This time i wanted to visit Budapest. Unfortunately i only made it to Vienna. Read on to know, why.
Day 1: Leipzig->Oschatz; 85km
I started in Leipzig on September, 18. My first stop was the Skatecontest in Oschatz. Oschatz actually is only 60km away from Leipzig, but because i went with my boozing friends, we took the long 85 km route. As far as i know i made the last place of the finalists, which is place 6 at the contest. Actually, for having 85km and already a lot of beer this is a quite good result.
Day 2: Oschatz; 0km
Actually i got so fucking drunk at the afterparty of the Contest, that i decided to stay whe whole day in Oschatz to sober up.
Day 3: Oschatz -> Bad Schandau; 119,65km
Had Dresden on the Route, but i decided to ignore it and continue my way on the Elbe River. I already know Dresden a lot.
Day 4: Litoměřice; 81.48km
I was entering the Czech Republic. Asking a policeman at the border if i could pay with Euro, he told me that it´s better to go to the change office. So i decided to change 50€ in czk. This was a big mistake - i lost about 10€ in the transfer just for being so stupid to take the first cabin i came along!
Day 5: Mělník: 90km
I was being waked up by machine gun fire. Seriously. Only used to this sound through Computer Games so far, and it sounded absolutely identical. It was raining, and after i was looking out of my tent, i saw a tank driving around. I quickly did a reality-check if this isn´t a very realistic dream. It was not. I was camping inside a military training area. After quickly leaving the area i felt safe again. This also was the first time my left knee started to hurt. It always gets problematic after some hundred kilometers, and i was not really in Training.
Day 6: Prague; 19km(inside Prague)
On this Day i was approaching Prague. A Screw of my Carrier was broken and therefore lost. Fortunately there was a Scott Service Center where they replaced it quickly and for free! Now it was the first time i realized that my carrier is overburdened. According to the manual it can carry 25 kilo at maximum, and i estimate having about 30 kilo.
On the way to Prague i met Erik Arvidson, another very kind bike traveller who fortunately made some photos of me (i didn´t take a cam with me so i was depending on foreign people taking photos of me):
The Yellow bike is his machine, and just a few minutes after my flat tire, his spikes on his back wheel were being destroyed completely. In his own Words:
The irony of it: "I haven't had a single flat tire", then 500m later 13 spikes goes to hellOf Prague itself i am really disappointed. I visited most of the touristic attractions, including the Miniature Eiffel Tower and the Castle. But i am not really impressed by the City, so i decided to continue quickly. Just as i was about to leave i randomly came about the Mystic Skatepark which is so awesome that i spent some hours there. See for yourself, this is Skater´s Paradise for street and transition skaters alike:
Day 7: Štěchovice; 57km
I started to realize that the Czech Republic is god damn mountainous. Not only hilly or something, i almost felt like in the alps. First gear, giving full power and only getting 7km/h. Very frustrating and Time consuming.
Day 8: Zruč nad Sázavou: 77,8km
Another very frustrating biking day on the hills. Mady my first contact with the czech police. They couldn´t speak english, the only word they kept repeating was "pass, pass". No problems with a german pass tough.
Day 9: Světlá nad Sázavou: 61,68km
Following the River Sázavou i was hoping that this mountains will stop. They didn´t ! Having a bike route on a river is not a guarantee that the route is plain !
Day 10: Brno: 94,57km
Now it was going to be more plain, the kilometer counter is raising again. Brno is a really, really great and nice city with a very scientific touch. I visited the Mendelianium there, which is really informative and one of the Cornerstone (besides Darwin) of genetics, and therefore modern Biology. A must-visit !
I also came across a Bike Park in Brno which was absolutely unskateable with a Skateboard. Even with great wheels. Oh and i came across the first skateboard bronze statue ever in my life ! I can´t find it on Google Images so i regret not having a cam with me even more now...
Day 11: Brno: 0km
Another Day in Brno. There was a great skate pool that i probably get sent a photo of. Will include it if possible.
Day 12: 92,88km
I quickly wanted to leave the Czech Republic because, really, the people were really unfriendly. Getting to the Austrian Border everything was getting better. Actually the reason also may be that there´s no language barrier anymore.
Day 13: Vienna; 99,29km
Vienna is an absolutely fantastic and very huge city. The image above is just a small Skatepark, there are much more of them around in the City. And the Wallride was higher than it looks ;). I could spend many more days in Vienna because it was so beautiful. Also visiting the Sigmund Freud Museum was really great for me.
Day 14: Vienna: 51,60 km (just going around in Vienna)
I visited everything in Vienna in Tourist mode. Now i had to make a decision. To be honest, i made the mistake to look about the prices for going back. For financial reasons i decided to change my route to Linz and Passau, because 55€ for a Bus is a lot cheaper than 200€ from Budapest. I also was late on Time because all the Hills in the Czech Republic.
Day 15: Linz: 162,32 km
Travelling all the way across the Donau River you get a lot of kilometers. Compare this to the 57km in Czech Republic, its a three time difference !
Day 16: Linz, Passau; 106,62 km
Nothing to see in Passau. I was here some years ago, but i forgot everything. This is just a small, beautiful City at the Austrian Border. Nothing special.
Day 17: Passau 53km
Going to the Bus station and leaving for Leipzig. It´s a sad feeling after 1468km in 2 weeks according to my Bike Computer. Actually i feel somewhat healthy and fit now!
Visit my Appendix "Biking is the best Method of Tourism" to know why bike travelling is the best method available!
Thank´s for reading so far.
