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Entries made in January, 2010

Coasting

Sunday, January 31st, 2010

According to our database, after ten months on the road we've ascended 108,469 meters and descended 108,215 more. Imperially speaking, that is nearly 70 miles in each direction. We have officially cycled up enough hills to take us into space. Co...

Matera Sightseeing

Saturday, January 30th, 2010

We started our day by making french toast with Matera looming in the distance. It was very windy and we were downright cold as I packed up camp while Tara prepared breakfast. Once again, thank you Mark and Lisa for sending maple syrup in our last...

Matera Sassi

Friday, January 29th, 2010

"Please don't be raining please don't be raining please don't be raining"… I repeated over and over while waiting for Tyler to come back from a quick trip outside to check the weather this morning. To my relief, he returned with a smile: lots of ...

Sick Day Observations

Thursday, January 28th, 2010

Though I woke up feeling a lot better than I had last night, Tyler insisted we take a day of rest so I could fully recover. We passed the morning and afternoon laying together in our tiny, smaller-than-twin bed. Tyler spent the time programmin...

Wet and Cold

Wednesday, January 27th, 2010

A sickly drizzle of freezing rain patiently waited to receive us this morning. As we stuffed ourselves during our last continental breakfast at the Grand Hotel in Potenza, we were blissfully unaware of this fact. Another detail pleasantly among t...

Just Right

Tuesday, January 26th, 2010

We've only been here two nights and two days but Tara and I enthusiastically agree; we think we'd like to live here. The city of Potenza has a particular vibe, a quiet welcoming sort of quality about it which we both immediately noticed when we ar...

Birthday Success

Monday, January 25th, 2010

Yesterday, I made a list of all the things I wanted to do on my birthday. While the best parts of the day weren't even on it (an early morning phone call from my brother, Lian, the sweetest voice-mail of Tyler's little brothers and sisters singing...

Rags to Riches

Sunday, January 24th, 2010

Waking up in the bitter cold at our olive grove free-camp, we ate our last few slices of bread with butter and the final spoonfuls from our jam jar. It wasn't the best breakfast for the mountainous climbs that lay ahead, but it would have to do, s...

Brrrrrrr

Saturday, January 23rd, 2010

In an odd change of perspective, every climb was cause for celebration today (and there were plenty of them: 800 meters, or over 2,500 feet in all). In lieu of hopping around madly trying to keep warm as we did while packing up camp, we slowly and...

Journal Interface Update

Saturday, January 23rd, 2010

We've received several emails from people saying that they often accidentally click on images and feel it is confusing when they are directed to a Flickr photo page. I've updated our site so that when you click on an image it will display a larger...

Climbing in the Cold

Friday, January 22nd, 2010

The day didn't start out very cold. In fact, the first twenty five kilometers of our trek east were just beautiful; much flatter than I expected they would be too! We cruised through non-stop civilization with huge grins plastered on our faces fo...

Field Recording

Thursday, January 21st, 2010

During yesterday's ride, we enjoyed the Amalfi scenery on our second trip through it's unforgettable coastline. Though it provided spectacular views once more, we'd forgotten how mountainous the area is. Today, we were hoping for something a litt...

Amalfi Again

Wednesday, January 20th, 2010

When Tyler expressed his desire to return what I call "the tunnel from hell" to do some recording, I was torn. On one hand, I was excited that he'd finally be able to capture the bizarrely intense drone noises he was so enamored with, but on the o...

What's Next

Tuesday, January 19th, 2010

For some reason we can't quite put our fingers on, we've found stealth camping in Italy to be incredibly easy and rewarding. Last night's location and the views it provided this morning were no exception. We love Italy! After lazily pa...

Salerno

Monday, January 18th, 2010

After a refreshingly hassle-free boarding process last night, we made ourselves at home on the ferry to Salerno. By making a mat on the floor out of the removable seat cushions, we were able to easily fall asleep snuggled together, unimpeded by un...

Pigging Out in Palermo

Sunday, January 17th, 2010

We woke up to the morning sun streaming through our smudged ferry windows and were greeted with views of the ruggedly beautiful mountains of the Sicilian coastline. We were almost there! An hour later, we had docked and a mob was already form...

Armed and Dangerous

Saturday, January 16th, 2010

It was a drizzly, dreary day in the port suburb of La Goulette, and we were glad we weren't trying to finish a marathon to Tunis this morning. Instead, we were ready for our evening ferry and our kind hotel hosts allowed us to hang out in the lobb...

Hitching a Ride

Friday, January 15th, 2010

This morning was day two of our mad dash for Tunis. We were in good spirits, but our muscles were sore as we groggily shuffled down the stairs of our hotel for breakfast. With each step it was becoming increasingly obvious that stringing a series...

Olive Grove Angels

Thursday, January 14th, 2010

Somehow, after nine and a half months on the road, we still wake up excited about a new day of adventuring—even when just the night before, we cursed the skies and wondered why the hell we were out here at all. We just want to ride our bikes, eat,...

Sandstorm

Wednesday, January 13th, 2010

In central Tunisia this morning, it felt like spring was in the air. Tara was excited, snapping photos of the delicate little buds in celebration of the coming season. Here is her first "flower hour" of 2010. Shortly after 2PM, the o...

Back to Work

Tuesday, January 12th, 2010

Very excited about our first day cycling in almost a month, we were packed and ready to go in record time this morning. Before we left, Tyler ran over to Cafe la Corniche to say goodbye to Yousri while I jogged over to the pastry shop to pick up a...

Velocity Rims: Part 3

Monday, January 11th, 2010

Our rims are finally here! Tara and I tore into the boxes at the post office this morning as soon as they opened at 8:30 AM. We could hardly believe what we saw when we removed the cardboard packaging. Velocity has replaced our failing rear rims...

In Summary

Sunday, January 10th, 2010

One month after Velocity sent our replacement rims, their convoluted journey has ended here on our desert island of Kerkennah. The first two weeks featured an information blackout during which they sat, apparently forgotten, in New Jersey. Go US ...

Too Windy

Saturday, January 9th, 2010

We left our hotel bright and early hoping to pick up our wheels from the nearby post office during their brief Saturday morning opening. When we arrived they informed us that our wheels had been sent to the Post Office in Remla a couple of days ag...

Youth Hostiles: Part 2

Friday, January 8th, 2010

…I didn't want to sully our last post about Habib with the following frustrating incident. And so, in its own post, is the conclusion of our day: We arrived at the hostile in Sfax around 6:30PM. As we approached the entrance, the three men o...

Fare Thee Well, Habib

Friday, January 8th, 2010

After much discussion, we've decided to part ways with our Motobecane Mobylette 88, Habib. The appearance of our long awaited bicycle wheels in Sfax played a big role in this decision. Sadly, our separation does not involve sending him home to th...

Motorized: Part 3

Thursday, January 7th, 2010

Purchasing a scooter in Tunisia is easily the best decision we've made here. Having a rusting, rattling Mobylette of our own has created a genuine trust not normally found between tourists and locals. Suddenly the fact that we are white and obvio...

Hammama Mia!

Wednesday, January 6th, 2010

We took the opportunity to treat ourselves to a hammam (Turkish bath, widely used in Tunisia) today thanks to a generous donation by regular reader, Jeanne Juneau. Thank you so much Jeanne! For our last night at Hotel Pansea, we'd like to thank o...

Hotel Pansea in Ksar Ghilane

Tuesday, January 5th, 2010

First, the thank yous. Our luxury tent, complete with bathroom, table and chairs, shelves, blankets, and of course, beds, is a lot nicer than we are used to. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for making our stay here today possible, Mom (J...

Into the Desert

Monday, January 4th, 2010

Yesterday's triumphant team repair and our 70 kilometer ride without a flat finally gave us the confidence we needed to take the plunge. Today, we would ride our 25+ year old Motobecane Mobylette into the desert, 150 kilometers to Ksar Ghilane. L...

Do It Yourself

Sunday, January 3rd, 2010

For the last two days we've been unable to travel more than 40km at a stretch on our Mobylette without the rear tire going flat. In every instance there has been a repair shop within walking distance and/or many people determined to help us. This...

Getting Nowhere

Saturday, January 2nd, 2010

We stayed at our hotel until nearly 2PM trying to resolve the concerns Tyler raised in his last journal entry. Hotel Pansea in Ksar Ghilane still could not be reached. In an effort to feel like we'd accomplished something, we sent them an email s...

Control

Friday, January 1st, 2010

I am by nature, a planner. This at times clashes with the fact that there are ceaselessly a multitude of "loose ends" and unknowns before us as we travel. Improving my ability to relinquish control is something that I've had to work very hard on ...