly slept. As for me, this was perhaps the first time I perceived how people viewed me in Western Europe: as a drifter, a homeless man, with no job, or goals. It bothered me.

From Perpignan we headed to Montpellier, then to Grenoble, where we stayed for three weeks. Our road trip was boring and uneventful. This all changed as I biked through the Alps from the Chamonix side.  It was pure heaven, setting up camp facing Mont Blanc. Standing at 4809 metres, it is one of the highest mountains in Europe.  Waking up to spectacular views, with the wind blowing softly and whispering secrets in my ear, I could hear the birds chirping happily as they flew across the blue sky. It was as if the mountains were alive, full of life and energy. But the most exceptional thing about the mountains is how they made me feel. They filled me with peace and joy. They reminded me of how beautiful the world is and how much there is to discover. They made me feel small, but at the same time, part of something bigger and more wonderful.  

Uma was in her element. This was her first time in the mountains. It was now summer and 20ºC. She adapted well to the terrain and the change in temperature.  Uma enjoyed the fields and the forests and being free to roam. She came across cows and birds. She heard the birds chirping. I was seeing the world through Uma’s eyes.

One of the highlights in the Alps was Workaway, a cultural exchange where one works in return for lodging and food.  The French family we stayed with live in Chabottes, a small alpine village. The mother has three delightful children, full of energy and curiosity. Communication was a challenge for us at the beginning as the children only spoke French, and I only know a few words in French. Despite the language barrier, we managed to understand one another. I learned a lot from them as we played and explored the beautiful landscape around us. There were sheep in the garden, which was new for Uma. She did not attack the sheep.  She chased them to play with them.

From France we travelled to Switzerland through the Alps. We stayed in a tree house in the Alps near the border of Switzerland for two days. Uma enjoyed being in the tree house.  Our next destination was Zurich, where I started playing guitar as I was running low on money.  Some of the people we met along the way would give me food or money. I now needed money for provisions for us, which I would purchase 

from markets along the way.

I was facing another kind of difficulty in Switzerland though. Uma was now about seven months old.  Having Uma with me twenty-four hours a day from the age of two months has been quite a challenge.  I watched her constantly for the first few months of her life.  I didn’t leave her alone for one minute. I had very high expectations about traveling and living with a dog. What I didn’t expect was for Uma to get excited and bark at and chase people, and to be aggressive and jump on children.  My frustration was building up. This climaxed one day when I was cycling through a forest and we came upon a park where two young children were playing. Uma got excited and ran and jumped on the children. The children, aged 3 and 5 years old, were crying. The frightened father kicked out at Uma. I was angry with Uma and tried to catch her, but she ran away. I was wondering how I was going to travel the world with Uma like this. Had I made the right choice in choosing Uma as a partner to travel with? Had I made the right choice in taking Uma away from a stable life to this?  

I was frustrated and anxious and didn’t know what to do with Uma. I sat under a tree and put my head in my hands. I did not want to go anywhere near Uma or have anything to do with her. I was separated from Uma emotionally that day. After that incident, I confronted the situation, and I put Uma on a leash and kept her at a distance from children. 

My relationship with Uma was not very good in the beginning, but it has since changed. Over time and with a lot of patience, everything has taken a 180-degree turn.  I have never trained Uma formally. As she grows, she has matured and she has learned. Now I couldn't be more proud of her. Looking back and seeing Uma's transformation fills me with gratitude and joy.  I do not regret having chosen her to share my journey with.  Travelling with Uma has taught me patience and love, and it has given me the determination not to give up on her. This has paid off, and the bond we have formed is stronger than ever. 

Uma’s Story

When my human owner held me at two months old, I looked up at him adoringly. Little did I know the life ahead that I was facing. At two months old, I was excited about exploring my little world around me. Soon, the days were different, the nights were different. New places, people, creatures, all strange to me. The only constant in my life was my human companion.

Things were difficult between us in the beginning. I was a puppy and was growing. I started chewing things because I was teething. I chewed my human owner’s pillow and mattress.  I chased people wherever we went. I didn’t know what my human companion wanted me to do. What I did know was that at times he was disappointed in me. I know this because one day he sat under a tree and stayed away from me.

Things are better between my human companion and I now. I love my human owner more than anything. I will follow him wherever he goes.

 “Uma’s training is experiences on the road in real life. The road prepares you for the experiences you will encounter.”

Uma and I have been travelling for a little over a year now. We started our travels by bicycle in January of 2023.  This is my story and Uma’s story.

My life in Madrid was unfulfilling. I wasn’t desperately unhappy, but I wasn’t happy either. I finished secondary school and then went on to get a Hiking Guide degree. I followed this up with a higher degree in Sports. My dream has always been to work with children. But something was missing. I started backpacking around Spain at the age of 18. Curious about the world, curious about how people from other cultures live, I travelled to Turkiyē. Antalya is where I first laid eyes on Uma, a two-month-old Border Collie and Belgium Shepherd mix. I adopted her from a litter of puppies. 

A month after I brought Uma back to Madrid, the idea of travelling with her around the world came to me as she has a lot of energy and the breed needs a good deal of exercise.  We spent one month in my home in Madrid.  I wasn’t really sure in the beginning how Uma would adapt to travel or how easy it would be to cross borders with her.   But I decided to make my dream come true. Little did I know then that my travelling with Uma would form a bond that would transcend anything imaginable.

I had Uma’s Pet Passport with her vaccinations. I had our food: cereal, rice, pasta and vegetables for myself. Affinity biscuits for Uma. Bottled water. Basic medications for me. Insect repellent. A First Aid kit for Uma and myself for scrapes and injuries. A mattress, pillow, sleeping bag, clothes, washing detergent, and toiletries. A jacket for Uma, a brush, a flea and tick collar, a leash, and a box to sit in on the bicycle.   A cooker.  A waterproof tent. And my guitar. 50-60 kilograms to haul including the weight of my mountain bike.

I had my hiking skills. My mobile phone and battery pack. What I needed to ensure was that I had the physical and mental stamina for this undertaking.

I had a general idea of where I wanted to travel to. And off we went. First stop, across Spain.

Feeling the Way

“All the days on the bike are the same, and for a long time. You have to adapt”.

On an average day, we travel 50 kilometres, of which Uma covers 10 kilometres on foot. Uma has a lot of energy and walks or runs alongside me. When she gets tired, I put her in the box. 

The beginning of our travels took us along the eastern coast of Spain. Starting off in Madrid, we headed towards Malaga. We stayed mainly on the coastal route.  We crossed Castilla la Mancha, the steppes, Andalusia, and Cordoba on the way to Malaga. 

It was winter, and the temperature dipped to -4ºC at night. Uma was a puppy and slept with me in my sleeping bag. During the day, it was warmer, and Uma sat in the box on the bicycle. The first day on the leash in the bicycle box, Uma jumped out of the box onto the road after five minutes and could have strangled herself. I hadn’t prepared properly for this. I should have got her used to the box before starting the trip. Thankfully, Uma was unharmed. From then on, I never put a leash on Uma when she was in the bicycle box. Now Uma can sit in the box for up to two hours. When she needs to get out, she lets me know.

One of our highlights in Spain was in Coín, Malaga where I worked for a month in return for lodging and food. A place for Uma and I to sleep. Comfort. I worked five hours a day in the fields, helping our hosts, a Czech family. Uma had other dogs to play with, which helped her to socialise.  The Czech couple and their three children became like a second family to me. Although we had met people in small towns along the way, the Czech family formed our first real bond.  I would meet up with them again in the Czech Republic after a few months. 

After Malaga, we continued along the coast to Almeria and Murcia.  The landscape in Almeria was probably the most beautiful I had ever seen, alternating between vast coastal plains and mountainous areas. 

Murcia was undoubtedly the hardest part of the trip. It was the beginning of summer, and it was very hot.  Having travelled almost 2,000 kilometres over three months with Uma and endured many hardships, the steep climbs, adverse weather conditions, and exhaustion, I was low on energy and the desire to travel. I had neither the physical nor mental strength to continue. I was physically and mentally spent. I was far from my family.  I missed my friends. I missed my life. The life that I was accustomed to before embarking on this road trip around the world.

All the days on the bicycle are the same. Kilometres and kilometres of pedaling. Hundreds of kilometres with little change in landscape.  The loneliness of the long-distance biker. My initial plan had been to go as far as Turkiyë and then return to Spain, but I loved Turkiyë so much that I wanted to travel on and go to Asia. Had I taken on more than I had bargained for?

I contemplated quitting and going back to Madrid. But I thought that if I gave up and ended my dream to travel the world, I would go back to my unfulfilling life in Madrid. Despite our hardships, travelling the world by bicycle has been far more fulfilling in discovering new places and learning about other cultures. 

You have to adapt.  

I had to adapt. I had to continue our trip. I willed myself to go on. 

From Murcia, Uma and I continued on the road to Valencia.  We travelled on the coastal route, mostly on bicycle lanes. When we reached Valencia, we spent a week resting in a house. We then headed to Barcelona, which was the end of our route in Spain. We almost had a serious accident on the way from Sitges to Castelldefels. I was biking downhill at full speed with Uma in the box when the rear brake – the only brake - stopped working. I was barefoot, and in a moment of desperation, without thinking twice, I pressed my foot on the asphalt to slow our speed. The pain was excruciating. It felt as if my skin was being torn off. We continued hurtling down the hill. I was close to colliding with a car in front of me, but thankfully, the driver accelerated and drove away. Suddenly, like a flash, I saw a path branching off the main road and heading uphill. I swerved into the path and was finally able to stop my bicycle.  I fell to the ground. Uma and I were unharmed. Was Uma aware of what could have happened to her? Did she feel fear? I will never know. I was just grateful to be here. 

This is where the element of fear first set in. I did not feel fear about this enormous undertaking before starting the journey by bicycle. Fear would only come to me after an incident like this, when I reflected on what had happened and what could have happened to Uma and I. We had faced adversity during our travels through Spain where we encountered wild pigs and foxes. They did not attack us as they were not in danger and did not fear us. I did not fear them. I felt protected with Uma. My only real fear along the way has been to be separated from Uma. This, I cannot fathom. I cannot imagine a life without Uma now.

When I adopted Uma, it wasn’t to have a show dog that would follow basic commands. I never give her treats. I wanted a dog beside me that would learn by experiences. Uma is that dog. She is the ideal travelling partner. I couldn’t ask for more in a travelling companion or in a dog.

Uma’s Story

In the beginning, I didn’t understand what was happening. My human owner put me on top of this strange thing, and we started moving. My world around me was moving. I was terrified and jumped out. 

Now I spend my days walking and running along dirt paths beside by human owner. Running through fields. I see strange-looking and bigger creatures than me and stay close to my human companion to protect him. I play with other dogs like me. I am growing and discovering my surroundings.  In my doggy mind, this is pure doggy heaven.

My beginnings in the house with my human companion are long gone now. Gone is sleeping in the same bed and place every night. All the comfort I had known are gone. Gone is the sameness of every day. Every day now with my human owner is a new adventure. He feeds me and cares for me. I accompany him and protect him.