Although I grew up in Eastern Poland I’d never had the chance to visit Belarus. During the 90’s and 2000’s there was the perception that Belarus was a closed country and that it wasn’t safe for Polish people to travel there. In recent years the political situation has relaxed a bit and Belarus is open for tourism. You still need to apply for a visa and buy health insurance before you can enter the country. I applied for mine through an agency in Warsaw because I couldn’t be bothered wasting my time at the embassy. There whole procedure took about a week and cost me around 65 Euro (with the insurance). Additionally you need to purchase insurance for any vehicle at the border, the fee for a motorcycle is about 2 Euro. Before I planned my Belarusian journey I got in touch with my good old mate Siwy from Poland, who’s a frequent visitor to Belarus. I asked him for some contacts and recommendations of what to see there. Siwy stepped up big time and used all his contacts to plan my time in Belarus. He organised a 10 day ride, and planned every single day for me. Siwy is very much into history so the experience I had ahead of me was going to be very different from my usual habits on the road… there was going to be lots of sightseeing (museums and castles) and socialising. Wow, I’ve never been so organised before! Thank you Siwy! ​ Grodno I waved goodbye to Gonzo at the Polish border and on the Belarusian side Matviej was already waiting for me. Matviej greeted me with some beautiful Polish which he explained right away – he’s from Grodno and most of the locals there know Polish, because during the Soviet period the city was close enough to receive Polish TV. Excellent! There won’t be any problems with communicating then! I followed Matviej to his garage in Grodno, “Belarus is a safe country, no one will steal your bike here, but if you feel more comfortable you can leave your bike here in my garage”. Sure, why not! I parked Chillie inside the garage, took all the necessary things for the night and jumped on the back of Matviej’s Harley! We rode to Matviej’s apartment where his girlfriend “Ezyk” greeted us. Soon after that some other friends joined us and we went for little tour around town. My plan to stay in Grodno for one night changed quickly. It turned out the Łowcy Niewygód (a Polish ADV riding group) were arriving in Grodno the next day and I thought it would be a great opportunity to finally meet them. The guys had nothing arranged so Matviej with one phone call arranged accommodation at the local Motocamp. The next morning Matviej and his friends took me for a little ride around the region and we continued into the afternoon before we headed to the border to meet up with Łowcy Niewygód. It turned out there were 13 of them so the border crossing took quite a while. Once the first half arrived at the petrol station where we were waiting we started heading to the Motocamp and did some necessary shopping along the way… Once everyone had finally arrived we took some group pictures before they really unwound… We had a couple of beers on arrival so no one could really ride their bikes any more, but that wasn’t a problem, Matvej arranged cars with drivers and they took us to town for a little sightseeing of Grondo by night. After dinner we headed back to the Motocamp to continue the party at the bania… The rest of the pictures from that night are for private use only. What happens in Grodno, stays in Grodno 😉 The next morning I came back to pick up Chillie from the Motocamp and to say goodbye to the guys. As I was on a tight schedule to get to all the places that had already been arranged, Łowcy Niewygód had no other plans but to hit some off road hard and go nuts as they do! We gave one another big hugs and wished each other safe onward travels! Matviej escorted me to the Czeslaw Niemen Museum in Staryje Wasiliszki. The museum was closed, but that again wasn’t a problem, Matvej sorted it out right away with another phone call. Soon afterwards a man showed up to open the museum for us. And we were about to start our little tour when we heard the sound of 13 engines outside. Łowcy Niewygód are here! Clearly the off road was fast. The guys came inside and filled up the little museum. Czeslaw Nieman was a Polish singer who was born in Staryje Wasiliszki before the second world war. This legendary artist is well respected in Poland by all generations and this little museum is a must see for Polish tourists. Our museum guide thoroughly explained Nieman’s life and childhood here. Unfortunately we only understood about every second word as he was speaking in Belarusian and after such a big night we were all struggling to not fall asleep during those 2 hours. Hehehe. Ok, wakey wakey guys, last group picture and this time “See ya later for good! Ride on!” ​ Every Day New Friends Wania and Katya met me on the road before I reached Slonin. We went to check out the mysterious Usadebny Dom first. This property used to be a school and now it’s a little museum of Belarusian local history. The property was for sale for only $30 000. Bargain, maybe I should settle down here!? They had some cool goats running around everywhere, how could I not cuddle them, come here you! Wania and Katia hosted me for the night and we had nice dinner together… And the next day Katia helped me to sort out my registration at the police station. By law anyone who stays in the country for more … Continue reading Belarus