After my bicycle tour in South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland, I flew again to Poznan, Poland and stayed for a number of days in the identical small studio condo I had rented a number of months earlier than. It was nice to be again in a well-recognized place once more… and to be again in a spot as great as Poznan.
I stayed in Poznan for about six days after which flew to Paris, France for my week-long bicycle tour with Active4Adventures within the Loire Valley. Then I flew again to Poznan after the Loire Valley bike tour was over, and I spent one other week and a half or so in Poznan earlier than flying again to Los Angeles.
Within the picture above, a pigeon sits on the window sill out aspect my studio condo. Beneath are a number of the previous, lovely, multicolored buildings that exist all through the city.
I drank lots of Rooibos tea after I was in South Africa, so I used to be excited to see it on the market in Poznan upon my return.
On my first day again in Poznan, I went searching for new garments at one of many many native malls. After my time in South Africa (and after being on the street for greater than 13 months at this level), I want some new garments. Virtually every little thing I had in my possession at this level was both soiled, stretched out or had holes in it.
I ended up buying a brand new pair of denims, a brand new biking jersey, two new pairs of shorts, and two new T-shirts.
After a number of days in my first studio condo in Poznan, I moved to a brand new (and far bigger) 3-bedroom condo close to the middle of the town. I had a beautiful view from every of the condo’s eight essential home windows.
In the future in Poznan, I spent nearly the whole day looking for a bicycle field to fly my bike again to America. The primary three bicycle outlets I visited didn’t have a cardboard bike field to offer me, however I used to be capable of finding a bicycle store on the far aspect of city (close to the airport) that had a bunch of motorcycle bins to offer away. The one draw back to this was that after discovering the cardboard bike field, I then needed to carry all of it the best way again to my condo within the middle (about 5 miles/8 kilometers away). To do that, I folded the bike field in fourths after which rigorously balances the field in my arms whereas slowly and punctiliously navigating my manner again to the middle on my bike. By the point I reached my condo, I used to be drenched in sweat.
I additionally purchased a number of books whereas I used to be in Poznan. I purchased three “How-to be taught Polish” books and one other fictional e-book referred to as “Marina,” which I hope to translate from Polish to English over the course of the following 12 months (in an try to be taught to learn and possibly even converse just a little Polish).
On the night of June 21, I attended Poznan’s Noc Kupaly (summer time solstice) celebration with my new good friend Ariadna (of Assist, I Have Nothing To Put on), and noticed hundreds of lanterns launched into the evening sky. The occasion itself was fairly magical, however it was made even higher as a result of I acquired to share the expertise with Ariadna. Whereas the lanterns had been being launched into the sky, we took photographs of the occasion and afterward watched a conventional folks dance, adopted by a stroll throughout city whereas consuming smooth serve ice cream cones. Ariadna is a a lot better photographer than I’m, so remember to click on right here and take a look at her photographs of the Noc Kupaly occasion.
On my final day on the town, I ate dinner with Ariadna and her good friend Artur, after which collectively the three of us went on a motorbike experience round one of many metropolis’s native lakes. It was a good way to convey my time in Poznan to a detailed!
After saying goodbye to Artur and Ariadna, I returned to my condo, packed up my bicycle and all of my belongings after which ready myself for the lengthy flight dwelling. The following morning, I carried my issues all the way down to the road and hailed a taxi. I drove to the airport, checked in for my flight, and 13+ hours later I used to be again in Los Angeles. My 2012-2013 bicycle tour of Europe and Africa was lastly over.