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Karen Fig
Karen Fig

Karen Fig

traveled in 9 countries Read more🇺🇸Chicago
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  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler
    beautiful switzerland
    beautiful switzerlandWith 15 miles to go, I still had to walk up and down this stupid mountainI cannot tell you how happy I was to see this sign

    Der Schweiss

    September 15, 2019 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F

    I rode 44 miles through Switzerland to Zürich. The first 30 miles, the scenery was...well...

    The final 14 were literally 95% uphill in 90 degree weather.

    My last day of riding was supposed to be easy, but

    I forgot.

    It's a bike tour.

    Nothing is easy.    Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler

    More cows

    September 15, 2019 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 57 °F

    We interrupt this irregularly scheduled update for a picture of this cow having a grand old time brushing itself

    This is a thing. A mechanical cow-brusher.

    It makes me happy.

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler

    Bodensee

    September 14, 2019 in Germany ⋅ 🌙 68 °F

    Last night I enjoyed sunset on Lake Constance, then took a full moon ferry to Switzerland on the other side.

    I have lots of updates about the mountains to get to when I have wifi again, but I wanted to at least share that I did not freeze to death, but have merely been alone without service in the mountains for a few days.

    43 more miles.    Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler

    Elevation

    September 14, 2019 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 70 °F

    Ok, no, I did not technically "cross the alps"

    But, like, I climbed for so long, for so many hours, up and up and up, and the alps were like, RIGHT THERE.

    Maybe, just maybe, I climbed a little baby alp?Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler
    I said "Hallo, kühe!" approximately 2,000 times in the past two weeks
    I said "Hallo, kühe!" approximately 2,000 times in the past two weeksHere are some cows that live a better life than I doLook closely...it's a PARADE OF COWS.Like I said. They're a thing.

    Cows

    September 14, 2019 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 59 °F

    Cows are like, A Thing, in the alps.

    They are very cute, and they are everywhere.

    Also, they all have bells around their necks. There were a few times I thought I heard a bicycle bell behind me. Nope. Just a cow in the distance.Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler

    Beauty

    September 12, 2019 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F

    My day off was unexpectedly magical and I am feeling re-energized for biking. More on that later.

    For now, I am at mile 633 of my trip, at a beautiful lake in the foothills of the Alps. I've been in awe all day.Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler
    I took this picture from her Facebook
    I took this picture from her Facebook

    There will be no intermission

    September 11, 2019 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 59 °F

    When I was 15, my dad took me to a concert at the metro in Wrigleyville with my best friend, Amy.

    We went to see the Dresden Dolls, and afterwards we got cheese fries at Wrigleyville Dogs across the street. It was back in the day of all-ages shows and smoking in bars. They played punk-cabaret and I was enraptured with the singer, Amanda Palmer, who was so raw and honest and personable.

    Over the years, I have watched from a distance as she went from punk singer to piano-playing songwriter extraordinaire. She is always pushing boundaries, highly controversial, and though imperfect (who isn't?), immensely inspiring to me for her honesty and compassion.

    She used to live in Regensburg, Germany, and while I was there I realized she was playing a show the same night that I had decided to take a day off, a short train ride away in Munich.

    She has always cultivated a kind and generous community online, and before I even had time to make a decision about going, a fellow fan offered to host me in her home so I could go to the show and not have to worry about finding a hostel.

    It turns out she is a construction site manager and bicycle tourer.

    I don't believe in fate, but it was obviously fate.

    So I went to see Amanda Palmer, and just like every other time I've seen her, it was an uplifting and beautiful experience. She talked about motherhood and abortion, about autonomy and responsibility, art and politics. And she played the piano.

    It was a perfect show to see while bike touring. This is when I feel free and inspired to be a better person, when I am extra susceptible to such influence.

    I had been sorry to miss the show when she came to Chicago, but now I know. Fate    Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler

    Regensburg

    September 10, 2019 in Germany ⋅ 🌙 55 °F

    Nobody wants to hear this, but I nearly had a very bad crash today. Literally one mile from the city, my handlebar bolts loosened and I spent a terrifying five seconds or so imagining how terribly this was going to hurt and how hopefully I didn't die, but surviving a crash like this seemed pretty inconvenient, too, and there was just no good way out, and I hoped no one would be put off from cycling forever because of this, etc.

    Luckily, I lost a lot of momentum at the bottom and was able to brake enough to coast to a stop without falling. One of the bolts was stripped, but I tightened the rest enough to get me to my hostel. It should be an easy replacement.

    It was a very stressful end to a rough several days.

    I decided to take a day off to re-evaluate my trip (my initial 80-miles-a-day plan was a bit ambitious given the weather and the climbing....have I mentioned the climbing?), work on my bike, hydrate, figure out the rest of my route, do some laundry, catch up on these posts so no one worries I've crashed my bike (only almost), clear my head, you know, "rest." I wasn't scheduled to do all of this until Friday, but I think it's time.

    Anyway, Regensburg was one of the cities I was most looking forward to visiting, so I am not disappointed to have to spend a little extra time here.    Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler

    Dackel

    September 10, 2019 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 46 °F

    I'm back in Germany. I stopped for coffee and apple strudel (you have to, right?) and was delighted to find that Passau, Germany, is the homeland of the dachshund.

    TIL that even though dachshund is a very German word (the "chsh" kinda gives it away), they're actually called Dackels here.Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler
    1

    Eating my feelings

    September 9, 2019 in Germany ⋅ 🌧 48 °F

    When it never stops raining

    1. Anchovy pizza (I ate the whole thing in about 15 minutes)

    2. Danube riverfish and potato salat

    3. Spaghetti alla carbonara. Pasta, eggs, pork, and cream: the highest density of calories in a food that was available after climbing a mountain

    4. Fried mountain cheese patties

    5. Ice cream, of course

    I'm still hungry    Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler

    Today I learned

    September 9, 2019 in Austria ⋅ 🌧 50 °F

    That if it rains all night and it's still raining in the morning, it is entirely possible to break down your tent without taking down the rainfly

    I mean, it involves quite the circus act of crouching and contorting but it's worth it to keep the extra water out.Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler
    The beautiful penzionkatze

    Fog

    September 8, 2019 in Austria ⋅ 🌧 55 °F

    Austria gifted me with about five glorious, rainless hours, but they were not enough.

    I'm feeling weary. Of the weather and the wind, of having a cold and being cold. But it is beautiful.

    I camped in the yard of a nice penzion, which is like a bed and breakfast. You know those 5,000 piece puzzles of the Alps that were really popular in the 90s? I was always like, who does those?

    The owners of penzions in Austria, that's who.    Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler
    This is how I thought my ride would bespoiler alert: I made it to Linz. It was fine

    It's all downhill from here, for today

    September 8, 2019 in Austria ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F

    This is an unpopular opinion for a cyclist, but I'm not crazy about downhills. I think they're scary and I spend them worrying that I'm going to break my neck in the European countryside.

    So, while I was looking forward to being done with so much climbing, I was a bit nervous about riding into Linz, Austria, because it really appeared to be at the bottom of a cliff.Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler

    Ahoj, Czechia

    September 8, 2019 in Czech Republic ⋅ ⛅ 52 °F

    I left the Czech Republic on a foggy Sunday morning. Though I was a mere 15 miles from the Austrian border, it did not let me go without a fight - I had to climb the whole way out.

    Damn, that place kicked my ass. But I kinda loved it.Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler
    The mountains at night
    The mountains at nightAt least most of this happened on a beautiful bike trailWell that's concerningThrough the dark czechian forestEarly in the day, i ended up going on a hike with my bike..how is this a "trail?!"Hills...hills everywhere...

    The hardest day, but harder

    September 7, 2019 in Czech Republic ⋅ ⛅ 50 °F

    When I planned this trip, I was a little nervous about heading from Prague into Austria. I knew the mileage was ambitious, and that the days would be long and challenging.

    As apprehensive as I was, I still WAY underestimated how difficult it would be. After the first day, I thought, "wow, that was one of the hardest days I've ever had on a bike."

    The hills of Bohemia are endless. And they are not "rolling" hills. They are the kind of hills where you are nearly vertical both ways. I often had to walk my bike going down after spending a very long time getting up one. So that was yesterday. It was rough.

    Today was harder than yesterday. By a lot.

    I climbed mountains ALL DAY. I was literally climbing between 2-3mph for HOURS. And then I got a terrifying downhill. AND THEN I HAD TO CLIMB ANOTHER MOUNTAIN.

    Also, it was raining.
    And I have a cold.
    It got dark.
    I kept going.
    I kept going until I could not go anymore, and I still did not make it to Austria.

    People. I cannot even believe today was real.

    I ended up in a hotel because my tent and I were soaking wet

    Also cause
    I deserve it    Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler
    The museum looks appropriately austere from outside
    The museum looks appropriately austere from outsideI hope our bloody and violent US border is in a history museum somedayOne of the most fascinating things was the propaganda used during fascismCitizens who voluntarily helped the secret police were called "idiots standing next to fools"Blacklight Theatre. Picture from google images

    Communism and clowns

    September 5, 2019 in Czech Republic ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F

    I did not research Prague at all before going there. I was a totally blank slate, so besides eating my way through the city, I decided to focus on two significant parts of the culture: history and art.

    As far as history goes, I visited the Museum of Communism, which was amazing and probably one of the most educational and interesting museums I've ever been to. I actually spent a good amount of time this spring listening to Russian history podcasts (I watched Chernobyl and immediately wanted more), so I had a good primer as far as the USSR and what it was all about.

    Still, is shocking how little I was taught of world history in school. And it seems like, the more I try to catch up, the more there is to learn.

    Anyway, the museum gave a general history of Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic up through Nazi occupation, and then focused on life under communist rule.

    Damn, man. It is frightening to see the parallels between the fascism of the late 20th century and the direction of US culture and policy today.

    Going to this museum was one of the highlights of the entire trip, for sure.

    In terms of art, I decided on a Black Light Theatre show, which is unique to Prague and uses blacklights to create visual effects resembling magic. The show also incorporated acrobatics, puppets, and was entirely mimed, so it was universally understood. It felt very creative and weird and lighthearted. Kids and adults were both laughing. There were multiple layers to the humor.

    It wasn't the kind of theatre that I typically frequent, the kind with a strong message, usually political. But all the same, it felt important to laugh after the darkness of the museum of communism, and inspired and delighted me. Art fills in so many spaces in life.

    Not bad for a single day in Prague.    Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler

    Things I ate

    September 5, 2019 in Czech Republic ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F

    Most of the time I eat bread, cheese, fruit, and nuts. It's cheap, easy, and requires little refrigeration or cooking

    But obviously I gotta try the local cuisine when I can. I was excited to eat in Prague because the Czech food is more interesting than German, and also it's cheap as hell. Pictured:

    1. Pork knuckle (knee), crusty bread, pickled peppers, mustard, horseradish
    2. Sausage, potato dumplings, cabbage
    3. Braised beef smothered in pureed veggies, cranberry sauce, (unsweetened) whipped cream, and a lemon. Served with bread dumplings. Sounds weird but it was very tasty! It's called svíčková. And omg, bread dumplings are amazing.
    4. Czech pancakes. They are much smaller and denser and I'm a fan. Served with....plum? I think. And unsweetened whipped cream. Also a fan.
    5. I didnt eat this but these chimney cakes are traditional desserts. They're spun and roasted over a fire, dusted with sugar, and then filled with ice cream!
    6. Gingerbread is also very Czech, apparently. There was gingerbread everywhere. This guy was quite tasty.    Read more

  • Karen Figgermany-czechia-austria-switzTraveler

    265 miles later: Prague

    September 5, 2019 in Czech Republic ⋅ ☀️ 59 °F

    265 miles later: Prague

    Five stars for the pastries and bread dumplings, for the gorgeous buildings and inspiring theatre and puppetry, for your resilient belief in freedom and beauty after decades of horrific repression.

    One star for cobblestone bike lanes. Ouch.

    I didn't spend as much quality time with a wifi connection as I wanted, there's much more to post. Eventually....    Read more

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