September 20, 2011
To Esztergom: An eyeopener in Slovakia
We really like Hungary and today had a choice we could cross over to Slovakia and ride on that side of the river or stay on the Hungarian side. The Hungarian side was mainly on moderately busy roads while a lot of the route on the Slovakian side was on unpaved tracks. Last night we had dinner with a delightful Frenchman - he was doing the opposite to us riding from Budapest to Paris. It was he who made up our mind for us as he told us that his ride that day had been terrible with 'beaucoup de camions'. In the night there was a massive electrical storm with heavy rain. In the morning it was down to a very light drizzle so despite the unpathed paths we still thought Slovakia was the side for us.
Things started off badly. We pushed our bikes across the Friendship Bridge then set off along the river. We came to a massive puddle with railway lines going through it. Ken negotiated it safely but I was not so lucky and my wheel slipped on the railway line and down I came with a thud the bike and I lying in an undignified heap in the middle of the puddle completely soaked. I was unhurt with only my pride dented as I lay like a stranded whale unable to get up and cars banking up on either side. The concerned motorists and Ken got me to my feet and off we went hoping I would soon dry off.
We were both really glad we had choosen this route as Slovakia (or at least this rural part of it ) was a real eye opener to us. There were no signs at all showing us the route so we needed our excellent maps. When on the road the roads were actually of good quality. The little settlements we went through looked extremely poor and seemed to lack a centre and had few or no services. Our hunt for a coffee seemed futile until Ken spotted what he thought was a bar. It was half underground and the windows seemed to be boarded up. Inside were was a friendly lady and four really dead beat looking men who were drinking a colorless liquid that looked like grappa. Asking if we could have coffee put the lady into a spin. She bought out a tin and showed us some coffee grounds. Yes that was what we wanted. Now came the problem of what we wanted in it - she showed us the grappa like substance, brandy and other evil looking fluids - we managed to get it across to her that we only wanted coffee. Off she went to boil up the water then pour it over coffee grounds in big mugs. The resulting coffee was surprisingly good despite the chewy grounds on top and it only cost 0.50Euro. We were farewelled by them all and onto our bikes. Then over a public address system music started this lasted for a few minutes then someone started barking out instructions. I found this all disturbing and very sad - we are so lucky with the life we lead. Eventually when we reached Sturovo, a much bigger town in Slovakia, things were different. It had an attractive paved central pedestrian area and looked much more bouyant. I was still pleased however to cross the bridge into Hungary at Eszterom.
We had ridden fast today so arrived in good time and had all afternoon to explore this town. It has a massive Basilica on Castle Hill which is the third biggest church in Europe. Esztergom has been settled since the stone age so has layers and layers of civilization. It has been fought over endlessly through the centuries always resulting in massive destruction and the legacy of the communist era is still obvious.
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Today's ride: 63 km (39 miles)
Total: 2,792 km (1,734 miles)
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