Total days of trip: May 20-June 27th (38 days/ about 6 weeks)
Total days traveling on bicycle: 16 days
Total distance traveled: ~800KM
Total time on bike: ~60 hours
Total cost including everything and I mean everything!: 839.96 Euros = 22 Euros / day
What I learned
The best size city for me is about 100 - 500 000 people. When it gets bigger than that it becomes too touristic and hectic. Every destination has its own charms and wonders but for me big cities like Marseilles and Barcelona really are not my cup of tea. Meanwhile small places like Toulons, Argles sur mur and Girona were amazing (just to name a few)!
It is not about the destination but the journey. Originally I planned to go all the way to Portugal but plans quickly changed as I was staying more than 1 day in each place and exploring it with my various friends and couchsurfers.
Sometimes its better to spend some extra money for a hostel when I want to socialize with people. Couchsurfing is great for meeting the locals but sometimes I just want to go out and party with travelers and I should have done that especially in Barcelona when I had 1 week to spend there. Plus it would have turned out to be more economical as with a hostel staying for a long time I could buy some really cheap groceries instead of eating out with the CS hosts.
I really enjoy touring around on my own bicycle. But as with everything everything in moderation and I really enjoyed spending time with others as well to recharge after the long stretches of solitude.
Touring around with Katerina I learned if I were to do this with others there needs to be ground rules about who is navigating and no second guessing, otherwise it becomes a long process and a headache.
What I did well.
The preparation and patience. Sometimes my roads turned into gravel and instead of marching on anyways I took the time to look for other routes or simply walked. This saved me the trouble of repairing flats and my bike held up for the whole trip without the need for massive repairs.
Buying a small gift for the couchsurfers. I think this is just common sense, but I haven't been doing this prior to this trip with couchsurfing and I think it makes a big difference coming into someone elses' home with nothing in hand. It just makes a good first impression. I usually show up with a bottle of wine in hand now :D
Budgeting. I budgetted 30 Euros / day and spent way under that. In fact my last stop I kind of went overboard and spent a lot if not I would have probably stayed 10 Euro/day or something like that.
What I could improve on for next time.
Carry less weight. I didn't think I carried a lot of weight this time. But I definitely could have shed some kgs. The extra pairs of T-shirts, pants and overall was not needed. It really adds up when the kms add up. Listen up for the next trip this is all you need:
5 pairs of underwear and socks, sandals, various tools for bike, electronics, one set of going out clothing, one set of lounging clothing, bike clothes, sun glasses, sun block, toiletries, bungee cord
Take out: bike lights, extra clothing
Plan to stay a maximum of 3 days in cities even big cities. It is better to be traveling on the bike then play the role of the tourist and see everything there is.
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| One of the most relaxing and fun days in Toulon on my CS's boat |
Peace from Toronto.
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