Rock ‘n’ Roll over..

I woke with a dream/nightmare on Saturday. It involved me, in my house in Mildura, taking photos of intelligent tornados that would follow anything making sound. This segued into some kind of scene from Bettlejuice with a train full of ghouls (including a Michael Jackson-esque half black dude, half Chucky doll) where I was singing a funky song with my eyeballs in my hands. And some people think I’m normal! 😛

Anyway this was all good. It wasn’t scary, it was funny and I woke up and went hunting for money to pay for the campsite. I recall the camp owner telling another cyclist about a supermarket 500m up the road. This would be easier than going into town. I found it and the necessary Geldautomaat (ATM) and also a cheapie restaurant “Das Restaurant” where I had a relatively “normal” breakfast of jam brotchen (rolls), an egg and a coffee for just over 2euro – bargain!

I had just managed to pack everything when the rain started! Thank (chosen deity) for waking me with that dream!

Paid the 16euro for two nights and told the guy he could keep an extra euro because he was cool. Rain jacket on I rolled out into the rain. The sign on the Worms side of the river said Mainz 53k.

The ride to Mainz was quite interesting, a bit wet, a bit off-road, a bit lost, but interesting. Some of the riding was on major roads like the B9 and some was on small roads near the Rhein and some was on dirt tracks near the Rhein. After taking a dodgy fork earlier I asked a guy at a subsequent “Choose your own adventure” intersection, “Which way to Mainz?” (it’s pronounced “Mines” I think) and he told me. Much easier than guessing. In one town there was a bunch of kids playing firemen. At another, there were some firemen playing in biohazard suits.

It wasn’t all flat either. At one point the path veers away from the river and leads up into some steep vineyards! I took photos – it was like Mildura + hills! These hills eventually lead me down into Oppenheim which was in the middle of a wine festival. Near the train station, I was checking directions when people started calling out to me. I wheeled myself over.

“No, that’s not my jacket” I said, shaking my head and patting myself down just in case I did own something yellow and it had fallen off my bike. The older people left but the girl remained.

“Where are you from?” she said, in better english than my own.

“Australia.. Melbourne, Australia”.

“Are you riding around Germany on your bike?!”

“Germany right now, but I started in London and..”

“That’s soo cool! How long for?!”

“Been going for um.. June, July, August.. about three and a half months.”

“I used to have a boyfriend from Australia. From Adelaide. When I was, how do you say, hitch-hiking around Canada?”

“Hiking around Canada?”

“Where you get rides with other people.. “

“Oh, you DID mean Hitch-hiking?!”

“Yeah, he was from Adelaide and we met in Canada. It’s not far from the coast is it?”

“Adelaide and Melbourne are pretty much on the coast.”

Then before I had a chance for anything more, the others returned in a car and whisked her away.

“Fsck!!!” Talkative, cute AND proven somewhat compatible with Aussies and gone, just like that. Typical! Lucky I’m a monk now..

Riding through these vineyards, inhaling a little smoke from burning wood, there was a comforting familiarity with home. The hills destroy the illusion but it was nice all the same.

I arrived in Mainz (with the rain starting again) and again a local offered help while I was checking a map. She explained how to get to the Maaraue Campingplatz I was looking for and where I could find a supermarket (ALDI, MiniMAL, PennyMarkt and another turned out to be quite near to the campsite).

I bought a banana, water and juice. Skulled the 1L multi-vitamin juice, scoffed the ‘nana and emptied the water into my bidons. Returned the water bottle using MiniMAL’s automatic refund machine and collected 25c Pfand from the cashier, which meant the 1L water only cost me 4c!

Headed to the campsite. 8.50euro per night plus 10euro for a key deposit. No sweat. Met a 67yo German guy who had just rolled over the 900k mark for this trip of his. Nice work! He was well-travelled and fairly talkative so we chatted a few times.

Rode into town and took some pics of funny fountains. There are stages setup all over town and a University tent exhibition with some interesting displays. I was pretty stuffed from the ride and went back to stock up on food, knowing that Supermarkets aren’t open Sundays (major pain in the a$$ that is!!). Grabbed fruit, nuts and juice. What?! Doesn’t sound like me at all does it? Okay, I also got some peanut M&M’s 😛

After showering back at camp it was dark and the rain had started again, hard. I hung my washing under a covered outdoor setting, where 67yo and I had parked our bikes and I killed time waiting for the rain to ease by stubbing my toes on the same bench, twice! I also photographed a hedgehog who kept sneaking up on me in the dark.

Finally making it into the tent, I dried out while snacking on my stash of food and reading a chapter of my book (not MY book, Bill Bryson’s book!).

Sleep was made difficult with a nearby train station, low-flying jumbos, thunder, lightning and not one, but two rock concerts!

Actually, the one on the other side of the river was heavy metal and I was a bit pissed off that I couldn’t be there because of the rain! In all honesty though I wouldn’t have lasted long and sleep was interrupted moreso due to my bladder than any noise! Stupid rehydration 😛

Missed another race:

www.winzerpreis.radsport-orient.de