Dear Reader,
Today is the day. Ill start on a journey I've been planning for years, though at the time I didn't know where it would take me.
It may seem like a mere bike tour, with saddle bags, fenders, and even a solar panel. But in fact it's more than that. This bike tour is a pilgrimage. The result of life throwing certain things my way. The result of many factors coming together and presenting one route, one option. The conclusion based on a pragmatic analysis of data that NOW is the time. There is no reason not to. It might even be the last chance I get.
When I was a kid I heard a story of a guy who took a trip around the world. He was a scientist or something stable with little vacation time. He had a girlfriend and a house and a dog. Then everything happened all at once. He lost his job. His girlfriend broke up with him, taking the house and the dog. He was left with nothing but time, freedom, and a bit of money in the bank.
So he left and traveled all around the world. Partially, he said, because he didn't know what else to do. But mostly, he said, because he realized that it might be the last time in his life he would have the opportunity, without a job, without a house, without a family, to take so much time to travel. His only regret, he said, was not having the companionship of his dog.
Well my situation isnt nearly so extreme. But some things did happen in my life, and I did find myself, suddenly, with some extra time. And* the Eurobike is happening next weekend in Friedrichshafen (-hagen?), and I just couldn't justify anything other than to ride for a week from Northern to Southern Germany, landing at Eurobike. I might even ride back.
And while I'm at it, why not do it on an 80% plant-based bicycle and blog the whole way? So here goes! Off to Friedrichsha(f/g)en!
Dan
*I know you can't start sentences with "and" or "but". But I hate that rule.
** my gps knows which one it is.
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