A new landscape – but this can't help

Saturday, 10th of September. I left Galway with the feeling of escaping. I couldn't open my heart and my soul to the maybe or probably existing nice side of this town. To me it's just a symbol how fragile my world is. I first had to regenerate. But cycling the R 336 along the coast wasn't much better, it felt boring and soulless. One interesting thing was this so called craft village, very commercial and touristic but if it works, fair enough.

Once again I felt weary and couldn't really find into the cycling. But my edging of light was Melanie, my next host, who had answered so fast and nice to my request I sent from Aille River Hostel, that I knew this would be a warm and friendly place. When I left the straight way to west the landscape began to change, what was good. It also was very windy. This morning I had said to myself: Wind is okay but please no rain again, and so it came. I had sunny times, clouds and some more or less misty rain but nothing what sob you. But this day I had to learn, that it's much more easier to resist the rain than the wind if you are in it all the time.

When coming to Derryrush I decided not to cycle along the coast of the peninsula but to use a small road, because although it would be enough kilometres this day, I didn't trust the coast in this area and the wind had started to change into storm. This asphaltic path I now cycled was just like lost in the wide and power of nature. Those things frightened me, it's this Into the wild feeling. It's just too big, too powerful. It was an intense experience. In this area called Connemara Ireland has lost all it's green and remembered me much more of a mixture of Kansas (or what I think Kansas would be or once was or still is in The Wizard of Oz) and the German Lüneburg Heath than Ireland.

This storm was so intense! The only good thing or in one way good thing was that it changed constantly his direction, so not really a bad problem with adverse winds, but all this power all the time! Crosswind where one could and had to lean against. For a short time sometimes following wind, but the main experience was just all this power, and it was so loud, too, because the wind made lots sound with my rain coat. It's exhausting in a weird way, because the struggle isn't so much in the muscles when it makes no difference if you stay or move. But it's just hard to exist.

The Connemara ground is basically turf. Many of the residents continue to cut turf for use in heating their homes during the long winter months. So you can see lots of little ditches which were formed by the cutting. You see also many places were the turf is placed to dry. And surely you have the turf smell all around you. As I said, rather interesting, but this day I could only know but not feel this. To me everything became apathetically this day.

After 80 kilometres I start to feel bad and exhausted, I had enough sweety and fruity eating with me, but my body wanted something salty and savoury. I wasn't in an area with much population, yes, some houses combined to a village, but no shops or restaurants, and I was also looking forward to get some warm and tasty meal at Melanie's place. So I decided to go on – carefully but straight. Once again I didn't cycle along the coast but did the direct route from Cushatrower up to Ballinaboy and there it really wore me down. It's not that your muscles hurt or you don't have any power in them, it's just that it want work anymore.

The whole situation pissed me off. When I was at this end I gave up and rested, helped myself with some dates. You can't change circumstances. I wasn't up for cycling anymore, not now not the next days, never – I was just thinking about quitting the tour and come back home. Having a home is such a good memory. Curiously I wouldn't have taken a lift if one of the cars who rarely passed me would have offered. I knew I would be able to do it on my own, so it wasn't about power. But I was frustrated, so down, so much ways away from any meaning. So also in quitting there was no hope.

Cycling the R 341 next to the Mannin Bay there the storm topped his intensity, now there was so much wind one could have probably stand within it on the bike. At this time I once again counted the half kilometres – this was also the way I did the last five kilometres up to Ballinaboy. After 100 kilometres I finally arrived at Melanie's place, where it was lovely and warm, but it wasn't much verve left inside of me. I was glad not to be outside anymore, but that it was all. I didn't feel to be an interesting valuable person. No faith anymore. Melanie however was lovely. Such a warm welcome, just like coming to a place where you don't have to think about your acting and surely the right place for me. The most comfortable place for being so down.

Limerick

Tuesday, 6th of September. This whole place Tarbert seems to go south. Lots of shops are closed but don't say anything about this fact. They look just like normal shops from outside. Most traffic comes from the crossing vehicles which are only passing through. I was still looking for an internet connection – no chance in this village, although there had been an internet café some time before (even some of the locals didn't know it was closed). The friendly woman in the pharmacy gave me the advise to go to Glin, because there in the library would be a internet computer for free, so I started to cycle six kilometres in the direction of Limerick – and what nice people I found there! This library is just lovely. A small old stone built house, and inside mainly just one open room, some books and games (probably less books as we have at our home, and definitely less games…) and two nice computers. The friendly librarian was so broad-minded to my needs and so interested in my touring and blogging, it was such a nice and warm atmosphere and it was fun to talk a while. Many thanks!

Meanwhile Kate and Dave had send their address data. When the library closed at 2 P.M. I started speed cycling up to Limerick – I had an average of 24,3 km/h from the moment I started cycling this day until I reached Limerick (nearly 60 kilometres). During the cycling I wondered why I felt so very warm, and then I realized the sun had shown up again! This day was still a mixture of clouds, rain and sun, but it's so exhilarant when its clear, warm and bright. And I even had following wind from time to time.

I arrived early at Kate's and Dave's home. Kate was doing her home made felt clothes and accessory. She is a freelancer and all around the house you can see lots of different pieces in varied designs. While she went on working, Dave showed me around the town – Limerick by night. As a real cyclist I tried to turn on my light, as we left the house… (whithout having a bycicle between my legs, I bent forward to activate the dynamo —does anyone remember The third policeman by Flan O'Brian?)

Dave knows a lot about history stuff, but for me the contemporary image of this town was much more interesting. I wasn't so sure about if it would be worth it to come to this place. Some people said it's uninteresting, others (non locals) liked it. The reputation of this town isn't so good (mainly caused by some trouble in the 80's). Now I'm glad about deciding to come to Limerick, because it's not so typical (or what I would call typical from my previous experience). Its character seems to be much more used and industrial. And inside of this some very old churches and castles…

Dave and I ended up in a nice pub (their local), where to my big surprise he ordered a German wheat beer. He definitely has to come to Bamberg and taste all our local wheat beers, which are so much better then all these industrial beers from the big companies. I went on trying new brands of stout. We had some good talk about profession, contentedness, self-fulfillment and the need for sabbaticals. We found some parallels between our relationships in the fact that one can give the other one the freedom to be creative without financial bounds. My head and my heart are still mulling over what I like or want to do or to be or don't like or want to do or to be… Moments of insight and scruple take turns.

I also spend one day resting. Doing some improvements on the bike, install the new light and so on. Because of some troubles with the electricity a very nice electrician was in Kate's and Dave's house who gave me some useful material to make the grips softer. All at all just nice and relaxing. Nevertheless it was once again 4 A.M. when I ended writing and working on the computer…

Borderline experiences on the Ring of Kerry

Sunday, 4th of September. Today's stage started with bright sunshine. Close before Kenmare one can see this nice waterfalls, which are leastwise partly man-made, but nevertheless (or maybe therefore) very nice.

I had been in Kenmare the day before, too. After the Crossroad Music Session Dean, a friend of him and I had been there, visiting a music shop, where a very nice guy not only repaired the peg of my guitar, he also optimized my strings and the bridge – and all for free. He seemed to be a very impassioned musician and it was fun to see him working with an instrument. Many thanks to Soundz of Muzic!

I also was familiar with the first ten Ring of Kerry kilometres from yesterday's Crossroad Music Session (even though you can't compare a car ride with cycling…), but up to Tahilla I had no idea why everybody is saying one have to see the Ring of Kerry. But then it became very interesting, and when I first reached the open sea (if you can say so) again, it was just great force of nature – stormy, powerful breaker, and then big rain started (all together a very atmospherical composition, my compliments to nature). The rain was much intense but ended after about 15 minutes and the sun dried my clothes pretty fast. Forget whatever I've said about all weathers days in the past – this was before I was familiar with the Irish weather. During the stage from Oxford up to Mitcheldean surely there were all kinds of weather, but one after another and evenly spread about the whole day. In Ireland the weather can change within minutes. After the big rain and the sunshine I had misty rain with clouds, sunshine with rain, rain with calms, storm with sunshine… But in the end the weather decided to be cloudy, rainy and very stormy (but no photo can show).

From Saneem, which seems to be a very touristic place (much sightseeing buses were standing there and also much people were on the street despite the bad weather), up to Castlecove, where to have a break for some salted food I had decided, it was pretty exertive to cycle within all these intense rain and it also became quite hilly so I celebrated every completed half of the last five kilometres to motivate myself – it wasn't that much about being exhausted but you have to have faith within this landscape. The friendly woman at An Siopa Dubh had nothing warm to eat but she offered to prepare a sandwich for me, which also helped.

Sometimes the rain stopped for a while, sometimes I even recognized this, sometimes I didn't recognize the rain had started again. One can become very stoic. There was also constantly uphill what I didn't really noticed within all this wind and all this rain who pattered not only on me but into my face while I was doing my cycling routine. From Cathair Dónall up to the highest point of Ring of Kerry the storm was so extreme, especially when the winding road met the open coast side! It was really hard to keep the faith, all this storm attacks just felt like if someone tries to distress you, to put you down by pushing you around again and again. I wasn't so sure about how to act with this phenomenon. It's not a thing where one can say just stop fighting it – the storm doesn't care about it. Close to the highest point of Ring of Kerry it blew me from my bike – one heavy squall came and pushed me to the left, but I could stave off and by doing so or maybe doing a little bit to much the squall caught me again, this time to the other side, and knocked me and my bike over. I'm not really sure what happened, in the end my bike was laying on the side with its front in opponent direction and I was lying on my back. Nothing happened to me, I just hurried to put my bike and all my stuff that loosened from the bike away from the street. Fortunately there was no traffic at this moment, otherwise it would have been really dangerous. One car, which had passed me immediately before, had stopped in some distance, but when the driver saw I seemed to be okay he went on.


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After this I once was sitting next to the street and crying. You feel so helpless because it's nothing what's within your powers. I wasn't exhausted, you can't say I was unalert or did some other mistake (beside cycling within this weather), the storm was just so much more powerful than I. After a while I went on, pushing the bike carefully, and after the next turn not only I was outside the stormy area I also reached the top, and from now on I rolled downhill, but extremely carefully and totally aware of this life-threatening situation. Now my bike has some more scratches, the Ganesha clinger, whom I had tied on my handle bar extension, peeled away, but I found it on the street.

Down in Waterville maybe five kilometres later I had a break and found a nice hostel and also much nicer backpackers. I was full of energy and had some nice chit-chat, two hot chocolates with marshmallows (my first time), some chips for free because one guy attained them for unravel a mystery (he will study philosophy and mechanical engineering – I love this combination…). And then I went back outside to cycle, full of positive energy while all the others were so happy to be inside a warm, protected house. I just felt fine.

Waterville isn't that cosy as most of the other Irish towns and places I have seen so far, especially not on such a rainy and stormy day, but a real bleakly seaside town, affronting the elements. Meanwhile it went dark and I had some problems with my front light which works a little bit irregular (my back light seem to work not at all). Shortly after my speedo computer went mad by showing no speed or the wrong speed (and sometimes the right speed, but one can't trust). This is a thing what really frustrated and concerned me, it undercuts my inner balance. Surely the display of the completed kilometres is sometimes important for orientation, for example when you have to catch a side road in a special distance, but what concerned me much more was the fact that my cycling doesn't seem to count if it's not measured. It galls me that this effects me so much. (After a while my speedo computer seemed to be okay again, but I couldn't see that much, too.)

To find my tonight's host Ciaran I had to take a cross road one or two kilometres before Cahersiveen. But with more and more darkness surrounding it's not that easy to read the signs – once again I missed having a torch. So I was standing at one cross road and tried to read my map by using the crossing cars' headlight. When one car slowed down to turn off I signed them to stop so I could asked for some help and in the end the car driver offered me a lift. Today's stage had 80 kilometres.

Some amazing perceptions of nature

Friday, 2nd of September. It was 1:30 P.M. when I left the boat. Easy cycling like every day, good to be on the road again. While being on my way, a car passed, and outside the backmost window Marek smiled at and waved to me. Funny coincidence to see him again. Today's stage was planed with 75 kilometres and ended up with 105 kilometres, because I missed a sign in Ballydehob and didn't realize this until I asked someone in Schull (there's a kink on my map, so this Schull area was on the back side which I couldn't see because I had thought to be in the other side's area). But I didn't want to turn back, especially because I liked the place I was now and wanted to go on – who matter's about kilometres? In the end I was so glad I made a detour because it was such a great landscape, such a lovely road, just so nice and exhilarant. After 70 kilometres I had a short break in Bantry, and then the other great part of this day's journey began.

It had been cloudy the hole day with some sunshine from time to time, some wind – just nature. Then some drizzling rain started, but so misty – such thing doesn't feel like rain, it's just refreshing. If this is the famous Irish rain, then I love it. I decided not to dress more rain protection than my raincoat, which was generally a good idea, you definitely don't need rain pants – but I had to learn this day that anyway you need some protection for the shoes (and maybe another warm jacket)… Cycling the coast between Ballylickey and Glengarriff was just great outlook, all these colours and structure within the hazy environment – just great. Then the very hilly part of this day's stage started, as I cycled the Caha Mountains. I was on my own, nearly no passing cars, I wasn't able to see anything in some distance because of all this haze. And shortly after I also couldn't see that much because it went dark.

It went pretty cold, but with the misty rain outside, which had become heavier meanwhile, and the sweating inside I didn't want to stop and grub deep in one of my bags, I just tried to stay warm by going on with fast cycling. When the road finally got downhill, I cycled through an amazing tunnel, just a hole in the hill with all these surrounding mountain stones. And my bike light illuminated the scene. Fast downhill through the rainy night, I felt colder and colder, but finally I reached Dean's house, that wasn't easy to find in the darkness. There I had a bath, but it took some time until I felt some warmth inside of me again. But what an amazing day.

PS:
I had my first little accident today, if you can say so. I failed the asphalt road, so my wheel touched the ground next to the road, so I lost balance when trying to put something out of my little handle bar bag. But I had only 10 or 15 km/h, so nothing happened apart from my bike turned over and the handle bar was twisted (and I now have a bruise).

Finally Ireland…!

Thursday, 25th of August. This ferry from Fishguard Harbour railway station up to Rosslare Harbour was right how a ferry should be. Quite small (compared to my other ferry experience downright tiny). Many travelling pedestrians. The car deck looked much more like a small parking garage with nooks and crannies, not available for trucks (this Stena ferry goes three times a day up to Ireland, I took the express line, I suppose the slower lines are for trucks, too, as I saw some trucks waiting in the harbour yesterday). It's so much better than the last ferry! The ferry's windows are made to afford a good outlook, you are really on a boat, not within one of these synthetic autonomous universes on its own. Most space is used to offer different areas to sit and chat. And… you are able to go outside!

It was an extreme and intense up and down on this ferry, although the staff said it's quite normal. Nevertheless all of us passengers had very funny walks and you could hear some laughs about this and the rocking ship at all – maybe this amusement was also caused by lots of alcohol… – "[Pirates] drink lots of rum and after that they stagger and when the ship is rocking as well it evens out…". Other people appeared to be sea sick, sometimes I wasn't so sure about me, too, but I did it well already.

I really like this ferry company which seems to care a lot about their passengers and they cared perfectly about the bikes, too (there was one more bicyclist at the ferry who started in London and will now cycle through Ireland for two weeks), it just felt like great service.

Even the crossing was cheaper as I had thought from looking at the internet – quite the contrary to the other company DFDS Seaways, who charged my nearly double price. They reasoned this because of no online booking. (Okay, by total numbers it's not such a big difference: 39€ instead of 21.50€ for me and my bike to do the 63 kilometres from Dunkerque up to Dover in two hours, and 34€ – or 28£ – instead of 38€ for the 106 kilometres from Fishguard up to Rosslare, also in two hours.) I bought a nice traveller's map in the ferry's shop about Ireland which had a fair price (and so I was able to get rid of my last English money). This meant I didn't had to think about this anymore and was able to know how to navigate from the first moment in Ireland.

When we reached the harbour I first thought: oh, we already arrived (it was such a quick crossing), not till then I thought: Now I am in Ireland! I had a stop at the harbour to correct my luggage, when a guy come up to me, asking about my tour, and then he offered me a bed for the night in Curraglass because he did much hitch hiking in the past and was familiar with the needs a traveller has. I already have a host in this area so I had no usage, but I had a nice talk with Matt and his girlfriend Kylie who I met, too, and I invited them to join my blog and to stay with Klaus and me in Bamberg if they ever come to Germany again. I would be glad to hear about them again. Thanks for the great welcome in Ireland!

Even the way how Ireland received me was so much nicer in comparison to England who even didn't received me. But in Ireland there wasn't this heavy traffic at the harbour, instead of that there were likeable signs who remembered anyone about the left-hand driving in three languages (English, French and German). From the first moment I was so enthusiastic and thrilled about being in Ireland. I cycled the 75 kilometres up to my this day's host Mark and his wife Patti within four hours, just flew through this great landscape and felt happy. Small roads with nearly no traffic – my main image of Ireland is about freedom. I'm so glad to be here.

PS:
When I had to pee I used a place behind some bushes – and was amazed when I revolved to see this herd of young cows who were so curious about me that they all had come to the gate. I love cows for being so interested and observant. When I started cycling again, they followed me doing gallop as long as possible. Cows like to play and are anything but dull.

Last stage and last night in Great Britain

Wednesday, 24th of August. I started in Llangadog with sunshine at 9 A.M., but this sunshine was just at Jane's place and resumed in the region I cycled yesterday, but in the direction I had to cycle now it was overclouded – big, dark and heaving clouds all over there. And you know you have no chance to escape from that…

First I crossed Llandeilo, a nice little town which is placed around a hill – it starts at the hill's bottom and it ends at the bottom on the other side of this hill. And I had the pleasure to cycle this twice, because I overlooked my route branched off immediate at the boundaries. Shortly after that I reached the rain. And what a rain. It rained cats and dogs. And it was extremely cold, too, so for the first time during my tour I needed an extra pullover. It rained really bad. Rain from above (as usual), rain from the side (especially when cars passed), rain from below (because the streets had turned into lakes). Occasionally I thought about hitchhiking, but otherwise this wasn't the best route to do so (once again good ole A40) and also there was no place to stay and ask some truckers. I cycled one hour through this extreme, intensive rain, then another half an hour just through usual rain. Close to Carmarthen the rain stopped and some shafts of sunlight showed up. And in Carmarthen I suddenly realized that I was no longer able to cycle with usual speed. I haven't noticed before this had been really exhausting.

So I had a break and my first fish and chips – and now I finally know, what this actually is. When I was young I imagined it as something like French fries with kind of fish fingers or fish nuggets, served in a paper cone (which is a practice I couldn't understand. In Belgium fries were originally served in a paper cone, but now this changes. Bart told me the paper cone thing was the best, because the grease can accumulate at the bottom). Later I didn't thought about it any more, so I never looked up. My fish and chips looked like these you can see in the photo, but were served on a plate together with different packed sauces.

Then cycling went on and the weather was okay now. The route wasn't as interesting as the day before and it wasn't that hilly, so much more cycling to reach today's goal, the coast. All in all I cycled 125 kilometres this day, and I made a new speed record: 64.5km/h. In the afternoon the weather became really sunny. I had a nice break at a quiet resting place, the lady in a take-away van had closed, but anyway she sold me a cappuccino, we had a nice chat about my tour, and she donated me a small pack of this delicious Welsh cakes. I had a really nice break while sitting in the sun and feeling good.

While approaching the coast I felt exited – so close to the sea, so close to Ireland. The last 20 or 30 kilometres it was once again very hilly – so once again the landscape became very interesting – and I looked forward to see the sea which maybe would appear behind every lift. And then it did.

Fishguard is great, lovely, a real seaside town. First I crossed the town to have a look at the ferry harbour and see how it works. Then I looked for a place to sleep and found a lovely old hotel, that was run by an older lady (Cartref Hotel). Very fair price and even a small water boiler next to a box including some tea bags plus sugar and milk packages in my room – I suppose other guests usually don't use them as much as I did… Later I tasted a Horlicks malt, what seems to be very popular especially in Wales as a night drink (I don't know why). I also went out to enjoy the coast, the town and the sundown and had a tasty Welsh stout and a nice little meal in a pub, where they gave me a wooden spoon so the waiter could find my table.

PS:
Meanwhile I have learned Cartref is Welsh and means home…

An all weathers day

Sunday, 21th of August. Yesterday I cycled 100 kilometres from Oxford up to Mitcheldean, that is close to Wales. It was an exhausting day, so today I stay for an extra day at my couchsurfing host's place, where a garden party will happen today. Deborah is preparing all the food while I am writing my blog on her computer (but I will also help her after writing…). It's just great here – great nature, great outlook, great garden and very great house with lots of personal design to discover.

I had an all weathers yesterday. It started with sunshine, so I was able to navigate by position of the sun (what I did also when I left London – and I did it pretty well!), then it went to be very cloudy and windy. I cycled A roads most of the day, which were really nice most of the time (mostly A40 road, then A436 when it splits up, and from Gloucester once again the A40 road. Then the very hilly part of that day's stage began when cycling the A4136 road).

Since I had left Oxford (and surely inside Oxford, too) in his area the people had (and of course still have) real stones at one's disposal to build houses. Therefore the main colour of the houses is a mixture of beige, ochre, grey and white. Very convenient. Once I cycled past a church with a sign in the front garden. While reading "an open meeting to discuss the future" I stopped, because it's a great idea and highly fascinating, to discuss the future (especially in a church). When reading the rest of the sign, it was only – but still – interesting, because it offers an insight into the actual proceedings.

I was in a bad mood during forenoon. Once again having no idea why am I doing this. Now it's kind of boring, just routine and somehow futile. Maybe this is normal change while doing long-run cycling. I didn't cycle more than two weeks without interruption before. But I also have a feeling of futile in general, about don't want to have any responsibilities at all and just doing nothing (especially no work). Then I think about quitting the tour. Otherwise I'm close to Ireland now, which is the main reason for this tour, and doing the French part of the tour will mean just going home. But I feel more and more depressed and desperate (close to cry while writing this). I am afraid about this, because I'm not able to classify.

It rained two times yesterday. But when I cycled the A4136 road the sun came out and also with the hilly landscape the route went to be much more challenging. This all together gave me a good feeling (good to know the surrounding can have such influence). When I claimed the main up-hill, the street stayed at this altitude while still doing some up and downs – and the outlook was just fantastic. And I had two great downhills with more than 60km/h (so now I have a new record with 62.4km/h). Then once again the rain came and at this time I was pretty exhausted. After five more kilometres I arrived at the lovely house of Deborah's.

It was a nice, relaxed evening. I tasted self made chocolate chilli ice-cream (the mild version), which was very interesting and the best chocolate ice I ever had. I went early to bed and slept quite long. Today it's a sunny day and I'm looking forward to see more of the surrounding area, to spend time with Deborah and meet new people at the garden party – once again I think it is good to have the guitar with me.

Deborah is very spirited, always laughing, she's – like me – so attached to little details to prettify the environment and to make the world a place where you can discover surprising, beautiful, interesting and special things all the time. It's good to be here.

PS:
I feel homesick and homeless and I really would need a long time hug and the possibility to cry while laying in ones arms.

PPS:
The garden party was very nice. Had some good talks and met much lovely people…

The beauty, the ugly and back to normal

Thursday, 11th of August. Leaving lovely Brugge while the sun is shining – I saw a swarm of doves just standing in the air and also flying backwards (caused through the heavy wind this day I think) – and cycling the first 25 kilometres along the very nice Kanaal Brugge-Oostende, which is mostly used by motor yachts. While I was cycling in direction north-west, the usual adverse wind caught me diagonal.

In Oostende I reached the sea. I love the sea. On the other hand the Belgium coast is pretty boring, but tries to stick up by being extremely stormy, Elise and Julien, my tonight's hosts, told me, the wind had 27–53 km/h, justifiably so you can say it was stormy (tomorrow it's probably better, it's said it will be 13–24 km/h). While I was still able to cycle around 20 km/h beneath the canal, I now had to slow down to 8 to 12 km/h, what I did for 20 kilometres from Oostende up to Westende (at the Albertkanaal it was 17 to 21 km/h). It was quite hard not to be blown away. At the end my face laced with grains of sand. The ugly houses, kind of high-riser with the charm of a building made with precast concrete slabs after all offered some wind protection.

I don't understand the Belgians. Like in Germany, too, they have places with caravans. In Germany there are many bowers within allotment garden, mostly placed at town border, often close to train tracks and also motor ways. But they are very green with much planting, a place for once own to relax. There are also places for static caravans, which are placed into the green, often into a recreation area. Usually nice places (if you are okay with the bourgeois middle-class character). But in Belgium they have places with static caravans, all of them same type, standing extremely close next to each other without any place for doing some personal arrangements. And they are usually placed beside the most highly frequented road. Why do they do this? Have they no sense for beauty and cosy settings?

The Belgian north looks shabby. It is reminiscent of Romania, where Klaus and I had been some years ago and also some parts in the North German Plain – uninteresting houses on a broken street with even worse bicycle paths. It turned to get better when I reached the Belgium/French frontier. Today's goal was Dunkerque, which I reached after 85 kilometres.

I had a warm welcome at Elise's and Julien's home. They are so friendly, relaxed and interested in a broad range. We had some dedicated talk about social and education system in France and Germany, including a side trip to politics, effective and useless development assistance in Third World Countries, being parents (I and their little one and a half year old son Simon immediately made friendship) and some more. They were so considerate, we had a great supper with an even better cake, Julien showed me the route to the harbour while moving the whole kilometres way on Google streetview… Elise and Julien, please come to visit me in Bamberg and make me able to be such a great host as you two are!

Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium

Friday, 5th of August. I took the countryside highway for the most of the time up to Geilenkirchen, and I had lots of wind. Slowly I realized that there could be a connection between this and all these windmills in the Netherlands… In Geilenkirchen I had a break and annoyed a saleswoman in a butcher shop as I bought just one slice of salami, which I needed for my cheese roll. In this town you can't be sure if you met a German person or one from the Netherlands, it's a mixed up chatter on the streets, while it's very close to the frontier. Up from North Rhine-Westphalia the house building style had changed, as in the Netherlands, too, they are all brick build, typical for all areas were they don't have rocks. The river Wurm crosses town where it's leaded below the town.

Now I navigated by a point of intersection based bicycle route system, which is also used in the Netherlands. So I left Germany while using nice little roads without traffic inside a beautiful landscape. Because Octavian, my today's couchsurfing host in Sittard, had still to work, I cycled criss-cross through nice little villages and nature – 25 kilometres extra, just for fun! So today's stage ended after 95 kilometres.

As I arrived in Sittard and tried to orient myself to find out how to reach Octavians home, I discovered I was just standing at the corner where his street branched off – I was so exited about that! Easy to find the house, difficult to ring the doorbell, because there wasn't a doorbell panel, but a little computer terminal. With the help of a local person I figured out how to use this. Since today I have to communicate in English.

Octavian was very nice and friendly. First thing we did yet before starting real conversation was juggling together. He is a settled character, but also very social, interested in a variety of things and with deep thoughts about many things. His flat is in a house where many young people from all over the world are living for a period. It's a very agile atmosphere, someone is knocking at the door and comes for a short visit at all hours (some people leave their door always ajar). Lotte and Lilly, I would be glad to hear from you!

Next day we visited an exhibition. Museum Het Domein Sittard showed the photographer Roger Ballen. Interesting to discuss his work. I like his earlier work from the 80's, but all in all he's much to manipulative and straining after effect. I found a poster of Bamberg (old town hall and dome) at one of his photos which was shot in a flat in Africa! After museum we went to historic town centre, eating outside and had much nice conversation. I put one's foot into one's mouth when I asked for the change when I bought cyclist's sunglasses. It was 19.99 Euro but the seller wanted 20 which irritated me so much that I asked for the left cent. Octavian later explained to me, that it's very common in the Netherlands to round up – nobody cares about just one cent! (Me, too! But I was too surprised to ignore. Worst of all the seller searched ages for the cent and in the end because he couldn't found one he gave me a two cent coin.)

Unfortunately my guitar has a damage. I think it was a good idea to buy a rejected one for my tour… I'm still able to play, while turning the pin back to the original position, so it doesn't really matter.

I left Octavian at 6 P.M. because he had to do some work and my legs were so nervous. I had planed the next stage from Sittard up to Antwerp with 125 kilometres and had learned this would mean around 140 kilometres, so I was glad to be able to cycle a fare stage. I was really fast! I just had to cycle! (I do no longer care about average speed, because it depends so much on landscape structure, weather and if it's easy to find the route, but I'm really glad when I'm able to fly away…) I cycled through Susteren (NL), Masseik (B) and Bree. From 9 P.M. on I was looking for a place to sleep, I asked some villagers if I could stay at their roofed veranda, as I did more than ten years ago in Denmark, but there was no chance. In Denmark I never had problems with that and was always invited to sleep in a barn, a garage or a bower and sometimes even to share meal.

Some rain had started. In Peer there was a kind of street festival, bands were playing on truck's load floors, so there was nice music, great atmosphere, many people outside – and even a hotel! But it looked so unappealing, impersonal, way to stylish and at least expensive, that I decided to go on cycling – maugre the rain and the fact it had gotten dark. So I cycled through the night, wearing my rain gear (now I can say I am equipped perfectly) and reached Leopoldsburg after 60 kilometres, where I found a much more cosy hotel/restaurant/bar, with such a kind steward, who helped me with my stuff and even warmed up my half pizza, which was now presented like a real meal that I ate in my room, while watching some TV. It's so great to be in a country where's no dubbing!

From Germscheid up to Oppendorf/Bedburg

Thursday, 4th of August. My first real cycling day! Because looking after my legs and knees for the last days, while my thigh felt very keen from time to time (and surely especially while doing exhausting cycling) I now felt able to cycle with power. (Still no muscle soreness at all.) While I wanted to follow the Rhine river, my first few kilometres were still somehow hilly (remember: edge of Westerwald). I was guerdoned with an 8…kilometres downhill upon a twisting road!

From Bad Honnef, North Rhine-Westphalia, up to Bornheim I cycled along the Rhine river. In Königswinter I took a ferry to switch sides and had a nice talk with an old lady who was also on a bicycling tour together with her more than 80 year old husband. She had travelled so much all across the world with her bike in earlier times, that I felt just like a newbie. She commended my bike as a very good one– I was so glad, because I love my old vehicle and think it's good quality, too.

Close to Bonn there was so much bicycling traffic (mixed up with promenaders). While the sun was shining so bright everybody was outside although it was Thursday early afternoon. I don't like these slowly Sunday drivers, often overweight, clinging to their handle bar and tottering as if they'd need all their concentration not tilting over. Excursionists!

To hear all the various dialects while cycling through different parts of Germany is funny. The dialect allows to transport an anyway individual part of the character. And once I needed an emergency toilet, so I asked a woman who was working in her garden. And she not only let me in but also gave me some freshly-picked plums while saying: "Vitamins!" in broken German (I think she was Vietnamese).

In Marten I had to climb a hill with my bike and then on the wide top navigate by looking at the position of the sun (that means the shadow) through a complex system of windy paths across a forest to find my way down to the little Erft river – did I mention that the bicycle guiding system in North Rhine-Westphalia is absolutely bad? Sometimes they write the name of a town on a sign, sometimes not, although you're just trying to follow. They don't try to guide you, it is much more a hide and seek – they don't put a sign when the surrounding area changes, they put it somewhere else, maybe as an award for guessing the right direction.

To cycle the Erft river was so pretty and therefore I was able to do the next reparation inside this very nice location. Once again I had trouble with my gearshift, the chain switched all the time up and down the gears while making bad noise. Now I saw why. Bless god I took a chain tool with me (and have had not listened to my boyfriend …).

Note: Klaus is the best companion in life I could imagine. Normally he knows nearly everything, is technical gifted (and also in many other ways) and he is the one person I want to spend my life and share my thoughts, my feelings and everything. You are great, I love you so much.

Although today's stage was planed with 80 kilometres it took me 105 (probably 10 to 15 kilometres is due to the subject of searching for the route). This was the first time I was able to reach today's couchsurfing host at the right time (I try to arrive between 6 and 8 P.M. and I caught 7 o'clock). And I came late enough only to see the the puddles and wet streets but not get wet myself, because the rain was over. What was left was some stormy weather.

It was the first time for Franzi to host (and she wasn't able to surf so far, too). Right now she has passed Abitur, is sweet 19 years old, still living with her mother until she'll hopefully starts to study teaching degree for secondary schools next semester. Franzi was so sweet-natured and willing to be a courteous host. And it sounds so nice when she's giggling! It makes me smiling when I remember it. I had a gorgeous evening together with her, her mother and her mother's boyfriend, and let's not forget the two dogs! We talked about education and the educational system. It's just such an open, living house, where people – and not only couchsurfers! – can come and sometimes stay for a while. Franzi, visit me and Klaus in Bamberg!