Wednesday, the 24th of May, I returned to the Danube River. Hütteldorf was a cute village, with a very old church just outside the Youth Hostel, but I was ready for the big city. After packing, I rolled easily down the side streets and along the bike paths by the Wien River from Hütteldorf to the Favoriten district in the southern part of Vienna. 
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On Saturday, the 20th, the forecast called for stiff headwinds and colder temperatures, so I was not sure how long the day’s ride would take. Only 67 km, but riding uphill 400 m into the wind had me worried. Rain was supposed to start after dark, so I was sure that I could have my campsite pitched and ready in time, regardless of how slowly I rode. Continue reading
Tuesday morning, the 16th, I rose early, excited to be on my way again. Crossing to the right bank of the bank of the Danube, I quickly found myself in Austria on a dedicated bicycle path that led south into the fertile floodplain. The wind was out of the southwest. Had it been any stronger, it might have posed a problem from the outset. But the air was warm, and the day was sunny. I revelled in the fresh air and the smooth pavement leading me among the wind farms. Below the turbines, immense fields stretched to the horizon. I recognized corn and rapeseed, but not most of the other crops. This early in the spring, it all looks like a lawn that needs mowing. Continue reading
After two days in Gyo̎r, I set out on the 12th for Bratislava. There was a steady northwest wind all day, but it was not as strong as earlier. North of Gyo̎r, I found myself riding through tidy suburbs with single-family dwellings, set in the middle of vast fields of various crops. The plants were all short, and different bright shades of springtime green – except for the rapeseed (brassica napus), blooming in blinding yellow. Continue reading
Monday, the 8th of May, a heavy overcast made sunglasses unnecessary as I hauled my bicycle from the basement and my five bags from the room. By shuffling things around on Sunday evening, I managed to get more weight moved aft on the bike. OsmAnd software led me easily up the left bank of the Danube and over the great river into Buda. The sky cleared as I crossed the bridge. Continue reading
The BP-17 Translation Conference main program opened on Friday morning, 5 May, at the belle époque Urania Theatre. A series of 18-minute TED-X style talks filled the day from 0940 to 2100 that night. Talks, coffee breaks, lunch and supper all took place at the theatre. By the way, BP stands for “business + practice,” although we had fun making up all sorts of other expansions of those two letters (http://bpconf.com/story-bp-translation-conferences/). Continue reading
Wednesday the 3rd of May, I awoke to an overcast morning with the threat of more rain. The air smelled fresh as it does in a clean place with the air recently rinsed. I had planned to take the 13:59 train to Budapest, so I rose late and fixed myself a leisurely breakfast. I rode to the station (only 600 m away) with almost an hour to spare, just to be sure that I had not read any signs wrong. The station had walk-on access to the platform from the street. Continue reading
Monday was May Day, also Labor Day and a major holiday in much of the world – especially the former Warsaw Pact countries. I knew that everything would be closed, so I had bought some yoghurt and brioches at the 05-22 market last night for breakfast. My neighbors (two Germans, one Austrian, one Swiss) all drove off to find breakfast, I know not where. Continue reading
As I passed from Italy into Slovenia on Wednesday, the 26th of April, the rain began to fall lightly. The border was only 12 km from the town of Kazlje, where I would be staying with Couchsurfing hosts Marco and Arletta. Sežana disappeared suddenly. I found myself on a well-paved highway rolling gently through a thick wood. Continue reading
Sunday, the 23rd of April, glowed with pleasant sunshine – enough to warm the cool air, but not enough to make me break a sweat as I made my way east from Verona. Regional Road 11 was smooth and wide-shouldered with a southerly crosswind blowing car exhaust away from me. Continue reading
The Freewheeling Freelancer 