99 Balloon's

Wednesday 6 July 2011


After having coffee with Piere in the morning I loaded the bike and set off. I calculated my route so that I would leave France as soon as possibe and get into Belgium as there are no toll roads and it's an easy route into Germany.


Warm weather, cool breeze, cruising at 70mph down the highway all day. Stopping off occassionaly for some fruit, water and sandwiches. I noticed the sheer amount of lorries and trucks and cars whacking up this particular Autostrada (E40). Im usually only cautious of the big lorries when they are in the middle lane and I have to overtake in the fast one as then I get some form of weird cross wind. But today im plodding along down the middle lane, singing at the top of my voice that 99 red balloon song... the really catchy one, but im singing it in German as I think there is a German cover of it?
   My handle bars snatch to the left and a car in the fast lane veers into the right. A car directly to the right of me swerves drastically... A shard of black rubber whacks into my visor followed by half a dozen smaller bits into my chest and right arm... A lorry about 10-15 metres ahead of me but in the slow lane suddenly had one of its tires burst. I was lucky as a few seconds later and I would have been right beside it and that would have been that! It sounded like a humongeous balloon being popped right next to your ear, thus making my bars snatch. It realeased a cloud of dust and debris which made those cars swerve and it made me whisper the rest of the made-up german words to 99 Luftballoons. My heart was beating like a Zulu drum all the way to the German border.


I felt I had done enough riding for one day and as I passed a particulary pretty slice of country side on my right, I decided to turn off and find a place to kip for the night. I pulled into a litle town about 20 km from the German border. I asked a woman who was walking with her son which direction those pretty green fields were and wouldn't you know it... 5 minutes later i'm setting up my tent in her 'magnific jarden'!

p.s If you are ever in Belgium and want to get to Germany and you are doing it with only maps be warned: For example...Your map may tell you that you are going to 'Liege' and thats (definately how its spelt), people may point you in the right direction but when you realise that none of the road signs ANYWHERE say Liege and you think you are going in the wrong direction... its because "Sorry Miseour, sometimes we spell it Liuk it is this confusing language system we have!"