A DONEGAL man is just hours away from returning home after making a 10,000km trek from Dubai through 11 countries including Iran and Turkey to raise money for children in disaster zones.
Evan Bourke spoke to the Irish Sun from Turkey, but he has since moved on through Albania, Montenegro, France and is on the home stretch to Donegal.
He has been on the bike for more than a month trying to raise awareness and cash for two very good causes.
He had hoped to raise €2,500 for the International Red Cross and the Emirates Red Crescent, which will go towards helping orphaned children in disaster zones.
However, he has already smashed that and has now raised over €4,000, or over 15,000 AED.
The trip was meant to go ahead over two years ago, just before the pandemic hit.
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“I love travelling by motorcycle and do that whenever I can. Back in 2020, my brother and I decided on this trip, he lives in Perth so we said we’d do it home together but then the world came to a standstill, so we had to put it on the backburner for a bit.
“I tried to pick it up again in 2021 but I couldn’t get a ferry from Dubai to Iran as Iran was still closed with Covid so that meant waiting another year.”
This time around he is doing it on his own, and decided to use the experience to raise money for good causes.
“This time it didn’t tie in with my brother and his work so I said I’d go it alone. Thankfully he is a mechanical engineer and I have no idea about engines so if there is any small malfunction, I am phoning him to ask him as my personal mechanic.
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“Thankfully I’d had no real problems yet.”
Evan visited countries such as Greece, Slovenia and Italy.
But he was surprised to find the one he was most worried about was one of the ‘friendliest’ he has ever experienced.
He said: “I was blown away by the people in Iran. I’ve travelled round the world quite a bit and they are definitely the friendliest I’ve ever met, hands down. They were so accommodating and friendly. They were just so happy to see tourists there.
“But I have to say I was delighted to get across the border because the people are lovely but so you have to be so afraid of the Government and what might happen if something goes wrong.
“Even taking out my camera, I would look around 20 times to be sure before taking pictures. If you get caught with a camera it can mean a lot of trouble.”
He added: “I think my mother and father were delighted I got safely through the first country. Iran is a big one, it is 2000km in one country alone so it was over a week there and obviously you want to stop and take it in, as opposed to just passing through.”
FUNDRAISING DRIVE
Evan said he hadn’t planned on making it a fundraising drive but with situations around the world such as Yemen, Ukraine, Afghanistan and Sudan, he wanted to make it worthwhile.
He continued: “I had always had it lined up as something I wanted to do and then I thought it would be silly to do something and not raise money for charity.
“It was a good opportunity for people who were interested in the trip and were following me to get a donation for a good cause.
“I chose the Red Cross internationally and Red Crescent who work in the Muslim countries. All the donations go to help orphans in disaster zones.
“I just asked people to sponsor 1km of the 10,000km, so it’s 25c or 1AED and every bit helps.”
Evan has been living in Dubai for about six years and works for Euronews, both in front and behind the camera.
Along his trip so far he hasn’t planned much, preferring to find accommodation when he gets to a city, while other times locals have taken him in.
‘SUPER FRIENDLY’
He said: “In Iran, it is custom there to invite travellers to come for food in your home, and I ended up staying with one family for two days. They were showing me around, they were super friendly and nice.
“I don’t want to have any real plans in place as then I will be panicking then that I have to get there on time, so I have flexibility and freedom in case anything goes wrong.”
So far, he is yet to meet any Irish along his route, but when he comes back to Ireland, there will be a team of people waiting to greet him in Donegal.
“I have to be back in Dubai by the 29th for work so I am hoping there won’t be many breakdowns or punctures along the way so I can get home for a week to see everyone.
“It will be good to get to cooler weather and have a pint with everyone after the exhaustion of being on the bike, and hopefully will have raised a good bit of money for orphans, who need this money.”
To donate to Evan’s journey, visit yallagive.com/en/campaign/Dubai-to-Donegal-2651
