England!

The next day returned to the customs office with a printed bank statement and confirmation of a ferry ticket to Ireland. These were acceptable, and I was allowed to pass after a short wait. Its amazing what showing a little money can do. The ferry ride was fairly uneventful, but offered good views of passing ships on what turned out to be a beautiful day on the water. The white cliffs of Dover soon became viable, and I snapped a few pictures. The port of Dover was a cluster of ramps, highways, and parking lots that was not intended for cyclists, though there were a few of us there. I ended up taking a walking path over the top edge of the cliffs to avoid the traffic. This was another difficult bike push that offered some good views of the harbor. Again I was surprised by the lack of guardrails or warning signs near the edge of the cliffs.

It should also be noted that I was given six months to explore England, whereas I had been given three months to explore the Europe. As such, the pace of the trip has changed, and I was able to take my time and ride casually on a long a meandering route to London. I stumbled upon part of the national bike route system, switched the GPS off, and followed the coastal trail beside beaches, through beach communities, and rode on top of miles of sea wall. The fresh and sometime briny smell of the water was a welcome change. The weather had also miraculously started to cooperate. The temperature moderated and the sky cleared for really nice riding.

I met local man at a historic ruined church who advised me on a few extra destinations, including Canterbury and Whitstable. I went to Canterbury, toured the cathedral, and decided to stay the night at Kipps hostel which was a terrific experience. Then I went to Whitstable and tried one of their famous raw oysters at a seaside bar.

For all of you wondering, yes, going to England was a nice change back to English, miles, and Fahrenheit. I've already met a lot of interesting and helpful people who have offered me travel advice and assistance. The British accent is only a problem here and there, mostly in the countryside. What has messed me up even more is this whole left hand side of the road thing. Riding on country roads are fine, but intersections and left rotating traffic circles can be problematic to the habits I've formed over the years. I'm still getting used to looking over my right shoulder when riding, and looking right when crossing the street on foot. Drivers are on the opposite side of the vehicle as well, which can be confusing to see driverless cars going about. These skills were put to the test on my ride into London, which was short but involved lots of busy commercial areas. English drivers are among the most patient and friendly I've come, sometimes giving way to the point of suspicion.

I decided to stay in London for a week. I got hostel that was cheep enough and close to several attractions. The gods smiled on me again and when I was bunked with a bunch of girls, many of which were friendly and quite attractive. It was nice to have people to talk, eat with, and tour with when schedules allowed. This was welcome after so long in linguistic isolation. English accents are surprisingly sparse in London. This is a city of immigrants, and many languages are spoken, even right here at the hostel. I was at an Indian restaurant last night, and my server explained in broken English that he was saving money to meet the rest of his family in Brooklyn. It was interesting to talk about it and hear his hopes and expectations.

London has both free and paid museums... you can guess which ones I actually went to. These included the Natural History Museum, Science Museum, Victoria Albert, British Museum. The natural history museum was cool, but pretty much what I expected (i.e. mammoth skeletons) they did have a nice exhibit on minerals and evolution, if you are into either of those things. The building itself was neat, well designed and well detailed. Carved monkeys peer down mischievously from the columns and corners. The science museum had some early steam engines, along with a special exhibit analyzing a month of the museum’s trash. The Victoria Albert had room of cast statues that was really breathtaking. I think I ever have a huge house I'd like like to have a few of these things around :) The British Museum had more classical museum artifacts from Grease, Egypt, and Europe. They had the Rosetta stone, which was also cool to see in person. Some world artifacts attract rock concert like crowds and it can be challenging to get close. I probably spent the most time with the Babylonian wall carvings,

which clearly depicted hunting scenes in long panels. I've toured until my feet and legs hurt, pushed on a bit more, but eventually had to call it quits when I was tired and hungry. I'm starting to think my bike shoes may be the source of my feet and knee pains after a day of walking.

I took a couple of walking tours where I saw Buckingham Palace, House of Parliament, Big Ben, and many others. I took the “jack the ripper tour” which retraced the steps of this unsolved crime. These were both done by Sandman, and were really excellent. I'm sorry I didn't have more to tip the tour guide. I also scored traditional fish and chips and hit a few pubs along the way. I did not get to either of the Tates, an afternoon tea, or a double decker bus ride. Maybe next time.

For fear or damage or theft I've left the bike in storage and have been taking “the tube” for what amounts for $20 wen necessary. Its true what they say that London is expensive. Most of the prices seem reasonable until you factor in the 2x conversion to dollars. A 25 pound restaurant bill is actually closer to $50, not including tip.

London in itself is a very nice city with lots of history and cultural significance. There are pretty girls around, but the bad teeth thing may be somewhat true. The buildings are shorter and there is less hustle and bustle of cities like New York, but still plenty of things to do. Overall London rates highly on the big cities I've been to. There are plenty of cool pubs and tweed, but things are very modernized, with high end shopping and Broadway style shows. Bicycle amenities and bicycle sharing system is well established. Things feel safe and well cared for, but problems persist in waste management, litter in the streets, a binge drinking culture, and some homelessness.

I've extended my stay here once so far, now I start planning the rest of my trip north to Scotland, which I am really excited about.

Calais

The trip out of Paris is about what I expected. The city itself supports a bike share program that fashionable young people use, and scattered bike lanes are at least attempted in parts of the city. These got more scattered as I rode further north, and the quality of the bike lanes suffered in some areas. More important was the change in economic tone. There were a lot of ethnic stores, some areas that looked more run down. This made me feel a little uncomfortable, or that I stood out more then I would have liked. The $12, 2oz coffee cafes were way behind me. It was, however, refreshing to see the diversity in how the more practical “working class” people lived. This progressed as I rode into the countryside. In the 90+ degree heat, I stopped in a local bar to refill water bottles and get a coke. I was met with much interest and respect. I am starting to really value quick fixes like cold coke and dark chocolate on the road.

The new GPS has done a great job in keeping me off of the dirt roads that Google had suggested. This has greatly increased my riding speed and reduced frustration as I rolled nicely along flat, wide open farmland. The GPS shows road names and route alternatives which is helpful also. Some of the farmland I rode was so open that I was the only thing on the horizon among low cut crops. This became an issue when lightning moved in, and I was torn between sprinting for the next town or laying in a ditch for the storm to pass. I guess I was fast enough, but looking at the weather radar I saw afterward shows this may have been a close call, too.

 

Most of northern France is farmland, except for a few industrial areas. The tour guides I read offered little advice except for some war memorials regarding WW1 especially. There were graveyards and marked memorials along the way, and I tried to imagine what this same region looked like during WW1. I took a day in Arras, which was central to the war between Great Britten and Germany. I went through the exhibits in the visitors center and was left somewhat overwhelmed and confused by the long history of occupations, take overs, opposition parties that pot marked the cities long and troubled history. From the map it appears the city was near the front line, and received damage from both the Germans and the English during different periods of the war. The people who did not flee the city dug in, literally, creating underground civilizations to withstand the shelling. Some of these underground opposition groups were central in sabotaging the German war effort, or passing information to the allies. Most importantly, tunnelers managed to connect existing limestone mines to house 24,000 soldiers. The tunnels extended under the battlefield for a surprise attack where several towns and about 30km were recovered in what was generally considered a great success, not to end the war, but to stop the progress of the opposition. The tunnels were occupied again during WW2 bombing raids, but the tour I took focused mostly on the construction and April 9^th offensive they were built for. WW1 has some brutal history that is often forgotten under the farmland.

 

The trip to Calais was rainy, so I camped overnight and got a free drink from the camp owner who was jovially pulling beer for himself and singing what sounded like show tunes. The transfer to the UK was more then I expected. At customs office at the ferry port I was questioned, asked to wait, eventually searched and detained, waited some more, questioned again, asked to wait, got my fingerprints taken, and eventually told that I was declined entrance to the UK. This all took about five hours. They didn't like that I was unemployed, could not prove financial status, and didn't have flights back home. I explained my position, but did not argue the points. Somewhere along the line it became clear that I was not free to leave, and I felt like I was locked up. I was the only one there, and I half feel just picking on a smelly unshaven cyclist. Meanwhile busloads of people loaded huge ferries to and from the UK, and I almost asked my interviewer the employment status of all these people going by, but I thought better of it. Ironically, they had a BBC video in the waiting room concerning the evolution and migration of early man, and although the ice age seemed tough, they never had to go through customs. I had a good laugh which helped brighten the situation. 

So after spending some time in the clink, I got a hotel room and started pulling together bank documents and tickets for a ferry ride out of the UK, which although they are not plane tickets back to the US, do show that I plan to leave, which is what I think their concern was. I plan on trying for UK again tomorrow. I'll let you all know if I make it. Looming over the situation is the Schengen visa, which my time is expiring on. If I cannot get to the UK then I'll try for Ireland, another non-Schengen country. Otherwise it will be a long trip to north Africa, Croatia, Turkey, or other non-European country as my “visa” expires. Perhaps I'll return to the US and do some riding there, but I'm not ready to call it quits just yet.

Paris

My ride to the hostel was another wet one, with a fine mist that felt so oceanic that I couldn't help break into a few sea shanties along the way. Maybe I'm taking the weather in stride, or just starting to go nuts. The hostel that I found online wasn't there, so I took a rest day at a cheep hotel with shopping and a Chinese buffet nearby that I put to good use. I made some changes to the bike, and went to the local supermarket which was a in interesting experience of comparison. I made reservations for Paris, and did other research for my stay.

After my rest I was off to a campsite in Monereau, a cool old village with many old architectural features preserved. The GPS put me on some crazy roads again, so I was glad to meetup and ride with a local who showed me most of the way to Monereau on nice biking roads. We talked and shared stories for the twenty some odd miles before he turned home. He had interest in distance touring, hopefully I was able to encourage him.

The next day my GPS finally died. I had tried to keep it dry by wrapping it in a clear plastic bag while the rain came down on my handlebars, but I suppose I didn't do enough. I tired hitting it with a hairdryer, but that only worked temporarily. The GPS had become my primary navigation tool, with cellular maps as a first backup. Without the GPS I would have had to do of turn by turn (and block by block) checking of my cell phone for directions into a complicated foreign city. This may have been OK if more rain wasn't forcasted. Faced with certainty of getting lost in the rain, and perhaps doing more rain damage or dangerous roads, I finally punted and took the train. I didn't regret the decision as the diagonal rain fell across the blurry landscape. The bike was free to board as complete, with perhaps the hardest part lifting the loaded bike over the train’s few steps. I was able to find the hostel and store things away promptly.

I spent the next four nights (three days) in Paris. I saw I Germany win the world cup at the hostel, then went to see Notre Dame the next morning. My first day whole day was also Bastille Day, which equivalent to the French independence day, and included many special events and activities. There was a military parade which I only caught part of, an army demonstration involving helicopters and vehicle movements, and finally a free concert and fireworks display at the Eiffel Tower. This was one of the coolest parts of the trip so far, and I am glad I was able to time it properly. The national Symphony setup from the base of the tower, and played some familiar songs, like Star Wars and “ride of the valkyries” to the extended lawn of thousands of people. The fireworks were launched in sequence from the tower itself, and made for a pretty good show along with musical and lights display.

The next day was unfortunately spent GPS shopping where I did shell out a pretty penny for a newer, bike specific unit that will work much better then the one I was using from the year 2000. My last day I spent at the Louvre, which was really quite an experience, but was limited by my knowledge of French. I think museums of Berlin did a much better job with multilingual features, but I was still able to enjoy the exhibits, see artifacts like the Code of Hamimurabi, the Mona Lisa, Greek and Egyptian artifacts, and many others. It really is a big place, and I was getting tired of walking all day.

On the subject of walking, I've done a ton of walking all over the city, probably on the order or 10 miles a day, and it would be a lie to say I'm well rested, but at least I felt like I spent my time here well. Although France has some great things to see, there really is something to be said for the French attitudes. There are more cafes and restaurants then you can count, but I also found more uptight pretentious attitudes that made me want to hit people over the head with a day old baguette. Also frustrating, I only found two real “bars” per say, which became a real problem when I was looking for a spot to watch the world cup (Germans may die of thirst). Smoking is somewhat common, and woman are quite cold, so I can be honest to say that I'm ready to leave tomorrow morning. Maybe the city of love has rubbed this single guy the wrong way, but this is probably the first city that I don't want to comeback to, at least right away. I'm looking forward to firing up the new GPS, hitting the last few sites, and rolling north tomorrow towards the UK.

Through France

I decided to spend a day in Geneva, both to rest and see what this city of peace had to offer: a surprising amount of Swiss Army knives, actually. Virtually everyplace was selling these things and I had to wonder how many were confiscated by airport security. The city also boosts an impressive waterfront with thousands of small personal watercraft of every type. A huge guyser type of fountain towers over the city in the central harbor, which started years ago by accident when a municipal pressure release valve blew, and the residents decided they liked it. There is also a shopping district and the European UN, but no big tourist draw, which keeps the city a manageable size. I kept confusing this city with Copenhagen, to give you a feel for how it felt.

I spend a good part of the day visiting the CERN particle collider which was a short train ride away from the central station. This huge underground machine uses supercooled magnets accelerate particles around a 27 km tubular ring to near the speed of light before smashing them together. By carefully watching the pieces that fly off, researchers hope to find answers to some very difficult questions, such as matter/antimater mismatches, properties of dark matter, as well as explore fundamentals like the four forces, questions about light, properties of mass, and quantum physics. This was very science heavy, and represented a challenge to understand and to be understood on their end, I'm sure. I was not able to take the tour, but went through the exhibits. There was also a very interesting book in the gift shop about life at CERN, and included pictures of worn out scientists, boards full of equations, messy desks with laptop computers, and many empty coffee pots. I can only imagine the competitiveness and politics that go on in such a place as everyone wants to be credited for discovering the fundamentals of our existence. But, they didn't recreate the Big Bang or open a black hole while I was there (some people do fear this), so it was a good trip after all.

I was a bit overwhelmed in approaching France as it was not on the original itinerary; I was supposed to fly to Iceland for the summer months and return to the UK, but found Iceland too far, expensive, and a hassle to get to (especially with flying the bike), so decided to go through France instead. I had just a little time to do some basic research on tourist attractions, while also using Babble to learn some basic words, which has been pretty rough going. I managed to string some sights together and use Google to make a bike route, which was about the extent of my preparations. The Schengen Agreement adds pressure as it presents a time limit to make it to the UK. I have less then one month to cross over.

 

 

France is pretty much what I expected, cute little rustic towns separated by vineyards and fields of wheat. Familiar French words keep popping up, like when I stayed in a bed and breakfast in Montreal. The architecture has a quaint run down look that is hard to describe; something about the rusty window gates, crumbling walls, and faded paint that makes it look alright. Many of these properties are from the 14 or 1500's, and it's interesting to think how they are maintained. I could probably best equate their style to a pair of jeans that have that a 'warn in' look. I often wonder how they fix or replace things and not have it be stand out new. I will say that the hospitality and food is way better then I had in Germany, to be sure. I had a huge spread made up for me at the bed and breakfast.

 

Language has also been a problem as English is scarcer then in Germany. I try French, slip to German, and revert to English. This has been the first time during the trip when I really cannot communicate with people, with spoken language anyway. I am getting better at charades. However, I am getting better at “bonjour” to people I pass when I ride. Pretty girls with their “au revoir misure” really melt me. I also know bicycle is a "velo."

My experience in France has unfortunately been downtrodden by rain and poor biking directions. I think I am at about a week of rain every day, which has made everything harder. Electronics have been especially problematic they are sensitive to rain, and I use these a lot. Even things like taking pictures have been limited by rainy conditions. I've been getting better at predicting rain and waiting for rain to pass ahead, finding shelter in barns and bridges, dawning my rain gear like a firefighter on a five alarm call, and generally dodging the green and yellow blotches that move across my cellphone. But I like orphan Anne's optimism that things will get better soon; the forecast says it will clear in the next few days. Daytime high temperatures have been in the low 60's, which I think is cold for mid July.

 

I refuse to camp in the rain when it's been raining during the day, and with limited hostels I've been spending a lot on whatever bed and breakfast or hotel I can find, drop my wet rain gear, at least having someplace warm and dry to rest. This is a physiological rest also. Sometimes the hardest parts of the trip are not knowing where or when you'll stop for the night. I typically start searching at about 4:00, but this depends on what town I am in or near. I've had several experiences where camp sites don't exist, and hotels are being renovated, or hostels are closed, which means going someplace else, hoping for nearby alternatives. I've gotten lucky here on finding some nice local places. I don't know if people take pity on me, or take the desperate cyclist for a ride when computing the bill. I think I've had a little of both.

 

The bike paths of Denmark and Germany are missed. Google does its best to direct me, but I've been on more dirt roads then ever before, which has made for some slow going. Google's path is quite direct, but not best for all types of bicycles. I am, fortunately, usually able to find a work around on better roads and rejoin the path later, but I am looking for a better source of bicycling directions, if anyone has any suggestions.

My slow progress has had me riding every day to meet my time limit. My site seeing has been limited to just a few pictures here and there (sometimes while the bike is moving), and I eventually dropped many of the things I was going to see along the way. Today is my first rest day, and I have much cleaning, rest, and planning to do, as well as bicycle tuning, food shopping, etc.

 

 

 

Swiss Mist

After much debate, I decided to head into the mountains despite the rain. Both of the other cyclists I stayed with in the hostel were heading out, and I have to brag a bit when I say I was better prepared then them with full rain gear, fenders, etc. Also, the hostel didn't have much going on, and it would have been a very slow day to waste when I am already limited in time.

The climb over Furka pass would be slightly higher then the day before, and again took me over a baffling amount of switchbacks and mountain side climbs. It was an invigorating challenge that I took on fully. One new hazard was the lack of guardrails; short posts were widely spaced with no horizontal members such that a bicycle, or motorcycle, would have little protection from some pretty severe drops. I took a bit more of the lane, and again had to watch where I wanted to go, without too much sightseeing while moving. I stopped to take pictures and catch my breath. The views were amazing. It was neat to look over the edge and see the past six segments of road from above. Some parts of the pass were used in early James Bond films. An early section of the pass had a golf tee off to the side, with a white flag far below.

Weather was a bit of an issue. I was generally warm when climbing in the misting rain, but started to pass pockets of snow before I reached the top, where foggy and rainy weather prevailed through the decent. Warm weather gear under rain gear seemed to do the trick, and I was fairly comfortable throughout. I was glad it did not snow, and the roads were not icy, but the fog was problematic for drivers and my own lines of sight. The bike lights went on which probably helped. Some parts of the decent were very steep, and limited visibility made it harder to spot road hazards... entire hairpin turns seemed to come up a whole lot faster. This was a bit white knuckled experience, so again, I did take many pictures (though this would have made a good u tube video). I will say, however, that the dirt road up Mt. Riffler was more challenging then either of these two climbs, both I steepness and general road conditions.

Once I descended from the clouds, the road rolled out in a much more manageable experience through the country side, where I was able to pick up good speed and distance. The rain seemed to be getting steadier, and I managed a deal in a restaurant B&B in the city of Brig below market value. As a side note, there were a ton of restaurants and hotels that were closed along the way. Traveling off season has some benefits, but sometimes it's hard to find a place that's open.

 

 

 

The forecast had one nice day before rain started in again. I decided to try to huff the almost 100 miles to Geneva, a route which was not mountainous and mostly downhill. Google put me on some nice bike paths along the Rotten river, and it was reassuring to have the water flowing in my direction for a change. Things like apricot orchards and baseball fields appeared as the mountains got shorter and the valleys got wider. Some of the paths went through theses areas and I was tempted to stop and pick, but I was hellbent on movement, so stops were few and effort was high. The trail went cold after the GPS put me on a divided highway I had to work around, and an easterly headwind in the valley hampered my progress, so, I did have to camp one more night before finishing up to Geneva, where I scored a hostel and avoided the bulk of the rain.

Personally, this has been the most physically demanding part of the trip. I can't remember when I had a full day of rest between climbing over mountains and my body is starting to feel it. I find myself forgetting things or getting frustrated easily when I am tired. I will say the bike is much faster and responsive then when I started, both for dropping equipment weight and my own fitness levels. Still, the snow, rain, wind, and exhaustive work have me hankering for a mixed drink on a sunny poolside before continuing on. The mountains were tough and worthwhile, and I'm glad I got to do them in the summer. Yet I also look forward to warm valleys of France as I try to learn some polite phrases, and string together a route to the UK.

Swiss Miss

I left Landeck early the next morning, but the hike the day before had done a number on my legs and had me aching on stairs. The route was difficult, and standing to climb used some of the sore mussels, so I avoided that as much as I could. I was rather tired and decided to take a short day. Hostels and were scarce, and with bad weather moving in, I splurged and spent a night at the historic Post Hotel. I had a room to myself, with a wonderful four course dinner and breakfast included. Pictures from the early days of the hotel showed 1900's style trucks driving through trenches of snow, with skiers from the same period.

The next day was a real wash out, but fortunately it was mostly downhill to Liechtenstein, where I found a hostel in Vaduz. I didn't have much time after washing up and drying off, bit also learned there's not much going on in Vaduz besides some views from a palace and a stamp museum. I rolled through the city center in the morning, and was in Switzerland before I knew it. The riding in Switzerland was flatter then I expected as I followed along the river Rhein (upflow). I made some good progress into the mountains, but was getting tired and pulled into one of the only hostels that I could find which was booked; so again, I got a hotel that was more then I wanted to spend. Things are expensive in Switzerland. I would compare them to NYC prices. The currency is also very colorful. I overpaid for my first sub sandwich when I only had Euros. That night I was able to save some money on food by eating a local kabab. The reaction from people that I'm from NY and rode from Copenhagen is funny sometimes.

 

 

The next day I had two major climbs ahead of me. Maybe I was optimistic, but I thought I could do them both in one day. But the Alps mean business. The climbing around here is serious, and when my GPS track winds up like a coiled cobra, or a child's zig zag drawing there can be some hairpins sections hat that add on hundreds or thousands of feet of elevation at a time. Some sections really are ridiculous, and are like the hardest climbs from home stacked end to end. When you climb till there's snow on the ground (in August) you've had a pretty good day. Some of the roads round up mountain sides, over bridges and through tunnels that you can barely see the other side. The amount of infrastructure is pretty amazing, and there are great views everywhere. Some of the traffic is difficult. Large vehicles, like tour buses, will take up an entire hairpin turn, and cannot pass a bicyclist around blind bends, which are frequent. There seem to be a lot of motorcycles, and bewildered looks from drivers that pass me by. I was passed by a train today where people waved from the glassed enclosed café car. There is some merit to it I guess.

There are a other cyclist on the road. I saw a bunch climbing and gave them a hearty cheer when I passed them climbing on my decent. There are two other distance cyclists here at the hostel tonight.

The riding has put a lot of strain on my equipment, my gears and brakes in particular. I should check my brakes as I think I smelled something burning coming down the pass today. There are some crazy descents in the mountains.

Tomorrow I have an even harder ride through Furkapass, and with 90% chance of rain I'm not really sure what I'm going to do. It would be uncomfortable and perhaps unsafe it were really raining hard. I would take a rest day but I only have one month left in Europe, and, I have yet to find any good chocolate, cheese, or braided blond girls running around, so I'm tempted to press on. The rain may come down as snow in the mountains?