April 26, 2018
Departure
The beginning of a tour seems to be getting more stressful for me every year. There are so many details to get right and so many ways things can go wrong: packing errors, unexpected delays, baggage handling issues, blah, blah, blah. It’s getting harder for me because my memory and focus aren’t as sharp as when I was younger, and I’m more prone to mental errors. And it’s harder because - well, because I’m getting too old to be merely middle aged any more, and all sorts of things are gradually getting a bit harder.
This departure is stressful too because it’s more complicated than usual. It’s a triple transition: we’re leaving the condo for the last time, we’re leaving Amy’s B&B for the last time, and we’re leaving Portland on the longest tour we’ve ever taken. Lots of change, lots of ways to go wrong.
So far, so good though - we’re in flight on our way to Chicago, where we have a five hour(!) layover before flying to Helsinki where we have a second five hour(!) layover before our final leg to Chania. We did have a narrow mistake this morning at our motel at the airport - we woke up at 3:50 (yawn!), in plenty of time for our 4:30 shuttle to the airport; but we got distracted by some question that had us both researching on our cellphones and almost lost track of he time. Devices can be so dangerous!
| Heart | 4 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Yesterday, we finally completed our Great Escape. The day began with us evacuating Amy’s, piling everything - the gear going to Greece and the gear going to storage - into the Jetta. Incredible that we’re still carrying so much stuff around with us after all these incremental downsizings.
Then, off to our storage unit - where we stowed away our leave-behinders, checking and triple checking that we split the mountain along the right plane. We are so lucky that Rachael had the last minute brainstorm to research bike storage units. This would have been a pretty unhappy morning if we were trying to cram Rodriguez and the Straggler into this box. As it is, it’s quite a good arrangement- it will be easy to get to belongings when we return to town, and there’s even space to hang up some clothes.
| Heart | 2 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Then, one final bike ride: to Sauvie Island, arguably our favorite biking destination in town. It begins by returning to the condo for what I’m sure is really the last time, to pick up Rodriguez and the Straggler. We knew they wouldn’t fit in the car this morning so we brought them down last night and dropped them off before the Alvin Ailey performance.
| Heart | 3 | Comment | 0 | Link |
It’s a beautiful day to be out on the island, and today I enjoyed seeing and hearing all of the ospreys that summer here - I counted at least six active nests. The ospreys and cranes just about completely cover the calendar on the island - one species leaves just about the same time that the other arrives. I’ve never seen them together on the island, but there’s not much gap.
| Heart | 3 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Back in town, and we swing by our real estate agent’s office to drop off the keys to our condo, so they can be turned over to the new owners late next week. Then, off to Pambiche for a late afternoon lunch. Most people are dining on the sidewalk outside, but it’s hot - over 80, I’m certain - and after biking in the sun for fifty miles we’re happy to sit indoors in the shade. I’m strictly a beer and wine drinker, but for some reason a glass of sangria sounds perfect for the occasion, and is. It’s probably the first sangria I’ve had in over a decade.
| Heart | 2 | Comment | 0 | Link |
| Heart | 3 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Next, off to our bike locker downtown to drop off Rodriguez and the Straggler for their eight week long (unchaperoned, in the dark, in close quarters - gasp!) sleepover together. We’ll have to look closely in the unit when we get back, to make sure we’re not leaving behind some tiny newborn bike still on its trainer wheels.
On foot, we walk back to the condo to pick up the car. Finally, we drive out to our airport motel, fighting horrible rush hour traffic the whole way. We’re out of here.
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 5 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 11 |
6 years ago
6 years ago
6 years ago
We want to send you off with our best wishes for a wonderful trip - and a great blog so that we can emulate it one day!
In the meantime, huge thanks for the inspiration and information that helped us have a great tour of Sicily! We followed an abbreviated version of your route (just twenty days of riding) but used your gps routes whenever we could (we only got lost when we thought we had a better idea) and enjoyed your observations more and more as we came to make some sense of that amazing island. We talked about you two daily; as in “Did S & R have to get off on this hill?” Or “I can’t believe S&R never take a day off!”
It was unseasonably cold in Europe this spring and the first two weeks of our trip were cool and wet and windy, but by Easter things dried and warmed up and we were able to ride less anxiously and with fewer worried glances skyward. So, in general, March is a pretty good time to be there. (Of course the wildflowers were astounding and the green hills and valleys of the interior were breathtaking.)
So again, many thanks and all the best on this adventure!
Cheers,
John and Chris
6 years ago
We want to send you off with our best wishes for a wonderful trip - and a great blog so that we can emulate it one day!
In the meantime, huge thanks for the inspiration and information that helped us have a great tour of Sicily! We followed an abbreviated version of your route (just twenty days of riding) but used your gps routes whenever we could (we only got lost when we thought we had a better idea) and enjoyed your observations more and more as we came to make some sense of that amazing island. We talked about you two daily; as in “Did S & R have to get off on this hill?” Or “I can’t believe S&R never take a day off!”
It was unseasonably cold in Europe this spring and the first two weeks of our trip were cool and wet and windy, but by Easter things dried and warmed up and we were able to ride less anxiously and with fewer worried glances skyward. So, in general, March is a pretty good time to be there. (Of course the wildflowers were astounding and the green hills and valleys of the interior were breathtaking.)
So again, many thanks and all the best on this adventure!
Cheers,
John and Chris
6 years ago
We want to send you off with our best wishes for a wonderful trip - and a great blog so that we can emulate it one day!
In the meantime, huge thanks for the inspiration and information that helped us have a great tour of Sicily! We followed an abbreviated version of your route (just twenty days of riding) but used your gps routes whenever we could (we only got lost when we thought we had a better idea) and enjoyed your observations more and more as we came to make some sense of that amazing island. We talked about you two daily; as in “Did S & R have to get off on this hill?” Or “I can’t believe S&R never take a day off!”
It was unseasonably cold in Europe this spring and the first two weeks of our trip were cool and wet and windy, but by Easter things dried and warmed up and we were able to ride less anxiously and with fewer worried glances skyward. So, in general, March is a pretty good time to be there. (Of course the wildflowers were astounding and the green hills and valleys of the interior were breathtaking.)
So again, many thanks and all the best on this adventure!
Cheers,
John and Chris
6 years ago
We want to send you off with our best wishes for a wonderful trip - and a great blog so that we can emulate it one day!
In the meantime, huge thanks for the inspiration and information that helped us have a great tour of Sicily! We followed an abbreviated version of your route (just twenty days of riding) but used your gps routes whenever we could (we only got lost when we thought we had a better idea) and enjoyed your observations more and more as we came to make some sense of that amazing island. We talked about you two daily; as in “Did S & R have to get off on this hill?” Or “I can’t believe S&R never take a day off!”
It was unseasonably cold in Europe this spring and the first two weeks of our trip were cool and wet and windy, but by Easter things dried and warmed up and we were able to ride less anxiously and with fewer worried glances skyward. So, in general, March is a pretty good time to be there. (Of course the wildflowers were astounding and the green hills and valleys of the interior were breathtaking.)
So again, many thanks and all the best on this adventure!
Cheers,
John and Chris
6 years ago
We want to send you off with our best wishes for a wonderful trip - and a great blog so that we can emulate it one day!
In the meantime, huge thanks for the inspiration and information that helped us have a great tour of Sicily! We followed an abbreviated version of your route (just twenty days of riding) but used your gps routes whenever we could (we only got lost when we thought we had a better idea) and enjoyed your observations more and more as we came to make some sense of that amazing island. We talked about you two daily; as in “Did S & R have to get off on this hill?” Or “I can’t believe S&R never take a day off!”
It was unseasonably cold in Europe this spring and the first two weeks of our trip were cool and wet and windy, but by Easter things dried and warmed up and we were able to ride less anxiously and with fewer worried glances skyward. So, in general, March is a pretty good time to be there. (Of course the wildflowers were astounding and the green hills and valleys of the interior were breathtaking.)
So again, many thanks and all the best on this adventure!
Cheers,
John and Chris
6 years ago
I’m so glad you two were able to make it over there; and rain or not, I think spring must be the best time if you’re on a bike. A friend of ours biked there in autumn, and found it too hot.
6 years ago
6 years ago
6 years ago