How to make sure not to meet me

Day 8, Tuesday (one full week on the road!!): 119 km, Bellenaves to Millay.

Tool of the day: My warm hiking socks. Thanks, Mama! It's cold out here.  

Heroes of the day: Merci à Pascale et Alexandre pour un dîner trés, trés bon! Et merci pour faire mon linge.. ;)

Soundtrack (listen to this when you read this post): JJ Heller - What Love really means - Verena, my phoenix, this is for you! (Sending my love in rememberance of late night talks while JJ Heller sang in the background)

A helpful guide: How to make sure not to meet me

Several times a day, I have to pick where I ring the door bell to get water, who I ask for directions or for help to find a place to sleep. If you live somewhere between Biarritz and Heidelberg, chances are, I might knock on your door. I understand, if you don’t want that, because who has time for that stuff?

So here is a guide on how you can make sure I won't bother you:

1. Have an ugly house.
2. Be inside your ugly house (or if you're oustide, ignore me as much as you can).
3. Have the door shut. Don’t have a door bell.
4. Don’t turn on the light inside, even if it’s becoming dark.

 

the old man who lived in this house had no chance.
He had a pretty house, his door was open AND he had an old beautiful bell at the entrance.

Let me explain:

1. Have an ugly house.
During the day, I pick the houses with the cutest decorations or the most flowers or the prettiest paintings to ask for water. Mostly, because I want to know who lives in these pretty houses.

In Germany, there is this saying: “Wo man singt, da lass dich nieder, böse Menschen kennen keine Lieder. - Stay where people sing because bad people don’t know any songs."  I adapted this saying for my purposes and my own saying now is: People in cool  houses are probably good people and that's why they want to give me water.

By the way, it’s not about the fanciest house. I choose the ones that look like someone lives in them who takes care of their house with their heart. This is what I go for.

2. Be inside your ugly house (or if your outside, ignore me as much as you can).

If you are outside, in your garden or on the steps before your house, I might stop and ask in my slow French where the next supermarket is. So better be inside! And if you are outside, don’t look up. Seriously, even if I stop or if you have never seen a German on a bike coming from Biarritz before – don’t look me in the eye! If you do, I might say “Bonjour”.

3. Have the door shut. Don’t have a door bell.

This is easy, because you are probably already in your house when you try to avoid me. I love houses with open doors – when I had to find help on the third day, the family had their door open and I could see their kitchen where they cooked and hung out. Don’t show me to much of your house and family life, I might want to join.

Pro-Advice: Some houses in France don’t have door bells. Knocking at a house feels weird to me, so I usually look around to find one with with a door bell. You might find that good to know.

4. Don’t turn on the light inside, even if it’s becoming dark.

It is also a good advice to not use lights. I might know you are there, and especially if I am depserate, this is how I know someone lives in the house - someone who could help me.

That’s it. If you do these things, you might not get interrupted in your daily life by a passing stranger.

By the way - this is also a helpful guide, if you want to learn how to invite people in your life – just flip the advice around and do the opposite ;) 

I, for my part, decided today that I want to be a house with an open door. 

I’ll try to look nice, because I want to look like I take care of things: of me, and of you, if you need me to. Also, I want to be “in my garden”, meaning: I want to be out there, acitvely and lovingly, so in case you are looking for some help, I am already in your life and you can find me easily. 

And then, the thing about the light. Light really does attract people. I love being around people who are hopeful! But I can’t produce hope, and I can’t fake feeling “light”, if I don’t (And I don’t always, because people are annoying and I am impatient).

For me, this light inside of me is Jesus. All I can try to be is transparent. But if you meet me, I want you to see him shining through me. Because it is him who makes me shine.

arrived in the 2-house-village right before it got stormy. 

Why do little places like this make me so happy? This is my room for tonight.
I love this adventure!

Girl on a bike going nuts

Day 7, Monday: 95 km, Aubusson to Bellenaves
What's new: Ok. Halbzeit. First half!!! Enter Biarritz, Bellenaves and Heidelberg in Google Maps and you see what I am talking about.
Tool of the day: Tried the "click"-shoes today for the first time! They are awesome!
Hero of the day: Jacques, who offered me a place to sleep (70th km) when it started to rain. No, I have mission, I needed to keep going. "I'll come pick you up with your bike if it rains harder, here's my number." How should he have known that I love the rain.. :)
Soundtrack (listen to this while you read this post): Ed Sheeran - I see fire

Do you want to know what's going on in my head all day?
It wasn't as foggy as yesterday, so I could see far, and all I saw was: Mountains, hills, elevation. I literally sang in my head: "I see fiiiireee... inside of mountains... I seee fireee... burning my knees." As my head was empty and bored today, I sang that song a lot. It got to the point that I decided I needed some new engagment.

"Biking is the most exhausting way to look .. bad." Elke sent this to me from the doctor's waiting room.
(Please - someone suggest a better transalation).

Wouldn't half way through this trip be a good time to try these fancy click-bike-pro-shoes I carried so far already?
They were the only thing in my saddle bag I hadn't used until now (next to the bag full of repair equipment which I really hope I will never need). Last night, my pro-biker sister Anna had encouraged me to try them, and Martin, the 70-year old Londoner I met last night, explained to me why they make sense.

Elli, who has helped me over the phone to get them off the pedal the first day (I had just wanted to see how they fit on there and didn't get them off anymore) said that I should practice to click in and out leaning against a wall with my bike.
It was good advice, because I had no idea what I was doing. I practiced a little bit, fell twice, and then I decided I was ready.
So: saddlebags back on, and go.
It is quite scary, being so attached to the pedal. If you forget you are wearing them and you try to get off, you fall at once. Out of fear, I finally had a new mantra in my head: "You are wearing click shoes, you are wearing click shoes, you are...".

Problem: I forgot they were on both feet. When I wanted to get off the next time, my new earworm reminded me:"You are wearing click shoes" and I clicked out. On the right side. But I forgot the left side and fell anyway, right on the street. Ouch. Mama.

The new song needed to be adapted: "You are wearing click shoes on both feet, you are wearing click shoes on both feet."

On I went.

As you can see, some days are more exciting than others. All I do is cycle, from the morning until night, bike and eat, counting kilometers and sweating nonstop. My knees really did hurt today, but I had to be quick because I didn't know where I would be sleeping (which means: trying to get to the final destination as early as possible) and I was just really bored up there on my bike. But that's life. Even the greatest adventure has its routine.

Tomorrow, I'll get up early, as I am trying to go 115 kilometers - to get to this cute little place in Millay. Sometimes, booking ahead and having a place to go to is amazingly motivating.

If you know someone in/close to:
- Fresnes-sur-Apance
- Miloy
e-mail me: rosarollt@gmail.com :)

You are courageous, I am adventorous

A very happy girl in the French forest.

Day 6, Sunday: 81 km, Meilhards to Aubusson.
What's new: I love this!
Tool of the day: My super rain jacket from Sherpea!
Hero of the day: Susi. Susi. Susi.
Soundtrack (listen to this while you read this post): Mighty oaks - Just one day Danke Laura! Fürs Logo-Design und dieses Lied.

When I woke up this morning, anxiety kicked in again. The window was wet from the rain, and I was still traumatized from the long and exciting day yesterday. "God, you need to be strong for me", I prayed and thought of the donkeys.
(Yesterday's blogpost updated. Go, read it, it's a crazy story) :)

Having breakfast with Susi, Francois and the two little ones was comforting and heartbreaking at the same time. I want to go cuddle on the couch and watch KIKA, too! But it felt so good to speak German, and Susi gave me my laundry she washed and dried and that was a happy moment. While I had my coffee, I felt that my spirits were coming back.

"Tu es courageuse" is a sentence I heard a lot these past days. But when Susi told me this morning how eight years ago, she decided to marry the man she loved, Francois, and move with him to the French countryside for good, I realized: I might be adventorous, yes - but the people I have met along the way are brave.

The thing is: I don’t have to do this. This is only a thing of two weeks, not a decision for life. I don’t risk anything. If my bike gets stolen, if my body hurts, even if I just don’t feel like it anymore – I can just get the train. I know my parents will always have my back and not heistate to hop into the car and come pick me up right where I am if there's a problem. 

Yes, I know: This is a big adventure and I know I am not an "Angsthase".

But courage to me is to make a decision that changes your whole life. A decision that changes everything you have done so far, and no going back (or no going back without being terribly hurt). Decisions like that terrify me! If you have ever made such a choice, let me tell you this: "You are courageous, I am adventorous."

-------

Today was (physically) the hardest day I had so far - and (emotionally) the best! I had so much fun, I felt like Louis Armstrong on his tour de france: On drugs. I smiled like a happy penguin, even though it rained on me all day. At one point, I felt like I was swimming when I flew down a hill and all the rain splashed into my face. And there was never (!) a flat part of the street - going up and down all day by myself in a 50-kilometer-long hilly Forest. 
And because it was Sunday, it was "treatday" and only 80 kilometers were on the plan. Now trying to get my stuff dry and off to dinner with a lovely British couple I met in town.
 

Going downhill again. No one out there, just me and my bike.

Pepette saved me from the wolves

Day 5, Saturday: 105 km, Périgueux to Meilhards

What's new: I still don't know if I will make it.

Soundtrack of the day: Limp Bizkit- Keep rollin. Thanks for this song and thank you for your friendship, Maggie. Ich glaub an dich!

Heros of the day: The 84- year old Pepette, Antony and Susi.



Here is the story of how Pepette was right where I had expected her to be - although she didn't know I would need her to help me find Susi.

Selfie with Pepette and Susi, the next morning before I got back on the road.

Imagine this:

Antony, who you have never met but only e-mailed, is so kind to find you a host for the night: Susi. You don't know anything, but only that she wouldn't be home until 9 pm. "That's okay", you say to Antony, "I'll find a place to wait. Like a restaurant".

He gives you her number, but it doesn''t work, and there is also no way to reach him anymore. Also, you call the only restaurant in the village and you hear it's closed that night. It will be dark soon, you don't have an address nor a place to wait and you are still ten kilometers away from the village.



What do you do?

a) You hope the village will be very, very, very small, like two houses, so you find Susis house right away, and you can wait for her in the other house.

b) You hope that the little village will be way bigger than it looked like online so you can find something else in case you can't find them - like 10 bars, 17 restaurants and 9 cheap hotels.  

c) You pray that there will be someone to help you right when you arrive.



I did all of the above, but mostly - c).

Cycling towards Meilhards, I became really worried, but suddenly thought of the Bible story (Mark 11,2) where Jesus tells his apostels: "Go on your way. There will be a donkey waiting for you in the next village."



For some reason, I decided, that my donkey needed to be an elderly lady waiting for me to help me (proabaly because she couldn't do me any harm). So I prayed for one that will be right there when I arrive. I couldn't think of anything else but hoping that even though it was already becoming dark, she would be outside of her house when I arrive and that she would know Susi and that she would let me stay with her until it's 9 pm.



And when I came over the last little hill towards beautiful Meilhards - there sat Pepette, outside on the bench of the first house. Of course.



After Pepette called around and even one of her friends came to help, we reached Susi. I waited in Pepettes little kitchen and had a sandwich and I learnt that Susi was a young German woman from Thüringen, married to a French famrer.

When I left Pepette, she said: "Je t'ai sauvée. Maintenant, les loups ne peuvent pas te prendre!" ("I saved you, now the wolves can't come get you anymore").



Susi and her husband are tremendously generous, supportive and fun! After some wine and choclate, I got to sleep in the cutest guest room over their bakery. When Susi brought me to the little house the bakery is in, she said: "Oh, by the way, we have two donkeies, they are right here on the paddock next to the bakery."



---------------------------------



I want to say this: Meilhards is absolutely awesome! It's the cutest little village, the area is b-e-a-utiful and the people are obviously really lovely. Je vais retourner - in the summer, when Francois, his brother and Susi have bakery parties on Friday nights (pictures on their Facebook-pages) :) And then, in the morning, I will bring Pepette her baguette and sit on the bench with her and listen to old Meilhards stories (she's lived there her whole life). - Definitely worth a visit!

Every hill can be a mountain

beautiful vineyareds. can't be mad at them even though they are hilly.

Day 4,
Friday: 125 km, Mourons (close to Cadillac) to Périgueux.

What’s new:I think I might have hit the 1000-km-to-go mark. “Only” 980 to go!

Hero of the day: The old grandma who waved to me in Douzillvac. You made my day!

Soundtrack: Gareth Logan – My bike trip song. Thank you Gareth!!! Happy birthday!

You know how I wrote about these beautiful vineyards yesterday that showed up towards
the end of the day?

When I woke up this morning I realized that this would mean for today: hills hills hills. For some reason, I was really motivated. I am suprised myself because I went to bed feeling pretty desperate: “It’s still such a long way! I can’t believe I am doing this! Uni starts in 10 days, I am too slow, and this sucks.”

While falling asleep, I felt like I’ve had enough. But over night, I appearently made
the decision that I will keep trying.

"God loves a trier" - Coffee mug at Regi's house, first night. (God loves everyone).

And there I was again, cruising up and down the hills having the time of my life! Oh, what a blast I had.

Sadly, all the speed I get from going down isn’t of long help when it goes up again. The thing is: Every hill becomaes a huge mountain if you have lots of luggage.

I am actually thinking about picking a few things out of my two saddle bags and
sending them home. There are many hills to come.

Downshifiting and minimizing and living with less is super hip right now (I’m a big fan) so you probably all know what I am trying to say: We shouldn’t only try to have less luggagge when biking, but also in live. Hills are hard anyway and so is life. Bringing lots of frustration and anger and grieve with us turns hills into mountains.

I think of a friend who recently said: “I know they all don’t mean it, but every time they say something, I hear it with the already broken heart of mine and that’s why it’s so painful everytime.” Letting go of pain means: Going up a hill without lugage and with more energy.

Sadly, it’s not always as easy as sending a box to my parents.

Tonight, I am staying with Florent and his daughter Laura, who rent out a very cheap room on airbnb. They are super nice and gave me the main bed room. Terribly missing my wonderful bed at home, though. And my clothes. Sometimes I think of random things I own, like my favorite red sweater or my winter boots and I want to go get them right away and wear them.

Yes, I am missing my clothes like crazy.. Also, I need to find a washing maschine tomorrow. Urgently.

Navi 3.0 - wrote down towns I should try to find on my way to know I am right.

Following section is for everyone who likes riddles - I need some
advice.

1. Can someone please let me know why the GPS does take the biggest detours? Like – is
that a thing it needs to do? And does it do direct distance (as the bird flies) or why are the kilometers always so off? I navigated myself today with Google-Maps towns I had written down. Someone, please do research and let me know, it’s a Garmin Edge 800 with a City Navigator – SD Card.
Thank you.

2. Is there a helpful homepage that shows me the elevation of the upcoming route? I can’t
seem to find a good one online.. 

If you have questions, e-mail me: rosarollt@gmail.com
– I will answer reader questions soon :)  (I heard that’s what bloggers do).

"J'ai besoin d'aide" means I need help

Day 3, Thursday: 119 km. Sabre to je-ne-sais-pas (close to Cadiallc), with a huge detour.

What’s new: My right knee hurts.

Heros of the day: Isabelle again for finding Alaine & Andrea for me, who I never ended up staying with, because Phillipe and his wife had to save me.

Soundtrack (listen to this while you read my post): Boy - Drive

I got terriby lost in a forest today around noon and when I pushed my bike through a sandy road, I though that this is what I am going to write about today: “Don’t build your house on the sandy land and don’t bike on sandy streets with heavy bags on your bike.” Little did I know that this day would get much worse.

Isabelle, my lovely beautiful host from last night, had organised a place for me to sleep close to Pellegrue. After lunch, around 3 pm, when I realized I still had to go 75 kilometers to get there due to my unfortunate morning, I decided: “I still can do this” and started pedalling. When I called the family 2 hours later, it was only 40 kilometers more to go.

But my GPS wanted to show me around this amazing area. For some reason, it took me around a beautiful wine street and I got to see vineyards and farms. But after 2,5 hours of going crazy on my bike, I still was (according to Google Maps) 40 kilometers away from where I wanted to sleep. I really don’t know how that happened. Will unpack the mannual tonight and read it.

Again, I decided: I can do this. Somehow. I have no choice.

I didn’t really have time to whine about it, I had to keep going. I wish I would work in real live like this. Too often, I find myself regretting, pondering and reconsidering stuff that can’t be reconsidered. Not so today. No time to be mad at the GPS, I just had to keep going.

But then suddenly it was 7:50 pm, I had already gone 110 kilometers today – and I still was not closer to where I wanted to go.

If it was for me, I probably would have kept going and going and going until I arrived at the house of Andrea and Alaine, the nice couple who agreed to host me. Just because I wanted to meet them and I was so excited to have a place to sleep. But I had also made a promise to my dad: No biking when it’s dark. And I was going to keep this promise. So I finally stopped when the sun started to set and it hit me: I need help.

I saw a family in a house – the window was open and they were cooking and they looked nice. I took a deep breath, took a step toward their door – and turned around again because I realized that if I had to talk now, I might start to cry. Breathe.

Okay, here I go. “J’ai besoin d’aide” I said.

I write this post in my own little room in their house, where Phillipe et la madame de masion have invited me into. I had bread, paté, and a yummi egg-bacon-tomato-onion ragout for dinner, and yoghurt and chesse.  

And now I will go to sleep. And try to forget that everyone seems so worried about the hilly area that is coming up.

Merci, merci, mercia à Alaine + Andrea who would (nearly) have hosted me. Je suis trés désolée que je n’ai jamais arivée! Calling you to tell you I wouldn’t come was sad, but you built me up so nicley on the phone even though you have never met me. France, je t’aime!

And then – merci beaucuop à cette famille. Merci, Sebastien, pour les cartes. Vous êtes trop gentils ! I am sooo thankful!

About swimming pools and peace.

Day 2,Wednesday: Hossegor to Sabres, 97,7 km.
What’s new: I still don't feel any pain in my butt. This lotion is awesome! ;)
Heroes of the day: The old man in his little workshop who fixed my bike for free and his
wife who gave me water. Also: Isabelle (see blog text).
Soundtrack (listen to this while you read this post): O.A.R. - Peace






What do you
think when you wake up and you see your bike through the window and you have 1200 km to go?

 

Here is what I thought:
Screw this bike ride, I'll stay at the swimming pool all day! ;)

 

But when a
few hours later, I found myself flying through the most beautiful French
forest, on today’s 47^th kilometer, I rememberd: This is pretty cool!
I love this!

I see such
beautiful places, I can’t even process them. Even though I have so much time on
my bike, my head spins in this majestic nature. I rode through a reservoir
today (if you google my route of today, you see, it’s all green around me).
When I ate my Quiche Lorraine at a beautiful spot, I was blown away by how
quiet and lovely and peaceful this place of the world is.

And it made
me think of all these people on this world who are in the midst of war and
persecution right now. While I hear happy birds, they hear bombs. I thank God
for the peace I get to experience. But my heart breaks for all those who only
know the feeling of fear this year.

Even though
I (and probably most of the people who read this) don’t have an actual war
raging around me, I still don’t always feel peaceful. Too many times I
struggle, I am scared, I am preoccoupied with my thoughts, running for my life
insde.

 “What’s peace for me?” I thought. “Simply not having to fight ? The
absence of fights around me (social life, Uni burecraucy, expectations of others)
and inside me (regrets, fears, impatience)? Does peace for me mean: Not having
to worry?”

No, that
can’t be. If I only can be at peace when everything is fine, I will never be
peaceful – neither on this ride, nor ever in life. 

Because there is a lot to worry about in life. A lot of stuff can go wrong. 

And also, arent there always moments of
peacefulness in the midst of “not-knowing”? Just like today. I felt pretty chill the
whole time even though I didn’t know for quite awhile where I would sleep tonight. "Why do I feel so peaceful? Because of the beatuy around me?" I wondered. And then I realized: I felt peaceful, in this very moment, not only because I am not in a war zone, but
because I trusted. I trusted that I will have a great place to sleep.
Maybe I could trust, because Regi and I had prayed for it this morning. Maybe, because I didn't have another choice. One thing is for sure: Trusting makes me feel peaceful, trusting
in the one who knows. 

(I don’t know how that is supposed to look like in the middle of an actual war, though...)

So - where did I end up?

 

During lunch, I found Isabelle on AirBnb, who lives in the little village Sabres. 

Aine, my Irish colleague at the hostel, and I picked this village a few weeks ago as my second destination.

I wrote to Isabelle and then took a little 20-minute-nap. When I woke up, she had already answered: The room
she offers on airbnb was not free – but she suggested to have me in her
house. How cool is that?

Now I am in the cutest little house in a tiny village in France, with a full stomach (got to join
the family dinner). I ate two full plates because Johannes said: Eat, eat eat! 
 

Psalm 85, 9
(opened up my bible my first stop on the first day and read this verse)

    8I will hear what God the LORD will say;

           For He
will speak peace to His people, to His godly ones;

           But let
them not turn back to folly.

      9Surely His salvation is near to
those who fear Him,

           That
glory may dwell in our land.

      10Lovingkindness and truth have met
together;

           Righteousness
and peace have kissed each other.

      11Truth springs from the earth,

           And
righteousness looks down from heaven.

      12Indeed, the LORD will give what is good,

           And our
land will yield its produce.

      13Righteousness will go before Him

           And
will make His footsteps into a way.

Saw this paddock with animals today.

There were horses, goats, sheep, chicken, all in the same paddock.

Rare sight, so many different animals in one area. Peace out!

A glimpse of the amazing little farms I get to see the whole time.

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