Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Poland to Portugal: How Far? How Many?


Here’s the recap from the Europe leg of our Bicycle Geography Adventure…

Days on the Continent/Days Pedaling: 106/62
Distance Covered: 3,625 km
Hours Pedaling: 244.5
Avg Speed: 15.0 kph
Longest Day: Beziers to Perpignan 104 km
Incidents: 2 (one angry driver in Croatia, one accident in the Alps)

Countries Visited: 9 – Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Italy, Switzerland, France,
Spain, Portugal
Languages Attempted: Polish, Slovakian, Hungarian, Croatian, Italian, German, French,
Spanish, Portuguese

Favorite Country: Croatia (CK), Croatia/Portugal (LK)
Favorite Food: Anything at a tapas bar (CK), croissants (LK and only the ones in France)
Best Beer: Zlaty Bazant – Slovakia

Europe was fantastic for bicycle touring. The continent is full of amazing scenery and interesting culture. Despite the language barriers, we found the interactions with the locals to be quite friendly. We weren’t rock stars as we were in Laos, but we got plenty of smiles and waves.
Although the US Dollar is weaker than the Euro, there are many deals to be found. If you’re into camping and self-catering you can live quite well.
We found roads and highways to be in great condition and drivers are used to bicyclists. In fact, most towns and cities were full of people pedaling.


Stay tuned for the entire trip recap…

LK

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