Philosophical waves towards Greece! Day 21 till 24

Dag 21: 12-07-2015
When I woke up this morning I was suprised to see that it was only 9 o'clock. I had only slept for 4 hours but I felt pretty energetic. Today was my 3rd and last day in Riccione/Rimini. I knew that the next day a ferry was going from Ancona, Italy to Patras, Greece. I booked a ticket for 6pm tomorrow. It really felt like I was almost at the end of my trip, because I knew that after Patras I only had to cycle 220km. It sounds like a huge distance but it's actually achievable in two days. Around 12am I decided to go to the beach, but suddenly I felt really tired from last night so I fell a sleep for an hour on the beach. After I woke up, I was glad to read a message from one of the girls who I met the day before. They wanted to meet at the beach in the afternoon. I really cherish the good conversations that I have on this trip with random strangers. One of these good, deep and philosophical conversations was with the girls. I really crave for these conversations after being practically alone for three weeks. It's satisfying! After the girls went home I went back to the campsite and had dinner, again, with the Dutchies. I decided sleep before 11pm because I knew I had to wake up early in the morning. The ticket was ready to be picked up till 4pm, and the distance to that point was about 90km so I thought that I had to hurry a bit otherwise I may miss the boat.

Dag 22: 13-07-2015
After packing my bags and preparing my trip to Ancona, I said goodbye to my temporary family in Riccione and moved on to Ancona. It really felt like I was in a hurry to be in time for the ferry. After a few hours of flat roads along the coast of Italy I realised that I would be in Ancona way before take off. I was still used to calculating with the average speed in Switserland (which has an extremely uneven landscape), so that's why I was a little stressed about being in time. Finally I arrived in Ancona at 1pm, so I had three hours to check in and just move to the harbour. At first I thought that I had to check in at the harbour but when I was there I realised that there was no reception or some place to pick up the tickets. The internet usually helps a lot when I can't find out things for my self, but this time it didn't help me out. After approaching a few people, I luckily found a local citizen who knew where the ticket centre was of the respective ferry company. Eventually I found it, got my tickets and noticed that there was still enough time to eat something in the city's centre. The pasta that I ate there was really deliscious. At 4pm I arrived at the harbour where hundreds of other people were waiting for the same ferry. I didn't expect it to be this huge. Before entering the ship I met a dutch family from Amsterdam who were also going to Patras. They were really impressed by the fact that I had travelled all the way to Ancona by bike. I really notice that the further I get on this trip the more suprised people get when I tell them that I've got to that particular place by bike. It's good to blow someone's mind. The mind is always limited by it's belief of what's possible and what's not. Everytime you blow someone's mind all the limitations suddenly disappear! The mind actually creates many deceptions through cultural programming and conditioning. I really recommend everyone to challenge yourself to look beyond these illusionary limitations you put on your own mind! It might change your life. However, after entering this huge titanic-like ship I was so suprised. I actually booked an airplane seat in a big public space because it was the cheapest way to get to greece (never used it though), so I expected it to be a very basic ferry possibly with a small bar in it to buy some food. Suprisingly, there was a disco, shopping centre, restaurant, cafetaria, casino, a gym, playground, swimming pool, a few public lounges and a bar in this huge ship. It took almost 24hours to get from Ancona to Patras but I didn't really get bored at all. Normally I'm very talkative, but I was very tired at that moment so I didn't really talk to anyone. When the sun was down I went to the deck of the ship with my sleeping bag to sleep. It wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep but I actually got used to these kind of nights during this trip. Actually one hour later I went back inside and slept the whole night on a sofa till 6am.

Dag 23: 14-07-2015
When I opened my eyes I saw so many people already being active. They actually looked very well-rested so I was supprised to see that it was just 6am. I wasn't really able to continue sleeping so I decided to have a little breakfast. Before arriving at Patras we had a stop at Igoumenitsa, Greece. Finally we arrived at 5pm in Patras and I knew that it was easy to cycle at least 30km this day, depending on the landscape whether it was flat or not. Actually along the cost it's pretty flat and beautiful, so I really enjoyed my first evening in Greece. Too bad, I couldn' find any campsite so I was looking for a cheap hotel on my way. On my way I immediately noticed that the Greece traffic is way more chaotic then the western part of Europe and the roads are actually not always good. It wasn't really a problem but you have to be more aware while cycling through a city. On this trip I've heard a lot of dogs barking but it doesn't bother me at all because they're always behind fences. I'm never afraid of dogs actually. This evening I heard dogs barking again but I didn't even look behind me to see where the sound came from. I got a little anxious when I sensed that the sound was getting louder. I thought it was just my imagination but when I looked back I saw to hungry demonic dogs running after me. This weren't really those adorable dogs that you'll find in any granny's house. It was more like a 'I-am-a-mentally-and-physically-tortured-dog-so-I-became-a-human-eating-psychopath-dog'. While my heartbeat raised and adrenaline was pumped through my blood vessels I cycled as hard as I can and finally the dogs just stopped hunting me. Haha it was one of the first times a dog managed to scare me so intensely. However, eventually in the evening I found a nice hotel at the coast, alive. That part of the coast was a bit similar to Marmaris, only a bit smaller so I really enjoyed my evening there. I slept so good after a week in my tent and a crappy night at the ship.

Day 24: 15-07-2015
I left the hotel at 11am and i knew it would be an easy day because I found out that the first boat to Turkey was going from Athene on sunday, which is 4 days from now. As a result of that I only had to tavel 65km this day. Almost after one hour I met a young Greek guy who studies in Athene. He was traveling the exact same trip as I did. He started in Patras and had to be in Athene in two days. We decided to cycle together for as long as we could keep up. As I expected, I didn't really enjoy cycling together because you're constantly dependant on the other person. It takes away a part of your freedom. It had nothing to do with the particular guy, actually he was a great and kind guy, but just the fact that of being dependant bothered me a bit. After a few minutes being together he had big issues with his bike and couldn't really continue if we didn't fix the problem. There was something wrong with his back tire but luckily I had some tools to repare it and we were able to continue. When you're together you definetely move slower because you constantly need to wait when the other person needs to stop. After 60km cycling together we said goodbye and seperated. Thanks a lot Dimitri! Again I couldn't find a campsite and there was no good place to sleep in nature so I decided to go to a hotel, again. So there I am, just 110 more km to go by bike. Almost at the end of my trip, and not dead yet. Everything is possible as long as you believe it is! Ciao