Day 13: What is wrong with #13

Day 13: What is wrong with #13
Novi Sad → Somewhere South of Belgrade | The Less Said About the Km, the Better

The day started with promise. Calls done, bikes ready, destination: Belgrade and a proper reunion with Marko and Aleksandar from our Serbian team.

Just outside Novi Sad we met Klaus. Same bike setup as ours, heavy bags, heading south. We asked where he was going. He said China. He is 78 years old. We nodded, said something polite, and then spent the next few kilometres quietly reconsidering whether we have any right to feel tired at all. Look at that picture. Remarkable does not cover it. 🙏

They had done everything right. Table reserved with a direct view of the bikes, charging cables already laid out, food ordered, atmosphere excellent. This is how Marko and Aleksandar run their projects and apparently also their lunch reservations. It had been 15 months since PJ was last in Belgrade, and being back felt good. Great food, even better company, and just the right amount of local knowledge to help us refine the route south. We looked at the map together, made some adjustments, and headed out feeling confident.

The confidence lasted approximately ten minutes. Our navigation had taken the local knowledge, processed it carefully, and decided that what we really needed was to bike through an open field. Not a path through a field. The field itself. Grass, bumps, and absolutely no indication that this would end any time soon. Adem spent the entire stretch convinced his rear light was about to fall off again, which given its recent history was entirely reasonable. We checked the map. More grassland ahead, at least another hour of it. We looked at each other. We turned around.

What followed was a series of increasingly creative attempts to find a way back to the actual road. If you ever look at our GPS track from this afternoon it reads less like a cycling route and more like a diagram of two people losing their minds in a field. Eventually we found our way south, slightly rattled, significantly delayed. 🗺️

Behind on kilometres and out of energy, we started looking for somewhere to stay. Option one: a lovely house with a Danube view at a good price. Booked immediately. Then came the message: water damage, cannot receive guests. Of course.
Option two: found, booked, and then something about the whole situation felt off enough that we decided to keep looking. Sometimes you just know.

Option three: perfect on paper. We biked the route, arrived at the address, knocked on the door. Wrong house. A man named Zorn answered, took one look at us, called the actual rental on our behalf, had a good laugh about the whole thing, gave us the flattest possible route back, and sent us off down his street shouting Max Verstappen after us.
We cannot explain this. We chose to accept it as a blessing.
Finally, Igor was waiting at the correct address with the correct door and a very welcome lack of drama. Bikes parked, food eaten, bed reached. 🛏️

Some days you cover the kilometres. Some days the kilometres cover you. Tomorrow we make up for it.
Sleep well. 🚴‍♂️🚴‍♂️Read more