Jessica, Renaud and I enjoyed our time together in Athens.
We did all the things a tourist should do.
We even went to see the Greek Guards who, like their English counterparts, never smile. I went up and had Jessica take my picture with one. They never move, so it was okay I guess. I am 6'2", and all of them are at least that height or taller. I didn't realize until I saw this picture how dorky my socks were, but his are not too cool either.
But all good things must eventually come to an end. Finally, it is time to say goodbye to the Temple of Zeus and other Athens sights.
Time to saddle up, Odysseus old buddy. We have a ferry to catch.
I have to be in Heidelberg in eight days, and that is too far to ride. There is a ferry that goes up the Adriatic Sea from Greece to Trieste, Italy. Odysseus and I have to ride across the Peloponnese part of Greece and be there by this evening. No problem for us.
Aw, Ron, do I have to wait down here with the cars on yet another ferry?
Yes, Odysseus. Sorry. But this will be the last one on this trip. I promise.
It is going to be a long ride on the ferry: two full days and two nights. People are camped everywhere. They have tents set up on the deck and in the hallways.
No tent for me. But I had planned ahead and brought my air mattress. I found the darkest corner I could to sleep in.
Help, I'm trapped in there by another sleeper.
There wasn't much to do on the ferry except eat, sleep, read, and people watch. At least it was sunny on deck and people were out catching a few rays.
It was amazing to me how well the captain and his crew could handle that big ship. Parallel parking at the dock was no problem for those guys.
After sleeping and reading for two days and nights, I had finished all my books and was starting to go stir crazy. I bought a deck of cards and played solitaire. But finally, look, we made it to the northernmost tip of the Adriatic Sea. We are at Trieste. Yeah!
But is is late. First item, once off the boat, is to find a place to stay the night. It is August now, and in August all Europe goes on vacation. The hotels will be booked solid, and prices will be doubled or tripled. I asked my GPS to find me a campground. It found one just 12 kilometers away in Sardinia. Deja Vu. I know this campground. I stayed here when I came down from Austria on my way to Croatia and Greece just a few weeks ago.
I hate European campgrounds. They are all private, for profit, affairs, and they pack as many people into them as they possibly can. I felt fortunate to find a place to stay at all though since it is vacation season. The couple in the van next to me are from the Netherlands. The man spotted my motorcycle right away and wanted to talk about his own motorcycle trips. He was really interesting.
Now it is early in the morning on the 9th of August. I need to be in Heidelberg, Germany, on the 11th (or the 12th at the latest). That shouldn't be a problems, but I had better get going. I have a famous pass over the Alps that I want to do, and that might take a while.
I will probably have one more post to this blog before I fly back home on the 14th. Stefan has already arranged my shuttle to the airport. This summer is about over.
More later,
Ron