Europeans on bikes in Goa

snowcrab

I second the choice of using the bus. Very good value, you just have to be a little careful about what time you take them, they become very crowded at rush hour and stop running very early in the evening, around seven. Otherwise I would have been paying as much or more than rent for a rickshaw every day.

Malkers

[quote=cyberhippie]It is compulsory to wear a helmet!QUOTE]

Only on the highways, not the back roads apparently!

Of course that could be just what the Indians tell me every time I hire a bike there but thats every time I have been there!

I see nothing wrong with hiring scooters if you have some bike experience already, you just need to expect the unexpected and have your reactions at the ready!

__________________
Personal Travel Blog

gautam_n_

Everyone I know including me who have driven bikes for years on Indian streets have had at least 1 major accident a few minor ones. Fortunately many of us have survived but fortunately also it was home for us. But for foreigners its definitely not home and not worth getting into trouble. If you get into an accident and it does major damage then you are in big trouble - not only physically but may be legally as well.

goangoangone

I was riding my Enfield, early on a Sunday morning, slowly along a narrow back lane. My daughter was pillion. Suddenly a speeding car appeared round the bend towards me. I had nowhere to go, hit the brakes and dived left. Result, my daughter got away with a cut knee. I had a Grade 3 dislocation of the left shoulder (acromio-clavicular) which entailed 2 operations under general anaesthetic and a bill of approx. 60000/-.

__________________
GoanGoan......here

Indiamad

Aahhh…..the joy of moped riding in Goa Thankfully, I FINALLY plucked up the courage to hire one on my third visit (after kicking myself for being such a woos on the first 2 visits). It became a TOTAL addiction and I spent almost every waking minute zooming around exploring places I’d never have seen had I relied on public transport/taxis. I was very nervous and unsure at first, but with an hours instruction on the local footy field from the cool guy I hired the bike off in Anjuna, lots of caution, common sense and zero alcohol I managed not to have any mishaps, although the roundabouts always freaked me out

It’s bizarre, I would never in my life attempt to ride a moped without a helmet back home in Australia….yes it’s illegal but basically because the way people drive here is insane and people would rather run you down than slow down, but somehow, something in India takes over you and you just go with the flow more – like the horse riding up at Matheran without the riding hat and without having to sign my life away on the dotted line, that horse ride was the best of my life, I felt totally at ease and confident and yet I’d never ever ride without a hat back home. Of course, there’s always the flip side no matter how cautious you are, but for me, India relaxes me and chills me out and I have a bit more faith there in their horses and mopeds than I do back home. I found that rush of wind in my face and that sense of freedom zooming past those swaying palm trees and smiling locals totally addictive and it’s certainly been one of the experiences I look back on that puts a big grin on my face every time