I woke a few times last night. Once to nature’s call. Once to my phone chirping from a message (when I specifically had muted it!). Once to a scattering of rain falling on the tent. Once to a cat fight. I’d already decided I have a cold, and the pharmacy sold me pseudofed. So not a great night’s sleep.
As I sat in the common area this morning sending emails to Warsaw bicycle shops about a bicycle box, I ran into the guy from the Czech Republic (the electrical engineer) that I met in Riga! We caught each other up on our travels. Yesterday for him involved returning to a city and a Parcel Post box to pick up a package that had been delayed. Flashed back to my travel problem in Bulgaria!
Having emailed or messaged 11 bicycle shops, I headed out for the 2.5 hour “free” Vilnius City Tour. I put free in quotes because they expect a donation at the end. Which is fine, the free tours are typically good, and this was no exception. It’s a great way to discover a lot of the city you might miss otherwise. Another tour guide strongly empathizing with Ukraine. These countries are in direct line of future Russian aggression. And the Baltics have been there before.
We ended the walking tour next to the national museum, so I visited the natural museum and learned Lithuanian history. My takeaway? Lithuanian leaders get murdered.
From there I used to combination of walking and e-scooter to visit the two castles, and grabbed lunch.
Then back to the hostel to pack up the tent and move to my bed in the hostel. Not quite sure what I’ll do tomorrow. The day after I take a train to Mockava at 12:35 pm.
I’ve heard back from 4 of the 11 bicycle shops, with only one offering a box. I’d like to have at least two options.
The first part of the trip worked out far better than I expected, especially given how frustrated I was with the e-bike on the first day.
But this second half? I tried to pack too many things into too little time. I tend to think of most of my trips as three weeks, when typically they’re more like 24 days, and without so many “travel” days. If I’d been able to find a ferry from Stockholm to Tallinn with the bicycle, I would have skipped Finland. Maybe if I’d searched harder, but I distracted myself with Helsinki and the fortress Suomenlinna.
The Eurovelo distance calculations were just flat out wrong. The day Linda rode 110 km we’d only expected 80 km. Even with almost having pulled it off and cycling to Mockava, I rode well above the average distance every day, and cut corners. Five countries in five weeks is maintaining a backpacker’s speed, and it’s too fast.
I have spent too much time travelling when not on a bicycle. Not cycling to the city of my flight home adds a couple of travel days. My last seven nights aren’t cycling days.
Being sick hasn’t helped!