The long way home

When Jia finally made it to her home, she was calm and didn't have time to recall any stress she felt during the ride. Her family were all waiting for her at the gate of her home. She put down her bicycle instantly and cried in her mother's arms.

"I told friends and cycling fans I was home after I cried. Being home safely was the best greeting because they were all concerned about me every day," she says.

"It's a pleasure to cycle," she adds. "My biggest difficulty is to overcome my inner fear."

The ride was largely uneventful and often lonely, with just the two of them sometimes struggling through the cold weather, occasionally riding on mountain roads.

"I started to encourage myself and became very cautious after the first day when I broke my bicycle while cycling in the dark. I never want to give up although my body kept reminding me that I was exhausted," she says.

She had the vague notion of riding a bike back home after her first cycling trip in 2010, from Beijing to Shanghai. In 2011, she cycled from Xining, Qinghai province, to Lhasa, the Tibet autonomous region.

"The first experience is very tough. If it was not for my friend's encouragement, I would not have completed the journey. But I started to love cycling," she says.

Jia is enjoying her winter vacation, an extended break from teaching, and has been writing down her cycling stories at home. She bought more than 100 postcards to send her greetings to those who helped her on the journey, strangers and friends.

"Their support makes me more confident. My life circle used to be small, but I find the world very pretty after I started to cycle. There are many kind-hearted people out there."

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