My previous and future travel experiences (by Ronny Errmann)
With a friend I cycled from Göteborg to Stockholm, where we visited another friend. On the way home I cycled alone to Trelleborg, and camped wild. The nice thing about Sweden is, that it’s legal, hence no need to worry about being seen. And it’s nice to have water always close, a swim to wash away the salt of the day is very welcome. Here it was a very short distance from the tent to the water. Unfortunately no sunshine, so I only spent a short time in the lovely lake.
At the moment it looks like that outside again. Spring is here with warm days and awakening nature. I like the contrast between white flowers and green fields. It pulls me outside, also because you can rest comfortably again. After recently being able to take my fist long break on the grass without freezing for, I realised how much I missed that in winter. Although I only became aware of it during the break. Cycling through nature is relaxing in itself, however, those moments in between when I’m doing nothing and just sitting, are also very important for my mental health. Simply reconnecting with myself, which on many days I only take the time for in the mornings and evenings.
During my visit to Germany this spring I also had the chance to visit Dresden. After almost two weeks of warm weather in Europe (which included the time I packed for the trip) it was bitterly cold that day with 2 to 6°C due to a north wind. Even six layers weren’t enough to stay out long. Luckily it was dry. Due to the weather, the city was quite empty, which made sightseeing more pleasant. And the dinner was delicious.
Two wall mosaics/tile paintings can be found close together in Dresden: a socialist version on the Kulturpalast (Der Weg der roten Fahne). and an aristocratic version in the Procession of Princes (Fürstenzug).
The day started for me with a little migraine. So we only took a short walk to the portal of the Tauern Tunnel. Luckily the effects of the migraine weren’t too bad and by midday things were getting better. The buddy I was on vacation with wanted to relax for the day, but in the afternoon I got the urge for action and so I got on my bike again just to see how far I could get. And that was surprisingly far, with a slight incline I managed to climb quite a few meters before I looked at the map for the first time. And when I saw that I had already cycled a long way towards the Stubnerkogel, I had the ambition to reach the summit as well. The sun was already low, but I made it. I happily took some pictures from above and enjoyed the view before I went down the 1000 metres back into the valley. Thanks to dynamo lights I didn’t have to worry about the dark and I was back at the accommodation anyway before it was really dark.
The destination of today’s journey is already visible. But it will still be a long way to go, first it’s a few thousand meters down to the sea and then the taxi will take us over 2000 meters up again. However, it was great to have the right seat in the best weather, only on very few trips I could even see the observatory, and never as clear as today.
The sun was hot on this August day and we were really happy to have found a shady spot in such a beautiful setting for our late lunch. Maybe it was an afternoon snack instead, who knows 🙂 After the refreshment there was a walk to the sea before we continued the last 15 km to our booked accommodation.
A friend is visiting me over the weekend. They caught the earliest possible flight so we had some time in the morning and all afternoon to explore London before heading to my apartment. And so we got off the tube at Hyde Park Corner and made our way to the city centre, to Buckingham Palace, where we were lucky and could see some parts of the change of the guards, further through St. James Park to Westminster Abbey and House of Parliament, Trafalgar Square, London Eye and finally Covent Garden where we got back on the tube.
There are just 3 kilometres between these two subway stops and yet we managed a few thousand steps and needed more than 6 hours. There were just so many detours and so much to see. The weather also turned out to be sunnier than expected. On the spur of the moment, we booked the London Eye. That was also my first time, so far the entrance fee repelled me, however the view was worth it and there were only seven of us in a cabin, which meant that you could move around freely. It was a good day and we were glad to finally be home.
I visited Germany last year by plane, mainly because I didn’t want to read and follow the regulations of two other countries (France, Belgium) through which the train journey goes (*). Since the flight was on time and entry with an EU passport was very quick (**), I still had a lot of time before the booked ICE departed (to get a cheaper fare). And so I took the opportunity to walk from Alexanderplatz to the Berlin Hauptbahnhof (main station) along Unter den Linden and the government district. I was glad to have reached the train station, the backpack was pressing on my shoulders and my stomach was asking for lunch.
*: Although the price difference also plays a role: https://ronnyerrmann.uk/2022/03/10/carbon-responsible-travel/ It is so sad to see how much more expensive a train journey is compared to a flight.
**: I first thought it might be tight to reach the booked train after walking a long way down the passport control line only to find the end of it. But then someone came through and picked up the people with EU passports, so it took me less than 10 minutes to get through. I had felt a lot of malice for the Brits at that moment (one flight from England and one from Scotland) and thought to myself, that’s what say deserve for Brexit. However, this feeling didn’t feel right, it wasn’t a constructive way to reverse or accept Brexit. I still don’t feel serene about Brexit. Any tips?
When I lived in London my commute consisted of a cycle ride and a train trip (sometimes I would cycle all the way, but that was well over one hour cycling). And the cycle ride would often lead me through Richmond Park. The park is quite big, at least much bigger than I had expected with about 3 by 3 km long sides. And sometimes the view was just beautiful there, definitely a quiet place in otherwise rather hectic London. The wildlife in the park is also peaceful, the deer grazed next to the road, 5 steps and I would have been able to touch them.
These photos were taken when leaving the High Tatras. Before that I spent a few days at work and two days on holiday there. Today the bike tour back to Germany started. It would probably have been a great time-lapse if I had thought so at sunrise. Then it was completely clear there and there wasn’t a cloud to be seen, so I thought that a time lapse was definitely not worth it. When we came back from breakfast, clouds were already hanging on the mountains. This layer of clouds looked very nice and we enjoyed the sunshine while cycling later.
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