Plavecký Štvrtok

Shortly after setting off this morning, we had our 1000 x mile anniversary! (1609 or so km). As our duo is riding in part under the English flag, it was only right to celebrate it!

We breakfasted on the road and then crossed into SLOVAKIA! Country number 5, and onwards into Bratislava. Forget Vienna, its all about Bratislava!! A small bustling city with a diverse cross-section of restaurants, wine shops, boutiquey gift shops under the backdrop of a medieval walled city. You can see most of the main points of interest in about an hour with a mix of biking and walking. The tell-tale signs of eastern block arctitecture remain, but on the whole the city is dominated with quaint older buildings and features.

We then carried on our route 30-40km North into the real Slovakia. This is where we waved goodbye to well-paved cycleways and became acquainted with concrete plate roads, potholed-to-death main roads and sandy minor roads. Oh. La. La. Oh and the navigation app has translated street names into German which is nothing like how they are in Slovak!

To ride comfortably you need fat fat tyres, solid suspension and a good sports bra. Getting 20 meters down a "country lane" we decided to turn around and try the main road instead. Sliding out on sand with a heavy bike is pretty taxing when the road is 1k+ long...!

On the upside we can now afford nuts again!! Woo! (€4-7 for a small pack in Austria) And we can buy baked bread without it feeling like a treat for 4x less than Austria!

We're currently on a campsite adjacent to a hotel. Stepping into the hotel to register was like a journey to the 70s. Wood panelling everywhere and a huge deep tube tv. East-side is going to be an adventure, thats for sure!

In other good news, the duck phone that we lost in wallsee has been found and is making its way back to Germany!Read more