'dessa

Created by my favorite Imperatritsa (the one with lovers gallore) Odessa stands as the mayor city of South Ukraine. Cafe's partout!!!! "tout 'tit, tout mignon" Odessa is a city to be walked. To be walked, enjoyed and sipped. Sipped in every little corner cafe creeping out of French facades... fab! -but you are not allowed to play cards in the cafe's though :(

The sun shines and marks a reencounter: Stel and Jo await for us with a question on the works: "Would you rather have 3 eyes or have a hand the size of a satelite dish?" .....

hair covering your body, purple skin, kittens used as an universal measuring unit become some of the follow ups... always a hot topic on board ;)

"Nice to see someone you have a history with" ......I couldnt agree more right now....

And this evening we share a meal, some more laughs, a few more drinks; smokes, and a last stroll through the streets. Maybe even venture a strut, but no avail...
tomorrow: hit the road again. An electrichka out of Odessa and then a gentle cycle thru the backdoor cities of central Ukraine till the Dniper River. All of this on our way to Kiev...

till then....

Sevastopol

Twice destroyed, twice occupied, twice reborn and twice as welcoming as any of the other cities we've been so far here in Crimea...

Getting here, an ordeal. An upset stomach slows Mash down to finally make us take an xtra rest day and then its me who can't overcome diziness and has to do a forced stop on a highway rest area. Not the best night rest. Noises from cars, trucks, loud music and the ocassional car making a quick stop at the rest area with the occasional girl asking "why do you undress me in public?" made our night here an eventfull stop. Not much sleep though....
Early next morning we pedal, higher and higher into the Crimean mountains, we are now saying our goodbyes to the south coast as our last stretch takes us over to the other side of Crimea. As we approach the city, there is a never ending hill that welcomes us, Sevastopol is on sight now...
Big city, plagued with cars, motorcycles, noise, and people everywhere. But high spirits help us find a cozy place and as 2200 rolls in its the moon that smiles and welcomes us with fireworks... aint she nice? ;)

leyendas

Sudak, Novi Svet, Alushta, yalta, apshu, ya ni snaio....

names come and go as we move from town to town, but the legends they tells us certainly stay....

tales of ever lasting love that make a pincess jump into a well after having lost her lover and creating a deep cave in the mountain with this jump...

tales of a death-hunger bear whose heart can be softened by the voice of an inocent girl. Softened to the point of resting still while saying goodbye and becoming himself into a mountain...

tales of the devil himself, that after making a volcano erupt and not believing it was hot enough he leaned over to check by himself leaving his fingerprint mark imprinted forever on the volcano, to be remembered and feared...

tales that make the trip memorable....

siguiendo a Jason

7 days riding now and the butt starts to ache ;) ...
The first few days and not much riding gets done. Getting used to the heat and the WorldCup finals take presendence. Incredible heat. And incredible final! (im taking about the Uruguay game here, man! if that last free kick had gone in, aiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii ............)

Feodosia and around. pretty, but still much more to see. We head for Koktebiel, following the Crimean Coast to find its Kapa-Dag (Golden Gates) and the beginning of our journey through the Crimean Mountains. And its here we set ourselves a pace: 60kms a day. 30 between 0600 and 1000. and 30 more after 1700. The heat (close to 40C) makes high noon a prime lunch, beach and nap time :D

Krime is beautiful. Much like Toscana by the sea (Monte Argentario forse): pine like trees, kms on end of vineyards, wine degustation every other stop, blue seas, german tourists and constant up and down of the roads, taking us from one viewpoint to the next. The difference lies here: Instead of rolling hills, these small mountains have roads that go up to 400mts in difference at times. ops. 3 "hills" per day and im done :p

As far as people go I cant say Ive left Russia yet. People are still pretty much the same, maybe a little more layback, like a Russian on "vacation" mode: swap vodka for wine, very little clothing, much more suntan and to every present "Davai-Davai" there is a "bliat" added top the end now... Gotta love it....

Empacando

As I go thru my stuff trying to pack my life into two tiny bicycle bags I have to stop every two three minutes. A hat, a t-shirt, a note, a photo, a stain can bring back so many memories... and take so much space. And here I realize, I havent finished my last trip yet. Ive been collecting and carrying memories for the last two years. Time to finish this trip. Time to start a new one. And its this way that Chancho's 43 new friends, my new hat collection and103 other oddities find their way into a box that will wait for me in Peru... for when Im ready to go back. Almost feels like Im making room for new memories and maybe Im am...
Sitting in the once noisy and almost unbearable teacher's room, today is only the computer's noise that keeps me company. And a "glup" from the water cooler every so often...
And we start tomorrow. early train to Crimea and then Marta will do her thing... we'll be one once more: her, the road and me... hope Eolo doesnt join ;)
promise to keep you updated en la odisea.. till then

ciao belli