Ecobiketrip

Euphoric Start

• Author: Johannes
• May 5, 2008
• Category: Greece

I finally made it to leave the so much loved city of Thessaloniki. Pre-starting problems where involved, heavy luggage should be lightened and driving qualities stabilized. I could really recommend having not the perfect equipment in order to train fantasy, most new inventions where probably made this way.

The first day on the bike was finally a big release, weather was perfect and I was just enjoying nature.

This time of the year it is so beautiful in Greece, almost everything is flowering and still in juicy green.

While driving on main roads the problem was not to pass over already knocked down animals and there are really many, you can understand diversity. Dogs, cats, foxes, hedgehogs, snakes, birds, turtles.. People are driving like crazy not taking enough care.
I decided to take small roads, even if unpaved and this was the best decision so far.

First night was split in two parts, because the first place I decided to stay was taken over by dogs during the night and they didn’t enjoy my company and I moved to the beach which is better anyway, though a hammam in hot springs was fine enough.

In Kavala I found a whistle for future relations with wild dogs that hopefully scare them away.

Passing the industrial area of Kavala with heavy industry I also got to talk to some workers of phosphoric fertilizer producing industry. Friendly,

teeth-less and working in this bad business as he said, not being well paid for the

heavy chemicals he has to inhale every day.
In Greece agriculture is mostly based on conventional methods where fertilizers and other chemicals are used in large scale.

Passing by huge areas of cotton being cropped one day after would explain where some of the chemistry goes, though land view was extraordinary again.

Some rain made me to put up the tent during the night and it really worked also with the bike inside. Some homemade Retsina from the region and cooked food was really paying off.

In some places there is still no understanding for the beauty of not seeing garbage along the road.

Besides I already passed two Ramsar wetlands, Nestos Delta and Porto Lagos which where really beautiful, not possible to cross all spots easily with the bike and if not biking being eaten by mosquitoes but talking again to farmers who live there who told me what happened in at Nestos during the war America against Saddam Hussein, where they build up huge antennas in the middle of nowhere.

I also crossed beautiful places where biological olive tree groves are are set in the ancient magic landscape of Ismaros.

Last night finally I met other bike travelers and we spent very nice time together till I finally after getting wet again a couple of times and also being marked by an Alexandroupolis’ sea gull I got some fresh fish and Tsipouro and having one more time the possibility to sleep in a house.

Tomorrow I will cross borders to Turkey making one more station at Evros wetlands heading to Constantinople.

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