the closest we've been all day...

I, Georgia, after some deliberation have decided to leave the group a few weeks early in order to join some friends back in San Francisco for the celebration of the commemoration of their college career. Having made this decision to return a month or so ago, it now appears as though the actual leaving will be much harder for me than I had suspected it would be. In the course of a week I had graduated from college, moved out of my beloved apartment in San Francisco, managed to say goodbye to all my dear friends, and somehow prepared myself for my first ever bicycle tour. Emotionally I was still living the glory days of my senior year at college and had a rather rude awakening when I learned that for the next few months I would be wearing the same smelly, sweaty clothes day after day and huffing and puffing up an endless set of hills on my bicycle loaded down with gear. With only two pairs of pants, three shirts, and a few pairs of underwear, my life had suddenly been compacted down to fit into two panniers and I'd never learn to miss a simple pair of jeans more. With absolutely no idea of what life would really be like on a bicycle tour, I set off with all my confidence in the hands of my three companions; longtime friends who I couldn't have trusted more with the task of teaching me how to leave the comfort of my down comforter, hair dryer, and city apartment, to live life in the saddle, in a tent, and at the whim of the wilderness. They even laughed and rolled their eyes when I told them that I had made room for a single tube of mascara and an eye pencil, neither of which I used more than 3 times in four months.

The first few weeks were difficult, to say the least. Aside from the miles we put in daily that left me exhausted and yearning for sleep every night, there was the pain of an emotional detachment I felt from the comfort of my fairly organized and routine life in a city I'd come to love with all my heart. But as the homesickness tore on, what I never guessed was that in a few months time it'd be this new routine at the end of the day that I'd come to love just as much. At the end of the day it's the smell of BO that festers in the one outfit I wear day after day and even lingers in my sleeping bag, the nights sleeping on hard ground in freezing temperatures, and the moldy dampness that follows you around after days of endless rain that are all part of a life I've come to love and appreciate. At the end of the day it's the endless laughing about the strange encounters that we've had along the way and the reminiscing about the miles past that I'll miss. It's the mooing sounds we make every time we pass a herd of cows (something I thought was silly until I found myself partaking in) or the baaing we do when we see a group of sheep. Its the time we spend sitting outside grocery stores while everyone stocks up on couscous and oatmeal. Its the seemingly endless hours of rocking on ferries between Grecian islands. Its the daily routine at the end of the day when we're setting up camp and we swap books, compare farmers tans and number of bug bites. It's Emma's navigating and route planning that never fail to safely get us to the next place, Gen's lifetime soundtrack of rap and reggae that describe the trials and tribulations we've endured (only available live upon special request), and Lucy's helpful tips that have taught me the right way to pack my tent or store my sleeping pad that I'll be lost without. 

At the end of the day I realize that I had no idea what was in store for me at the beginning of this trip because it has been so much more than a trip. It has been a journey; one which could not have been fathomable without Gen, Emma, and Lucy. They've taught me how to stop counting the miles and truly appreciate each moment for what it is without worrying about time or schedules or plans. They've taught me how to try a little harder to see the positive side of things and do what happens as it comes along. They've taught me how to experience places and cultures and people in a whole new way, on two wheels powered by my own two legs. 

After four months and 2,817 miles we have become a team. We have climbed to high peaks, endured torrential rains, slept on hard grounds, and crossed borders. We have taken falls, visited hospitals, eaten fresh croissants in France and fresh pastas in Italy, hiked in the hills of Spain, and seen midnight mass on Christmas Eve at the Vatican. We've ridden on dirt roads, along a canals, and on grassy roads that hardly exist. We've ridden on country roads and national roads. We have biked HERE, and there, and back again.

As my time on this trip comes to an end, I'm not ready to leave. I'm genuinely jealous of the road ahead for Gen, Emma, and Lucy. I cant wait to hear the stories and see the pictures of everything that comes next for them. But all I can do is wish them a safe journey and thank them a thousand times for sharing with me some of the most amazing experiences I'll ever have. I believe I've finally made it. I have laughed and cried my way into becoming a bike tourer and I couldn't be more proud to be one.

Germany: Das ist Zuiper

Photos (top to bottom): lots and lots of sheep; bikes make awesome shadows; along the a major shopping canal in Germany, means racing many barges, we often win; and a cold and windy North Sea.

That's right we zoomed through the rest of Holland, but not really since strong winds (not in our favor) still haunted us. We traveled good distances but the zooming feeling which makes riding a bicycle so much fun is taken out when the wind pushes you sideways all day. It is like an elephant is trying to sit on you all day. I'll stop complainig about the wind one day, I promise.

Off we went over the German border, the wind was still there but some little hills started to apear! Oh my. The landscape has been amazing with green fields and forests. We raced up through the northern section of Germany to get to Denmark! That's right we are all the way in Denmark. It is light until ten!

But first a bit about our German adventures. So far what we have seen and been through of Germany we love. We are excited to travel back through most of the country and end our journey in Southern Germany. Upon entering Northern Germany we knew there were many canals and waterways. We ended up taking a few ferries, similar to the Shelter Island ferry. You drive your car on you park, you drive off. Some were longer distances and other shorter. One ferry had the best hot dog I have even eaten, high hopes for German sausage, duh! On one night when we couldn't find our campground we ended up riding a small ferry back and fourth. The operator must of though we were a hoot.

Em ran into some brake problems, which slowed our progress a bit. Problems such as she now has no front brake and the back brake is pretty lame. Long story short her fear came true that the disc brake would break and we wouldn't be able to fix it. Luckily Gen was able to take the front brake caliper and move it to the back. If anyone doesnt understnsd the front-back switch, I am sure you can remeber as a kid slamming on the front brakes and flying over the handle bars, or at least seeing someone do this. The semi-flat conditions help with the lack of braking speed she has. Her bike is now in the shop and she got a loaner cruiser to ride around the Danish town we ended up in. The bike has coaster brakes (push back with your feet) and no clip peddles, but it does have a low bar, which Em can easily swing her foot over.

That's pretty much it. Except we arrived in Denmark today (5/13) and quickly realized our Euros were useless. We are now on the Danish Royal Kroner, where a loaf of bread coasts $K26 or bike shorts $K299. We'll get used to it by the time we leave. We are heading around Denmark and over to Sweden and meeting up with Em and my parents in Copenhagen in about ten days. Since none of us have cellular devices and internet scarce, it will be fun an adventures just finding them.

Funny signs in Germany

Photos (top to bottom): it is important to know ones tank speed; caution to quickly ending road, don't drive off; not sure, no anchoring in the two feet of mucky water; and cleaver bathroom signs.

More photo catsup

Photos (top to bottom): Em and Gen hit 7,000km; a windmill in Holland; a bicycler specific garbage can, found along bike routes; one of the many canals of Holland.

The Netherlands katsup

Photos (top to bottom): the dike system in Southern Holland; one of the awesome churches of Middleburg, NL; happy birthday Lucy, morning present surprise; Em at one of the many bicycle friendly intersections of the Netherlands.

Long Overdue!

I have gotten lazy and the countries went so quick. We were last heard of in France (northern that is). I believe the next day of riding we accomplished was just south of the French-Belgium border. We continued to ride into really strong head winds. Condition, which make riding a bike somewhat miserable. There is no break from peddeling, up or down the hills. We found many more hills in northern France. Our morning riding into Belgium was fantastic the lovely GPS took us on a "paved road" which was more or less a grass walking trail. We enjoyed the mist and light sprinkle as we inched closer to Belgium. Upon arriving we were saddened to not have a sign but signs for chocolate shops lined the road. We had been wondering what type of terrain Belgium might offer. For the first twenty kilometers or so it seemed to be gradually down hill. We joked that Belgium must be all down hill.
In the first big town we find ourselves in what do we see two, not one but two Chinese food restaurants. Once Georgias mind was set there was no stopping her. Unfortunately those two didn't pan out. We continued on our route. Within seconds what did we see a third Chinese food restueraunt. Dumplings here we come. After a lovely meal we hit the road. We had no idea where we were going so we simply went north. Emmas map was going to run out soon and we were all very unfamiliar with Belgium. Mid afternoon and the sun was shunning things were looking up. That changed rather quickly. We soon found ourselves in an epic lightening storm. We re-routed to the closest campground 14km down the busy road. Luckily there was a bike shoulder, however it was also acting as a drainage ditch. The lightening was striking within miles of where we were. We wondered about stopping but there was only hilly fields and large trees which didn't seem safe. We road on and made it to our campsite. After setting up and getting ready to settle in the rain had stopped. Our stuff was wet from the morning so the next day we waited for the sun to fight its way out, hoping it would dry our things. We have since read up on riding in lightening storms and proper procedure.
We knew Belgium was small but we didn't really think it we would only be one full day in it. On our second day we were in need of, what else, food and a map. After three grocery store failures and no map and a completely unrecognizable langue later we found our selves full on food and rushing northward new map in hand. We arrived at a campground and within seconds a lightning storm surged up. It was the most comical quickest campsite set up we have ever had. After fully unpacking the rain had stopped and the wind had calmed. We woke up our third day in Belgium and by eleven we were in the Netherlands/Holland. The next available Internet time we looked up the size of Belgium which is comparable to the size of Massachusetts. By the time we had entered the Netherlands we had truly left all the hills behind. However a country known for it's windmills should have been a good hint. We found a lot of wind, and unfortunately it wasn't going in our favor. We pushed forward in some extremely windy sections, like the narrow bridges and dike system in western Holland or Zeeland.
The Netherlands is amazing on a bicycle (minus the wind if it is not in your favor) there are bike paths everywhere and everyone is on a bike. It is really overwhelming at first but I have gotten completely used to it. We are now in northern Holland making our way to Germany then over to Denmark. The winds have calmed slightly as we are a little more inland but they are still presistsnt. We did have a bit of a tail wind today!!
Sorry about the long wait, it will be quicker next time.

Photo: a drying moment at our first campsite in Belgium.

A Bit of France

Photos: one of the many amazing churches, a church can be found in every town in France; a view of a newly planted field with yellow and green fields in the background.

Post parents France, still amazing. Yes they treated us to hotels and fancy dinners but that doesn't mean we got spoiled. One day Georgia even opted for a campground vrs. a hotel! None the less we greatly apreciated the help, hospitality, and home-ness of Kenny and Megan.

After they left (Easter morning) it was hard to motivate! We biked, however but only for a bit 20ish miles until we called it quits. We threw the towel in, in a town big enough for next day to be rewarding. A storm rolled in seconds after we had set up. The sky darkened, the rain poured and thunder roared. The next day came with poor response, nothing was open. Turns out the day after Easter everything is closed. Our morning soon turned to panic, we had no map and no food! We weren't sure which was worse for Emma. After rding circles in town we found a small open market. We stocked up on food. Still mapless we headed north as per the GPS. We ended that day early in hopes of the next day bearing a map and direction. We discoverdd that north isn't enough, maps are helpful.

We have found some hills but they are a nice change from flat. France is still beautiful every turn we take. Today we experienced something unique. We biked through an area where there was nothing except grand expanses of agricultural land. We have all experienced nothing driving and riding across USA, but this emptiness was different. There was no influence of humans (except the road), no electrical lines, no farm buildings, no tractors. We were all in awe.

We will soon be in Belgium and we are enjoying our time riding greatly.