cycling 4 tamera

basque country 25 -28.7.

morlaa — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:41:15 +0000

Shame over me – Being first picked up by Julianes van, she also brought me to a place at the other side of Bilbao, so that I did not have to cycle in this huge urban center. So I started in green hills, crossed Guernika and found the coast. what a beautiful route. I had to find out, that this saturday was a holiday and so went short on food, because on sunday everything was closed as well, but it was jsut in my mind, I soon realised that there was no reason to worry – we should anyways stop doing that. I always found a little shop open to get some bread or something… Guernika reminded me about the test of the new german war technologies in the 30s, but in the town itself I did not find a lot of memories about that. It was full of motor cyclists comeing for a concert – today was holiday. The coast is very nice and beautiful, lush hills, green forests, beautiful beaches and little coastal towns, a lot of people living here, but more the rich part of society.

These days i was spellbound by Eragon 2 – 22 cd audio book Juliane gave me. It is a strange way of distraction – it is only about the war against evil, honor and revenge – “old matrix”. The story of these fantasy epos always runs along the same lines, and this one is not trying anything new. And still I could not stopp listening. It put a wall around me: I saw the nice view, I cycled the hills, swam in the sea from time to time, but the important things where happening in the audio book. I was happy, when it was over and i could return to this world, not being distracted anymore, and continue my study of texts about peace. Why do these stories have such a great attraction? Well, at least it made me think, think about the war stuctures, and how it is more attractive to listen to fictive predictable adventures than to dive into the adventure of life itself.

Which I did then today – swimming in the Atlantic Ocean, enjoying some of the greatest waves I ever experienced. Whow, what power resides in the elements !! I have to learn surfing!

The border between Spain and France was quite horrible. Lots of traffic on only some roads, I did not find a bike path, maybe there is none. On the other side of the pyrenees u find a beautiful coastal road, going up and the down in serpentines, but here it was just all full of houses, industry and traffic. And after a huge huge holiday resort – beaches, dunes, camping places. A bit boring and repetitive, but great to swim!

Resting at Julianes 23.,24.,25.7.

morlaa — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 16:55:36 +0000

What a reunion – just by chance Astrid was visitng Juliane that day, when i arrived. She and her husband were on the way to….Portugal and had a night over. In 10 years they both changed supprisingly little, we could connect very well and exchanged the stories of the last years.

Juliane lives now in a house in the country side, in the mountains, and exept for the fig tree infroon of the house it could be somewhere in Austria. They build the house from ruins and indeed made it a very beautiful and luxury home. We both discovered, that we had started to collect audio books, so we exchanged a lot, and I got a big gift of beautiful spoken books. Thank u Julina, for this big gift and all the hospitality! They have a path tube with jakusy! Heaven! And so clean! For dinner we had Tortilla, which reminded me of Malole, and of a way to combine potatoes and eggs I really like.

We visited a huge cave, which is full of stalactites and -mites – and also excentric one, which to neither grow up nor down, but look like roots or corals. They are very seldomly found and yes, this cave is a special place. When the guide closed the lights while we where leaving, she made a joke about returning into the darkness – I would have love4d to spend the night there in the dark – what a mystical place.

Another aspect of the visit was the hear a little, just a little about the political reality in the basque country. My first reaction was the naive: “but this is the ueropean union…” People in jail for years for doing nothing more than some graffities, being beaten up and tortured before for some activism, for wearing a t-shirt with the picture of a “terrorist” in prison – not just anyone, but friends of them. The climate becoming even more hostile, now that there is a spanish govenment in power… “This is possible in EU ??” and yes, forget the propaganda about human rights, be it the refugees in Austria or the Roma and Sinti people in italy or the Slavic countries, just because its EU it does not mean, that human rights are secured. We just tend to forget, to close our eyes to the cases we get to know, and then, with each new case, it like – oh whow, this is possible in the EU ?

On the other hand the basque country is quite rich, with a good social welfare system, better medical system than in the rest of Spain, and yes, u can see it in the towns and villages. I thought that it is the perfect country for me, lush green mountains directly at the coast of the atlantic ocean, Austria at the shore, very nice. But who is profitting frrom the war here, how is the welth and the terrorism connected ? Who profits ? I did not dig too deep in this topic, like in all permanent low-scale war areas, the people try to forget it. Just one thought for to end – all this is in me as well ….

Towards Bilbao 22.&23.7.

morlaa — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 16:39:55 +0000

After I parted from Julio I went on small roads again, the wind from the back, sometimes in stormy gusts. beautiful hills, soemtimes getting quite high, and a largly unpopulated landscape. I was looking forward to get to Bilbao, because there i would meet Juliane and Astrid, 2 friends and former flatmates, who I did not meet for 10 years. We lived together in my first community, well shared flat, but we were very close that time and it was the best flat i had every shared. I w3as so curious about what had happeded to them, but first i had to find them and for that i had to find internet.

I found it in a village called Ona, in a bar with wifi, where my computer suddenly connected to the net, and I found all the contacts neccessary. Ona is a beautiful little village with a carfree historic center full of life. The landscape got more and more mountainous, and Juliane had already warned me that she does live in the mountains, not at the coast. So I had a look at google maps, found its only 50km left and started towards her. I followed the great gorge of Rio Ebro for some time, and suddely it was populated again. The road became bigger and got more and more traffic and i saw a thunderstorm coming towards me. One hour after sun set I decided to camp, but did not find a very good place. The thunderstrom came and stole most of my sleep, it even rained, for the first time on this trip, but i had my tarp and stayed dry.

Next morning I managed to get up early and phone Juliane. We met on a street, she picked me up with her VW-van – but before I went downhill for 40 km, on a big street with two lanes each direction. Whow, what a downhill, I had not known i was so high up, I almost managed to catch Juliane at the town where she started. And I finally crossed the border to the basque country, which I had awaited for the last 50 km.

Finally flat 20.&21.7.

morlaa — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:30:35 +0000

The best conditions for making some miles – boring flat landscape – giant corn fields – straight roads, wiind from the back and me, i have 6 holes in my rear tire. I could not find a reason for the wholes, they where just there. What a day, it brought me to my borders, I spent the whole day next to a quite busy road with one patch missing – I had 5, needed 6 ;-(
I tried all tricks I knew, and in the end made a knot into the tube where the last hole was and cycled slowly to the next town, where i found a closed bike shop. By that time i was out of my mind – can not really explain, but was full of fear. Nobody did anything bad to me, but the only thing i wanted to do was to hide myself. It was hard to talk to people, I was not able to ask anyone for support and only calmed down, when I had found a hidden place next to the channel.

Next day the sun was shining again – I went to the bikeshop, got a new tire and 2 tubes and found, that I had reached the Camino de Santiago. Whow, how many people take it, amazing, who many spend their holydays walking! I did not have to know the route at all, just followed the snake of people coming towards me. Quite a lot of cyclist travellers as well. I was thinking about the fear attack i experienced yesterday – what was that about ?

Chestnut chappel 18. & 19.7.

morlaa — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 15:55:50 +0000

Finally in Spain. The wonder of a border – it is just something in the mind of us humans, but everything changes when u cross one. The style of the houses, the language of course, the temper of the people…A bit sad I leave Portugal behind me, rolling down the Montesinho. I had a look on the map and saw, that i could follow a long lake to the east. But when i reached the settled area I found myself in a tourist area. By trying to escape it, i got more and more north and then found a magical place:

Santuario de Ntra. Sra. De LaAlcobillo – a small chappel on a hilltop surrounded by at least 50 200 to 400 year old chestnut trees. I climb one and spend a great siesta there, stiing on a branch half a meter wide ! Most trees here would need 3 or more people to embrace them! Whow, i love chestnuts in flower ! A quiet space full of magic, where i held a meditation and thanked for the beautiful road i was led through today, through little hills with chestnut and oak forests, small winding roads – the flock of giant trees being the icing on the cake !

I had hoped that now in Spain the flat area would start, so that I could hurry to Bilbao, but then when I finally left the chappel, I hit the mountains again. I asked for the way, as I had reached a villag where the tarmac road ended. I followed the dirt path to the next village and asked again – one way to the south and one north to leon – through the mountains. How good i did not look at the map, the mountains did not look so high, and although it was already 7 I choose to take that path. And then I had to climb and climb, and what looked so easy from down became more and more hard, windy and cold, a barren landscape, it became more and more dark, and I told myself: “Ok, I will do the first mountain range, and all the mountains after I leave for tomorrow.” It felt like my last power which took me over that range, and It was dark already, so when I went down after I could not see the beauty of the landscape surrounding me.

Only in the next morning I saw which beauty I had entered, a steep valley with a river running through, green and beautiful, and for this day my route was blessed by a slow downhill, wind from the back and a road, which became bigger and bigger, but most of the time I was alone on it. Great scenery, beautiful rock formations, and even if it looked like now there would be a hill in the way, no, it still went on going down down down Looking on a map I found out, that i had crossed 1800 and something meters the night before, it would have been much harder, when I would have known that. It looked much less, and yeah, it is our mind which gives us the power – I would not have had the power for 1800, but as it just looked like 1200 I managed „I travel the way of the goddess“ is one of my power sentences these days, and it is a very nice one today

PT statistics

morlaa — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 15:27:18 +0000

Here are my statistics for Portugal:
29.6.some 30km – leaving Tamera in dusk
30.6 some 90km till Setubal, from there the train to Oeiras
1.7.-3.7. resting and equipping myself in Lisbon – got a simple bike computer
4.7. 47,32km – starting after the noon heat to take the beautiful costal road around Sintra till Aguda beach
5.7. 107,4 km rather boring hills and coast
6.7.82,33 km to Leira, through the Parque Natural das Serras de Aire e Candeeiros – with a lot of traffic and industry for a natural park
7.7.66,52 km turning more inside the country, getting more interesting, more traditional
8.7.62,41 km beautiful hills around Dornes & Rio Zezere
9.7.82,39 km on top of the hills
10.7.40,01 up to Torre/ Serra da Estrela
11.7.68,7 km downhill and to the rainbow @ Rio Mondego
12.7.Rest day on the rainbow
13.7.37,65km from now on I am ignoring the map – heading north east
14.7.66,90 km more and more empty streets, lots of forest, ending in a deep river valley of Rio Pavia – N323 – feels like I reached Spain
15.7.88,29 km down Rio Pavia, up Rio Douro: N323, N222 and others Ns with 2s and 3s
16.7.62,27 km following R15 towards Braganca, its like a giant bikepath, all the traffic runs on the parallel IP4
17.7. 56,84km reaching Braganca and continuing north through a beautiful national park

Almost 950 km in 15 cycling days through mainly hilly or mountainous terrain – best routes: the coast around Sintra, from Dornes to Torre and N106.3 north of Braganca

R 15

morlaa — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 15:20:34 +0000

The R15 to Braganca makes navigation easy – just follow ur nose A long street trough quite unsettled hills, with a bigger road in parallel, the IP4, which takes all the traffic, so that I cycle on a huge cycle path Sometimes it is a bit unneving, that I get to do all the hills, while the IP4 is much more flat and straight, about 20km shorter, but it is much more nice and quiet this way, so that is good.

Next morning I reach Braganca and am led to leave the town heading north instead of east, as Joao suggests, through the Parque Natural de Montesinho. Beautiful quiet hills with lots and lots of sweet chestnut trees in full flower, how beautiful trees!!! They do replaace the fruit trees though, but till now i have enough fruits stored

Wine 15.7.

morlaa — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 15:03:04 +0000

I had a look on a map today and saw, that i am on a good way, but still quite far from spain. First I went down the valley for 18 km , 18 km full of beautiful curves with amazing sceenery. Then i went up another valley, that of Rio Douro, where the grapes for the portwine grow.I had to think a lot about perma culture design this day, because this area is terrassed, and most of them are on contour, meaning build on one height line. This is one way of permaculture design, to do these terrasses, and have them end with a little mould, so that the water stays on the terrasse and here sickers into the ground. But on these terrasses the mould is missing, and instead of a colorful mixture of dense vegetation u have the rows of wine plants laid out in the blazing sun like snakes. Why does wine always stand alone ? Thee people here grow it since long centuries, why do they not use the positive effect of plant communietes, of diverse plants supporting each other ?
So i saw a landscape, which is already preshaped for an effective permaculture design, but till now dominated by wine monoculture. At the end of the day i left the wine are, with it the more dense population and the wine tourism behind and found the R15 heading to Braganca, the most north-eastern town of Portugal.

Traveling with inner guidance 13.7. – 14.7.

morlaa — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 14:40:39 +0000

I left with lots of hugs by beautiful girls and guys, and the way up was not half as exausting as I had thought. And I followed a decision I made earlier – to go into trust and leave the map behind me. A big experiment for me, as I am used to know where I am, or at least to know, that I am lost. But now I will follow my inner pictures and the general direction of north-east, and I hope to reach Bilbao by the 22., 25. latest! That day I was led onto a quite busy road with a lot of trucks passing me, not really what I had wished for, but later, after I crossed the motorway it got better. But in the beginning it worked very nicely – when after an hour I came to a small town I wished for my favoured super market – pingo doce – and for internet at a library – it is for free. I found both and I met the girl, who had led me to the rainbow – she just came out of a clothes store to bid me fare well – the first and the last sister to see.

The next day I am led to much more quiet and beautiful roads, one time even on a dirt path through a forest, very nice. But in one occasion my inner map showed to a way which leads to a private house, whit a rope blocking the way, and so I took another turn than my inner map showed. I wonder, what I missed there ? U see, I am still training to trust my inner!
It is the first day since around Sintra that it is cloudy, so easy cycling. I am very excited about my experiment and refuse to look on a map for the next days, so I can not tell u, where exactly I cycle. It is this feeling of not knowing where I go, but trusting that it will be good. And my sleeping place was very nice indeed, in a forest between a couple of boulders. I am quite sure that I will neither go to the national park Geres nor visit Escanda, the activist community I want to visit since years, and also I can not use couch surfing with this spontaneous way of travelling, but we will see whom I will be led to meet!

One little incident showed me, how great this guidance thing works: someone made me a gift of a loaf of bread. As I was cycling in the morning that was what i was whishing for, some bread, as I had quite some fruits, but ran out of bread. When i held mv siasta, under a huge fir tree next to the road, Joao stopped. He wanted to have a look, if this cyclist is al right, as he himself travelled by bike. And as he did not want to disturb my sleep, he made a couple of photos and left a loaf of bread for me thank u mate. Later we exchanged emails and he told me, that he should not have taken this road, but got lost and so got the chance to help me. I whish he would haave woke me up – I guess I´ll track him down when I am back in Portugal.

I ended the day in the valley of the Rio Pavia, where i thought that i already arrived in Spain. I entered that valley at its top end, and it is a wild rocky valley there. Its much more dry than the regions I crossed before. Found a lovely sleeping place in a rocky island, not in the river, but 200 meters above! Impressive!

The day on the rainbow gathering 12.7.

morlaa — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 14:35:02 +0000

The day on the rainbow I spent with a long long sleep, and then I was laying in my hammok and reading the whole second part of Sabine Lichtenfelses book about the GRACE-pilgrimage 2005 in Israel / Palestine. It touched me a lot, to read all those war stories, of all sides, and how this group of pilgrims managed to bring light to the people, who live in the conflict since so many years. How they brought Israelis into the westbank, so that instead of victims meeting soldiers Palestinians and Israelis where able to meet on a human2human level. They performed a theater play looking at the conflict from the perspective of an alien and touched many hearts on both sides, with lots of people being able to see themselves in one of the characters but still being able to also understand the alien point of overwiev. They had a talking stick circle of deep listening with a Palestinian guide present and Israeli Soldiers joined spontaneously, and both where able to speak their truth and touched each other with that. There are many more brave and impressive stories in that book, I can recommend to read it! Yes, that is one reason for me to study in Tamera, I want to to learn these human qualities, which Sabine describes as GRACE – stepping out of conflict mainly by first listening to peoples stories and be touched by them, instead of judging them by their outside. And then also being able to touch them, to speak the truth without accusing, to manage to get into human contact and by that to find a door out of the conflict. And to do this in a graceful, meaning beautiful way!

Impressed by those stories I did enjoy the rest of the day the landscape, the music and the people of the gathering, meeting old and new friends, being happy about how many cyclists were present – I just missed a group of 4 going my direction, they left the day I came…what a pity. And then I met Alex – Rawlex, a friend from austria, whom I had not seen since the biketour 2005, and one or two occasions when I met him on the street of Vienna. He looked so good, shorter hair and shorter beard, and a big smile on his face. He found the rainbow family and u can see how good it is for him, he lost some of his rigidness. He was a very strict raw foodist, trying to convince people of this way of life, but now he is more relaxed about it. We had a lot to talk about, he had a lot of questions about Tamera, and I was happy to see him so deeply involved with the whole gathering, swimming on its wave, which might bring him to cycle to the gathering in Morocco with some rainbows. It is so nice to see, when friends develop into more happy and shining people!