The story has been told. New stories are to be unfolded. Summer 2017 is going to be awesome! Keep an eye on:
www.theroadtomoscow.weebly.com !
www.theroadtomoscow.weebly.com !
The story has been told. New stories are to be unfolded. Summer 2017 is going to be awesome! Keep an eye on:
www.theroadtomoscow.weebly.com !
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Back Home in Ghent since tonight!
At the end of the story of the Road to Istanbul I'd like to say a very big THANK YOU to quite some people for being part of my journey one way or another! Because of these people, I just could live my passion - being on the road, #neverstopriding and seeing and experiencing the world passing by. - All my hosts (*). You were all great! Really, you have no idea how much your hospitality ment to me. Thank you for taking care of me in whatever sense, because taking care and way much more, that's what you all did! You all paid it forward - welcome back in Ghent anytime to you and all cyclists around! - Dimy a.k.a. Dimysport for getting my bike perfectly ready right in time before I left. It was a close one but you did it and that's all what matters! Big thanks! - Meester Frank for teaching me the basics (and more) of bike mechanics - it gave me the necessary confidence in the technical field for leaving on this journey. It doesn't matter in the end I left most of these little bike revisions to the pro's - at least I knew what they were doing. So also big shout to the Invicta Bike shop in Novi Sad, XCS in Bucharest, Daniel in Zagreb and actually to all bike mechanics in the world. Last but not least: everybody following my blog! It was nice to share my story with you - posting some facts, thoughts and pictures every night was also a part of the journey - as some time of reflection! Special mentioning goes to Colle and his Lien for serving as the home front - whatever that is! Some final thoughts and ideas about my road to Istanbul might follow in the weeks ahead - I give it some time. Once again, thanks for now! (*) in order of appearance: Bram in Leuven, Leen in Burg-Reuland, Torsten and Kerstin in Saarbrucken, Ducu in Strasbourg and Buzau, Daniel and Barbara in Konstanz, Fab and Alex in Davos, Stefano in Bolzano, Robin in Ljubljana, Maks and Mirta in Zagreb, Ratko in Slavonski Brod, Sophia in Novi Sad, Walter in Timisoara, Ilie and Raluca in Sibiu, Orsi in Brasov, Rica and Tataie in Aldeni, Andra, Florina, Ciprian and Bogdan in Bucharest, Leyla in Istanbul, Mihaly in Debrecen, Lazlo and Agnes in Miskolc, Akos in Budapest, Fabian in Vienna and Ruben in his tent on an Austrian camping and in his car on the way back home) The play is over, applause!
I arrived in Vienna after a last 155 km ride from Gyor in Hungary via Bratislava - following the Eurovelo 6. Ruben was waiting for me at the Domkirche in Vienna - spending his holydays in Austria. We stay one night in the city at my former housemate Fabian - nice to meet again! This weekend Ruben and me will spend two more days in the Austrian Alps and on monday I will finally head home... I am ready! See you all soon. I have some words left anyway - will post them here in the days and weeks to come, stay tuned! The Road to Budapest is over! I arrived in the city around noon after 80 km of cycling from Palotas... for the first time a rather unnecessary ride with mostly busy roads and entering Budapest through its ugliest neighboorhoods.
Anyway in the afternoon I met with my host Akos and together we cycled a little bit more around the city. Budapest at second sight was way much better than at first sight. And now... the Road to Vienna is on! The second and last encore, I promise! Tomorrow I will catch an early train to Gyor, 120 km west of Budapest and than it's the last 150 km to Vienna. I am up to finishing my journey in style! 168 km today from Miskolc to the little village of Palotas. I really had a good time in the Hungarian Plains - one of the multiple great discoveries of my TransCon - nevertheless mountains are the real playground for cyclists.
I crossed the Matra mountain range - part of the North Hungarian Mountains - from east to west. Including: Kekes, the highest mountain in Hungary at 1014 meter. Love it! Hungary as I get to know it is not about impressing the visitor no matter what, it's not about being the fanciest, the most stunning or the most loud voiced. It is about simple beauty - the kind of beauty you might miss at first sight, but once appreciation hits, it hits. Take it or leave it. I do take it! Only a couple of tens of kilometer tomorrow and I am in Budapest! I am up for a second encore anyway. Keep you posted! Short one today linking Hungary's second and fourth city: Debrecen - Miskolc, 142 km - another one in the Puzsta.
Hungary: I am fan, totally! Although the scenery is not that spectacular - it has a great sense of peace and quietness. But oh... the country has some mountains too! I gonna ride them tomorrow - the queen's stage of the Road to Budapest! Today's stage in short: Arad - Debrecen 211 km, totally flat, sunny, 25 degrees, head winds. Simple but more than nice ride!
There are a lot of things I like about this journey. One of them is to discover both the differences and similarities between all the countries I ride through. Some differences are obvious, others are more subtle. Hungary is definitely part again of the so-called West - the Old Europe as we know it. The Balkan countries aren't, not yet. Hungary looks neat! Love it. And there is one thing I liked in paticular - it gave the day that joyous and hopeful touch: people do cycle here! And it's an all ages thing. I saw people coming from work or doing their shopping, children, grandmothers with a child in the back seat, hipsters with trial bikes, guys on road bikes... and girls! There is nothing so beautiful as a girl on a bike! Looking forward so very much to see more of all this tomorrow! #neverstopriding I am in the Romanian border town Arad now. After a 12 hour overnight bus drive from overcrowded megapolis Istanbul it felt like a delight to cycle on the almost empty Bucharest avenues at sunrise yesterday morning. Another home coming!
Today I crossed Romania by train - a long yet quiet 12.5 hour ride. Tomorrow I am cycling again. Hungary will be my place under the sun for the next four days - Budapest the destination. Check the map to see the road I am about to take. I also updated the map with the exact road I have taken so far. A simple blue line and some green dots, it used to be a promise, now it's the representation of way much more - the greatest thing I ever did to myself. Dear all,
May I have your attention please... for once this blog is not about the Road to Istanbul and not about cycling. *** English summary: see below *** Er is meer dan fietsen... Heel af en toe wandel ik ook graag! Voor de tweede keer neem ik deel aan de Oxfam Trailwalker. Op 27 augustus word ik samen met mijn drie teamgenoten Leen, Dirk en Werner in Eupen losgelaten om 100 kilometer lang te genieten van de Hoge Venen. Mijn andere teamgenoten behoren ondertussen al tot het Oxfam Trailwalker meubilair - ik ben dus goed omringd. Ook mijn persoonlijke supporter blijft dezelfde: Karel is mijn kok, dokter, flauwe grappenmaker en mentor tijdens de pauzes. Onze teamnaam is het prozaïsche kom piet en kom passie. We mogen maar deelnemen op voorwaarde dat we de nodige sponsorgelden inzamelen. Het geld is bedoeld voor Oxfam Solidariteit. Onder het motto ‘the power of people against poverty’ tracht Oxfam de wereld voor iedereen een beetje beter te maken. U had het al begrepen... via deze weg wil ik jullie steun vragen. Steunen kan op twee manieren:- met bemoedigende woorden ben ik al heel blij maar een gift maakt mij nog blijer. Een gift geven kan: --> via de site www.oxfamtrailwalker.be, klik op steun een team, zoek team 123 - kom piet en kom passie, volg de verdere instructies en laat een boodschap achter voor ons team. Je komt rechtstreeks op onze teampagina door hier er te klikken. --> Je kan gewoon een storting doen op rekening IBAN: BE37 0000 0000 2828 van Oxfam, met mededeling “8095 - OTW TEAM 123- GIFT”. Na de verwerking van de ontvangen overschrijving wordt je gift dan op de webpagina van ons team weergegeven. Als je voor minstens 40 euro steunt, heb je recht op een fiscaal attest. Oxfam stuurt je dat automatisch door met de post begin volgend jaar. --> tot slot mag je me ook steeds wat geld toestoppen in levende lijve, dan komt het ook wel in onze pot terecht. Bedankt, ook namens Leen, Dirk en Werner en ons supportersteam!!! *** English summary *** In the last weekend of August I participate for the second time to the Oxfam Trailwaker - an endurance fundraising event. Together with my three teammates I will make a 100 km walk in one of Belgium's finest regions - the High Fens in the east of the country. If you want to support our feat - in favour of Oxfam: all gifts are welcome and truly appreciated. If you want to contribute, leave me a message and I explain you how to do it! Thank you, also on behalf of my team mates and our team of supporters #neverstopwalking Fact: Istanbul's role in the history of the world is unrivaled and the greatness of the historical heritage to be discovered in the city goes far beyond imagination.
Because of the location of Istanbul on the border between Europe and Asia and its historical and current relevance as one of world's main hubs, it was an obvious destination for my transcontinental cycling dream. It was awesome to enjoy once again the hospitality of another cyclist. Long live Warmshowers! Nevertheless I am not so much into city tripping, even if that city is Istanbul. It was interesting to be here but after two days I feel I need to get out. Tomorrow I am leaving. Destination unknown - will depend on how far the bus is going. You'll hear from me in a day or two. I will ride my bike on the way home - at least for a part. That's the only thing for sure now! It ain't over 'til it's over... |
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