Europe 2012 Germany, Holland, Belgium, France, UK, Switzerland

We headed out the Rhine first. If you are into castles, then this the jackpot. Castles on every turn - some in ruins and some are a little better kept. I think there is hostel in Bacharach castle so that is probably a fun experience. We camped in Mainz.

So some tips on camping equipment: We started with the Redverz Expedition Tent. It seemed just perfect - huge and spacious. We could even change our clothes in it. But the camp never even made it out the Knopf building. It was huge, heavy and took too much space. There is no way we could ride comfortably with that thing - it just kept making me nervous. I am sure that it must be lighter than other camps that offer as much space but feel that this camp is definitely not for moto camping - even though it is positioned as a motorcycle specific camp. Perhaps its not much of a problem when riding solo but two up we just could not make it work. But if you are riding solo then why would you need such a huge camp. I think the intention behind the camp is that is meant for either solo riding - or if you are more than one person then each one has his own bike and you split up the tent parts between yourselves. These comments are just addressing the "carryability" of the tent, i am sure the craftsmanship is top notch. In summary - we bought a new tent from a local moto shop.

The german moto shop: We went to the Louis fun shop to pick up what we needed: a new tent, waterproof cover for the tent and also a cover for the bike. Lets just say that the selection there was top notch and everything was available in stock. i wish that one day Cycle Gear would be like this but thats just a wish as Cycle Gear will soon only carry their own items (bilt, sedici). the prices are very reasonable. if you did not bring something with you, i am sure you can find it here at a reasonable price.

This also goes back to my previous tip of being prepared ahead of time. if we had received our panniers in usa, we would have packed the right amount of stuff and known what all we could carry properly on the bike. Since we did not do that, we had to leave behind a ton of stuff just because we did not have space for it.

Also - a small packable bike cover is one of the best things you can bring along - it keeps your bike away from greedy eyes and is essential to protect your bike from the rain ( something that you are bound to expose your bike to in EU).













the first night we did not have a tent as we left the Redverz behind - the camp owners had a spare tent lying around and asked us to improvise:

folks i apologize in advance for not going in order of the actual trip - i would rather just talk about what i feel like talking about at the moment of posting

No matter how handsome you are, this is what you look like when you realize that this bottle of water cost 6 euros


hash browns if you ask me - ghaiboncoughon if you ask a german. but then, german food isnt supposed to be the highlight of europe heheh


excited to see moto cop:


so as i mentioned earlier - i may bounce around the trip - so lets forward for a few min to holland where i stopped by another moto shop (motoport). saw some bikes that wont be coming to usa any time soon:



























spotted elsewhere


i picked up a battery for the GS here. YUSA - cost around $85 euro. i think these were cheaper in germany.

ketchup is not necessarily free you know - one packet is included in your meal sometimes - check menu for exact components of the meal :rofl


ok back to the trip - we headed to cologne next. they had a (very) nice cathedral there:






the 550 step hike up to the top is not for people who get claustrophobic easily.

believe it or not - we were actually kicked out of a campsite in cologne (more like they would not allow us to extend our stay) because we took too long showers


oh by the way, gas stations here have gloves so you dont spill on yourself


coffee is superb everywhere in eu


it's a bit of random thoughts today - will try to be more organized tmrw

a nice pic from the rhine:



and now back to cologne - the lines between rural and urban are often blurred in europe:





some really cool apartments:



more food :freaky







o yes - the top point of the cathedral is pretty high. though i never really understood the point of paying to "excercise" ??? i.e walk up so many stairs
















more good coffee:

lets head on to belgium:













the most disappointing "monument" ever?






some of the best food in brussels (fries are fried in ox fat)


drool




yummm



arabian delights in belgium

moving on to paris - i just simply fell in love with how scooter, bikes and cycles were integrated into the culture. you see women riding around in dresses and skirt. men riding around in suits. everybody had a cute lil rain cover which looked like a blanked. this truly was an amazing destination in terms on a motorcycle/scooter enthusiast. riding around town in GS was a blast. luckily i found parking right below the apartment i was renting. over the span of the entire week, i had no problems with anyone messing around with the bike - i think have a cover over the bike (tied down properly) really helped.









suits and bikes


the piaggio mp3 is extremely popular in paris

Olirider said:

I'm glad you liked my home town !
But remember that Paris is not France...

Click to expand...

likee - more like loved:freaky
have not explored france entirely but here are some bits n pieces of the lovely country:

















the worlds biggest backpack - spotted in mont blanc

Mont Blanc super tip - for just a lil bit more than the price of the main cable car ride, you can buy the unlimited pass which allows you to ride the rest of the cable cars as well. that is the best value for money but requires you to arrive early in the day. the ride back n forth from mont blanc can take several hours due to the (tourist) traffic and the amount of time you will end up spending at the top. if you arrive after 12, you wont be able to utilize the unlimited pass properly. it is recommend that you arrive in time for the first departure of the cable car (check with them for the timings).

some breathtaking pictures below - keep credit card away while browsing to avoid spontaneous travel plans



























Annecy - the hidden (???) gem of France - there is nothing like taking a dip in an alpine lake :clap





more annecy pictures coming soon

The next chapter was Switzerland - which made for some seriously amazing riding and scenery. It truly was an experience.
The experience bit however really was an all-exclusive type as in it included the bike being craned away by the police and a 400 francs fine.

Switzerland Part 3 - the pictures speak for themselves







we were on this train later


stop and put on the rain suits:






one the most amazing rides ever - through the clouds



actually, i have a video of this segment








finally reached lugano

the photos form Swiss are never-ending

















ok so for one of the days, we got the swiss pass and essentially did almost the entire switzerland by train as well.
upon return, the bike was missing. it was 1 a.m. and i guess it must be the police so left the worry for the next day. the next day i walked over the police station and it turns out that the bike was parked on the sidewalk without leaving enough space for the pedestrians. the fine was 120 for the parking ticket and 250 for the towing. ouch!!!!

so be careful where you park.

Switzerland was one country that seriously lived up to the postcards. the scenery and riding was beyond description/photos. however, its expensive and the cheap food sucks. even simpler foods are twice or thrice the regular price for e.g. 13 francs for a McChicken meal!!!

11 scenes from Morocco: