There are worse things than watching football

The easy part is done. I spent two more days cycling and  yesterday evening I managed to get to Maastricht to the safety of my friends.

On Friday afternoon I left Louvain-la-Neuve and got to Linter. Unfortunately, for this part I didn’t have a proper map so I was using my GPS on the phone. This might seem as an easier navigation system, but not if you don’t have any handle for it. At every crossroad I had to take it out of my pocket and check which way I should take.  Oh, this was so frustrating.

A solution came with entering  Hoegaarden, a city in the Flemish part of Belgium.  First of all, Flemish speak English on the contrary to Wallons and also they are more into cycling, so it is easier to ask for help. They showed me LF6 cycle path [http://www.groteroutepaden.be/en/route/98/lf-6-flanders-cycle-route.html] which leads to Kanne, a town very close to Maastricht.

This LF6 is really excellent. It is very easy to follow, with good sings at every junction. It takes you around villages, through fields with lots of fruit trees and vegetables so even refreshment is provided.  In the evening, I picked up some carrots for dinner and cherries for dessert and started to search for a nice hidden place where to pitch up the tent.

I found a nice pear orchard where I was invisible for anyone nearby [A good idea is to choose fruit that is not ripe yet. Otherwise you may wake up surrounded by farmers collecting them in the morning. That would probably happen to me if I went to a cherry orchard].  In theory this was much safer than my first sleeping spot which was close to people. If no-one knows I am there, no-one can hurt me, right? However, the feeling of being there absolutely alone brought up all the ghost stories I’ve ever heard and my imagination started to freak me out. Well, somehow I survived another night and after having a lazy morning I got back on the route.

Saturday was quite a rainy day but I was able to enjoy even that. It felt refreshing and water that I collected over night helped me to wash my dishes. Everything seemed to be perfect until the moment when I realized that I actually didn’t have more energy and also not much more to eat nor drink. I stopped in a village to ask for water. A super nice girl invited me in and offered me to watch football with her and two more friends. As it was already quite late and I wanted to reach Maastricht and especially because I really don’t like football, I decided not to accept. Oh, [wo]man! What a mistake. Ten minutes later it was raining cats and dogs and I was soaking wet. I decided to benefit from the situation and cycled to the nearest village to ask if I could set up my tent in their garden, hoping they would let me to also use their hot shower. It was raining and raining and water was just everywhere. Finally, I got to the village and suddenly, exactly at the moment I got there, the rain stopped and the sun came out. It was so incredible. I laughed at that and took it as a sign that this village is not my final destination for the day.

Well, I got to Maastricht, all wet and dirty and totally exhausted. For the first time I had serious doubts about this trip. However, after spending a beautiful Sunday with Jasper and Justyna, my energy is back. I will do my plans for crossing Germany tonight and tomorrow morning the real adventure starts. No more friends [as far as I know] on the way, no more showers or prepared dinners. It will be just me and my bike.

Lesson of part 2

1. There are worse things than watching football.
2. A map can save lots of kms.
3. When you do something you love [cycling], you won’t even realize how much you’re bleeding [I cut my chest with a compass and understood it only in the evening when I saw a big scar].
4. The trip has been amazing!