Roadtrip

Hungary and Slovakia

Melanie de WetLeave a comment

I was so ridiculously happy and chilled out when I left Romania on Thursday that my first experience of racism went completely over my head. 

It took me about 15 minutes after the event to realise that a white van man was basically telling me to fuck off out of his country. Haha…I thought he either wanted to race me (not my thing) or ride Trinity but after thinking about what the women said that he had asked to translate for him, I realised that was not the case. He must have been so disappointed to get no reaction from me outside of my smiles and clear confusion about him wanting to ‘help me to the UK’. 

After 36 counties I’m probably luck that’s my first negative experience but this just confirms my belief that most people are good. You’ll definitely see that when you disarm them with a great big smile! That’s my weapon of choice anyway – kindness! 🙂

Feeling amused by my own ‘innocence’ and slightly sad about the guys limiting beliefs; off to the border Trinity and I went. The border crossing took about 20 minutes so it wasn’t too bad. From there I was heading to Debrecen. I decided to stay just outside of the city because there was parking and the hotel looked great. I fancied something nice that wasn’t going to cost me an arm and a leg. Staying just outside is the city helped!

The little hotel, Boutique Hotel Kristály, was fabulous; clearly very new. I felt so spoiled! They didn’t serve dinner so I walked about 600m down the road to a restaurant. I had a pork dish that the waitress recommended. It was good and with a beer just over 7 Euro. Result!

I was down for breakfast at 7am and asked the receptionist for advice on what to do that day. She confirmed the plans that I had already considered, partially because she was from one of the towns, so that firmed things up in my head. 

My first stop would be Debrecen, which is lovely. The main street which passes the Parliament Buildings is particularly nice, so I kept within walking distance of that, partly because my phone was about to die and I needed to be able to retrace my steps if it did. 

From Debrecen I went to Sarospatak, which has a fabulous old fortress. I didn’t go into the museum but I did walk around the fortress and it was quite impressive. From there I went to Hercegkút to what I thought was an eco village with grass roofs but having been there I think it’s a cemetery. Hmmm, I still need to investigate what it actually is. The little huts built into the side of the mountain with the grass roofs are pretty cool though!

I’ve included some photos of Hungary below.

As the day was ticking along I decided to head straight to the High Tatras; the mountains that separate Slovakia and Poland. This would give me the chance to have a quiet day in the mountains, which turned out to be a fantastic decision.

There was no border crossing between Hungary and Slovakia – YAY! The border was marked by a sign along a gorgeous country road – it didn’t take me long to realise that I was going to love Slovakia! 

The towns that I passed are similar to Hungary; lovely but lacking the character of the Romanian towns (I really loved Romania). The countryside however is magnificent! It’s like Switzerland but with more lush, green farmland. It was jaw dropping from start to finish.

I had no idea where to stay in Slovakia so I went onto Bookings.com to find the most expensive hotel in the High Tatras and then choose one close to it. My thinking was that expensive hotels always have great locations. 

It was too late to go hiking after settling into the hotel, so I went exploring and found a little restaurant to have dinner. I asked the waitress for a recommendation – I wanted a local dish and of course to try out a local beer. She suggested a cheese dumpling and pork dish so I went with that. It was delicious! I have definitely realised that they like pork in Eastern Europe. 

Saturday was most definitely the highlight of my trip. After an early breakfast I headed to the visitor centre. My thinking was to catch the gondola up the mountain and have a little walk around before I had to check out of the hotel at 11:00. I wasn’t quite sure where I was meant to go so I just followed some hikers. I quickly realised that I was heading on a hike and not to the gondola. Okay, I thought, let’s see where this goes. 

After a stunning 45 minute hike up the mountain I reached a gorgeous waterfall. It was such an amazing setting. My heart and soul were rejoicing and I couldn’t stop smiling!

I sat on a rock under the waterfall and just watch two little kids playing on the rocks. They looked so happy; it was beautiful. I captured the moment in my mind and on camera and with a new spring in my step started making my way down the mountain. 

About a 10 minute walk from the waterfall I stopped to take a video, which I included below. It was a reminder to myself to spend more time in the mountains, I am at my happiest in the mountains, but I also wanted to share the moment with my friends and family. It’s my way of showing them the world through my eyes. 

The hotel that I stayed in was okay but not great so I wanted to move somewhere else, ideally somewhere slightly closer to Wroclaw, which is where I needed to get to yesterday. I found a hotel on-line in a tiny village that had a great view of the High Tatras. The hotel was the cheapest on Hotels.com so I booked it through there (it’s always worth checking a few apps for the best deal).

The 34 room hotel, Hotel Montford, was a little dated but the view was spectacular! Everything faced the mountain. It was the perfect place to spend my last full day on my trip. I had arrived at the hotel at 2pm, the earliest I could check in, so I had time to shower and replace the GoPro mount on Trinity before spending the afternoon outside on the terrace overlooking the mountain. It was perfect!

I sat on the terrace for a few hours, enjoying two beers (Saris which I loved), before heading into the restaurant to have dinner. I was savouring every second of the experience! 

For the first time on this trip I struggled to sleep, so I watched the sun starting to rise at 5am. I was ready to go back to work and my life in London but a part of me didn’t want the trip to finish – there’s was much more I want to see and explore. As I lay in bed overlooking the mountains I couldn’t help but think that this was only the start of my journey!

Bulgaria and Romania

Melanie de Wet1 Comment

Before this trip all I knew about either country was that they are in Europe, Dracula was from Transylvania, the Transfăgărășan is in Romania, Romanians are fantastic gymnasts, I was warned to be careful of pickpockets in Romania and a lot of cleaners in London are from both countries. So, not a lot really!

What I have discovered are countries steeped in history that are incredibly beautiful and are full of wonderful, warm people. I’m glad my eyes have been opened!

I left Greece on Sunday, 29 July and arrived in Sofia in the late afternoon. It was raining again, which was definitely starting to impact my mood. I managed to see a few sights before finding a hotel for the night.

You had to pay extra for parking. This was 7 Euro for a motorcycle, it would have been 15 Euro for a car. I’m normally not chuffed about paying for parking but I’d far rather do that in a city than have Trinity standing in the street. It turned out that the parking was accessed by a car lift. Woohoo…our first car lift. It was very exciting! 

Below is a short video including some photos of Sofia.

After having a shower and my complementary welcome drink, I headed out to find a local restaurant. Hmmm…this was not as easy as you would think in a major city, so I ended up going back to the hotel restaurant to have dinner. 

It had been raining a lot the last week and the forecast was for rain the next three days. I was considering whether to cut my trip short but I realised that I would regret my decision later, so I decided to soldier on. I’m glad I did.

From Sofia I went to Plovdiv, which was voted as the European city of culture in 2019. The city has a great vibe to it and I quickly realised that I preferred it to Sofia. That and also that my mood was improving.

A few photos of the city are provided below. 

I spent a few hours walking around the city before hitting the road for Veliko Turnovo. My spirit hit new heights when I saw Trinity was approaching 33,333 miles on her clock. 

Out of curiosity I starting counting the number of countries that we had been through. We were on 22 before we left the UK, so I counted the new ones that we had visited on this trip. We had now covered 33,333 miles across 33 counties in 3 years and 3 months. How bloody brilliant! Clearly good things do come in threes.

Now I was ready to take on the world!

Veliko Turnovo is a city with a 5,000 year history. The small, picturesque city is home to one of Europe’s grandest medieval monuments, the Tsaravets Fortress, which was visible from the hotel that I was staying at. 

The old city is fantastic! It is like stepping back in time. I almost felt like I was on a movie set. I walked around the old town for about 1.5 hours before heading to the hotel for a night cap. I like to try a new local beer in every county. Tonight is was Britos. It was good (I still prefer the Alpha in Greece though).

Below are some photos of Veliko Turnovo.

The next couple of days would be my opportunity to see Romania. The Transfăgărășan (National Road 7C), which has been voted as one of the best roads in the world to ride and Bran Castle (Dracula’s Castle) were the top of my list of things to see. I really didn’t know what else to expect. 

I was now starting to get really excited about being on the road again; regardless of the weather. Having something to look forward to definitely helps but taking stock of what Trinity and I had already achieved was the extra bit of encouragement that I had needed. 

From Veliko Turnovo I headed straight to Pitesti, where I had lunch before continuing north on route 7C; the Transfăgărășan Highway. The road doesn’t get windy until you hit Vidraru Dam, which itself is quite spectacular.

From there the road starts to meander through the mountains until it finally reaches a clearing near Balea Waterfall. The road either side of that is what you see in the photos of the road. It is pretty spectacular! It was raining and the road condition isn’t the best so I took the ride pretty slowly. 

I stopped a few times along the way to enjoy the view and take some photos. I also bought some cheese and two types of dried sausage at Balea Waterfall, which came in very handy that night. 

It was approaching 6pm and the weather was starting to turn so I decided to find  somewhere to sleep that night. I took a chance at a place along the way, which was showing as having rooms on Bookings.com, but they told me they were full. I went online and managed to find a place 15 miles away, so off I went.

The ride to Ucea du Sus, a little village, was certainly interesting. The little villages along the way are adorable but the roads are pretty poor and you need to look out for horses, cows and dogs.

Below is a video of what I mean. 

The place I was staying was on a blueberry farmers property. It’s not quite what I was expecting but it was absolutely fine and he and his family were incredibly friendly. He offered me a beer, he drinks Becks, and a big bowl of blueberries. There was a kitchen that I could use but I didn’t. Of course it was now that the cheese and sausages that I had bought earlier came in handy (haha…everything happens for a reason). There was no WiFi access so I didn’t post any photos (now you know why dad). So that night I had a picnic in my room and watched some TV.

Yesterday was a full day. I was hoping to have some coffee and the roll I had bought the night before but there were no filters. Bugger! After eating my roll and having another chat with the farmer, he really was quite lovely, I hit the road. I was running low on petrol so that was my current priority. 

There was a petrol station on National Road 1 about 10 miles away. I ended up stopping there for about an hour. I had  two cups of coffee, a chat to a lovely German biker and also tried to help out another BMW rider who didn’t have the right tool for his bike. He was on a 1200 GS. We discovered that the two bikes do not use the same tools so sadly I couldn’t help him. Hopefully he came right.

My first stop for the day was Bran Castle, which is in the town of Bran. It was packed with tourists but fantastic to see. I was full of historical artifacts which were wonderful to see.

From Ban Castle I drove past Rasnov Citadel before heading to Braşov, which is incredibly colourful and beautiful. It’s also the first time that I’ve seen a Starbucks in Eastern Europe. Come to think of it, I hadn’t seen a McDonalds either until I hit Bulgaria. Interesting!

I walked around Braşov, had an ice cream and a coffee and then hit the road again. I generally don’t like to be on the road after 7pm so I wanted to see how far I could get. That turned out to be Sighisoara. 

Below are some photos of the day.

Sighisoara is fantastic! The hotel I stayed at gave me a free bottle of wine so I broke with my normal ‘have a new beer’ tradition and had the wine instead. It was great, although there was no way I could finish the bottle.

I walked around the area near my hotel this morning and I was completely blown away by the beauty and history of the town. I’m aware that I only have 4 days left of my trip and I just want time to stop. It’s been absolutely incredible and I’m now so grateful that I decided to dtick to my original plan.

Below are are some photos of this morning’s walk.

Today I will be heading to Hungry and I’m looking forward to seeing what the country has to offer. I will think back fondly of my time in Bulgaria and Romania! It’s not only taught me a lot about these countries but also a lot about myself and the fact that you should never give up. You never know what’s just around the corner.

Let’s go find out!

Greece

Melanie de WetLeave a comment

Greece is so special that it needs its own post. 

Although I never felt unsafe in Albania, except in my own head, I was so happy to arrive in Greece and be back in the EU. For one thing I could switch my mobile data back on…woohoo!! This is me happy.

I arrived into Greece just south of Lake Ohrid. There was a queue of cars at customs, which I have never seen before. Next to the cars was a queue of people with their bags on what looked like a conveyer belt – like you get at an airport check in. One of the border control officers, this time a lady with a cup of coffee in hand (it made me smile), asked ‘where are you from’? ‘The UK’, I said. ‘The UK, okay you can go’. She said that smiling. 

I suspect if I had said that I was from Albania I would have been unpacking my panniers in the same way that all the cars were being inspected. Also something I had not seen at any of the other border crossings.

The place I was most excited to see in Greece was Meteora. Outside of looking at a few guidebooks I watched a number of YouTube videos about places to see in the various countries, and spoke to people of course. The below video sold Meteora to me. It also sold me the idea of buying a drone (that and seeing a friend’s in action). 

Meteora is stunning! It has definitely been one of the highlights of my trip. The beauty of the 400m monoliths in western Thessaly between the towering peaks of Pindus and the Antichasia mountains cannot be conveyed in words or photos (none that I can take anyway). 

The bonus to this natural beauty are the monasteries and nunneries perched on the top of the monoliths. Most can be accessed by stairs, although they are not always open e.g. the Holy Monastery of Saint Nikolas is closed to the public on Fridays. It was Friday when I was touring the area.

I went into two of the Monasteries; Holy Monastery of Saint Barbara – Roussanou  and the second one’s name I didn’t record sadly. The monasteries are magnificent!  You are not allowed to take photos in the monasteries so I’ll try and describe them as simply as possible. 

The main buildings are constructed of stone floors, exploded brick walls, with thick wooden beams and wooden ceilings. The buildings were simple but works of art in their own right. Very typical Greek construction. 

There were clay pots and other old artefacts on the floors and old paintings on the walls (in the Holy Monastery of Saint Barbara – Roussanou anyway). The rooms were quite minimalist but it suited the environment perfectly. 

The chapels were exquisite! The small chapels, accessed from the main buildings, had high arch ceilings all painted with intricate religious paintings mostly black and white). There were delicate golden chandeliers hanging from the ceilings and beautifully crafted dark wooden high sided benches along the walls. Some of the walls were a faint black from what I assume was candle smoke. They were quite breathtaking. Not ornate; just perfect!

Below are some photos of Meteora and the monasteries. 

After a wonderful morning exploring the monasteries I left Meteora to head to Volos. A friend of mine from work recommended that I go there. It’s apparently where Mama Mia was filmed. 

From that description I thought it was going to be some cute little seaside village. It was definitely not small! 

If I’m doing a city break then I’m happy to visit a city. If I’m on Trinity I want to be in the middle of nowhere or in a little village somewhere. You get incredibly hot when stuck in traffic, particularly when it’s already 32 degrees Celsius outside (it’s like wearing a winter coat in summer), and then there is the issue of the bike’s safety. Cities are not safe places for bikes. 

Wanting to avoid the city centre I booked into a hotel on the mountain behind the city. It was a great choice. The little town was really quaint and had a great view over the city and sea. The hotel, Hotel Erofili, was generally fine except my room didn’t have a balcony (it said it did when I booked it) and it was missing one half of the shower door. Hmmm! Clearly, I wouldn’t stay there again. 

That said, I enjoyed my stay nonetheless.  I tried a Mythos beer that night. It was okay but not as good as the Alpha which I had in Meteora. I enjoyed my beer in a little public square under the trees. The one thing I really liked were all the little water fountains everywhere. I wasn’t sure if they were just for show but then I one of the guys at the table next to me stood up and filled his glass from it. Brilliant! 

I was really keen to spend some time at the beach, I was in Greece after all, so I booked a 2 hour sea kayaking tour at a beach about an hour away. I was so excited! I left 70 minutes before the session started which in theory was plenty of time or so I thought. 

I have now learned not to blindly follow Google Maps in Greece. It took me on a wild goose chase twice. The first in the village I was staying in which cost me 10 minutes and then it took me down some dodgy dirt road in the mountains near the beach. My heart was pounding going down the mountain because all I could think was don’t drop the blood bike. I was in the middle of nowhere! I was just thinking that I didn’t have that much further to go when my next nasty surprise arrived. The road was gated off. You have got to be bloody kidding me I thought!

Below is the dead end road.

Slightly distraught because now I had to get back up the mountain and I was definitely now going to miss my kayaking, I  waited at the gate for 5 minutes, mostly to compose myself before tacking the track again. If I could pick Trinity up the track would not have bothered me (or if I was on a smaller bike) but I knew I had no room for error and that made me nervous. That or a long walk to find someone to help me pick her up. 

In the end it was fine. My nervousness turned into sheer determination and found the tarred road down to the beach. There was a little cafe on the beach so I ordered an iced coffee and enjoying the view when I received a message from the Kayaking company asking me if I needed help. How sweet!

As it turns out Google Maps does this a lot in Greece. George told me that he knew exactly where I was as they had to rescue a couple the week before from the same spot when it was raining and they got stuck. His advice was to make sure you stick to tarred roads. 

As luck would have it there was space for me to join the 4 hour sea kayaking session at 12:30. That would mean that I wouldn’t be able to leave for Thessaloníki before 17:00. That wasn’t ideal but I thought it was worth making the time up later on. It was!

The sea kayaking was great fun! I was with a German family from Berlin who were very sweet and kept offering me food (I will never complain about that). We stopped three times along the route. The first time to walk through an opening in the rocks. It was here that we ate sea snails off the rocks. I’m not a massive seafood fan but had to give it a go. It wasn’t too bad actually.

Our next two stops were on the beach. The first at a secluded beach. George told me that I got stuck in the mountain not far from the beach. I could now laugh at the experience, which I did. Our final stop was on a public beach, where we stopped for about 30 minutes. It started raining when we were there so I stood in the sea while it was raining and just enjoyed the view. It was so peaceful and lovely! It was a great experience. 

I spent the evening in Poly’s Guesthouse in a little town just outside of Thessaloníki, called Katachás. I suspect the town is typical of any small town in Greece, which means it look a little run down by British standards but fabulous compared to many of the other countries that I have been through on this trip. 

The guesthouse itself was great. It was definitely the nicest place in the village from what I saw. The two ladies running it were also great. The one spoke with an American accent, which I commented on. It turned out she grew up in New York. This was definitely a far cry from New York. 

It was a really good thing that I stayed in this little place as Trinity was right outside my bedroom window. This was very convenient from an unpacking/packing perspective and also enabled me to check my panniers for water leaks again. There was water in both of them so I had to clear the water out first and dry them out. 

While I was there I decided to figure out how to replace the oil in my Scott Oiler. It’s a devise on my bike that automatically oils my chain, rather than having to do that manually all the time. I normally get BMW to do it but didn’t during my last service so it was long overdue. 

After about 10 seconds of watching a YouTube video (I bloody love YouTube) I knew what to do. Three minutes later, we were back in business. It was so easy!

I arrived in Thessaloníki just before midday. The only things I really wanted to see were the ancient ruins. My first stop was the Rotonda Roman Temple which was build around 300AD. It was absolutely mind blowing that the building was in such good order. The mosaics inside had perished quite a bit (a lot had either fallen off or had been removed) but you could get a really good feeling of what it would have looked like. It was fantastic!

Below is s video from inside the temple.

There was a single drainage point in the centre of the building, made of marble, and if you tapped your foot on it it echoed throughout the building. It was brilliant and really made me smile.

Next where the Arch of Galerius, a history fountain and Telli Kapi which were nearby, before stopping at a juice bar to get a vitamin fix. It was so yummy! From there I went to see the old Roman Forum, which was also build around the same time as the temple. Sadly it was not preserved quite as well. 

The one thing that I found really sad in Thessaloniki was the amount of graffiti everywhere, including on the ancient buildings. Street art is one thing, which I actually love, but ruining precious parts of history to me is sacrilege. The grounds of the ruins are also not very well kept. Maybe they want it that way but when I looked at the ruins of the buildings dating back nearly 2,000 years and the apartment blocks in the background I was disappointed by our lack of progress as a society. This really can’t be the best that we can do!

Below are some photos of my day on the beach and the ruins in Thessaloniki.

Next…Sofia, Bulgaria. 

Macedonia and Albania

Melanie de WetLeave a comment

I arrived in Macedonia on Wednesday, 25 June. My Green Card was expiring that day, so the date sticks in my mind. The border control officer picked up on that too, so I told a little lie (it was a calculated risk) and said I was driving through to Greece – I was the next day via Albania but he didn’t have to know that. 

Macedonia is lovely! It had big rolling hills with fabulous mountains. I found the countryside of Serbia, Macedonia and Kosovo quite similar. I would say Montenegro too but the mountains are more dramatic there.

The one thing I didn’t enjoy though were the toll roads. I assume it was just the motorway that I was on but there was a tollbooth about every 20-30km. Given that it was raining on my way to Macedonia and I was still wet, putting wet gloves on and off and trying to find change every 15 min got a little annoying. Croatia also had a lot of toll roads but at least they were far apart and there was glorious sunshine the whole time. 

The bonus of the motorway was of course that I could make better progress. I was originally thinking to stay at Lake Ohrid, which from the name I thought would be a nice quiet location. After looking for accommodation I realised it isn’t. Hmm…not quite what I was looking for. As a result I decided to head to Mavrovo National Park. My heart is always happiest in the mountains, so it was an easy decision.

The roads through the park are a little rough but that’s the advantage of being on the motorcycle – it’s no worry and actually makes the ride that little more exciting. I hadn’t booked anywhere but I remembered seeing a few places in the park so I wasn’t worried about finding a place to stay. 

I was just getting to the point when I was thinking that I need to find something now, and there it was. Woohoo! They even had a room for me.

A couple of things stand out for me about my stay in Macedonia. Firstly, it was so cheap! I had a three course dinner, a beer and a coffee for £10. Secondly, my waiter spoke English (I’m starting to think everyone in Eastern Europe speaks English). Finally, I cannot forget my incident in the shower. The place that I was staying in had a shared bathroom. That’s fine except that the bathroom didn’t have a key. What? As it turned out the toilet next door did have a key and the key worked for the shower room. Phew! 

It didn’t end there though. When I tried to move the shower head up on the rail the rail pulled out of the wall. Eek!! At first I was mortified and then I just laughed. Really? I didn’t put that much pressure on the rail. After a minute of having a hand shower I realised I hadn’t seen the skew fall out. Hmm…I suspect I’m not the first person this has happened to. Yup, the wall plug was still attached to the rail, so I popped it back into the wall. All ‘fixed’! 

It rained during the evening and was still raining when I left in the morning so I didn’t get to see the park. Instead I headed towards Lake Ohrid, which is bordered by Macedonia on the east and Albania on the west (you know where this is heading). 😉

Some photos of Macedonia are provided below. 

I wanted to fill up with petrol and have lunch before I went into Albania. As I drove towards the lake I found a ‘private beach’ on the lake. It looked a lot nicer than the rest of the town, so I was happy to stop there. 

This place could not be any more different from the rest of the town. It was very nice! It felt a little strange being in such a nice place given the very basic town I had just driven through. Swanky or not, a Greek salad, chick risotto and two macchiatos cost just under £8. I was not complaining but was slightly taken aback by how cheap it was. This would not be the first or last time that I would be taken aback on this day.

Filling up at the petrol filling station was so surreal and would set the tone for the next few hours. Pulled up next to me at the petrol filling station was a brand new Audi A8 and also a old rickety tractor. Two more opposite worlds could not meet in one place…or so I thought.

As it turns out, ‘where two world collide’ could not be more true than in Albania. On one hand I saw eight horse driven carts (and a donkey loaded with corn – see photo below) and on the other hand I saw loads of brand new luxury cars, mostly Mercedes and Audi (almost always in black). The contrast was astounding!

The donkey in disguise below.

To be honest, I was slightly nervous about heading into Albania. There are enough horror stories about human trafficking and the like in the news and we’ve also had Albania prostitutes in our building (long story but they left once the police paid them a visit), so I’m aware these aren’t just stories. It didn’t of course help that when I was approaching the border there was a sign saying, ‘All smuggling and corruption to be reported at the border’. There were also signs about human trafficking on the walls. It was slightly intimidating (and incredibly sad)! I really didn’t know what to think, except ‘what the hell are you doing’?

I still want to do more research on Albania but out of Montenegro (except the coastal area), Serbia and Kosovo, Albania is far more vibrant and colourful. It also feels like there is more money, even though it has very clear signs of terrible poverty. 

Having compared crime statistics (assuming you can believe these of course), the murder rate in Albania per 100,000 people is actually not much higher than that in the USA and UK. It used to be much higher but has seen a dramatic decrease over the last 10 years. Now that I did find interesting!

It’s therefore difficult to know what is real danger and what is perceived danger. Of course the fact that my motorcycle insurance would cover all countries, except Kosovo (technically an independent state not country) and Albania does say something. As a result I didn’t stop anywhere for long (partly because the border control officer did not ask me whether I had insurance, which I didn’t have, so I was driving through the country without insurance) but I tried to keep an open mind with regards to my observations. It was certainly an interesting country to visit and to be honest, outside of Montenegro I found it the most beautiful in terms of landscape. 

Below are a couple of images of Albania. 

Next…Greece!

P.S. this Top Gear episode about Albania is really funny and worth watching (no offence of course intended to anyone from Albania).

https://youtu.be/Sfkh7WtW7Po

Kosovo

Melanie de WetLeave a comment

I spent the night in a fab place in Kopaonik and was now ready for the ride through Kosovo. The ride to the border, as I’d discovered the day before, was 20 minutes away. I was enjoying the ride down the mountain, particularly as it had stopped raining, so I was a little taken a back when I saw three army guys on the side of the road with a huge gun (like something you’d shoot an aeroplane down with) and a separate vehicle with what looked like an oblong satellite dish which was spinning around (I was thinking that it was some sort of communication or listening device). 

It was so surreal that for a split second I actually wanted to stop and take a photo but thank goodness my sane mind kicked in. All I could think was, ‘if you’re going to shoot that thing make sure it’s in the opposite direction to me’! 

Okay, that I wasn’t expecting but now I was awake. 

I arrived at the border not knowing what to expect. I had seen from various biker blog posts that you could buy insurance at the border. I had 50 Euros in cash with me. It cost 10 Euros for two weeks. Bargain!

The Serbia/Kosovo border was the friendliest border crossing I have had to date. The border control officers were lovely and again, all spoke English to varying degrees. They also loved Trinity! At a stage there were four of them checking her out. I couldn’t decide whether to be flattered or slightly worried. It turned out to be just fine! What did stand our was that the guys were all lovely but the lady that sold me the insurance was a little grumpy. I’ve experienced that a few times on this trip. It’s been an interesting observation. 

Kosovo was not what I was expecting, not that I knew what to expect. The countryside is beautiful, just like Serbia and Montenegro (although not as mountainous as Montenegro). The towns are buzzing, still a little run down, but you can see there is money being invested in infrastructure. The clearest sign of this was a new road being built in a valley as I was approaching Macedonia. It looked like they were building a bridge along the whole length of this valley. It seemed like a very expensive way to build a road but it was impressive from an Engineering perspective. There were a lot of new motorways being built so there is definitely money being pumped into infrastructure. This is good as the roads in the cities, Phristina in particular, were terrible. Their drainage was nonexistent, which wasn’t great as it was bucketing down with rain. There were points in the road that looked like river crossings – it was nuts! 

At this point I also realised that my new lightweight waterproofs were firstly, too short as water was coming into my left boot and secondly, not up to the standard of my BMW one’s, which I left at home because they’re much bulkier and I didn’t think that I’d need them. Well, I now have vivid memories of passing cars and trucks spraying water all of me. It was kinda funny, even if I had a wet left foot. 

I only stopped twice in Kosovo. The first was to take a photo of a mosque that I liked. They are everywhere but I liked this one. The second time was to fill up with petrol. Kosovo has a healthy mix of traditional and modern petrol filling (gas) stations. It may be the American influence. This was was liked to a hotel (a slightly odd combination) but I knew at least they’d have a clean toilet. It was spotless, albeit a shared bathroom, which was interesting. 

I decided to make use of the opportunity to use their WiFi and try out some local items – a banana chocolate bar (the guy behind the counter recommended it) and a grape juice. Both were good. I’ve included my Instagram post of the two below. 

I got caught in traffic quite a lot in Kosovo. The roads north of Phristina are single lane and there was a lot of traffic. There was also an accident that held things up a bit. I’m not surprised that happened; their driving is a little nuts. At a point there was a guy in a black Golf that was filtering through the traffic like a motorcycle. I couldn’t believe my eyes. 

I also saw an armoured vehicle (the only one). It didn’t have any guns though; a downgrade on my Serbian experience. Outside of the above though, it was a pretty easy ride. 

Next…Macedonia!

Bosnia & Herzegovina and Montenegro

Melanie de WetLeave a comment

I left Split on Saturday morning and headed towards Bosnia. The aim for the day was to go and see Stari Most, a rebuilt 16th-century Ottoman bridge in the city of Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina that crosses the river Neretva and connects the two parts of the city, and then head to Dubrovnik. This would be the first time I ventured outside of the EU on this trip. It also marked the 26th country I have toured on a motorcycle (25 on Trinity). 

There were two things I was slightly concerned about. Firstly, the border crossing (I’ll explain why in a mo), secondly, not knowing what to expect and finally, not having my mobile phone to rely on (I normally navigate using Goodge Maps) but since I was outside of the EU the data would cost a bundle. 

I was nervous arriving at the border as I discovered the day I was supposed to leave Poland that I needed a ‘green card’ to ride through some of the counties I would be visiting. My first thought was what the hell is a green card? Turns out it’s ‘international’ insurance papers for the vehicle you are driving. Apparently I should have given my insurance company three weeks notice before I left the UK. Oops! I was already in Poland at the time and about to head off on my trip. Clearly I should have read my insurance papers earlier! 

Anyway, the lovely chap from Carole Nash managed to get me a green card sorted out in 5 working days and sent me a PDF copy via email. I got a random hotel in Split to print me off a copy (thank you Villa Diana Hotel) so I was hoping this would do. Really, I was praying it would do!

I arrived at the Croatian/Bosnian border with my passport and copy of my green card to hand. After a wait in the baking sun I handed the border officer my paperwork. He proceeded to say, ‘where is the original’? At which point I said, ‘I only have a copy and the PDF the insurance company sent me’. ‘This isn’t valid’, he said. ‘Oh shit’ I said in my head, what now! ‘Where are you going to’, he said. ‘To Mostar and then Dubrovnik’, I said. ‘Don’t make accident’, he said, ‘these papers aren’t valid’. Then he let me enter the country. Phew! Now I just mustn’t make an accident I thought. Thank goodness I didn’t!

It takes about an hour to ride from the border to Mostar. All I did was follow the road signs. There is a distinct difference between Croatia and Bosnia. For one, there is clearly less wealth. Secondly, the architecture is slightly different. Thirdly, it’s a lot drier and finally, there are mosques.

The road to Mostar is well signposted so it was easy to find. I couldn’t find a parking space near the Stari Most (the arch bridge), so I parked down the road and walked up to the bridge. A lot of the shops along, what I assume is, the high street are empty or boarded/bricked up. I’ve never seen anything quite like it. 

The bridge itself and the market where great! There were a lot of interesting lamps and artefacts that you could buy. I have no space on Trinity but I enjoyed looking at them nonetheless. I probably spent about an hour walking around before heading back to Trinity. Just as well as I think two guys were trying to get into her panniers. I’m still not sure but I spotted them from about 100m away and they kept looking around. As soon as they saw me they walked away. I wasn’t sure if they were up to no good at the time but after trying to access her left pannier I knew someone had tried to access it as my key was jumming in the lock. After thinking about it I had to laugh – someone damaged the right pannier in California and now the left in Bosnia. It just shows ‘bad’ thing happen everywhere. Luckily I have two locks on each pannier (one on each side). It’s probably time I have the two damaged ones replaced before I’m locked out of my own panniers One day.

Below are some photos of the day.

I ideally should have driven through Bosnia to Dubrovnik but since I didn’t have Google Maps to rely on I travelled back on the same road. This meant another hour’s wait at the border, and of course a second set of border crossings when I got closer to Dubrovnik. FYI – there is a strip of land outside of Dubrovnik which falls within Bosnia, so you have to drive through Bosnia to ride the full extent of Croatia.  

As I’d been told at the first border crossing that my papers weren’t valid I was expecting to be stopped at the second crossing. My heart started beating faster when I reached border control, only for the border control officer to wave me through. He didn’t even check my passport! There are a lot of people on mopeds that clearly ride between the two countries so he probably thought I was a local. This is my take on it anyway. Whatever his reasoning I was happy! 

By the time I reached Dubrovnik it was about 7pm and I just wanted to find a place to stay and somewhere to eat. As I approached the city I could see a lot of boats in a harbour so I decided I would head that way. There were two places available on bookings.com near the water so I picked the one with the nicest view. They were a similar price so why not!

The room was basic and had a shared bathroom but it was more than adequate. The lady running the place was lovely! She offered me a glass of orange juice and sat speaking to me, in her basic English, before pointing me in the direction of the local restaurants. She was so sweet! 

I left around 10am in the morning to head to Montenegro (I’m not great at getting up early even if I wake up pretty early). The ride south of Dubrovnik is absolutely breathtaking! I will definitely go back there as some stage as I didn’t get to see the city properly and it looks fantastic. 

After a stop at a local cafe for some breakfast…and a giggle (slightly in horror) at the guys on their beers and whiskey at 10:30 in the morning, I hit the road again. This is probably aided by the fact that a beer is cheaper than a coffee (certainly a latte anyway). 

I reached the border around 11:30. Someone is clearly taking good care of me at these border crossings! At the Croatian/Montenegro border they were more concerned about my ownership papers (thank goodness I had the original for that). All the border control officer asked was do you have the original green card. I said yes (well I have a PDF version on my phone so it wasn’t a complete lie). He was happy with that and let me in. Phew!

Slightly worried about racking up a silly phone bill I switched off my mobile data. I could still see where I was on Google Maps and that was all I needed. From the border I went straight to Kotor, which is great. I walked around the old city for a couple of hours before heading for the mountains. I was really looking forward to some cooler weather (the warm weather in Croatia is fantastic but hard going on the bike in slow traffic). 

Below are some photos of the border crossing and Kotor.

The one thing that really strikes you in Montenegro is the mountains. They are similar to those in Norway – very steep but without the water. They are fantastic! 

This was the view from the mountain just north of Budva. I was literally in the clouds!

At the coast Montenegro is quite similar to Croatia but there’s a big difference once you head into the mountains – things become a lot more basic. The bonus is that they use Euros and, like in Coatia, most people speak English to some level. 

My intention for the day was to get as far as Biogradska Gora National Park but I never got that far (just as well as it turns out there’s not much there, which I discovered the next day). I did however manage to see the Ostrog Monastery and meet some more fellow travellers along the way. At the bottom of the hill I met a couple from the Netherlands, also on motorcycles. At the top of the hill, in the long queue waiting to enter the monastery, I met a couple from the UK, Jonathan and Anne (hopefully I remembered their names correctly). They were awesome! 

They had travelled 2 hours out of their way to visit the monastery. I was passing it on my way from Lovcen National Park to Durmitor National Park. I had seen the monastery noted as one of the ‘must sees’ in Montenegro in a YouTube video (the source of all knowledge you know, so I wanted to see it.

Anyway it turns out it is not just a tourist attraction but a sacred religious place. Everyone (except us) were kissing the doorways or doors entering and exiting the monastery. There was also one room where a priest was praying (I assume giving a blessing to someone leaned over what looked like a coffin but I don’t think it was). It was a little freaky as I, as well as my fellow UK travellers, had no idea what was going on or what to do, so we turned around and left before we got to the priest. 

At this point I should say that we stood in a rainstorm for an hour to get into the monastery! I now know for a fact that my North Face Gore-Tex jacket is only good for about 15 minutes of heavy rain. After that it soaked up water like a sponge. I was still wringing water out of it 2 hours later when I was trying to ‘dry out’. That bit was not so much fun but it was hilarious sharing the experience with Jonathan and Anne and also discovering that you can buy an ‘Irish cream coffee’ at the vending machine at the bottom of the monastery. We thought it must be a language thing so I ordered one (it was only 50 cent). It wasn’t, it was the ‘real thing’. As Anne wasn’t driving she offered to have the Irish coffee and I had a hot chocolate instead. We all had such a giggle over that!

Meet Anne and Jonathan!

My attempt to dry out my jacket didn’t work enough to wear it that night but it was dry by the morning.

And here are some more photos of Montenegro.

In my next post I’ll cover my last day in Montenegro and Serbia! Update to follow. 

Rovinj to Split, Croatia

Melanie de WetLeave a comment

I arrived in Croatia on Tuesday, 17 July. Except for an afternoon in Bosnia and Herzegovina (I’ll discuss this in my next post), I was in Croatia until yesterday, Sunday, 22 July. Croatia is fantastic! I now understand what all the hype is about. 

The intention on Tuesday was to go to Rovinj to meet Milan (a friend from London) via Ljubljana but I ended up sending some work emails in the morning which left me only enough time to walk around lake Bled and head straight to Rovinj. Lesson – don’t do work on holiday!

I arrived in Rovinj at 3pm. I met Milan at the place he was staying with his son. It is just as well that I arrived before them as I discovered, as luck would have it, that my panniers had leaked water in so this gave me time to dry them out in the sun. 

Rovinj, as all the towns/cities I visited in Croatia, is gorgeous! Hopefully I don’t do Croatia injustice by describing it as having an Italian look with an European feel. The old cities have a special class of their own though (something I haven’t found anywhere else in Europe). The weather in Croatia is also perfect (if you like sunshine)! It was 31 degrees Celsius for most of my stay and it never rained once. 

Milan and his son, Stephan, were perfect hosts – they spent the afternoon and evening showing me around Rovinj and wouldn’t let me pay for anything. Milan kept saying ‘you’re our guest’. This was something I learned about Croatian people – they are incredibly hospitable. It was wonderful and most appreciated!

Rovinj is a coastal town about an hour south of Ljubljana. From there I headed back inland to visit Plitvice Lakes National Park. This was my one ‘have to see places in Croatia’. It was packed with people but absolutely stunning! I have never seen water like it. 

The bonus pack was that I met a South African couple on my walk to the park. I couldn’t believe it – Dawn and Paul from Durbanville, which is just outside of Cape Town. They were fantastic! I kept getting lost and running into them so eventually I just tagged along with them and they gratuitously allowed me to. 

From Plitvice I headed south to Zadar. I stayed in the old town. My greatest concern was what I was going to do with Trinity as parking in the old town is on-street. Well, in motorcycle terms in Europe, that means on the footway. This wouldn’t fly in the UK but seems to be the norm here. Bonus! 

I stayed in a place called ‘The Secret Garden’. Most of the accommodation in Croatia seems to be apartments for rent (or maybe this is just the case via bookings.com which is what I normally use to find accommodation). The room was perfectly fine, nothing special, but the courtyard garden was fantastic. My host was equally amazing! I arrived and he offered me a beer (no charge) and sat chatting to me. He works in catering for the fashion industry in Milan most of the year and then spend summer at his family home in Zadar. Apparently Zadar, like most of the coastal towns, are empty most of the year but in summer they come alive. I’m so glad they do!

From Zadar I went to Skradin with the plan to visit Krka National Park (which apparently is similar to Plitvice). By the time I got there though I realised I only had three hours until I had to meet my friend Sally in Split, so I wouldn’t have time to visit the park after all. Instead I sat eating lunch overlooking the lake. It was lovely and peaceful and also nice to get out of the heat a bit. 31 degrees in full biking gear gets uncomfortable when you’re not moving (on the bike to get a breeze that is).

My host in Zadar had mentioned that there was a cute little town just outside of Split that I should see, called Trogir. I had an hour to spare so thought why not. I’m so glad I made that call as I loved Trogir. It felt like a Croatian version of Mykonos, just way smaller and no cruise ships. 

Trogir is a 45 min ride from Split so I left in time to meet Sally at 16:30 as we’d planned. Sal is one of my favourite people in the world so it’s always a pleasure to see her. It also gave me the chance to spend some time with her new boyfriend John and son Shaun, which was great. We spent the afternoon walking around the old town, which is fantastic, and pretty much eating and drinking. It was great!

Wet and Wild Germany

Melanie de WetLeave a comment

It’s funny the things that you remember. Sometimes a moment captured in my mind is brought back by a smell, a visual reminder, the feeling of the heat radiating off Trinity or simply the temperature reading on her control panel. It’s not the beauty of the object or landscape that I remember most but how I felt in the moment. The feelings are branded in my memory.

The most wonderful part of every memory is that I’m transported back to that moment every time I experience one of these remainders. The excitement fills me as if I was experiencing it all over again. Those are the moments that make my travelling worth it. The moments that make me feel alive!

Today I was transported back to Utah.

I started my day in Lubeck, northern Germany. The old town is an UNESCO world heritage site with buildings dating back to the 1400s. It is very cute and quaint! I’ve included a few photos for you to enjoy (you may need to click on the photos and visit my Instagram page to view all the photos).

I spotted a chocolate store on my walk around which I decided to visit in the morning. I’m so glad I did. It is the most amazing chocolate store I have ever seen! I was like a kid in a candy store and all I could think about was how Mr G, aka the sweety monster and my ‘adopted’ big brother, would LOVE the store. I had no idea how I was going to fit it into my panniers but I knew I had to bring chocolates back for him. So I did, after having the house special marzipan and cream cake and a latte at 09:45. Yes, it was definitely overkill!

I was barely out of Lubeck and planning my day. 3.5 hours to Munster would mean that I could be there my 2pm and enjoy the day lazing around. That was the plan until route 1 came to a standstill. As far as I could see there was a queue of cars, three lanes across. One of the drivers eventuality jumped out of his car and said that the queue was 3km long and that the road had been closed off due to an accident.

We stood around chatting for a bit but when the traffic in the fast lane started to move I jumped onto Trinity and joined the moving cars. It didn’t take long before they stopped but I decided to drive through the standing traffic. I don’t often do this with my panniers on but I wasn’t keen on sitting in traffic any longer than I needed to.

The queue was easily 2-3km long. People were getting out of their cars and I was even waved by a family clearly trying to keep their toddler entertained. I was soon joined by a fellow rider who I let pass to pave the way. We stopped when we appeared to be getting to the front of the queue. I had no desire to see what had happened as the thought of someone hurt was upsetting enough.

My fellow rider was Swiss and was riding a Ducati Multistrada 1200; a gorgeous bike! He had been touring Germany with some friends and was on his way to Hanover for a Guns ‘n Roses concert and then heading back to Switzerland. How brilliant! I didn’t know Guns ‘n Roses still performed. I was slightly jealous!

We didn’t have to wait long before the traffic started moving. The accident involved two trucks, which explains the road closure, but fortunately it didn’t look too bad so hopefully no serious injuries were sustained.

With that I was off and only about 30-45 minutes off schedule. No harm done and I was ambling along nicely for 30 minutes or so and then I saw the clouds. There was a storm on its way and I was heading straight for it.

As it had been pretty warm and clear I was riding in jeans so had no weather protection. I knew I needed to stop. My stop couldn’t have been better timed. I had just enough time to pull off the road (not something I like to do on a motorway) and pull my waterproof riding pants on when the hail started. That I hadn’t expected!

I had stopped next to some trees along the road but the hail was battering through the gaps so I moved Trinity forward a few meters where I had maximum cover. The hail was blowing in strongly from the shoulder (the north I think) so I faced the road to avoid any damage to my visor. That was the last thing I needed. The strategy worked but resulted in my neck getting drenched. This was going to be a fun ride!

Fortunately the hail only lasted a few minutes. I had no idea how long the storm would last so I hit the road. The heavy rain and wind continued for about an hour; long enough for me to get thoroughly drenched. Strangely the storm didn’t bother me a bit. I think the storm I experienced in the USA had prepared me for anything. I had never been so scared in my life but I got through it so I would get through this. The storm was in Utah.

All I had to do was follow route 1 to Munster so even I couldn’t get lost. Around Bremer the sun started shining and it kept getting hotter and hotter, peaking at 37 degrees. I stopped to have a break and use the opportunity to dry off. Trinity played her part perfectly and makes a very pretty drying horse (see for yourself below).

Every move on the temperature gauge reminded me of a different place. When the gauge hit 32 degrees I was in Vancouver. I so vividly remember the shock of Canada actually getting hot that the temperature on my approach to it is firmly set in my memory.

When the gauge hit 36 degrees I was in Utah. At first I was in Canyonlands and Arches National Parks with their beautiful red rocks but as the temperature rose I was in Capitol Reef National Park. I remember the incredible heat and the feeling of being in the middle of nowhere when I saw a lonely cyclist along the road. I was completely humbled by and in awe of that cyclist!

I reached Munster around 15:00. I stopped at what I thought was a corner cafe but turned out to be post office. No water here! Now drenched with sweat I took a seat in the shade next to the store to find a place to sleep. It didn’t take long before I was chatting to a lady that had popped into the post office. She was so sweet! She thought I was very brave being on a motorcycle and it got us talking about travelling. Turn out she’s heading to Vancouver in six weeks time for four weeks. I gave her some tips of where to go and got quite excited when I thought of the places that I visited while I was in British Columbia. She’s in for such a treat!

On the lady’s advice I booked into a youth hostel near the city. I generally avoid hostels as I like my own space but thought it was worth a try. It’s certainly a lot cheaper than the hotels in this area. My attempt to be sensible with my money then made me giggle. Two nights ago I booked into a ‘BnB’ on Bookings.com that was on the beach and had on-site restaurant facilities. After a day of riding that’s all I wanted. I reached the BnB only to discover that it was a high school which let out its dormitory for extra cash. At first I was shocked but then I couldn’t stop laughing. This was an evening I was not going to forget. I look forward to remembering it with great fondness.

Lucky 21 – Norway

Melanie de Wet3 Comments

There is only one word that can describe Norway, western Norway anyway, and that is exquisite (just bring a raincoat)!

When I entered Norway a week ago I only had an idea of what to expect; who hasn’t seen the photos of the fjords.

The ride up north from Kristiansand to Stalheim was full of surprises. It started out warm and with rolling green hills, becoming more dramatic the more north I rode. The mountains on the approach to Folgefonna National Park along route 134 were covered in snow and the temperature dropped to a chilly 8 degrees. Once over the summit temperatures rose again and I was riding along mountain passes.

There were three things that stood out for along my ride. The first thing was the number of waterfalls; they are everywhere! The second was the bus stops. I love the bus stops! They look like little hobbit houses with their grass roofs. So cute! They are the best in the southern part of Norway though. Finally, the tunnels. The tunnels are amazing! Some are miles long, others climb through the mountains. I rode through one which had two roundabouts / intersections within it. I’ve never seen that before.

I stayed at the Stalheim Hotel on Tuesday night. The view from there is fantastic and the ride from the hotel to Gudvangen didn’t disappoint either. The steep hairpin bends from the hotel to the E16 was flanked by two dramatic waterfalls. It was quite breathtaking. Below are a few photos of the ride (hopefully you can scroll through the set).

I was heading to Gudvangen to catch the ferry to Flam. The 2 hour ferry ride follows the two fjords within a UNESCO world heritage area. It’s quite spectacular seeing the fjords from the water. The contrast between the wide expanse of water and the steep cliffs is impressive. Just avoid sitting at the back of a diesel driven vessel; the fumes can be a little overpowering.

Below are a few photos from the ferry ride.

I was intending to take the 2 hour Flam railway ride but sadly it was fully booked until the late afternoon and I had made plans to meet my friend Sally near Viksdalen about a 2.5 hour ride away. Flam is gorgeous and certainly worth a visit. Next time I will spend a night there and take the train ride.

The ride to Viksdalen took longer than planned because I kept stopping to enjoy the view and take photos. It’s really hard not to! You’ll see why below.

It was great to spend an evening with Sal. As always we chatted and laughed until we fell into bed. We headed in opposite directions the next morning. Sal was ending her trip in Norway and mine was just beginning. Sal had given me a load of tips about where to go and I’m so glad I took her advice. The next two days were undoubtedly the highlight of my trip.

The view about half a mile from the Lote ferry terminal made me stop in my tracks. It was spectacular! I pulled off the side of the road just before the start of the tunnel and had lunch perched on the concrete barrier. It wasn’t the most romantic stop but the view was worth it! Sadly the picture does it no justice but here it is below, along with a video clip of the view.

Briksdalsbre and the area of Olden could come straight out of a fairytale. I felt truly blessed to be there and was so happy that there was a cabin available in the heart of the valley. I spent the night next to a stream surrounded by waterfalls, with the Briksdal glacier only a 40 minute walk away. I had walked up to the glacier when I arrived and was fortunate to see part of the glacier break off and come crashing down like a waterfall of ice. The noise from the glacier was incredible; like thunder during a storm. Below are a photos from the area. This area I would revisit in a heartbeat!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BVXsaQGBs4j/https://www.instagram.com/p/BVdCN4ahz0C/

Next on my highlight list was the views around Geirangerfjord from the town of Geiranger. It is fair to say that it doesn’t matter which side you approach this town the view will blow you away. A definite must do if you’re planning a road trip to Norway. This was the view from the northern approach. The southern approach is even more spectacular.

The most north I travelled was to Tollstiegen; a view I was told not to miss. Sadly the weather did not play along and the valley was covered in fog. Nonetheless the ride down was spectacular. I could not see the waterfall from the top, although I could hear it, but I did see it on my way down the valley. The first photo below shows what I should have seen versus what I was able to see on the day. I will definitely return to see this view one day.

Sadly from here on the weather never improved. It pretty much rained solidly the next two days so I didn’t stop much. The two other things I would have loved to do were the skylift at Loen and to spend a night in Skei.

The weather was similar in Bergen. It stoped raining for about an hour, long enough for me to video call my dad for Fathers Day and show him around Bergen as I walked around. Then the rain started again so after lunch I spent the afternoon and evening in my hotel room watching TV and chilling out. After looking at the weather forecast I decided that I was going to head east towards Oslo. I was going to chase the sun and also see if I could avoid the ferry crossing back to Denmark. The idea of spending another 3 hours throwing up on a ferry appeals to me less than driving through Sweden.

I am currently sat in a cafe having lunch about 30 miles from Norway/Sweden border. The sun is shining and I’ve been reminiscing about the now 21 countries that I have travelled through by motorcycle. Without a doubt the USA and Canada still top my list but the Western Cape (South Africa), the Highlands of Scotland, the Swiss Alps and now Norway are on my ‘have to visit’ list.

On that note, it’s time to hit the road again! This time with the sun on my back…woohoo!! 🙂

 

Hello Norway

Melanie de Wet3 Comments

A week ago I was stopped in Ashford, too tired to make it to Folkestone. I didn’t fare much better the next day making it to just outside Amsterdam.

By Sunday I was gaining my strength back and making better progress. I missed the turnoff I should have taken to the west of Hamburg and ended up east of Hamburg in a little town called Malente; a peaceful little town set around a tranquil lake. It was lovely!

I had booked the ferry from Hirtshalls, Denmark to Kristiansand, Norway for 18:00 the next day, so I wasn’t going to see much of Denmark outside of the motorway. The ride was wet and the wind was howling! I strangely love the challenge but I was glad it wasn’t one of my sightseeing days. Below are a couple of photos taken at the port in Hirtshalls.

I hadn’t given much thought to the crossing itself as my thoughts were on arriving into Kristiansand at 20:30 and then having to find somewhere to sleep for the night.

I had a French style hotdog on the ferry before we left the port, thinking that it would save me having to find dinner when I arrived in Norway.

Of course, strong winds equals rough seas. That hotdog came back to haunt me over the now 3 hour ferry crossing due to rough waters. I was so sick and so sorry I ate that bloody hotdog.

When I arrived in Kristiansand all I wanted was a bed and a shower. I headed into the town but after 10 minutes decided I wasn’t leaving Trinity on the street, so I started heading north on route 9 towards Bergen. I had seen cabins advertised on-line in Evje so I was hoping to book into one of those. Worst case scenario I had my tent and would find a spot to sleep or just ride through the night – it’s only dark for about 3 hours after all.

I arrived at Evje at 22:20. There was nobody at the reception of the campsite but there was a sign saying (in essence) grab a set of keys, put your money in an envelope (£350 Norwegian Knone), pop it through the mailbox and enjoy your stay. Awesome! The last time I’d seen this was in Canada.

The little cabin was great value for roughly £30/$35. It had a bunk bed, a little kitchen (including a fridge, stove, kettle, coffee machine and all the cookery and crockery that you need) and a kitchen table with waterside view. Perfect! Below was my view.

Tuesday’s mission was to get to Stalheim and I rocked it, completely inspired by the incredible scenery around me. It was also an amazing 18 degrees Celsius when I left Evje, which I was not expecting, so that made me very happy. The warm weather was short lived though as the temperature dropped to as low as 8 degrees riding over the snow covered mountain passes. The change in topography was great though and also brought back great memories of my ride through the Alps last summer.

No day of mine would however be complete without at least one wrong turn. This one led me to the most incredible waterfall I had even seen on the side of a road. Due to the spray I took this video in my full bike gear (helmet included).

Once back on the right road, and two toll payments later, I made good progress and arrived at the Stalheim Hotel around 17:00. Yippee, I could have a beer and enjoy a stunning view and what a view it was.

I was starting to get a feel for the next few days to come. Hello Norway!