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.