Esztergom to Budapest

The weather gods obviously drank too much delicious Hungarian wine last night and decided it was time for a group of cyclists to get very wet and mucky. For the first time I was glad I wasn’t riding my own bike!

The first part of the ride was 11.5km to a ferry across the Danube and I quickly realised that the arm and leg warmers were going to have to come out of my day bag.

The next 30km to the coffee stop and another ferry crossing were therefore much warmer. The ferries were necessary so that we could stay on bike paths as much as possible and avoid the busy roads, although some traffIc was inevitable. Obviously it would be rude to pass up a final cappuccino and cake opportunity whilst waiting for the ferry.

We had a soggy group photo of the 5 of us who rode across the USA in 2014, it’s been really great to catch up with them again.

The rain then kindly stopped and Ben the guide gave all the bikes (and me) a hose down at the lunch stop to get rid of some of the accumulated muck. The ride into Budapest had some navigational challenges, but what a fabulous way to arrive in this beautiful city.

I’m sure the Marriott hotel was delighted to have a bunch of filthy cyclists padding through their reception area in search of beer and then decorating the front of the hotel with bikes.

Tonight we have the farewell dinner and I will have time before my flight home tomorrow afternoon to do another of my happy, city exploration walkies.

It’s been a thoroughly enjoyable 14 days and nearly 1000 miles of cycling through six countries, constantly reminded of how lucky we are to enjoy such freedom of travel and opportunities.

Gyor to Esztergom

We have been unbelievably lucky with the weather on this trip and today we started in a bit of drizzle, the storms chased us down the Danube, but we stayed dry! It was also much cooler today which was a relief.

The ride was again very flat and fast with some beautiful bike paths, but also a couple of stretches of busy roads. The drivers gave us plenty of room but drove very fast so it was a bit scary. The bike paths by the Danube were definitely a much happier place to ride.

The break stop was next to Babolna National Stud Farm where beautiful horses would usually be the main attraction, but I fell in love with this gorgeous kitten, obviously.

The picnic lunch was next to the Danube necessitating a post-lunch paddle, the stupid suntan lines are now finely developed.

Shortly after lunch we crossed back over the Danube from Slovakia to Hungary again with a great view of Esztergom where we are staying tonight.

The post-ride routine is now firmly established - beer(s), shower, walkies (with the occasional nap squeezed in). Today’s walkies was rather impressive -  Esztergom Basilica is the largest church in Hungary with a spectacular view of the Danube.

Just one more day of riding to go and the tree trunks are still zooming along without too many complaints, my bum will be glad to have a break from the saddle however.

Bratislava to Gyor

Today was a very hot and almost completely flat ride in three different countries -  Slovakia, Austria and Hungary.

Leaving Bratislava on bike paths, there was an added bonus of a lift to negotiate.

This blog has been filled with castle photos so I feel it is time for some other Communist bloc style architecture, still fabulous blue sky but not quite as pretty.

The first border was from Slovakia into Austria with two bike paths running parallel along the border.

After a quick stop to top up the water bottles yet again, we cycled into Hungary, the last country on this trip. The border was definitely more conspicuous but obviously now completely open.

Lunch was near the end of the ride and various parts of my body were taking it in turn to protest, so a cooling river dip was extremely welcome.

It was an early finish so plenty of time to explore Gyor in 33c - 1st priority was a cold beer followed by an ice cream obviously. It’s a very pretty, well restored old town with very few tourists and a lovely place to walk around.

We met in a bar for the 18.30 pre-dinner briefing and Jim told us about the Hungarian Uprising of 1956, starting as a student protest and turning into a horrific conflict. The Pan-European picnic on the Austrian-Hungarian border in 1989 is considered to be one of the first stages in the fall of the Berlin Wall and one of my favourite moving stories from this trip.

Vienna to Bratislava

Cycling out of Vienna was an interesting experience. I cycled at the back of the group with plenty of space and could enjoy the amazing bike path network.

We cycled through Prater Park where they were setting up for a weekend of testing ahead of the 1.59 challenge in October. Eliud Kipchoge is going to try to be the first person in history to run a marathon in under 2 hours. Just as well it’s not this weekend in 32c!

We cycled along the side of the Danube with hog roasts on the left and naked Austrians roasting on the right of the bike path. I have edited this photo of rowers on the river to crop out a couple of naked bodies...

Oh look, another apple strudel seemed to make its way into my tummy.

It was a short ride today, so Joanne and I decided to have a wander around Schloss Hof, an 18th century Hapsburg palace. The state rooms had been turned into a child friendly educational experience, bizarrely involving super market trollies in one area.

The ornamental gardens were stunning and well worth the entrance fee.

Shortly after the castle, we crossed over the Freedom Bridge into Slovakia with more reminders of the evil Iron Curtain.

The ride into Bratislava almost entirely on bike paths was just fabulous.

A short, but really fun ride today.

After a quick shower, Joanne and I headed off to find some lunch and of course a cold beer.

It is such a hot day so we just had a little tourist walk to find the iconic ‘Man at Work’ statue.

We also had to have a delicious ice cream at `Arthur’s` - it would definitely be far too hot here for Arthur the dog.

Dinner was a delicious red Thai curry at the Sky Bar, unexpected food, slow service but a great view.