- ODO 2010km
- Location Sopje Croatia
- Weather 25-33℃ Sunny with thunder and hail showers
- Feelings Different and tired
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There are certain thing you really only notice with traveling at the speed of a bike. Over the last two weeks I’ve been aiming to make camp by 8:30pm and get up at 7am to be on the road in an hour or so. Over the last 14 days I’ve traveled far enough around the oblate spheroid of the earth to notice that by 8pm the sun is has set and waiting for my alarm at 7am it has already been light for 3 hours, the early fishermen heading to the lake near where I was camped woke me with a start.
My first full day in Croatia was again defined by insects. With the exception of the iridescent blue of butterflies I set to wing on flocks as I cycle past, everywhere I stop the air becomes instantly alive clouds of grey gangly mosquitoes. Swarming around my bike and instantly landing to bite me. I had to eat lunch at a walking pace and carry on pedalling without a sleep.
Small birds, swallows, swoop in and out of the trees to gorge on the insects. As I go to leave a hawk swoops down the narrow lane. I can see each of it’s flight feathers as it spots me and shoots vertically up, using its momentum to roll out of the track into the open sky.
This country is a real mixed bag. Elements, like the smooth roads and chain shops, are very similar to the rest of Europe. Large houses with patterned plaster and an Audi on the drive are a common site. Elderly men on their bike to church shout a greeting. At the same time every other house is a shell, first floor or exposed brick construction. In more rural areas farms feature groups of children of a variety of ages. One of which decided to shout and throw a stone at me to impress his mates. There seems to be very few people or cars about. But perhaps it’s just Sunday. Time will tell.
The flatness and my inability to stop without getting swarmed had meant that I’ve made good distance today. I’m in need of a good shower and bed so Belgrade is looking inviting to me right now. I write as I hide under a tree from a hail shower that’s been chasing me all day and I’ve been willing to break and drop the temperature a few degrees. And now it’s passed I’ll continue.