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2024 Adventure
  • James Graham
  • Kyri Vassilas
feb. – sep. 2024

2024 Adventure

A seven month trip around Asia and Europe. Full blog at twobackpacks.co.uk Les mer
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  • 2024 Adventure
    Having a lazy rest day
    James' food invention 🤢A picture perfect walk in the afternoonA strange site, a campervan being pulled by horses, with a little old couple.Some pretty interesting artTan line is getting SHARP!Our camp made BratwurstAnother day another castle guard with lots of shitting sheepEnjoying our lunch stop by the flowers surrounding the cropsOur last breakfast on Dutch soilCrossing the border to Germany

    Last days in the Netherlands

    23.–27. jul. 2024, Nederland ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    After having a bad night's sleep, we decided to stay an extra night at our lovely riverside campsite and spent the day reading on our picnic blanket and napping. In the afternoon, we went for a walk and met a lady walking five disbanded dogs. I was craving ice cream but couldn't find a single gas station shop or corner shop to buy from. In the end, I went into our nearest restaurant, which said we couldn't eat there as there was a private function. However, when I asked if they had ice cream to take away, they agreed and gave us huge scoops of vanilla and even accepted 50 cents short of the full price as I was short. It was the best ice cream ever!

    After our day of rest, the biking was a fair bit easier, and we had a pleasant ride through national parks and passed some interesting statues. Our evening campsite was very pleasant, and as we were close to Germany, we decided to make our own bratwurst, which were delicious.

    The next day, we set off along more Dutch dikes and sadly had a headwind for most of the ride, which left us pretty miserable and tired when we got to a campground owned by a farmer who had horses, llamas, and curious cats that tried to get into our tent and sprayed it when we didn't let them in. At night, the horses and llamas were stabled indoors, and you passed their curious heads poking out at you as you went to pee.

    On our ninth day of cycling, we crossed the border to Germany. It was the most underwhelming border crossing ever. We weren't even sure we'd crossed as people still had NL license plates and there was not a single flag in sight. We were finally sure when we saw a wilderness sign written in German. That's what you get for crossing a European border via a walking path, I guess.    Les mer

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  • 2024 Adventure
    2Welcome to Germany... potato on a fork anyone?
    Leer looking cuteT getting to it platform at LeerMade it into the trainEnjoying as much food as we canBermenI'm so hungry now with the cycling. We burn like 1000+ calories a dayIt's raining 😀James getting lost trying to leave BermenEnjoying a musical intraludeCute towns and villagesOur ice cream lunchLoving these woods

    Cycling in Germany

    26.–29. jul. 2024, Tyskland ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    The first thing we noticed was that the cycle paths weren't quite as nice as in the Netherlands and the signs for the EuroVelo route basically disappeared or became incredibly small. We cycled on to the town of Leer, where we were sent to "the camping pitch," which was where they shoved all the tents together on two small pitches surrounded by caravans (this turned out to be the same everywhere we went in Germany). The next day, we headed into Leer to originally see the miniature world and get breakfast, but after seeing the price of tea and coffee, we decided to just get pasties at Lidl instead and head back to camp to pack up in time for our train to Bremen.

    After much confusion over our tickets, we waited at the Leer train station for 1.5 hours, munched on sandwiches, and discussed the cultural differences between the Netherlands and Germany. It was a bit daunting and stressful getting on the train and parking our bikes, but watching the scenery on the double-decker train was quite fun. We arrived in Bremen to an overwhelmingly busy terminal and cycled on to a hotel, where we parked our bikes in the underground car park (it felt like leaving a child behind). After freshening up, we donned our civilian clothes and headed out to get some food and see the city. We gorged on a massive falafel dish and chips each, then wandered into the old city streets as it began to rain. Thankful that we didn't have to worry about wet stuff in a tent and instead had a comfy dry hotel bed to sleep in, we stopped at a central cafe and got drinks. By 9 PM, we were very sleepy and headed to bed.

    We woke up early even with blackout curtains and headed to a bakery cafe I found on Google Maps that was open on a Sunday morning. It was lovely, and we had delicious hot drinks and pastries, plus some extras to take away.

    Back at the hotel, we got back into our lycra and padded shorts, lugged our bags back to our bikes, and headed out of Bremen. It felt like it took ages to get through the city, but we eventually went through a long majestic park and onto some great countryside roads. After an hour, we left all the city day trippers behind and entered some more rugged, wooded, and farm-enclosed paths. For lunch, we found nowhere that was open except for a waffle ice cream shop, which seemed to be where the whole village was gathering. We felt very out of place among all these people saying hello to each other and stopping to chat. But the delicious ice cream made up for our out of place-ness. The villages today were so cute and old, but we still ended up in a caravan filled campsite with a bunch of other tent people. 🙄    Les mer

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  • 2024 Adventure
    Cycled through some great forests
    Arriving into Hamburg1The sheer exhaustion made me cry a bit for how beautiful it felt to be in a bedOur cute little capsule room3Early morning in HamburgI'm in my happy place 🥹A few raunchy scenes, a tiny couple copulating in the sunflowers 🫣Hum 🤔Mini VeniceNot in our lycra exploring HamburgThe lovely old rail road pathsThe beautiful sea side!Rest stop in LubeckMay have just had a picnic lunch in someone's garden...

    Hamburg & the rest of Germany

    29. jul.–2. aug. 2024, Tyskland ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    We had a really long day, cycling 90 km to get into Hamburg. It was really cool cycling into the city because you could see how the scenery slowly changed from the countryside to the suburbs and finally to the city. We even got to travel through a very old underground passage in a vintage elevator. When we arrived at our accommodation, we were so exhausted that we were basically like zombies. We stayed in these mini rooms that were just beds, sharing toilets and showers, but everything was super modern and luxurious—it was great!

    The next day, we woke up super early by accident because we'd gone to bed so early, but it worked out because we got the last ticket slot to visit the Hamburg Miniature Museum, which was the whole reason we chose Hamburg. We spent four glorious hours there, marveling at all the details. In the afternoon, we explored the city and picked up some more camping gear. In the evening, we had dinner on the rooftop terrace and then watched a movie.

    The next day, we left our comfy accommodation and headed back on the trail to Lübeck, which took us on some great paths that used to be railroads.

    After Lübeck, our route took us along the coast and through the "Hamptons of Germany." The weather was glorious, the people were fancy, and the paths were busy. After being turned away from our first campsite—probably for not looking fancy enough—our second choice let us stay on the patch of grass behind the reception office.

    After so much sun and coastline, we headed more inland with overcast weather. 

    Before arriving at our final campsite, we had to cross a huge motorway bridge, which, due to construction, had no cycle paths. Since there were no boats or other bridges to cross, we gritted our teeth and cycled over it. It was windy, and the traffic was busy. One person shouted something in German that ended with "Scheiße," so I don't think people were happy with us being there, but we had no other choice. After getting off the bridge, we had to continue cycling for 5 km just to get off the motorway. We found out later that there are strict fines for cycling on the motorway, so we were lucky to get away unscathed.

    We finally made it to the very edge of Germany, right next to the port where we’d catch the ferry to Denmark the next day.

    That evening, we met an Australian man who was an ex-pilot, retired at 40, newly divorced, and cycling from Stockholm to Paris. He was fun to chat with but perhaps was struggling with some loneliness.

    Germany, you had your ups and downs and somewhat of an odd vibe for cyclists, but good nonetheless.    Les mer

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  • 2024 Adventure
    Waiting to board the ferry to Denmark
    On the ferry to DenmarkArrived in Denmark!Enjoying the wild plumsThe cutest KittensThe mini motorbike gangOur first shelterIt also had a small pierOur lunch stop, escaping the rainSome of my favourite scenery of the whole tripBeautiful coastlineAn old fashioned summer houseThe cutest little thatched cottages3My first tick bite!Stopped for some tea & coffeeThe wee ferry over to BogoEnjoying the scenery on the ferryOur second night at a shelter, very picturesqueA cool church on our hilly loop routeThe hills 😑

    Arriving in Denmark

    3.–5. aug. 2024, Danmark ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    The next morning, we woke up and headed to the ferry crossing at Puttgarden. It took about an hour to cross the small stretch of ocean to Denmark, and all of us cyclists were met on the other side by a port official who spoke English with a Scottish accent 🤔.

    We began on another old railway road, where we stopped to eat some of the many wild plums and say hello to the cutest kittens I’ve ever seen in my life 🥹. I would have taken them with me if I could. We were also overtaken by a 100-strong mini motorbike gang, which was wild. We spent our first night at a shelter, which are these purpose-built open huts where you can camp for free or for around €7. They often have a fire pit, maybe a picnic table, a tap for water, and a toilet. This one was right by a lake and was gorgeous. With no shower, we tried out our new 10-liter water carrier as a makeshift open-air shower, which worked amazingly but was cold.

    The next day, we got caught in a lot of rain, but I spotted a small picnic area with cover where we managed to eat lunch. After lunch the weather cleared up in time for us to enjoy the beautiful forest with the sea right next to it. With the sun now out, we stopped for coffee and tea, and I found my first tick feeding between my fingers. I don’t think it had been there long, but we tweezed it off pretty well and reminded ourselves to check twice daily for ticks.

    We finished the day by taking a small ferry across to Bogø Island and then crossing a dyke to Møn, where we stayed at another shelter in a man’s huge garden. It was very picturesque, and another outdoor shower was had.

    The next day was a little loop around the coast, which we could have easily skipped; however, I said, “Let’s do it, I’m sure it’s lovely,” and a few hours in, I seriously regretted it. It was very hilly, constantly up and down with quite steep inclines. It was pretty due to the slight elevation, but I was hating every incline—and there were tons of them! Grrrr.

    I didn’t walk any of it, though, and we eventually made it to a shelter in the grounds of a garden museum, which had showers and beautiful grounds to explore.    Les mer

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  • 2024 Adventure
    Enjoying cake, tea and coffee
    The huge steel bridgeA beautiful open tent to sleep inMorning cuppaAn exceptional Mr WhippyThe sea looked so inviting

    Denmark part 2

    6.–9. aug. 2024, Danmark ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    After the gruelling day before, we started off in a pretty pleasant mood. After only 10k, we stopped at someone's converted house for some tea, coffee, and cake before continuing across a very old steel bridge, which offered excellent views of the hilly landscape we'd just covered. Today was a very short day, and tomorrow was a rest day, so we arrived just after lunch at a lovely, quiet campsite with a central pond and access to wonderful shower, toilet, and kitchen facilities that made you feel like you were in your own home (plus bunnies, which I stroked in their hutches every time I passed them). It was a perfect place to spend a rest day. We spent the remainder of the day reading and lying in the sun under our makeshift tarp, made from the tent's rain cover. That evening was clear, so we kept the rain cover off and fell asleep with the open sky and stars twinkling above us.The next day, we did much the same, plus some extra chores, such as laundry and popping into town for groceries. In the afternoon, however, we reattached the rain cover to the tent just in time, because a thunderstorm began. It was our tent's first big test, and it passed. We spent the evening listening to the storm rage while watching the latest Japanese remake of Godzilla, which was really good.We were off the next morning, hugging the ocean almost the entire way. We stopped at a very wacky diner for lunch, where James got an enormous ice cream, and I got a slushie. The diner had bar stools shaped like ladies' bikini-clad legs.The first shelter we tried to stay at was fully booked, so we tiredly carried on to a campsite, which was lovely. It was owned by an old couple. When we paid for our pitch, we got talking to the wife, who looked kooky but was hilarious and great to talk to. We were sharing the pitch with a middle-aged Danish couple and a Czech family with three children. In the middle of the night, around 2am, we were woken by the sound of a child whining and having a tantrum. We could hear the parents trying to calm them down, but as we listened, the child grew angrier and more upset while the parents became quieter. It went on for at least an hour, with the child at one point giving a full minute's worth of bellowing rage. I don't know what on earth that child was angry about, but it sounded possessed.The next morning, the Danish couple packed up quickly and got out of there, and the Czech family didn't make a sound until at least 9am, as we were about to cycle off. It was definitely the strangest night we experienced.Les mer

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  • 2024 Adventure
    Sheltering in an underpass from the deluge of rain
    We made it to Copenhagen!Very cold & wetMalmö, Sweden!A little city concertCrossing the Malmö bridge back to CopenhagenBack in Copenhagen for the dayCity hallEveryone enjoying the riverThe royal palacesThe icon streetA tiny coffee shop

    Copenhagen & Malmö

    9.–11. aug. 2024, Danmark ⋅ 🌧 19 °C

    Not long after beginning our cycle, we could tell we were in the suburbs of a city. We cycled through long stretches of flat, straight cycle paths, passing house after house. We had the wind behind us, which made the ride smooth and fun. As we saw the city in the distance and began to hit the larger parks around its perimeter, the sky opened up, and the rain started pouring down. We'd had a tailwind for most of the ride into Copenhagen, but during the moments when we turned into the headwind, it was almost impossible to pedal because it was so strong. About 5 km out, we had to stop in an underpass to shelter from the deluge of rain, but we soon carried on as we were getting cold. The pinnacle was when we had to cycle across a very high road bridge with 2-3 lanes of traffic (thankfully, we had our own protected cycle lane), but the side wind and rain made it so insanely wet and windy that I couldn’t stop laughing as we crossed—it was so ridiculously bad! (Luckily, the car and lorry splash was going away from us due to the side wind).

    The rain finally stopped just as we were making our way into the centre of the city, allowing us to take in the scenery and enjoy the cycle in. We got thoroughly lost trying to find the main station, as our phones were about to lose battery, but by asking people and finding an information point, we managed to locate it and parked inside to decide our next moves. With a hotel booked for that night in Malmö, Sweden, we had originally planned to store our bikes and bags at the station to look around the city, but we were so cold and wet that we decided to head straight to our hotel in Malmö to get dry and clean.

    The train was surprisingly busy for the middle of a weekday, and it made it very hard to manoeuvre our bikes onto the train, with people trying to push past and sitting in the seats where bikes are supposed to park. We made it across, though, and just like that, we were in Sweden—our fourth country of the cycling trip! We cycled to our hotel, stored our bikes, peeled off our wet clothes, took lovely hot showers, ordered Burger King, and got into bed to watch a trashy film. Perfection. In the evening, we headed out into Malmö to find there was a city festival going on, with stages scattered around the city featuring bands performing and lots of food and drink trucks. We grabbed a quick drink and wandered around before heading back to bed.

    We'd only booked one night but decided to stay an extra night in order to go back to Copenhagen via train and spend the day actually seeing the city. We picked up breakfast at the station and joined a free walking tour, which was excellent. Our guide explained some of the history but mainly talked about the socioeconomic life of people in Denmark, which, after all the tidbits you hear as a foreigner, was great to understand in more depth. We finished at the royal palaces, gave our tip, and then wandered into some riverside gardens. We chatted and basked in the sun before getting some lunch and then heading back to Malmö to plan our next day's route and rest.

    Overall, it was a crazy start to Copenhagen and Sweden, but we ended up having a perfect time there.

    We'd now cycled approx 1,700km from the start of the trip.    Les mer

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    Reisens slutt
    10. september 2024
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