Round-the-world motorcyclist stops in Hamilton

Media Release
Date: 10 November 2003

ROUND THE WORLD MOTORCYCLIST STOPS IN NZ

Brazilian round-the-world motorcyclist Raphael Karran is taking time out in New Zealand to improve his English language skills for two months in Hamilton.

At an education fair in Brazil, Raphael heard about the courses run by the Language Institute at Waikato University and applied for a scholarship to coincide with his time in Australasia. The Institute granted him one and is planning to use Raphael's story to help with promotion in Brazil.

Raphael, who is reporting for a Brazilian motorcycle magazine called Motociclismo Magazine, has already traveled 90,000 km through South and North America, Europe, Asia and part of Australia. He will return to Perth in December to continue his mission to Sydney, then finally to Africa.

He hasn't been able to bring his bike with him to New Zealand because his visit here is only eight weeks and he would have had to disassemble his bike, have it quarantined, obtain registration and warrant certificates etc. This would have left him very little time to utilise it. His main purpose for visiting New Zealand is to improve his English and experience a bit of Kiwi culture.

Raphael dreamed of making the round-the-world trip since he was very young, and finally decided to do it trip while sitting in a traffic jam in Sao Paulo.

ENDS

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