Bikers on world tour enjoying trek through China

Two bicycle tourists from Kazan, capital of the Republic of Tatarstan, who are taking a cycling world tour depart Shenyang for Harbin on Tuesday morning.

Funded by the local government, the tour will be dedicated to the 2013 World University Summer Games held in Kazan on July 6.

Alen Khairullin (left) and Pavel Grachev on their cycling world tour receive interview at Russian Federation Consulate General in Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning province on Monday. They depart the city for Harbin, the capital of Heilongjiang province bordering Russia on Tuesday morning. [Photo by Liu Ce / China Daily]

The idea to embark on this adventure around the world emerged on the 100th anniversary of the circumnavigational journey undertaken by Kazan-born Onisim Pankratov in 1913, which was completed two years after it began.

Pavel Grachev and Alen Khairullin trained on bikes for more than 10 years. They set off from Kazan on Nov 3, and will return to the city on July 6, just before the opening ceremony of the Universiade. They will visit 13 countries and cover 21,000 km.

By now, the cyclists have ridden 13,760 km. They arrived in Beijing on April 5 and Shenyang five days later.

"We love our country, so we want to let more people know about our hometown and the Universiade. Also, we want to spread the benefits of a healthy lifestyle," said Pavel Grachev, a 47-year-old English and history teacher.

"During the journey, we have also gained a lot of experience on cycling promotion. For example, China has bike lanes, while Russia does not. So we will propose to our government adding bike lanes when we go back," said Alen Khairullin, a 26-year-old IT engineer.

However, the tour is not easy. They have conquered many difficulties such as bicycle trouble, language barriers, eating habits and climate discomfort.

"China's road condition is the best. Our tires never been punctured by debris like nails here. But we encountered such problems in East Europe and the United States," Alen said.

Alen has even learned to use chopsticks in China. "We all like Chinese cuisines, especially jiaozi (dumplings)," Pavel added.

The cyclists have also been touched by the hospitality of Chinese. "On the way to Shenyang, a grocery store hostess warmly invited us to her house for heating. We ate and drank together and had a pleasant time," Pavel said.

The adventurers have recorded all of their experiences, which will be published after they return home.

"Russia and China ties are closer these years. The bicycle tour also reflects the friendship between the peoples of two countries. We hope to have more such activities to promote non-government exchanges," said Sergey Paltov, consul general of the Russian Federation Consulate General in Shenyang.