Originally Posted by
Cooper1991
How easy is it to hitch a lift up mountains or prolonged steeper inclines? Do you just give a small tip?
Also, in these countries, is it safe to assume you can stop every night in some sort of hostel/B & B in the larger villages?
Is it safe enough to tour Myanmar?
Is it easy to take your bike on trains in these countries if your bike is irreparable?
% chance of falling or being knocked off bike in these countries?
India is a big place with a lot of variety. I haven't been where you are likely going - but have taken longer trips in both the south (Tamil Nadu, Kerela, Andra Pradesh, Karnataka) and the north (Kashmir, Himal Pradesh). I've also been through Thailand. So on the questions you ask:
1. Is it safe to assume you can stop every night in some sort of hostel/B&B? In Thailand that was easy. In Southern India, I was mostly able to find places, though some were out of the way. In Northern India, I brought a tent. It turned out we found a place each night - but it wasn't guaranteed and took both some planning and flexibility and having a tent as backup was very useful.
2. How easy is it to hitch a lift up mountains or prolonged steeper inclines? Two experiences (a): in Southern India I got some unknown form of sickness that caused me to rest a day. I wasn't feeling 100% but started out. When climbing the Ghats, I wasn't sure how long the climb would be and ended up hitching a ride with passing truck to the top and beyond. That wasn't too difficult - though since I didn't know local language there was some communication via gestures. (b) in Thailand, my hub broke and the wheel spun both directions. I ended up walking for a bit before a couple gave me a ride to a "fixer" who also couldn't do anything about the hub. When they couldn't fix it, they helped flag a shared vehicle with many people in back. We put the bike on top and I got a ride to next town. After staying there, I took my bike on the train to Kuala Lumpur. So in enough distress, I think one likely gets a ride. You might wait a while and it works better if you speak local language or have someone help interpret.
3. % chance of falling or being knocked off bike in these countries? No idea on percentages. India has a large variety of roads. Some of them also take different skills in cycling. On some of the smaller/local routes in India I found a wide variety of types of traffic. Everything made noises (buses, trucks, bicycle bells, auto-rickshaws, motorcycles). There was enough chaos that seemed like everyone was a bit more alert (i.e. less feeling of danger from someone distracted texting) but also a lot of things to watch for. The larger roads and ones in the north were more similar to what I had ridden elsewhere. In Thailand it was busy. Compared to China where I was prior to Thailand, traffic was less aggressive, but still required watching out.
Shouldn't make a difference, but in India and Thailand they drive on the left. In Myanmar (and Cambodia/Vietnam after Thailand) they drive on the right. If you have a cycle mirror you may need to adjust.