Delayed Gratification In summer 2018, I wanted to hitchhike to the highest point of mainland Portugal. It’s a mountain named ‘Serra da Estrela’, which can be translated as ‘Star Mountain Range’. A peak called ‘Torre’ is the highest point at 1993m above sea level, which isn’t too shabby – but also won’t cause trouble breathing. My partner Jonas and I were staying in Porto, which is only 200 kilometers from the mountain peak. Back in October 2015, I was also in Portugal, but more south in Lisbon and Cabo da Roca. Back then I did some research into what theContinue reading
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Split, Croatia: Reading a Book at the Riva
At the Riva (promenade) in the old town of Split, Croatia. In this lovely town, I got my tan on and went for the book reading beach life today. I’m only in the first chapter, but it seems like Simone de Beauvoir and I have a lot to agree on. A course – one of the few I didn’t hate – I took at university hadThe Second Sex as suggested reading. I’ve been looking for the peace of mind to read such a staple of feminist philosophy. I think I’m ready to read a thick one. To clarify, the beach I went to is Plaža BačviceContinue reading
Trusting One’s Gut Feeling: Four Truckers, One Hitchhiker (Turkey)
I took this hitchselfie with my four Kurdish truck drivers while hitchhiking in southeastern Turkey. I don’t remember exactly where this was. But from the date I posted it, I’m assuming it was somewhere between Şanlıurfa and Gaziantep. Somehow in my mind, this happened between Batman and Diyarbakır or Van and Batman. I don’t remember exactly and I can’t find the original photo! Anyway, this is a short story about trusting one’s gut feeling when hitchhiking. Anyway, this truck stopped to pick me up in the morning. I said hello in Turkish and asked where they were headed. They wereContinue reading
Hitchhiking Yerevan to Vayk with an Iranian Visa in Hand (Armenia)
The last time I was in Armenia, I also hitchhiked this road on the way to Jermuk. But today I only went as far as Vayk (Վայք). I wasn’t hitchhiking alone back then, but with Michał from Poland and our multi-day super driver. The road passes by the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan within spitting distance at the town of Chiva (Չիվա). Well, not really spitting distance; it’s still like 1.2 kilometers. Our driver from back then told us that there were snipers just over the ridge. That’s why – and this is a quote, nothing I verified – there’s a sandy barrier on oneContinue reading