The response has arrived:
[words in brackets are my additions]

"Dear sir,

I am sure that you have received my last email on 20 June. for one [person]
[motor]cycling in China following the route below will cost you USD14330.--including an English speaking guide ,a jeep, all the permits, food and hotel accomodations, TPI of your motorbike, number plate, Chinese driving permit and road toll. Your need to pay personal natures, gas for your motorbike.

The route is: Shanghai / Suzhou / Nanjing / Hefei / Kaifeng /Zhengzhou / Luoyang / Xian / Pingliang / Lanzhou / Wuwei /Jiayuguan Pass of Great Wall / Dunhuang / Hami / Turpam / Urumuqi / Kuntun / Korgas Pass where you can drive out of China to Almarty.[This is the exact same route I had planned myself.]

If you agree to the above, please confirm it to me.

Best regards!

SY/CITS"


I love the phrase "all the permits" in an otherwise pretty explicit list. It keeps options open doesn't it. The Use of Public Toilets Permit, Consumption of the People's Natural Resources Permit, Permit to Cease Consumption of the People's Natural Resources, etc.

Well, I'd love to agree to those terms, and I'd love to have a bank account that could handle that kind of hit, but after $14,330, I'd be forced to develop my lounge act in Almaty just to scrape enough together to get out of town.

Corporate sponsor? See if Coca-Cola or the IOC would foot the bill? Get a group of bikers in Japan that want to join me and ride through the land like the Hell's Angels? Or would they require that each person have their own Jeep and English-speaking guide? Are Japanese-speaking guides more expensive?

Hmmm...