Remember this guy from the hitchhiker’s picnic in Tirana? We just reunited in France, where Yohan’s family lives in Frontignan. Thanks to this French friend and his family, I have a comfortable bed for one more night before I have to go speed-hitchhiking to the south of Spain. Together, we made a little calculation yesterday and it’s more than 1500 kilometers I have to do if I want to avoid Barcelona and Madrid (yes please)! I have about five days to make it to meet the other side of my family there. At the HitchGathering, some women told me theContinue reading
Europe
Here you’ll find lots of articles about my hitchhiking and kayaking travels in Europe. As you may know, Europe is my ‘homing’ continent where I’ll – like a stinky pigeon – always return to even if I’m trying to stay away from it. And to be honest, it’s not bad; there’s always more to explore.
I undertook many of my trips around Europe while at university in Maastricht (the Netherlands) and Aarhus (Denmark). That’s why I dropped out. I honed my hitchhiking skills here and set the most personal records and firsts such as:
- First solo hitch: from Kirkenes Airport in Norway to Kirkenes town with a military guy with his son
- Longest distance hitched in 24 hours: ~1200 kilometers from Maastricht (the Netherlands) to somewhere east of Lubljana (Slovenia)
- Most hours in one ride: 3 days with one British driver with a rental car in southern Spain and Portugal (his contract said he couldn’t take the car across the border)
- First plane hitch: over Malta (A to A)
- Longest sailing yacht hitch: from Corfu (Greece) to Malta, which was 340 nautical miles over 2.5 days. Here’s my CrewBay profile
Besides hitchhiking, I also kayaked a long distance in Europe down the Danube river in an inflatable canoe named Zucchini. But before I did that trip with my partner Jonas, I returned to university to finish my degree to erase my student debt. Thesis here.
As you can see, it’s not always a fun continent for me; it’s also the locus of worry about the people and pets I’m close to, of bureaucratic fuckery, and of most of my childhood memories. For most of my life, Europe has tied me down. Now I’m trying to experience it from a place of choice and freedom.
If you are not interested in the Danube trip, you can click this link to not show the Danube posts.
HitchGathering 2015 in Saint-Laurent-du-Pape, France
Five days and four nights without internet at the HitchGathering was a great opportunity to get to know this community of hitchhikers. They come together once a year to be among like-minded people at this ‘hitchhiker’s conference’. Some of them went to great lengths to meet up at this place in France and hitchhiked from farther away than I did. A good bunch of hitchhikers also needed to obtain a Schengen visa before coming here. It’s not easy being an ambitious international hitchhiker without a strong passport. I met up with awesome people who have contacted me through my FacebookContinue reading
Au Revoir Family and Drôme Region (France)
I just said au revoir to my mom, stepdad, and dog as you can see in the picture. It’s always quite difficult, even though I’ve said goodbye many times before; I can’t stop living my life too afraid to leave just in case something happens. My dog is quite an old lady already. I’m sad to leave my family and the Drôme region in France, but it’s time to move to the Ardèche region. That’s where the HitchGathering will begin today! It’s my first time at this event, but so far I’ve gathered that the HitchGathering is: An annual eventContinue reading
Die, Drôme: Celebrating My 24th Birthday in France!
24! I’m currently celebrating my birthday with my mom, step-father, and dog in France at a campsite. I’m kind of couchsurfing their campsite, or squatting it? Heck, I don’t know what to call it. We’re in Die in the Drôme department of France. It’s full of beautiful mountains and rivers. I think this is the 8th time or so I’ve celebrated my birthday in France; we used to go here almost every year when my sister and I were younger. So it’s like the good old days with a Francophone gâteau d’anniversaire! In recent years, I’ve spent my birthday abroadContinue reading
Monaco Adventure Travel
Besides meeting the newbie hitchhikers from Czechia yesterday here in Monaco, I also met these two cyclists from Poland who are doing a big European tour. I met them in the daytime when I felt more optimistic about adventure travel in Monaco and hadn’t downed a beer yet. But I haven’t seen any backpackers or that category of travelers since… Greece..! That was more than one month ago and suddenly I meet two duos in one day! That gives me some hope. These guys also have a Facebook page (that I still need to find) but unless you speak Slavic,Continue reading
Moody Monaco Mornings (Sleeping Rough, Not Freecamping)
Today’s a moody morning in Monaco. Either that’s the truth, or it’s my bias because I’m moody as heck. As you might have followed from the previous Monaco posts, I didn’t find anywhere to freecamp in crowded Monaco and most places didn’t even let me in because I had a backpack. But I managed to sleep rough at a business at the waterfront. Not truly relaxed, but I had a nice view of the yachts. It reminded me of my boat hitchhiking adventure to Malta earlier this summer. Though I have other plans, I wouldn’t mind crewing another yacht onContinue reading
Czech Out Monaco
I just arrived in Monaco and met these crazy Czech guys with a SpongeBob-themed ukelele. They’re newbie hitchhikers and we’re about to make things go down for real. Probably at the Monte Carlo casino – a.k.a. the James Bond casino – if we can get in. They were already drunk before I met them and I was in a similar mood. So I knew they’re also working hard to make Monaco a backpacker place despite its unwillingness to cater to the EU’s poor and poetic ones. Prepare for nasty updates. But ooh la la, I haven’t thought about Czechia in a long time.Continue reading
Freecamping Amalfi Coast Before Traveling to Savona (Italy)
Those were a good 860 kilometers hitchhiking from my freecamping spot at the Amalfi Coast to Savona. Here you can see where I freecamped along the Amalfi Coast. The road here is so beautiful. If I had the necessary money and the courage to drive a motorbike or scooter on the Amalfi Coast, that would probably be the best way to enjoy it. You can see the bendy tree, and if you turn around you’ll see the hill with the transmission tower. A Fast Hitchhiking Day to Savona Savona is all the way in the north. That’s where I’mContinue reading
Sicily to Mainland Italy: Hitchhiking Cosa Nostra
This morning’s hitchhiking selfie from Taormina, Sicily. I slept outside in public for two days in a row now, but it seems like I’m not going to find a shower anytime soon. So I’m curious if people will still stop for me tomorrow. I already covered Catania (in Sicily) to Salerno (on mainland Italy) today. I’m probably headed to the Amalfi Coast to camp close to one of the hiking trails tonight. We’ll see about that. The smartest move of the day was asking around on the 3-kilometer ferry from Sicily to mainland Italy for a ride to Salerno. IContinue reading