
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Put away that... tire lever
Bucharest conveniently put a circle in the center of there city, so that foreigners like me know when they have reached it. From the center I wandered about until I found this internet cafe, a rather nice one in an old library. I have found several hostels that are options for this evening; it will be my first hostel since I stayed in one with Karl in Budapest!
Om Monday I rode from Abasfalva to Brasov, a city with a beautiful old downtown. The ride itself was uneventful. In fact, most of the day I followed roads I had been on previously with the high school group. It was odd to be in the same places again, but without the group.
Here are some pictures of Brasov. Despite the beautiful downtown, the central fountain was awful. I have yet to see a good fountain in Romania.



Yesterday I rode over the Carpathians. Despite taking a wrong turn, and ending up on the main road over the mountains instead of a back way, it was a beautiful ride. I passed a couple of ski areas and maybe a hundred hotels.

Today I rode into Bucharest - one problem: one flat tire. Bigger problem: got flat tire outside of "restricted area." When I pulled off the main road onto an unmarked side road, with no traffic, I was greeted by two guard dogs who emerged from behind a gate. Then came a man in black, with a sidearm, and a more professional demeanor than a rent-a-cop. I have no idea who he was, but he told me that I was in a restricted area, that a very important person would be arriving, and I needed to leave. I took my lame bike, grabbed my tire lever and pump, and left.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Transilvania My Love






Saturday, July 18, 2009
From Kolozsvar (Cluj-Napoca) Romania
Karl and I met up in Budapest. Here he is, looking dapper in his sports coat, contemplating.
The ride across the Great Hungarian Plain was stunningly beautiful, and hot. I got a late start from Budapest and found myself still riding at around 8pm, which is when I took this picture.
Riding in the evening: My body appears emaciated, my bike huge and heavy. That is pretty much how I feel after riding 100 km. Transylvania.
Transylvania. From the top of one of the several long climbs necessary to reach Cluj-Napoca.
Cluj-Napoca has a world-famous botanical garden. This picture was taken in the tropical green house. The diameter of the plants is at least three feet.
My favorite tour guides: Anita and Emese. They are alums of the Kolozsvar Unitarian High School and will be joining this year's bicycle expedition.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Posh ferry from England to St. Roscoff. Then rode to Morlaix (sp) with David, who I met on ferry. Beautiful countryside with small villages and large artichoke fields.
Camped in abandoned campground overlooking ocean last night. Reminded me of my time in NY with Quyen. Huge tides; I could walk clear across the Bay.
Bought NYTimes int. ed for 2.5€.
All for now!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Cornwall
Here are some pictures and a brief narration:
On Monday, I left Bere Alston and headed north to Gunnislake, the nearest crossing of the River Tamar. This picture was taken after I had climbed up out of the Tamar River Valley. It is a steep climb of several miles in which I had to stop several times. It was a cool and overcast day.
After stopping for a snack in Liskeard, I left the major roads and spent the rest of the day on narrow back roads like this. Nearly all smaller roads in Cornwall and Devon are lined with hedges. The hedges are made of stone, which one can see right after they have been trimmed. The impression is of riding through a green tunnel.
Even the smallest village has a church with a grave yard in front. This was taken at the end of the first day; I was about ready to lie down with the dead.
This is me and Will. We met outside a pub in Blisland, Cornwall. He was on the first day of a solo Land's End to John O' Groats ride. He is probably close to Scotland by now. Good luck Will!
Will and I set up our tents in a vacant sheep pasture near Blisland.
The sheep were next door and woke me up in the morning.
On Tuesday I rode through Bodmin Moor, a beautiful and barren land - except for the sheep and gorse plants.
Gorse: prickly with small yellow flowers.
Even rural areas are well signed.
In the afternoon I finally saw the ocean! This was my first glimpse. Next up: Tintagel. The legendary sea-side home of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.
Not so formidable anymore. This is all that remains of the castle. Tintagel is quite the tourist trap now, although the coast is stunningly beautiful there.
Another remnant of the castle.
That afternoon's ride from Tintagel to Bude was some of the most beautiful riding I have ever done. I took back roads that hugged the coast. It was also some of the most hilly riding I have done.
I rode through many small villages situated next to the outlets of streams. These are often the only areas that one can easily access the ocean without climbing down a cliff.
Can someone explain to me in geological terms what I am looking at?
Sunset near my campsite in Bude. The town of Bude has a canal that terminates on the main beach. It is an impressive site to see a lock right next to a surfing beach.
Wednesday's weather was not good. I walk up to rain and heavy winds. Instead of going north to Exmoore like I had originally planned, I decided to take the most direct route back to Bere Alston. I discovered my waterproof pants are not actually waterproof.
This is a shot of a bridge over the River Tamar. I am back in Devon!
Monday, May 25, 2009
Here are a couple of photos I took several days ago.
The road going down to a brook crossing. This is on the edge of Dartmoor.
This was taken from the edge of the road right outside Bere Alston.
It is supposed to rain hard this morning which will make for interesting riding. The rain combined with cool temperatures have me a bit worried that I don't have enough warm clothes. I may have to try off in whatever local pub I find.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
School Blues
My uncle's students were in the middle of a unit on WWII.
My impression of this Plymouth public school was that it was well funded and well staffed. My uncle's class had an impressive complement of technology including a ceiling mounted projector with sound system. Pupils sat around tables in small groups and stored their supplies in cubbies instead of the desks I was used to. For a class of twenty nine students there were two and often three teachers or teacher's aids present at any given time. Students wore uniforms: black bottoms with white tops and blue sweatshirts (jumpers). Skirts for the girls were optional and even more optional for the boys.
Highlights of the day:
Morning Greeting -
My uncle, Mr. Walshe: Good morning Joey.
Joey: Good morning Mr. Walshe.
Mr. Walshe: Good morning Hannah.
Hannah: Good morning Mr. Walshe.
And so on, through 29 iterations of Good Morning Mr. Walshe. It ends with all the pupils joining together for a lilting high-pitched unison affirmation:
Good morning Mr. Walshe. Good Morning Mrs. Tomson. Good Morning Miss. Waring. Good Morning Mr. Seitz. Good Morning Everyone.
That made me smile.
Rounders Game -
Rounders is a baseball-like game with little of the beauty or subtlety of baseball. Standard equipment includes a tennis racquet, tennis ball, four plastic poles, and fifty excited school children. According to the Plymouth students, I am the best rounders player ever to walk on British soil. I hit two rounders (home runs) at two at-racquets, scoring one rounder for each team (to keep it fair).
Game of Rounders in a beautiful field outside the school.
Dinner with Ben and the Walshe Family -
My cousin Ben finished his course work and dissertation at Keele University and will graduate July 9! He and his friends stopped in Bere Alston on his way down to Cornwall. Pam cooked up enough home-made mac and cheese for a crew of nine which we washed down with beer and wine. It was great to catch up with Ben again. The last time we were together was a year ago at our grandfather's funeral.
My cousin Ben and me.
By the way, my bike arrived safely. Here are a couple of pictures of the little green.
Right out of the box.
Ready to ride.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Change of Plans - Now in Devon, England
I spent Tuesday with Ned and Connie Wakeman and their ten month old son, Sam. I had spent a couple of weeks with Ned in the summer of 2005. That was the summer he met Connie. Since then they married (in Maine) and of course now have a beautiful son. It was great to catch up with Ned again and to meet Connie for the first time. Below are pictures of me and Connie, and me and Ned.


Tuesday morning brought torrential downpours and the forecast of three more days of rain. With my bike still unpacked, I decided the sensible thing would be to take a bus to my aunt in uncle's house in Devon and set up the bike there. No London cycling in the rain for me!
The landscape of Devon is spectacular; I can't wait to get out on the bike. Below is a picture of the village of Bere Alston where my aunt Pam and uncle Pete live. Their house is painted pink on the right side of the street. It is called the Angler's Rest and at one time was the local village pub. The other photo was taken from the room I am staying in and looks out over the back garden.

