A Life in Waiting

As hard as I tried, I couldn’t get myself to write about my past experiences.  Given, my time in Helsinki was rather stressful and busier than one might expect, but I still should’ve had time to write about my five week journey from Munich to Madrid.  But every time I sat down to write, I was overwhelmed by the amount of things that happened and the lack of being able to remember all the details.  And as hard as I tried, I couldn’t find a way to summarize.  It seemed pointless to write sparingly about certain events that I had such detailed memories and experiences. So here we are yet again with another attempt to chronicle my journey through Europe and keep it from being (constantly) referred to as “A Post in Waiting”.  Thanks Ria!

So here’s the skinny of my last motorcycle trip broken down into a cute little timeline.

Jan 28^th-Flew out of Helsinki to Munich where my bike was patiently waiting for me.  Stayed with Klaus who had hosted me last time I was in town.

Jan 30^th - After picking up my bike from the BMW dealership and getting it prepared for the first time, I headed off to Cologne, Germany in near freezing wind and rain.  Also first experience on the Autobahn!

Jan 30^th – Feb 7^th – Partied in Cologne for Carnival, one of Europe’s largest week long parties.  Stayed with about 40 other Couchsurfers, most of whom were on average ten years my minor.  Spent one night in Belgium and a day in Maastricht, Netherlands to see a different style of Carnival.

Feb 7^th – Feb 8^th – One night in Paris.  Didn’t see the Eiffel tower, didn’t go to the Louvre.  But man, did I have a blast driving through the traffic of Paris.  One of the most exciting things I’ve done so far.

Feb 8^th – 12^th – Bordeaux, France.  Man what a beautiful, fun city.  I would live here.  Large city atmosphere, with a small town feel.  Plus some of the most amazing architecture.  Stayed a few nights in a 200+ year old home and then another few days with an 8person family just outside the city.  Drove through miles and miles of vineyards and took a daytrip out to Europe’s largest sand dune, Dune de Pyla.

Feb 12- Daytrip to San Sebastian, Spain.  Such an amazing costal city.  Absolutely amazing.  Wish I spent more time here.

Feb 12^th – Feb 14^th – Bilbao, Spain.  An hour past San Sebastian.  Very cool industrial city turned artistic center.  Did some riding along the coast and a good hike out to an unforgettable point with 270deg of ocean view.

Feb 14^th – Feb 15^th- Madrid, Spain.  Scheduled lunch with the group for Pueblo Inglis, the English language immersion course I taught at for a week.  Had Spanish paella for the first time and got to see a private showing of Spanish Flamenco.  One of the most difficult cities to drive in.

Feb 15^th – Drove out to La Alberca, Spain just outside Salamanca.  Wow.  Some of the most amazing mountain roads I’ve ever ridden.  These roads were designed with motorcycles in mind.  Drove through countless olive groves, and villages with populations of under 100.  Beautiful.  The trip took twice as long as I kept stopping to take pictures that do little justice to the area I was in.

Feb 15^th – Feb 22^nd – Pueblo Inglis in La Alberca.  About the most fun one can have while working for free.  Had a semi-private villa with maid service, 3 excellent meals a day and an endless supply of Spanish wine for the price of… talking.  Excellent program designed to help Spanish business professionals gain more confidence with their already high level of English by forcing them to speak and listen to English 24/7.  Made some great friends, some of whom I will be visiting with very shortly.  The afterhours were spent dancing and singing and just having a great time.

Feb 22^nd – Feb 24^th – La Alberca, Spain.  As I was quite exhausted from the previous week, I spent two nights in the quiet village of La Alberca. 

Feb 24^th – Feb 25^th – Drove back to Madrid and met up with a few Australians that I had befriended in La Alberca.  Went out for some oxtail and drinks.  Following day had difficulty finding a place to store my bike for my upcoming trip to Finland.  Last minute decision to leave it at the airport.  Madrid is still holding strong as the most difficult city to drive in.

Feb 25^th – Flew from Madrid to Helsinki as funds were running low and had some business to attend to.

Feb 25^th – April 8^th Helsinki

 

Now that wasn’t too hard.

One Response to “Some things you just can’t change”

1. Mom Says:
   April 11th, 2008 at 6:13 am

   Hi Hon, welcome back. Glad to read that you’re having a wonderful time & a great experience. Can’t wait to see some of the pictures you’ve taken.
   We’ll talk soon.
   Love you
   Mom & Ricky

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