Mari Travels with Tango

After 4 days is relatively sedentary life, my body and mind are starting to get used to less physical strain, more free time, and different challenges from those one has while constantly on the move. I know from experience that the transition is never easy, and the bliss of achievement will quickly fade, no matter how much I concentrate on wonderful sense of carefree existence that always accompanies my last days of cycling. Still, the fall is always at least a little abrupt, bringing with it all kinds of emotional and physical upheavals.

Arrived, happy and content. Life is good and right now, there is nothing more that I need for happiness. Will write about the last part of my wonderful trip soon, now putting on my heels for the first time in almost 3 weeks, heading for the "Summer in the City" tango marathon that is my reward for all those kilometers in the saddle. After all, this blog is about travelling for tango, isn't it?

And so, after 10 days of cycling, I am now almost within shouting distance of Budapest. What remains is 35 km of winding bike track, hugging the side of the now slowly, almost dreamily flowing river. The sky has a few scattered clouds that at this hour (11am) still offer some shelter from the heat that is set to climbing up to 40 degrees as the day progresses. Knowing there would be little escape from the sun, I set off from the campsite at 7, stopping in the centre of Esztergom only long enough to get some groceries for breakfast. A minor problem arose at the campsite reception, when the same guy who had refused to charge me when I arrived last night, saying I would have to wait until the morning, now said the reception would only open at 9. Now this was Far too late for me, as it would mean I would have to cycle the whole 80 kms in the already merciless heat. So, what to do? I simply put on my tour leader mode, the one that was once needed to keep my safari staff operational, ...

You would think that I would have learned from my mistakes and taken extra care with following the route signs after that time that happily cruising along a jetty brought me to dead-end and having to retrace for several km's in the pouring rain. But no, yesterday showed me once again that despite all my trips and experience with reading the map, I will still end up in places that were not at all my intended destination. As I was enjoying Bratislava so much, leaving it took me much longer than expected. Pushing my bike through the old town once again, I just couldn't bring myself to leave quite yet, and although the temperature was already climbing, decided to sit down for a final cup of coffee. The streets were again filled with people, but this time the Bold and the Beautiful had been joined by hordes of cruise tourists, taking a break from floating down the river. Watching them and drinking my coffee, I was extremely happy, and promised myself to come back for a longer vis...

ByYesterday showed me once again the rewards of leaving the familiar and heading for the unknown. Despite my initial reluctance to bget back on the bike, the cycling turned out to be effortless, light and joyful. Getting back to the riverside from the Favoriten suburb was the hardest part, and despite having made careful notes on each turn, of course I missed one of them. With pure luck, and following the general direction of downhill (I mean, rivers seldom run on top of the hills do they?) did finally get to the Danube, and from there on, it was a very straightforward journey all the way to Bratislava. By now, I know that when everything is straightforward and easy, that's when the mistakes happen. Sailing along in the powerful tailwind, not even minding the drizzle that was picking up intensity, I ignored a sign for a turnoff, and the next moment, found myself on a paved embankment flanking the river. This in itself was nothing new , but the fact that there were no fences betwe...

Just about to ride out Vienna,as always reluctant to leave the comfort of City life: cosy beds, Lifts and fridges to be replaced by Camping mattrasses, uphills and track Food. Staying at my friend Heinrich's wonderful place, with ist magnificent views over the City and enjoying his warm welcome is really not making it any easier to get back on the bike. What is helping, however, is that for the first time in my bicycle travels, I have now decided to take the slower Option, covering the remaining 336 km to Budapest in 4 days instead of the 3 that was the initial plan. The reasons for this revolutionary decision are related to both my knee Problems (that fortunately seem to have lessened during this break from cycling), but also a certain Revelation that really, I am not as fit as I once was, nor do I really gain anything by pushing myself to the furthest Limit every time I get on that bike. So, Instead, I will take it easy, even booked a hostel for tonight in Bratislava that is the...

It really is amazing what a Little rest can do. Yesterday, waking up for the first time in a bed after a week of Camping, my whole Body aching and sore, I felt there is no way I can carry on with the trip by bike. However, after a second good night's sleep along with some very heart-warming human interaction, I already feel like a new Person. I spent most of yesterday just relaxing, refusing to give in to the usual touristic temptations (or obligations) that a City of Vienna's calibre has. So, instead of going sight-seeing, visiting Museums or exhibitions, I did what i love most of all: i watched and talked to people. The hostel that I had found based on their ad in my route map turned out to be one of the typical establishments full of youngsters doing their first Inter-Rail, enjoying the freedom from parental control. However, along with the social media era, somehing fundamental has changed in the atmosphere of these hubs where travellers come together. When earlie...

Sometimes, a little incident can set the mood for the whole day. Having pitched my tent at a nice and quiet campsite in the little town called Melk, I was confident I would get a good night's rest in preparation for the final push for Vienna today. I did sleep well enough, but several times during the night, was awakened by a sensation, almost a gut feeling, that someone or something was moving close by. It didn't sound threatening, but kept drawing my attention,even when sleeping. In the morning I discovered I hadn't been imagining it, for upon taking down the tent I found that one of my cycling shoes that always stay outside of the tent was filled with grass. At first I considered the possibility that one of my fellow cyclists had played a prank on me, but shaking the grass out, saw a little mouse fall out too! She scrambled into safety, and I felt grateful that she hadn't had time to give birth to a whole family! It did seem quite coincidence to me when a few m...

Sometimes, I cannot believe my luck. Not only am I in the very fortunate position of being able to live my life exactly as I please, make trips like this one and not fuss too much about stretching every penny. In addition, thinking back on all my travels, both before and after cycling, I have been extremely lucky with the weather during the trips: Often, I have had weeklong spells of wonderful tailwind, moderate temperature and showers that always occur just when I am near a suitable shelter. The recent days' record heat, while being trying for sure, still feels like a gift compared to what kind of weather I left behind back home. The biggest gift, however, is the overriding sense of happiness that has once again enveloped me. Yesterday, riding through the most beautiful stretch so far on this trip, in that narrow valley with brilliant sunshine, old forests and gently flowing river, I felt so overwhelmed with happiness that I almost cried. There were only cyclists on that road, ...

After spending a lazy afternoon in Passau yesterday, this morning I was eager to get back on the road. The fact that I had finally mustered up the courage to look at the map for the rest of the way had a big impact, as I was very positively surprised by the distance that there was left to Vienna and on to Budapest. Now, any normal person would of course have known this from the beginning, being well prepared and with a clear plan on daily routes and destinations, but for me, *not* making those plans has come to symbolise ultimate freedom. At times, this has led to unpleasant surprises as I have discovered that there is a lot more distance to cover than I thought, but this time, the remaining 630 km to Budapest seemed like child's play as I had been worrying it would be double as much. Funny how the mind works! The morning was fresh, almost chilly, something that seemed like a wonderful gift after boiling in my own sweat for days. I set off from the campsite in Passau, populat...

I should have known it from all the previous trips that the third day is always the hardest: The overflowing enthusiasm of the first couple of days has been spent and the body is starting to protest the relentless, steady demands of continuous physical exercise. Even more important, the mind is all of a sudden filled with all kind of doubts that physical discomfort only makes worse Yesterday was such a day, and in hindsight I can say I came very close to giving up. The temperature that had been on the border of uncomfortably hot the previous days, now climbed to new heights, which together with the first real headwind made the going much less of a joy than the first couple of days. Moreover, my eastward route means that I have the sun in my face in the morning, making sunburn only a matter of time and degree, no matter the amount of sunscreen used. However, the worst thing by far was the pain in my knee; it took only a few kilometers for it to reappear, and after that, become more int...

Funny how the night can change everything. Getting to bed last night I was trying to ignore the pain in the right knee, this morning I woke up with both of my wrists throbbing with pain. As nothing has happened to them and last night they were fine, I think it is just more of the same; my body trying to find a way to go back to the lazy living. Still, am not sure how far I will be able to get to today. Passau is another full days ride ahead, and the temperature seems set to climb again. These are the moments that test me the most: Not letting the difficulties take the wind from my sails, not thinking about the worst possible outcome that such wandering pain could bring. Instead, I try to be trusting and positive. Whatever comes, it's all good.

Two days down the road, and things seem to have fast-forwarded to the usual madness that tends to envelope me whenever I go cycling for anything longer than a casual pedal around the park. Despite the tropical heat, I have been happy to discover that the two years since my last trip have not made my body forget, and it is quickly adjusting to what is asked of it. Indeed, today I already caught myself in the bizarre but familiar situation where there was"only" 70 km left to my destination, and it only being a little past four in the afternoon, this seemed like a perfectly doable afternoon ride! The record temperatures of the past few days have luckily now cooled off a little, and so far, I have been very lucky with the wind: It is pushing me along nicely which is a very welcome help! The route is mostly following the Danube closely, and I have been riding on gravel roads for most of the time, something that I usually avoid. However, the little -used service tracks flanking ...

Wow, how tiring travelling can be! Almost 3 days later, still not more than 15 km of cycling under my belt, I already feel pretty exhausted from all the sitting on trains, my neck stiff from the life-saving but slightly overdone air-conditioning and my mind as always at this point of a journey, having serious doubts about the cleverness of this idea. It all started easily: the luxuriously leisurely sea voyage was a delight, and things were running quite smoothly for most of yesterday. In the morning, I rode the easy 14 km to Lübeck in perfect conditions, having had the sense to start (for me) untypically early. The birds were singing, the gentle wind was pushing me along, and every cyclist greeted me with a friendly wave of the hand. In Lübeck while waiting for my train, I had enough time to do the necessary shopping (now I have the maps although still haven´t looked at them) as well as indulge in my favourite pastime, people-watching. It quickly became evident that the heat w...

usually, getting into the philosophical frame of mind takes about a week of cycling or a couple of days of hiking, but this time around, all I needed was riding the short stretch from the gates of Vuosaari harbour into the guts of M/S Finnmaid. Sharing the ship with literally a hundred other cyclists (a group doing a charity ride to Paris to raise awareness on children's cancer) has converted this whole vessel into a huge bubble of cycling euphoria. Last night, as the ship was gliding through the Helsinki archipelago in the loveliest weather Finland has experienced this summer, I felt happy to be leaving the country  under such conditions. Embarking on a trip is always a slightly emotional experience for me, as I cannot help asking myself if I will ever return, or at least, how different I will be the next time I see the same vistas. For there is no doubt that these trips do change me, and I always return a slightly different person than the woman who left. After sitting on...

How fast time flies, and how quickly one forgets the hardships it has brought! Another two years have passed, and after hardly any cycling for most of this time, tonight I will be starting another bike trip. The first leg involves a sea journey from Helsinki to Travemünde in Germany, so in effect, I am retracing my steps as my last trip ended with this same journey in the opposite direction. However,  as opposed to all the other trips, this time I will not be starting the cycling from the harbour but rather, take the train to the South of Germany to the city of Ulm. From there on, I will be following the river Danube all the way to Budapest, passing through Wien and Bratislava on the way. This is the most popular bike travel route in Europe, and for a good reason: the scenery is lovely, there are lots of facilities for cyclists, and marked bike routes follow the river all the way. Indeed, the biggest challenge for me is to have the presence of mind to follow the river in the righ...