Location: Vienna
Km on the clock: 1,515
 
I cycled through Nova Bystrice and climbed one last hill. I entered Austria at the Grametten border crossing. I thought about my concerns of the possible language barrier that I had before I entered Czech Republic. Besides a few difficulties on the countryside, everything went well. Good old hand and feet communication also solved these situations.

Cycling in Austria started off with a long downhill section. So I just kept rolling for a while. This is definitely my favorite part of traveling on a bicycle. It's the reward for climbing up a hill and always makes me quickly forget about the hard work getting up there.

The sun already set but I kept pedaling since I didn't cover as many kilometers as I wanted - not today and also not in last couple of days. I planned to be in Vienna the next day to visit friends. I stopped when I was finally too tired and pitched my tent at the edge of a forest. A look at my map made me realize that I had have to cover another 125 kilometers the next day. I never cycled so many kilometers in one day so far in my life.

Natalia and Torben welcomed me with open arms and I stayed with them for a few days. The first day in Vienna I used to recover from the 125k ride. I didn't even know that I was capable to cycle that many kilometers in one day. It made me realize that nutrition plays an important role when it comes to cycling long distances. I also realized that my gear was too heavy. There were a few things that I didn't touch since I left home. Those things I simply left behind at the end of my stay.

Since I've been in Vienna already a few times and saw many sights I decided to visit the one place that I always missed out - Schoenbrunn Castle. I knew that it's a big areal but I had no idea that it's that massive. It's really impressive! I guess the Austrian royals knew how to live life back in the days.

The rest of the time I spent with my friends, relaxed by the Danube, enjoyed the local food and ate lots of ice cream. I went to the nearest ice cream place up to three times a day. Since this year's summer was just crazy hot, I took it as my excuse for my excessive ice cream consumption. :D

After a few nice and relaxing days it was time to say goodbye and I headed off in direction Bratislava. Once again, thank you guys for your hospitality! I highly appreciate it! You're awesome!

I followed the Danube River and the EuroVelo 6 signs until I reached Slovakia.

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Location: Nova Bystrice
Km on the clock: 1,390

Just a few kilometers behind the Czech border I made my first 1.000 kilometers on this journey. It took me only two weeks of time. I know I could have been way faster but since I stayed in Hamburg, Berlin and Dresden for a few nights I was happy to be here by now. It was the second time ever in my life that I cycled that far. Two years earlier I cycled the length Germany on my crappy old mountain bike which also took me two weeks but without any rest days. Back then I had limited time and basically rushed from on place to another.

This time is different since I basically have unlimited time. It makes this trip way more enjoyable and my new bicycle also helps a lot. I really had no idea before that there are such big differences in sense of bikes. I thought: I wish I had this bike already two years ago. That would have made my life so much easier, as I reached the 1.000 kilometers mark. Back then I simply took all the equipment that I already had and just set off which was pretty much the same approach for the preparation of this trip. It works perfectly fine. However, meanwhile I really appreciated my new bicycle.

I arrived in Prague the next day and stayed for a few nights. Prague was the first place on this trip which I was really excited about to visit. I've been here before and always liked it. As soon I got connected to some free Wi-Fi I booked the cheapest hostel that I could find. Getting there was quite a challenge since the provided address led me to the wrong place. The hostel manager sent me the right directions via text message after I called her.

I met Matt from the U.S. at the hostel. He was also a long term traveler and we clicked right away. Together we explored Prague's nightlife. Throughout the days I did lots of sightseeing which also included lots of walking. A lot. My feet hurt at the end of the days which kind of made it more exhausing than sitting in the saddle and riding all day. :D

The city center was packed with tourists. Too much for me. That's probably why I enjoyed walking alongside the Vltava River and discovering the less touristy markets most. The best thing about Prague are the countless the street artists. They're just everywhere and it was a lot of fun to watch their performances - especially the buskers.

The day when I left Prague I made it almost to the city of Votice. Sunshine and rain alternated continuously. I put on and off my rain clothes numerous times. Although I didn't get wet from the rain I was covered in my own sweat. I wondered how much sense it actually made to switch clothes all the time. :D

I followed the cycling trail signs between Votice and Tabor which turned out as the hardest ride that I ever did in my life so far. The road went constantly up and down wherat going downhill was of course a lot of fun. My little bicycle device stated 54 kilometer per hour as I bombed down a hill. Climbing up the steep mountain roads on the other hand was everything else but fun - especially with a fully loaded bicycle. It felt like ages to reach the top of the mountains. Sometimes I pedaled up the hills with an enormous speed of less than 7 kilometers per hour. I was exhausted. I didn't even know if I should laugh or cry as I reached another peak. I was so happy that I made it up here but at the same time I could already see the next steep section which made me want to cry. I took a deep breath, rolled down the hill and tackled the next one.

Thus far I usually covered 80-100 kilometers per day but that day I only made 70. However, I was more exhausted than any other day before. It took me one more day to leave Czech Republic and to make it into Austria.

If you enjoy reading this blog then please support my fundraising campaign to equip school classrooms in Darfur, Sudan. Thank you!

And if you enjoy reading it a lot, then I'd appreciate if you'd support me with a virtual cup of coffee on Ko-fi. Cheers! :)

Click here if you want to take a look at my equipment.