Best of the Balkan

Check! 6, 7, 8… countries within 3 weeks’ time! Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, France. Where previously my counter had stuck to a similar amount of countries in 12 months…

With some pain in my heart I cross the border from Turkey into Europe, feeling like it was over with the adventure, being on ‘familiar grounds’… But that turns out not to be true; although the first country that I enter, Bulgaria, is one of the newest members of the EU, in my experience it is still mainly a poor country in development, nothing like the rest of the EU. It’s more a bridge between East and West, emphasized by the mixture of churches and mosques around.  And that’s positive! 

On the road I meet horse drawn wooden carts, shepherds with large flocks of sheep, old women in colorful flower skirts and headscarves (although different from the Muslim ones, they carry it knotted under their chin) many old Lada’s (or whatever the brand may be of those old fashioned cars). In the countryside life still seems be like in the Middle Ages (exactly as I always told my students, the potstalsysteem is still in use, with (in this case) cows overnight in the stable, their manure used to fertile the land, land along rivers is grassland and the unproductive land used as pasture for sheep or goats).

Entering a city, I step into the communist era, with huge dull, concrete structures, ugly monuments, but also a lively outdoor life with many people on terraces and parks. And to my surprise, German supermarkets all over the place.

People seem to be self-sufficient in respect to their food; large vegetable gardens with the most delicious tomatoes I’ve ever tasted, drying paprika’s for the famous goulash (or whatever), ripe plumbs on the trees to make rakija (so strong it makes me cough) one or two cows being milked twice a day to suffice for milk, yoghurt and cheese and some pigs and chicken.

Although still (the end of) summer and pretty warm, people are preparing for the cold, harsh winter; in many gardens I see bare chested men working, sweating, cutting huge piles of wood and the grass in meadows is collected in huge Barbapappa’s.

Needless to say I really enjoy cycling amongst all of this. And the fact that wild camping seems to be what everybody is doing here (I see many tents or caravans just next to a lake), contributes to my joy. I do just like the locals, and pitch my tent without any worries.

In the stable Indian summer weather, I am treated on several clear, blue skied days in a row, making me enjoy the tough terrain of rough limestone mountains at its best. Especially the Montenegrin scenery is a satisfying repetition of climbing passes, rolling down, hardworking, sweating and enjoying. I feel strong! This is how it should be :)

However, the oncoming autumn let already show a bit of herself; in three weeks’ time I have had more rain than in the past whole year!

Feeling this rush of autumn, I draw a straight line through the Balkan, spending just a few days in each country. A pity, since I would have loved to see more of this beautiful, warm and friendly region. Anyway, a reason to come back!

Then, suddenly, things go fast... From Croatia, in one day I cross Slovenia to enter Italy. And BOOM! I arrive in the western, kind of familiar world, where prices are high, every few km I pass another hypermarket, people are used to see cyclists so don’t look up when I pass, modern cars and people rush. But I also meet quite some (race) cyclist, waving a happy Bon giorno.    

I wonder how people here would react if I ask whether I can pitch my tent in their garden. But in that sense nothing has changed; still the same warmth, hospitality and care I receive! And as nights are getting colder, I don’t even have to sleep in my tent, but am offered a warm bed.

After a few days flying through the flat Po-valley, on a bright, sunny day I enter the beautiful green-red-yellow colored scenery of the French mountains in autumn, its peaks already powdered with the first snow of the year. And am warmly welcomed by Wout, just in time to let the first blow of coldness pass…