Travel savvy
October 1st, 2007
I’ve been places. I know what I’m doing, you know? I’m confident. Savvy. Streetwise. I feel as though I’ve really come of age as a traveler on this journey. This is my time, my opportunity to put together everything I’ve learned over the years and flow through these foreign countries painting my “travel masterpiece.”
As a testimony to this fresh attitude, I gave my passport to some dude today and simply walked away without it. Passport? I don’t need no steenking passport! Oh, sure, I still had to clear customs and everything, but, hey, Mother Teresa never had a passport and she moved about quite freely.
Unfortunately, the guy I gave my passport to didn’t share my confidence. He chased me down with my documents and suggested I do things the more “orthodox” way. Passport in hand, clearing customs was a snap and soon I had my motorcycle. It took me a while to get organized, packing up, reconnecting the battery and so on, but I was away before noon with a gorgeous, sunny day before me.
Knowing my tendency of pushing too hard too soon, I forced myself to pack it in early in Heidelberg, just 50 kilometers from Frankfurt. The plan had been to settle in to my B and B, organize my gear and rest a bit before hitting the road hard the next day. But I quickly found myself riding out on the road I came in on as the picturesque town of Heidelberg spit me out like a lactose intolerant kid that just ate a bucket of cottage cheese. (It’s been over ten years since I’ve been in Germany. Wouldn’t you think they’d have put up English signs by now? We should have put something to that effect in the Potsdam Treaty, if you want my opinion.)
After about 20 kilometers I found a place to turn around and I took another run at it, more determined this time. After about three hours of searching, I found the headquarters of Knopf Tours and settled in for my well deserved rest.
Stephan Knopf showed me a room and told me the price, 55 Euros for the night. I squirmed, then suggested I might try and find another place to stay that I could more reasonably afford.
Stephan said, “Oh, you’re on a ‘world-traveler’ budget, are you? Do you have a sleeping bag? Then it’s free.”
Rather than his B and B, I’m staying in his family’s basement for the night and using his computer to post as well. I’ve repacked my bike so the weight is better distributed, but I believe I have too much stuff. There’s a bad shimmy in the front end that thankfully goes away at high speeds. As a bit of an update, I’m not immobilized by my back pain, but it’s definitely not taking well to all the lifting and stressing I’ve been up to. I’m optimistic it’ll settle down once I get into the rhythm of constant movement!
(Bz the waz, all the kezs are in the wrong place in stupid Europe… which is whz this last bit is unedited – to prove a point. Iäll keep trzing hard, but please forgive the odd spelling and formating problem! Thanks.)
Important… This post marks my first entry from Europe on an eight month motorcycle journey through the Middle East with my 2001 KLR 650. To follow the trip in chronological order, click “Newer Post” at the bottom of each page. If you enjoy what you read, please consider buying a copy of my first book “Motorcycle Therapy.” That book recounts a trip through Central America, but it’s more than a trip report. It unveils some lessons I learned on the road regarding friendship and forgiveness… but mostly it will just make you laugh!