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The missing Summer Trip Post

Summer 2011 Trip, Travel | Wednesday, October 26th, 2011

Some time ago we arrived back home after more than 10k km through Germany, Switzerland, France, Spain and Portugal. Overall this trip has been a great experience with many photo-opportunities and some great things to see. We were able to grow in personality. Learn some new things about us and about the problems which you face on the road (most of which are more or less easily solvable). You get rid of fears and you learn that you can not plan everything first. But more on that over the course of this post.

Switzerland and the Ghost cities

Our first goal was to reach Switzerland to visit some friends for the first two nights. We arrived there and everything went fine till I noticed that I had left my wallet at the place where we stayed the first night. So that was the first time we had to replan the route  since we did not want to go back and forth too much. So we adjusted the route to match our needs and arrived in France after 2 nights in Switzerland. France was a little unexpected. We passed the border to France and all we saw were some lost villages, kinda ghosty. But absolutely beautiful. Sad enough that we had a goal to reach that day and had no time to stop and photograph that village a little.

France take one

Going on through France everything went fine and we just travelled a lot and photographed. Then we reached the sea and enjoyed some days around there. Went to see the Gorges l’Ardèche and two other Gorges which are phenomenal sights (even though a little overcrowded). Probably one of the most beautiful places we stayed was then Cerbère which is the most southern city next to the Mediterranean of France. Very nice with some beautiful bays and not too many tourists. But that city was also the one where I cut my foot and was no longer able to swim for the next days to come.

Spain ~ Mallorca

On our way down to Barcelona we visited Figueres and other than that did not much more. Then the most interesting night probably of the whole trip was the ferry ride from Barcelona to Mallorca. We slept at the top most deck under the stars and all went well till the sea-foam got a little too much and we got a little wet.

I had many thoughts about Mallorca and thought I would not like it there but that got proven to be wrong. Mallorca is an absolutely lovely island. If you keep away from those mass beaches you can relax very good. Alternatively you can get a bike and ride through the beautiful landscapes. Another really cool activity is kite surfing which I tried the first time in my life. I was surprised of how much fun this is (although falling into the water for 3 hours was not all that cool but fun!).

Spain ~ Gibraltar (UK)

Who thought you could visit the UK while staying on the European mainland? Well in Spain you can. The most southern point / Europa Point is part of the city Granada which is controlled by the UK. There you can find the Upper Rock which is fun to visit since there are a lot of monkeys running around free and grabbing your food. Well not that bad but you have to be careful that they do not get a hold of your stuff. Pretty impressive (in addition to the monkeys) is the view you have, since you can see Morocco (if the weather is good enough).

Also we met a very nice family in Gibraltar consisting out of mother, father and 9 children from Alaska. Pretty impressive to go all the way from Alaska to Frankfurt, Germany and then drive all the way to Gibraltar just to see the monkeys up in the mountains. They had been a lot of fun to play with and talk to. Sadly we had to say our goodbyes the next morning and each of us drove their way.

Portugal

Going back up at the Atlantic. This was the first time for me to see people actually surfing. This looked way more boring than to kitesurf since all those people sat there on the water and waited for the right waves to come. Since the weather seemed not that good for surfing they sat there for a pretty long time and just sometimes there was one who tried to ride a wave.

What fascinated me still have been the sunsets there. The setting sun over the water is something you do not get every evening.

Spain ~ Santiago de Compostela

My former goal to reach. Well on a different way I reached it. It was impressive to see the people arriving there actually by foot and I thought about the changes I did to this trip and felt a little regret that I changed it. But the next moment everything was fine again and I thought about the great time we had over the course of this trip and the great experiences we gained. So it was different for sure. But that different is OK and exciting.

Spain ~ Basques

On our way back to France we drove through the Basque area where the car stopped to work but got fixed by meeting a bunch of nice people who were able to help us really quickly. One night and one day later we were on the road again and heading to France.

France ~ Paris

Paris was one of the longest stays (with Mallorca and Gibraltar) in one area. We first visited the city center with all the important things to see like the Eiffel Tower, Louvre and Nôtre Dame till it was late night and we had problems getting to our car since the trains were out of service for the night. But we found a nocturnal bus and took that to get where we had parked our car. The second day was about sitting still and waiting since it rained. The next day we headed to Versailles and visited the castle and the gardens.

Luxemburg ~ Trier

Getting closer to our home country we met a friend of mine in Luxemburg and he showed us around the city for a walk and told us a lot about Luxemburg. A fascinating city since it is city and country in one. The night we spent in Trier where our friend lives. The next day was about heading home and arriving safely.

Home

After more than 6 weeks we arrived home and finally are able to enjoy some benefits of a home which you just get to know if  you get out of your normal habits. Some of the things I learned and would like to remember:

I will keep posting about this trip some more. Posts focused on details of the journey but spread over the next months.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have a good Gear Insurance

Gear, Photography, Summer 2011 Trip, Travel | Monday, August 22nd, 2011

We were on our way to the ferry which would eventually bring us to the little insular Mallorca. But we had to repack a little to leave some of the gear and stuff in Barcelona so that we all (group of 4 persons) would just need one car. While we repacked, suddenly we realized that one of the rucksacks got stolen. In there we had the tickets for the ferry, a netbook with external hard-drive and some other paperwork. Luckily there were neither passports or credit cards nor mobile phones or glasses in the rucksack. But this tells us three things:

  1. watch your stuff
  2. backup your data (even if it is just personal stuff)
  3. have a gear insurance

You can get a gear insurance in all varieties but you should look out that you do not pay too much. Therefor you have to know what you want. One insurance I use costs 2.2% of the original gear price per year and protects my gear from theft and damage. The drawback is that it is not protected if I go into ‘hot areas’ like demonstrations or war zones — but currently I am not planning to go near something like that with my camera. The next thing you should keep in mind is the co-payment. The insurance above costs 250€ co-payment which means any damage that is less than 250€ to repair is not really insured but in case of theft 250€ is not that much to pay for a several thousand € equipment.

So keep in mind to backup your data and carry the backup somewhere else, watch your stuff and have a gear insurance in case your stuff gets lost/stolen or damaged!

France, Border of Spain and a Hospital visit

Summer 2011 Trip, Travel | Sunday, August 21st, 2011

As we drove through France we saw a lot of interesting countryside. One of the first impressions have been the villages right after the border to Switzerland. Then we headed into the country and since we do not drive highways (first reason to avoid those: you do not see as much of a country if you only take the highway, second reason: they cost money) we saw a lot of land there too. But not as interesting as the Alps.

The next day we headed to the Rhône with the goal to reach the area where the river opens into the Mediterranean Sea. There we arrived at sunset and I had the opportunity to get a time-lapse of the sun setting over the mountains with a great reflection on the rivers surface. In addition to the beautiful sun the clouds looked wild and there was a notion of rain in the air. But that night there was no rain.

Going further south and a little bit west, we went to see the ‘Gorges de l’Ardèche’. A very impressive canyon but since the river was massively crowded by people with canoes and other tourists we just looked from some viewpoints and went on to reach the Mediterranean Sea that evening.

Going from there we drove more west and south to stay at the sea and headed into the country to see two other canyons. On our way up there we reached the —for now— highest point at about 1750m altitude. Those two canyons have been impressive but not as great as the ‘Gorges de l’Ardèche’.

Going further south we soon reached the Spanish border but stayed in France for the nights ahead. The street through the Pyrenees are a little tricky but built well and nice to drive if driven slowly. There are some awesome photographic spots to capture the nice cliffs and sea. We soon found a nice little bay with just a few people and very clear water to swim in and planned to stay there. But since we had no diving goggles we left again and went to a shop to get some.

Probably we should have bought some fins too! Because we had been diving, I took a deeper dive and on my way up I cut my right big toe at a rock pretty badly. So we had to leave our great beautiful spot and head back about 60km to go to a hospital. This has been my first time in a hospital while traveling. Definitely not to be repeated (hopefully) but interesting of some sorts. The foot got cleaned and sewn and I had to clean it for the next days and replace the bound.

First Days on the Road

Summer 2011 Trip, Travel | Wednesday, August 10th, 2011

Now we have been on the road for some days. The first night we stayed at some friends place in Basel, Switzerland. Then we drove on to other good friends in Bern, Switzerland. Too bad, the weather there was not good enough to go paragliding (which would have been a first time for me) but we will meet again and hopefully the weather will be better. The next morning we headed back to Basel because I left my wallet and some other stuff there. That way, the first planned route from Bern to Geneva was no longer possible but was adjusted to go down south at the ‘Doubes’ in France.

So far, the best photo opportunities have been the mountains. There the winding roads are crazy to drive but provide awesome views on more or less untouched countryside with old buildings and even more grass, forests and bot willows full of cows.

In France we drove some more kilometers down, further south where the land is pretty even with just some hills from time to time – which got boring soon.

The Trip Changed

Summer 2011 Trip, Travel | Wednesday, August 10th, 2011

First the plan was to ride my bike to Barcelona. Now the plan changed. The idea was to be alone, ride the bike, take pictures and experience something new. The experience I had was that I felt alone, traveled very slow and had less possibilities to photograph than expected.

Than the idea arised to travel with a mini van and instead of a bike ride, now a road trip it is. And I do not travel alone any longer because my girlfriend is with me. Last week we prepared the car, bought utilities and the car underwent a repair check.

Now we are on the trip and enjoy it. Let’s see if this will turn out better.

Learn not to tell

Summer 2011 Trip, Travel | Tuesday, July 26th, 2011

Some time ago I read an article about the question: “Does it help you to acheave your goal if you tell as many people as possible?”

The answer shocked me a little. The scientists found out:  it does not help. Exactly the opposite is the case! If you tell more people it feels as if you are already closer to the goal and most people tend to not even start than. But on the other hand the people who did not tell others just did what they were thinking about.

What I found out is: if you do not tell as many people you have to worry less if you change the plan what others would say. If you just do what you want and not tell everyone, nobody can be ‘ disappointed’.

The reason I am writing this is because the trip will change. I am going do do something different, but all of you readers, friends knew what I was about to do: ride my bike to barcelona. Well eventually: that changed. But I will not talk about what will change, when it will change or something like that. I will tell you after I have it done.

Relaxed to go On

Summer 2011 Trip, Travel | Monday, July 25th, 2011

After reaching a town called Wassertruedingen I spent some days here to recharge my batteries, to relax my leggs and to get rid of the pain. The days have been great and I had the opertunity to relax a little.

Today it goes on. I am about to hit the road again to get further away from home headed to reach Switzerland in one week.

First Track, First Night, First Impressions

Summer 2011 Trip, Travel | Thursday, July 21st, 2011

The first track was harder than expected. It goes downhill alomost all the time (started at 602m above see level and ended at about 240m) but in the end my GPS-Device told me that I made it over 102km. It took me a little over 8 hours to finally arrive in Bamberg and it was pretty easy to find my place to stay, which I found using CouchSurfing.org. So far the CouchSurfing experience has been a blast. A super friendly guy named Robert welcomed me and we talked for like forever, till we eventually went to bed at around 2 o’clock.

Today I woke up well rested and ready to go. Even though most of my muscles hurt I will have to go on. Todays track is shorter and hopefully will stay shorter than the one yesterday!

Hit the Road the first Time

Summer 2011 Trip, Travel | Tuesday, July 19th, 2011

I am about to hit the road for the first time. The first stage is to reach Bamberg, Germany. The feelings are a little off. It is weird to do something I have never done before and now I am going to ride a bike to Bamberg, meet some people I just contacted via CouchSurfing.org and sleep there. The next stage will be to ride my bike to Nuremberg, Germany tomorrow.

I am thrilled, and scared. Anxiety is a big factor. But I am going to do this and it will work out eventually, I am sure.

If I never start I am going sit here and nothing will happen and eventually I will die! But I would rather like to be the one who can say: I am glad I did!

The quote is a little mixed from my own words and some words I read some time ago.

The Project: WOSJ

Projects, Summer 2011 Trip, Travel | Friday, July 15th, 2011

A few weeks ago I mentioned on twitter that I got some gear for my next project. At the time it was a #tease only. Some got curious and asked what the project would be about but I kept silent till now.

The big project I have been planing and preparing for the past weeks is about riding my bike for about 2.000 km and than walking another 1.000 km. Most of whom I told about my idea reacted with a kind of a ‘why would you want to do that’ face. But for me it is more than just a simple trip.

Now the first 4 reasons might be obvious but why do I want to do something that scares me? The reason is very simple. If I do not try it, I will never know how it is. So I will through my self into this crazy idea and just get going. My main fears are about finding a place to sleep each night and equally important, finding something to eat and drink. Than there is the problem about asking for directions in a country where I do not speak the mother tongue. Ok, I am basically fluent in english and have no problem with that. But what about asking people in a country where the people might not speak english?

Overall it is a thrilling thought, but it also is something that I think will be a great experience for me not just for the moment but for the future. More information to come about this project (directions, gear, plans, photos, etc.) stay tuned and subscribe (via RSS or Email) or you can keep in tough via Twitter and Facebook.