Frankfurt to Florence

The Zen retreat (in Aschaffenburg, near Frankfurt) is the usual mix of difficult work and unbounded joy, and worth the hitching oddesy to get there. The few days previous in Frankfurt also provided a few surprises, with a trade fair drawing multitudes to the banks of the Maim, and a thriving red light district right next to the bank which controls the Euro. Bad idea to go to the zoo though.

I miss my early train to Zurich (cheap online tickets have their drawbacks) but hitchwiki.org comes through again with a perfect hitching spot in the middle of Frankfurt and a gruff Turkish German provides me with a ride to Heidlberg, a hard house soundtrack and a salami the size of my arm.



I stay in Zurich (picturesque, smells of fondue) and get a train the next morning through the Alps to Firenze (Florence) The scenes are, as you would expect, incredible. But I also feel like it's a sort of overdose of scenery. It is, as Jerry Seinfeld put it once, as if somehow it is all happening on TV. I miss the bike, slow as it is. Even when hopping from petrol station to petrol station along the autobahn, I feel a closer connection to the landscape. Maybe it's the sense of danger of the hitching that keeps my eyes open.

Report of voyage Madrid to Frankfurt

The mission: hitchike from Madrid to Frankfurt

The reason: attend a mini Zen retreat (five participants, three days, lots of breathing), meet Europeans, not spend squillions on buses and trains.

The timeframe: Wednesday 22nd August to Tuesday 28th August

The logistics: Because most people going long distances are on one of the many many motorways, the best hitching spots seem to be busy petrol stations or tollgates. Asking people directly for rides is quite a nice change from the old thumb too

Format of report: There is a little game called 'The Rose and the Thorn' I used to play with my flatmates in Dunedin. Everyone selects one 'rose' qnd one 'thorn' experience from their day.

Day One: Wednesday 22nd August
Thorn - Walking to the 'Madrid Lighthouse' in 30 degree heat for a rare ariel view of the city before I left only to find it closed until further notice.

Rose - Understanding the Spanish of Jesus the Spanish truck driver as he explained to me about the windfarm (200 turbines, popular with the public) we were passing as we neared Zaragosa en route to Barcelona.



Day Two: Thursday 23rd August

Rose: Crossing the border between Spain and France at the South-East end of the Pyrenees. I'm sad to leave Spain but I love the fact we just drive straight through as if the border was as intangible as a line of dust. I love the EU!

Thorn: The intense heat and rattling din of Tomas the German's Mercedes truck. He is a great guy, a horse breeder who started his own company to publish his thesis, but that cab was torture. I had to get out at Nimes. I'm making good time anyway.

Day Three: Friday 24th August

Thorn: Again it is a goodbye, this time to Migal the Czech, another truck driver by trade, on a mammoth road trip from his home in Marseilles to a town beginning with 'B', past Prague to visit his family. We share very little spoken language but he is great company. He let me navigate.

Roses: The massive broadleaf forests around Southeast France and the Rhone valley are a very pleasant surprise. And round about 11pm, my ride drops me at Frankfurt airport for a train to the city. I made it... early!

Thanks to the wonderful http://www.hitchwiki.org for giving me both general tips and advice for getting out of Madrid.