The days are so long and full it's hard making time to blog. Seems like I stay up later and later to try process my day, but it's been good to be able to experience so much and interact with so many interesting people.
I had my best night of sleep in the old school, the hardest part was not allowing myself to linger in the state of sleep and to start my day.
Seems like there's so much to do to get going, pack, reorganize, plan route (or at least jot some town names down, takes photos of maps on iPad etc.).
Sunny morning looked promising. The wind, less so.
Martine, my host, was so sweet! She provided a great breakfast as well as giving me food for on the road (including a chocolate bar, two bananas and an apple!) I was certainly blessed on my way!
9:45 am I was on the bike.
I followed a great bike path (formerly a railway track), that led me exactly where I needed to go.
From there I went along the coast. Have to remind myself it's Saturday, and definitely noticed how busy it seemed everywhere!
Lots of kite surfers were on the water making good use of the wind.
I made sure to keep eating and drinking to keep my strength up since I had a good long ride.
Rode about 80 Km's to the ferry docks in Vlissingen. There was a crazy long line up, such that I watched two ferries (spaced 1/2 hr apart) leave, and then had to wait another half hour for my ferry ride (I had to purchase a ticket yet and thus missed the earlier ferry).
Perhaps it was a good break to be off the bike. But it wasn't relaxing being around so many people.
When I got to Belgium, on the other side, it was like vacation central. Beaches on one side of the dunes, RV and campers on the other, and people biking and walking all along the paved dune path.
This was when I realized the importance of a bike bell. In absence of one I had to constantly be giving verbal warnings of some sort. "Ik kom er langs" being what I usually say, I tried, "tiring tring" and "excuse me", and just whatever. When two road cycling guys who held a good pace went ahead of me I took advantage of their "clearing the way" with their bike bells and enjoyed the ride more. The the path was under construction so I went away from the waterside for a bit (a welcome relief from the throngs of vacationing people!)
There was a pretty crazy stretch that went through city, I am disliking cities more and more. I kept getting stuck behind slow cyclists in narrow bike lanes (and me with no bell and all...) ahhhh!
Finally made it to the town of De Haan.
It was already past 5:30 by then, 132 Km's later...
My hosts, Damien and Margriet (Their son Floris does cycle touring...), welcomed me into their lovely home.
I hardly had a moment to myself, we ate supper (with all sorts of delicious cheeses!), watched the Belgium cyclist win the Olympic gold, went to town where 60,000 people had come to the yearly town festival (featuring dance and music and a lot or drinking!), had a tasty ice cream, watched the sunset at the beach and walked back, by then it was already almost 10:30!
At least tomorrow is a shorter riding day. I have a ferry to catch to England!
No host confirmed as of yet :(
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- Eritia
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