Day: 29- with a couple of days to hang out (Banici, Croatia to Dubrovnik, Croatia)
Average Speed: 15.9 km/hr (9.5 mph- speed don't matter here)
Distance Cycled Over Last Three Days: 95 km (59 Miles)
Distance Cycled Total: 2957 km (1837 Miles)
Mood: Lucky
I like being alone.
Love it actually.
I'm not talking "J.D. Salinger alone," but I definitely like the freedom that comes with being unattached. I go to see Broadway plays alone. I dine out alone. I take vacations alone.
Don't get me wrong- I love being around people. But I like to say goodbye to them as well.
For me, the idea of distance cycling for weeks with someone is extremely off-putting, There are too many variables- too many things that can create an awful experience.
What if the person you're cycling with only wants to put in 50 kilometers a day when you want to do 150? What if he/she talks too much? What if he/she doesn't talk at all?
What if he/she is in a bad mood when you're in a good one (or vice-versa)?
What if he/she complains too much, or is too dependent on you, or doesn't know how to share?
What if he/she doesn't have the same filthy sense of humor as you, and doesn't laugh at your jokes?
If he/she never waits for you at all? Or is super competitive?
Or doesn't want to stop to eat at the same time? Or is too picky? Or wants to do laundry too often? Or doesn't have the balls to camp in the middle of nowhere when you're lost?
Can't handle the traffic? The mountains? The woods?
Or doesn't understand the fact that you need a day or two to ride alone?
Sounds like I'm over-thinking this, right? I'm not. I know me. I could write for hours about things that can go wrong with a cycling partner. This is coming from a guy who tour-cycled on a tandem with his father for 600 miles at a time. I made Rorschach Tests out of his back sweat. I love and miss that man so much, but he certainly taught me my limits.
What I'm trying to say is that I'm not looking forward to being alone the next couple of weeks.
I'm leaving the perfect cycle partner behind.
I was skeptical of his end-goal being Dubrovnik. I mean, I've never seen that city mentioned in a crossword puzzle... and therefore, it can't be all that great.
But another thing you need to have with a cycle partner is trust.
So I went along for the ride. And trusted his destination.
No regrets.
Dubrovnik now shoves all other places I've travelled to aside and takes first place as far as favorite places I've been.
And we finally got to be proper tourists too.
I could not believe my eyes when we visited the city's Old Town. Every major European city seems to have an "Old Town" and a "New Town," but not like this. Holy crap. I don't even know how to describe it. It's an absolute Medieval maze of stairways and ramparts. Of alleys and plazas. Of hidden shops and secret pubs.
In America, when we say something is old, we mean 200 or 300 years old. In Europe, "old" means... old.
Touring Dubrovnik is kind of like being on the set of Game of Thrones. In fact, it's really like being on the set of Game of Thrones. Because guess where they film that show?
Dubrovnik.
And although I tapped out after the first two seasons (don't expect someone with my attention span to follow 300+ main characters), I couldn't get the damned theme song out of my head.
Two things that you will never see in this place: Cars... and bikes. No way. Impossible. And there are plenty of places to escape to if you don't like being around tourists... because most tourists don't seem to like stairs. And there's a shitload of stairs.
And when we found a bar (which was quite literally a hole-in-the-wall... we had to walk through a hole... in a wall... and then we were on the outside of the fortress on a shear cliff) and watched the sunset over the Adriatic Sea- I was totally sold on this place as a destination. Sorry San Francisco... Dubrovnik just kicked your ass.
Probably the most important thing (an absolute must) in cycle touring with another person is that he/she must be willing to change plans on a moment's notice: You're not going to make your goal every day. You can't see everything that you want to see. You need- NEED- to be flexible without getting frustrated. Again, (in my opinion) there are too many variables- mountains, water supply, state of mind, weather, issues with equipment- to plan too carefully.
Jamie had one full day of scheduled relaxation on this entire trip. Just one. A cycle-free day in Dubrovnik. And he had a plan.
But when you accidentally brush arms with two other tourists, and that leads to a night cap, which leads them to inviting you on an eight hour private sailing adventure the following day, you need to be willing to throw your plans in the garbage.
And that's what we did.
Jane and Ange (appropriately nicknamed "Mad-Ange" or rather "Madange" pronounced like it's French) made sure we saw this place properly. Total strangers giving us an unforgettable day. A private sailboat. A skipper. The bluest of the blue water. Spontaneous swimming. Exotic lunch on an island.
And a confessional game of "Never Have I Ever." Look up the rules to that if you've never heard of it.
We found out a lot about each other in a very short amount of time.
Perhaps over-sharing reached its limits when our 27-year-old captain confessed that he very nearly had a swastika tattooed on his chest "in his younger years."
Cricket. Cricket.
I'm almost glad he confessed that. The skip was way too good looking, suave, and manly to compete with. But guess who's more attractive than Ryan Gosling if he were to suddenly publicly empathize with the KKK: This guy. It's a rare moment when you score points after someone professes their affiliation with white supremacy.
He did a fantastic job of showing us a good time on the coast- can't take that away from him- and I'm not sure of his name, but he'll always be Adolf to me.
A sunset. Some more laughs. Paradise on the horizon.
And a pair of underwear that Jamie pulled out of his pocket the following morning just before going through airport security.
Dubrovnik.
The 20 mile ride into this haven from Banici was great. And the 15 mile ride I took today to see Jamie off at the airport was even better.
I'm headed towards Greece now... I think... so maybe I should've kept on going south after the goodbye. But instead, I turned around, climbed a mountain, and headed right back to Dubrovnik.
One more day in paradise.
Cheers, mate.
Another trip under our belts.
Another chapter over.
I truly hope to see you next year.
There's no one else I'd rather cycle with.
 |
| Jamie's bike- haphazardly packed for his flight back home |
 |
Love it actually.
I'm not talking "J.D. Salinger alone," but I definitely like the freedom that comes with being unattached. I go to see Broadway plays alone. I dine out alone. I take vacations alone.
 |
| Jamie disassembles his bike. |
Don't get me wrong- I love being around people. But I like to say goodbye to them as well.
For me, the idea of distance cycling for weeks with someone is extremely off-putting, There are too many variables- too many things that can create an awful experience.
What if the person you're cycling with only wants to put in 50 kilometers a day when you want to do 150? What if he/she talks too much? What if he/she doesn't talk at all?
What if he/she is in a bad mood when you're in a good one (or vice-versa)?
 |
| Tunnel vision. |
What if he/she doesn't have the same filthy sense of humor as you, and doesn't laugh at your jokes?
If he/she never waits for you at all? Or is super competitive?
Or doesn't want to stop to eat at the same time? Or is too picky? Or wants to do laundry too often? Or doesn't have the balls to camp in the middle of nowhere when you're lost?
Can't handle the traffic? The mountains? The woods?
Or doesn't understand the fact that you need a day or two to ride alone?
 |
| "Dad... I think your back sweat spells REDRUM..." "It's a butterfly, son. That's a butterfly." |
Sounds like I'm over-thinking this, right? I'm not. I know me. I could write for hours about things that can go wrong with a cycling partner. This is coming from a guy who tour-cycled on a tandem with his father for 600 miles at a time. I made Rorschach Tests out of his back sweat. I love and miss that man so much, but he certainly taught me my limits.
What I'm trying to say is that I'm not looking forward to being alone the next couple of weeks.
I'm leaving the perfect cycle partner behind.
 |
| Outside of Old Town. Easy to find your way in. Hours to find your way out. |
I was skeptical of his end-goal being Dubrovnik. I mean, I've never seen that city mentioned in a crossword puzzle... and therefore, it can't be all that great.
But another thing you need to have with a cycle partner is trust.
So I went along for the ride. And trusted his destination.
No regrets.
 |
| Dubrovnik from above. |
Dubrovnik now shoves all other places I've travelled to aside and takes first place as far as favorite places I've been.
And we finally got to be proper tourists too.
 |
| Typical alley in Old Town. |
I could not believe my eyes when we visited the city's Old Town. Every major European city seems to have an "Old Town" and a "New Town," but not like this. Holy crap. I don't even know how to describe it. It's an absolute Medieval maze of stairways and ramparts. Of alleys and plazas. Of hidden shops and secret pubs.
In America, when we say something is old, we mean 200 or 300 years old. In Europe, "old" means... old.
 |
| Dubrovnik is playing this card big time. |
Touring Dubrovnik is kind of like being on the set of Game of Thrones. In fact, it's really like being on the set of Game of Thrones. Because guess where they film that show?
Dubrovnik.
And although I tapped out after the first two seasons (don't expect someone with my attention span to follow 300+ main characters), I couldn't get the damned theme song out of my head.
 |
| Stairs. So many. So everywhere. |
Two things that you will never see in this place: Cars... and bikes. No way. Impossible. And there are plenty of places to escape to if you don't like being around tourists... because most tourists don't seem to like stairs. And there's a shitload of stairs.
 |
| CHEERS FOR THE BEER, TERRY SANDFORD! |
And when we found a bar (which was quite literally a hole-in-the-wall... we had to walk through a hole... in a wall... and then we were on the outside of the fortress on a shear cliff) and watched the sunset over the Adriatic Sea- I was totally sold on this place as a destination. Sorry San Francisco... Dubrovnik just kicked your ass.
 |
| My awkwardness in photos continues... |
Probably the most important thing (an absolute must) in cycle touring with another person is that he/she must be willing to change plans on a moment's notice: You're not going to make your goal every day. You can't see everything that you want to see. You need- NEED- to be flexible without getting frustrated. Again, (in my opinion) there are too many variables- mountains, water supply, state of mind, weather, issues with equipment- to plan too carefully.
 |
| Sailing with strangers |
But when you accidentally brush arms with two other tourists, and that leads to a night cap, which leads them to inviting you on an eight hour private sailing adventure the following day, you need to be willing to throw your plans in the garbage.
And that's what we did.
 |
| No filters on this pic. Photo credit: Jane |
Jane and Ange (appropriately nicknamed "Mad-Ange" or rather "Madange" pronounced like it's French) made sure we saw this place properly. Total strangers giving us an unforgettable day. A private sailboat. A skipper. The bluest of the blue water. Spontaneous swimming. Exotic lunch on an island.
And a confessional game of "Never Have I Ever." Look up the rules to that if you've never heard of it.
We found out a lot about each other in a very short amount of time.
 |
| Jane, Jamie, Jim, Madange, and... |
Perhaps over-sharing reached its limits when our 27-year-old captain confessed that he very nearly had a swastika tattooed on his chest "in his younger years."
Cricket. Cricket.
I'm almost glad he confessed that. The skip was way too good looking, suave, and manly to compete with. But guess who's more attractive than Ryan Gosling if he were to suddenly publicly empathize with the KKK: This guy. It's a rare moment when you score points after someone professes their affiliation with white supremacy.
He did a fantastic job of showing us a good time on the coast- can't take that away from him- and I'm not sure of his name, but he'll always be Adolf to me.
 |
| Don't worry dude. Pretty sure you can keep it in your pocket during the body scan. It's not metal. |
And a pair of underwear that Jamie pulled out of his pocket the following morning just before going through airport security.
Dubrovnik.
The 20 mile ride into this haven from Banici was great. And the 15 mile ride I took today to see Jamie off at the airport was even better.
I'm headed towards Greece now... I think... so maybe I should've kept on going south after the goodbye. But instead, I turned around, climbed a mountain, and headed right back to Dubrovnik.
One more day in paradise.
 |
| Our End-Goal Achieved. |
Cheers, mate.
Another trip under our belts.
Another chapter over.
I truly hope to see you next year.
There's no one else I'd rather cycle with.
P.S.
The Definition of "Trust":
If you haven't figured it out... I'm in green.
Oh that lumpy feeling in the throat after such an experience, saying goodbye to your biking partner. I want to read about your next summer's adventure--and to be adding my own. Sabrina, are you reading this?
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