Where in the world is Bob? . . . . . . . . . . . . Time is our only truly Finite Resource.
2018-09-06
Link to PHOTO ALBUM:
I am in Poland. I am here in search of Pierogi. This is one of my favorite Polish foods. OK, I am not actually in Poland JUST for Pierogi. I was near the border, had never ridden a motorcycle here, so felt it was a good idea to cross the border. And find Pierogi. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierogi
Continue reading “PIEROGI, Air BnB, Booking.com and other trials”
2018-09-06
Link to PHOTO ALBUM:
Yesterday around noon I got off the ferry in Germany from Denmark.
My last Scandinavian Ferry.
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Continue reading “Ugly Border Towns, Draw Bridges and MORE Ferries”
2018-09-03
Link to PHOTO ALBUM:
Getting recommendations on places to go and things to do is always a crap shoot. The biggest problem with it is the WHY. Everyone has a different idea of what is worth doing. For example, someone may say “Go to this town, it is awesome.” Then when you get there you find it is nothing but seedy bars and strip clubs. It turns out that the person giving you the advice happens to LIKE seedy bars and strip clubs. YOU may even like these places, just not when you are travelling with your wife. So when asking for, or being given advice, ALWAYS ask WHY.
This is from way back in August, when I was in Stuttgart. My friend Jon took me to one of his favorite eateries. One of the specialties this place has is Schweinshaxe. I got this with a kleiner salat, or salad on the side. I am a pig. I will keep eating well past the point that it is painful. I stopped before the plate was done. Point to the Germans.
Here I am with a smile on my face, anticipating a good German Meal. (and beer). See the salad. That makes it a healthy meal right?
Here I am, fully defeated. I could not finish it. It was not even a question of stopping when I was full, I could not put more of this delectable feast into my stomach. I will be back to repeat the challenge.
Grabbed from Wikipeidia and edited with my comments: “Schweinshaxe is a roasted ham hock. Schweinshaxe is one of the formerly typical peasant foods, in which recipes were composed which made inexpensive cuts of meat delicious. Peasants have always known how to eat well. Screw you Monarchy.”
Coincidences are funny. I realize our minds can find patterns where none exist, but sometimes things happen that make you wonder.
Here it is Monday September 3rd. I last saw NAS (that’s Special Agent Nancy) on Friday August 31st. In case you are reading out of order, NAS has the same bike as mine, a 2011 Triumph Tiger. This is a fairly tall bike even if the suspension is lowered. There are not a lot of Triumph Tigers around, and even fewer women riding them.
I am so far behind on posts that I am not sure if I even know where I am right now. You will need to be signed up to my blog posts if you want to be kept informed real time. I will only post links to FB or E-Mail when I have a long boring post.
So, as posted earlier, after 27 days of riding together, Nancy and I went in different directions. When you set off alone after being with people for a long time, there is always a short period where you feel a bit lonely. You have to re-learn how to enjoy eating alone, making decisions alone and riding alone. For me it takes a day or two at most. I like travelling alone for the most part.
Just an update on where I have been and what I have been doing.
As previously posted, on August 5th I met up with a woman by the name of Nancy, who goes by the name Special Agent Nancy on ADVRider.com
Nancy rides the same model and year bike I have (2011 Triumph Tiger), but her bike is not black, the only proper color for a motorcycle. I already posted about how our early ride went. Very well I think.
Ran into a girl today. Fortunately she was wearing a soft fuzzy sweater. Had it not been for that cushioning, we both would have been hurt.
Continue reading “Today I met a Girl with a Soft Fuzzy Sweater”
American Muscle Cars on Parade
http://www.whereisbobl.com/2018/2018-08-11-finnish-car-parade/2018-08-11-finnish-car-parade.html
2018-08-11
Link to PHOTO ALBUM:
See the Photo Album link above for LOTS of photos of American Muscle cars and more. There is only a sample here.
While leaving the Parola Tank Museum, we saw a bunch of people setting up chairs on the side of the road. I stopped at a biker to ask what was up. He said there was going to be a parade of classic cars in 15 to 30 minutes. I knew what that meant. No rush. We did not think it would be much, so went into a town a few miles south to look at a castle then got some dinner. During and after dinner, we saw a bunch of people lining the streets. Then the cars started coming. Mostly American, but a few others as well. I only took a relative few photos. It looked like the parade would never stop. Then, we started seeing some repeats. Some of the cars that had been through started filtering in with the new cars. We could have been there all night. We hit the road, but here are a few sample pics.
BTW, This was in the town of Hameenlinna, Finland
What the heck is a Wildcat?
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Parolo Tank Museum – Go to the link for my latest post
http://www.whereisbobl.com/2018/2018-08-11-parolo-tank-museum/2018-08-11-parolo-tank-museum.html
2018-08-11
Link to PHOTO ALBUM:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parola_Tank_Museum
Just a few photos here of a Tank Museum in Finland. Go to the Album link above to see all of them. It was very interesting to go through this, but the photos just do not do it justice.
2018-08-09
http://www.whereisbobl.com/2018/2018-08-09-man-powered-ferry/2018-08-09-man-powered-ferry.html
Man powered Ligatne ferry over Gauja river in Gauja National Park Latvia
In Latvia, the Ferries don’t move men, men move Ferries. We took a wooden ferry that is powered by men. More specifically, it is powered by the river. Men control the angle of the ferry and turn it into the river in such a way that the river helps push it across. It is not an easy task even with the river helping.
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There are two new posts over at my web site plus lots of photos on my smug mug site.
http://www.whereisbobl.com/2018/2018-08-16-boat-shack/2018-08-16-boat-shack.html
http://www.whereisbobl.com/2018/2018-08-07-soviet-park/2018-08-07-soviet-park.html
And probably a bunch of others I forgot to put here.
I have been moving fast, so unable to write much. I have plenty of stories, and some photos. Have not really been taking a lot of photos since the scenery is so fantastic that the photos just do not capture enough. So, I am just taking photos with my eyes.
For those that have not been keeping track:
July 2nd I ran away from home and up to Montreal, where I put my Triumph on a plane to Frankfurt. For the month of July I rode through the black forest of Germany, then into the Swiss Alps. Then just a bit of the French Alps, then some of the Italian Alps (Dolomites), Austrian Alps, and, well, more Alps. Every time I went to lower elevations it got too hot and crowded and I headed back to the hills.
2018-08-18
Link to PHOTO ALBUM:
ADVRider.com is a great resource for finding great people to ride with, to stay with and to make lifelong friendships with. Facebook not so much. S.A. Nancy is extremely good at communicating using various on-line media. Me, not so much. For this trip, S.A. Nancy was in communication with some people on ADVRider.com and lots of people on a Facebook page of the same name. From facebook, she had a long list of people who offered help and homestays. From ADVRider, she had a much smaller number of contacts. All but one of the Faceplant contacts that we were trying to meet fell through. One of these fell through at the last minute, after we had changed our plans specifically so we could work the homestay into our schedule.
The ones from ADVRider were far more reliable, all doing their best to accomodate us. Because of our changing schedule and the unreliability of FB people, up to this point we have only had two homestays, one from a facebook contact, and another from an ADVRider inmate.
2018-08-07 – Lithuania
Grutas Park, near Vilnius Lithuania, is one of the first of the off the wall locations Special Agent Nancy found. It is a park with tons of statues from the Soviet era and other Soviet ideological relics. This was the first indication that this trip was not going to be to the usual touristy and girlie type destinations. We were not going to the Spa!
You can read more details in the Wiki link above, but basically a Mushroom Magnate realized that a part of history was being destroyed along with the Soviet Union. He went around and saved statues that would have otherwise been lost to history.
This park shows statues of heroes and villians. Many were heroes of the Soviet Union, until they were “Arrested, Jailed and Shot!” I guess it doesn’t pay to be a hero.
History was treated fairly, showing the good with the bad (not a lot of good). I will let the photos speak for themselves. Go to the Photo Album link above to see lots more photos.
For those following my SPOT Tracker:
http://www.whereisbobl.com/whereisboblnow.html
whereisbobl.com/blog/where-is-bob-l/
Yes, I did change my direction. You know, Plans…..
I met up with another rider who likes to ride as much as I do. I headed to Sweden for the ferry over to Lithuania. Will likely go through Latvia and Estonia as well. Then touch on Finland and a Ferry over to Sweden and a ride to the Lofoten Islands in Norway, then down the coast.
Well, that is the current plan.
I will not have much time to post over the next few days, or more likely weeks, so follow the spot and I will update if something interesting happens.
Bob L
2018-08-05
Link to PHOTO ALBUM:
The last post requires an update.
The Radiator. As said, all went well. When it was first “fixed” and I left the dealer, the high temp light came on and the temp gauge flashed, basically showing an error.
I have replaced my coolant in this bike many times. I have never had to add coolant. When I had the new issue with the light, the mechanic claimed that it is hard to get all the bubbles out. I guess for him. It has never been a problem for me. When the issue happened, he added about a pint of fluid. Today I added a pint of fluid. So, it was about a quart low. It takes 3 Liters. So it was almost a third low when he was supposedly finished with the job. Impressive. THIS is why I do all my own work. Then, when the mechanic screws up, I don’t have far to go to kick him in the butt.
2018-08-03
Radiators, Flats, Tires, Traffic … Murphy has been busy this week
Link to PHOTO ALBUM:
So I asked myself, what would I do if I was home AND was planning a big trip. I answered “Shut you idiot, I’m trying to sleep. And stop being so cheap, replace the damned radiator and get on with your travels!!!!!”
That inner voice was too loud (and violent sounding) to ignore.
First flat on the road in many years. And with a tube not so easy to fix. It’s OK. Tow truck only an hour or an hour and a half away.
I am just outside Kassel Germany.
