For those of you who have followed our travels, you know that Kat and I are motorcycle people. Over the last 6.5 years, we have rented bikes in probably a dozen countries, have taken two almost 90-day motorcycle trips, and recently had our (intended) 5-month bike tour shortened by the loss of Hermes . RIP Hermes, gone but not forgotten… Here in Albania I rented a bike (Honda 500cx) a few weeks ago for 4 days and checked out some of the eastern and southern cities, looking for places to visit, possibly to live for a spell. Shortly, I’ll be doing the same thing to the north. Kathleen is sitting out these trips for right now, while I check out the twistiness of the roads, since they are less comfortable for her.

First off, there are brands available in Europe that you just don’t find in the United States, usually because of import or emissions restrictions. I recently visited a motorcycle shop where they sell Voge, a brand I never heard of until a few weeks ago, and made by Chinese manufacturer Loncin. Chinese bikes have not been known for their quality, but these motorcycles get great reviews, and the engine, one of the most important aspects, is built by the same company that builds BMW motorcycle engines. That is pretty significant. They make about seven models, from a 125cc, up to a 900cc, and the prices are good. There are scores of more name brand and well-known bike models that are also not sold in the US, for a variety of reasons, and probably DOZENS of scooter brands we’ve never heard of before.

And scooters?

I won’t bore you with the details of the Voge models, because if you are reading this now you are either a 1) motorcycle person, 2) want to be a motorcycle person, 3) or could care less. I’ll just say that even just looking through the showroom floor I was pretty impressed compared to what you pay in the United States for motorcycles. The bottom line is, even at this late stage of my life, my love for bikes still remain. I still plan on doing a motorcycle tour in Sri Lanka next year, in case you would like to join us! Since Kathleen and I have plans to return to Vietnam, in the back of my mind is the possibility of buying a motorcycle over there since they are probably as affordable there as anywhere, and that country definitely deserves more investigation.