After three ‘turbulent’ flights I arrived in Calgary in (two) pieces. Stan, who follows my blog, picked me up from the airport. This Polish man opened his home to me and before I put down my head we had a (typical Polish) lovely light meal of bread and butter, different […]
PEDAL and the Banff Mountain Film Festival Lees verder..
It feels like I’m cycling in Central Asia. The landscape is wide and wavy with brown and green tones and a lake here and there. I’m in Connemara. From Killarney I headed north. The first days it was raining continuously. It’s still damp, but apart from some drizzle it’s ‘dry’.
To become a real cyclist Lees verder..
I arrive in Ireland by ferry in the late afternoon. My only plan for the day is to get away from Rosslare city and harbor and find a place to pitch my tent. In England people told me the wild camping would get easier getting to Wales and even more
Céad Míle Fáilte Lees verder..
It has only been two weeks since I got on my new bicycle in Tilburg to head south. First into Belgium, then France, England and Wales. Now I’ve arrived to Fishguard, my last stop before getting on the ferry to Ireland. Only two weeks and I’ve seen and experienced so
As if I never left Lees verder..
2 months in the Netherlands after 13 months living as a nomad. What’s that like? First of all, it’s great to talk my native language again. No matter how fluent my English is, it’s still different to express myself in the language I grew up speaking. Ever since day two
I came, saw.. and took off again.. Lees verder..
It’s been four weeks now since I landed in the Netherlands. Yesterday I did my first presentation about the ride from Alaska to Costa Rica. Now it’s time to also write about how, looking back at it, I’ve experienced this trip. But I also want to explain some practical stuff
Looking back now…. Lees verder..
On the sofa, in the living room of my mum’s house in Tilburg, with the Tour the France on TV in the background, it’s hard to imagine that two weeks ago I was riding my bike in Honduras. But I was. I rode into Honduras after crossing through beautiful El
Filming in Costa Rica and why I flew home Lees verder..
Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras. Countries that would let many father- and mother heart shake with anxiety at the thought of their child traveling through ’em. Countries that are famous for their high murder rate, their drugs trafficking and gangs. The hearts of my parents shook too when I told them
The infamous Northern Triangle and a visit of a TV crew Lees verder..
BEEPBEEPBEEPBEEP.. My phone wakes me up. Since I arrived in the south I get up before sunrise every morning. I pack my stuff, have breakfast and try to be on my bicycle as soon as it gets light. I write ‘try’, because it seems to get light earlier every morning
On rocky roads and how to warm a nomadic heart Lees verder..
In my last blog I wrote about my ‘speed-course: tourist’. In the recent weeks I’ve been able to enjoy the normal daily life in Mexico and with the Mexicans. After a day in Mexico city in which I visited ‘Saptel‘, a helpline for people in psychological need, and strolled around
If you turn your holiday into your daily life, it’s no longer a holiday. Twelve years ago I got on my bicycle for my first cycling trip. My motivation: independency, to see the world, curiosity, challenge and to grow as a human being. At that time I wasn’t as aware
SPEED COURSE: TOURIST Lees verder..
It’s hot! It’s hot! It feels as if a belt is strapped around my head. Another few gulps of water. My stomach feels like a ball that’s pumped up to hard. I’m nauseous but I don’t have to throw up, neither go to the toilet. Blegh! This is no fun!
‘Before I tell you my story, I want to take you with me on one particular part of my travels. What’s the hottest temperature you’ve ever been in? 90 degrees, 100? Can you remember how hot that felt? The feeling of being baked. The sweat dripping into your eyes. Clothes
A brief visit to the north Lees verder..
I bounce around on my bike on a dirt road with washboard relief, up and down, left and right. My panniers clatter an unclear rhythm. My bike isn’t made for this! And neither am I… That isn’t true, my bicycle actually is made for this! But it suddenly doesn’t feel
Not a sign in sight to point me the way to the border. I decide to ask a pedestrian; ‘How do I get to Mexico?’. He shows me the way and within minutes I pass by a short traffic jam waiting for their turn with customs, still, not a sign
ME ENCANTA LOS MARIACHIS Lees verder..
*PANG KLANG YEEHAAAAA* in other words: I’M BACK! Recharged, rested, motivated, happy! Wild awake! Two weeks of non-stop camping, vast empty landscapes of steppe and desert, away from ‘civilization’, sun on my face and a book instead of my laptop; that turned out to be the recipe to regain my
COMING HOME IN THE DESERT Lees verder..
With sunglasses on my nose, a tanktop on and a clear blue sky above me I’m looking out over the white mountains of the Sierra Nevada. Behind those mountains lies Yosemite National Park. All roads crossing the park are closed due to snow. ‘Sierra Nevada‘ is Spanish for ‘snow covered
Code Red in the Sierra Nevada Lees verder..
2016 In 2016 I took a turn. An unsigned turn without a street name, an unpaved road not to be found on any map or GPS. Without certainty about where it would lead, what the surface would be like, if it could be a dead end road, have side trails
2017 DESTINATION UNKNOWN Lees verder..
