Choosing to mull over my situation at breakfast I walk back into the city pretty bummed. As I'm walking the drunk guy looks up and asks if HBF is behind me I smile thinking no I'm headed to HBF now hahaha... So I tell the poor guy to follow me and I'll show him where it is. Along the way he tells me his story of how he left his friends in a cab after a night of drinking at a club and how he's been wondering around his own city for an hour lost. I show him to the station and he invites me I've to his house saying that I've been so helpful and I can crash on his couch. I accept happily knowing that a couh will be the best sleep I've gotten all week. He ends up cooking me some dinner an heads to bed and I stay up using the internet trying to figure out my next move.. After some deliberation I decide on a combination of ride sharing and hitch hiking. I leave a note on his table thanking him for the hospitality and head off to my ride share. For €30 this guy drops me some where in northern Germany and I figure I could try my hand at hitch hiking. It was 12 at night when he dropped me off so I was going to crash the night in my tent and try again in the morning to catch my ride to amsterdam. It's freezing cold mind you so after briskly finding a spot in the dark next to the freeway I fall asleep. Not more that an hour after going to sleep I am called awake by the sounds of officers saying Polizie Polizie hello.. Haha in German. Flashlights in my face groggy I wake up to the interrogation all I can muster to say is Nein spreken theDutch. One laughs and ask for my id while another searches through my bag and the third starts the questions again in English. Why am I here, where am I from, how long will I stay in Germany and after the questions he just says So this is like your euro trip eh.. Ok and they all walk off just as sudden as they came into the dark. The next morning I try my hand at hitch hiking I'm there for about 3 hours before I realize I'm on the wrong side of the freeway entrance to the direction I want to go. Head over to the other side and wait another 4 hrs.. I get bored with waiting and make my way into the city and find the train to Amsterdam.
. Most expensive way to get to amsterdam €42 missed bus, €30 ride share and, a €58 train ride. Once in amsterdam it's night time again so I end up crashing in the local park out of sight didn't pitch my tent but rather slept with my bag strapped to my pants just incase someone tried to make out with my bag... Such a big city not too many places to sleep with a tent. 
After that terrible night I did all the local activities tried some fresh heniken, smoked in the coffee shops, played pool with travelers, browsed the red light district.
The streets the bikes... Everything I loved about this place just such a cool place to be.
The way that every body gets around and the love for bikes.. There is said to be twice the ammount of bikes as the ammount of people in amsterdam. 
That structure is filled with bikes by the way.
Then there's my bike and how I came to 'own' it. I was really in need of a bike after 4 days in Amsterdam and I wasn't seeing many new things on foot and everyone kept talking about how easy it is to get a bike from a street junkie. Well I wasn't having any luck so far and I really needed a bike. After coming out of a local bar hoping to score a job ( I did but didn't have the right legal paperwork) I was approached by this guy and he was like to man you need a bike.. I said yup and he gave me his bike for €20 no questions asked and that bike I later decide to ride all the way to France. Now when I was in Germany it was my plan to ride from Amsterdam to France to catch a flight in Beauvais to Pisa, Italy where I'm going to stay for two months. But I never thought for an instant that I would settle for a cruiser which weighs more than my backpack and only has 3 gears!!
But my cards were delt and this was the best deal for a bike that I could afford so I started my journey after leaving the wonderful comfort of my hostel call the flying pig (such a nice hostel, such helpful people) and I started to make my way down. The first two days were quite good I was able to travel from Amsterdam to Breda in one day of 8hrs on my bike then Breda to Gent in another 9hr session and finally I'm now in Lille on the third day of 5hrs of riding. Now let me try to paint the picture of how slow I am going on this bike. Due to a couple set backs we have my legs being to big for the bike, both wheels are crooked, the weight of bike and bag, plus the terrible position of the upright riding posture. Made me the slowest bike on the road I had kids, women, old people, a kid with his mom on his back seat all going at least twice as fast as me. And my only competion even though he always stayed slightly ahead of me was this old guy in his electric chair.. I was literally crawling along this path. The miles I've traveled so far estimates to be 190miles.
There were a couple highlights on this while trip that I just need to point out.. One being this ferry no advertisement to this place what so ever but with my phone I managed to find one of the only ways across the river for like 40 miles in either direction. Then the next river problem was in Antwerpeen, Belgium I think.. It's in Belgium but there's this secret elevator just for bikes and pedestrians that lead to a tunnel under the river, I would never have found it unless I asked a local!! 
The number reads -31.. That was so cool i was trippin out the whole time that they took the time to make something like this just for bikers. The ammount of energy that the Netherlands and some of Belgium put out for all the bike roads is amazing you have so much space as a biker in these countries it's absolutely awesome. Well after that I ran into a hidden gem in Gent which turned out to be a wicked college town cool architecture 
And that is my summary up until today the 5th of October. Now for some reflection which really caused me to pick up writing today. The fact that every town I visit without plans on staying in a hotel and rather camping brings me to think if I am like a bum over seas. Seeing new things is really awesome but it's strange how in this position every night once I come to a town I look for the hidden place where nobody will disturb me as I set up my tent and I travel with only the things on my back as my comfort. It makes me appreciate the mundane life I used to have the 9-5 job and waiting in traffic. Not worrying about where I'll sleep and being close to all my family an friends. There's a certain comfort that these certainties have with us that I took for granted when I was back in the states. I sometimes wish for a boring job again to not have to come up with my plan for the next day or look for my next urban campsite. But I'm here and I will live it up!! This experience will probably only happen once I won't say that I'm not going to travel on a crap bike again, I'm just saying I'll try my best to avoid it happening hahaha. Love all my family!! And I miss you guys!! Still trying to figure out my plans for after Italy! I'm looking for places where I can build up some money before heading out again to travel.
10/5/13
Lille, France
Ok so I went out the next day to try my hand at fate again on my bike and ended up drawing bad cards. All throughout France are the worst cobble stone roads which are really the most bumpy roads to use as streets and the weight of my backpack bouncing up and down on my already tormented bike turned out to be too much for it to bear. Once I had gone about 10 miles outside the city she decided to break and by decide I mean 8 spokes on my back wheel were broken when the tire could no longer go straight. So I took my bag on my back and ditched the bike and headed on wards. I figure fixing the bike will cost more than I purchased the bike for and it will be redundant to move onwards. So I went and caught myself a train. For tracking purposes my bike broke in Carvin and I got a train in Libercourt. With this ill head to Paris by train and then get a way to my airport by Wednesday morning 9am. I decided to keep my lock from the bike chain.
10/6/13
On the train to Arras
I'll have to read your post two or three times. I laughed so loudly at your comment about being passed by a woman( with a child) that I had to walk away from the computer to get all the giggles out of my system.
ReplyDeleteHardship builds character , and confidence. Seeing that you've retained your sense of humor (as opposed to being deflated) during the whole adventure, means you're on the right track to becoming the hyper-resourceful globe trotter mere boys can only dream of. My worst night of sleeping was under a park bench in Pasadena; at 2am the sprinklers came on!
You're smart to keep your most vital documents close at hand. I recall having my back pack stolen in Brazil, but I had all of my travel docs in a zippered pocket and was able to change flights and get back to States a day early. Because Brazil was so much cheaper, I had more money in the bank than I would have if I didn't travel.
A friendly manner and direct answers always win you favor with cops no matter where you are. Good move. As for your sentiment -in the moment- of feeling like a bum, you're not. You're simply traveling, and if there's one universal character bums posses, it's laziness. Self-pitying slackers don't solve problems on the fly and keep pressing onward! You are merely doing what all highly-motivated, creative and driven people do. You're merely applying the strong work ethic, and can do spirit of high achievers to traveling on a shoestring budget.
Don't doubt yourself. You're living, and in doing it in a manner you will inevitably daydream about when you're back on a 9-5 schedule. True bums wake up in the same place and state of mind they did yesterday. You are an explorer. You are discovering the world, yourself and gathering qualities of character and strength that will serve you well for the rest of your life. You are looking for and DOING work. Most un-bumlike behavior my son!
Press on ward and upward. Remember, jets take off into the wind. The stronger the wind, the quick you gain altitude. You're growing in wisdom and I'm overwhelmed with pride. Onward to Italy. I'm a few chapters into Shantaram. Good read!
Enjoy your 'vacation.'
All my love
-Dad