We are on our homeward stretch. The Baltic Sea is behind us and we only have a bit over a week before we will find ourselves back in Berlin. Close to 5 months of riding and over 3800km later we have enjoyed our share of adventures and met some fantastic people.
Most of the time the people we connect with are kind strangers who offer us help. Take for instance….
A 36 degree day near Hengelo, Holland. We stopped at a random house to ask for some water. We were given ice water, home grown berries, coffee and an hour or two of enjoyable conversation.
In Bremen while watching the reenactment of “The Bremen Town Musicians” an elderly German tourist slipped me 10 euros to spend on Amaya – evidently overwhelmed by her charm. We used the 10 euros to buy a lovely picture book of the Grimm Brother’s fable.
Then there was Astrid, Andreas and Felix. Resting in their driveway after an exhausting day crossing Hamburg, Astrid pulls up in her bright red porsche and asks us if we would like a coffee in her garden. We obviously agreed and were once again treated to an enjoyable afternoon with some unexpected surprises thrown in. There were rabbits, chickens and macaws much to Amaya’s delight. Most random of all was the large warehouse jammed full of antique horse drawn carts, gypsy caravans and even a 100 year old hearse.
More recently our Baltic sea experience was significantly brightened by fellow campers, Bjorn, Kirsten and Simon (aged 2).
There are countless other examples of these chance encounters, however two families we stayed with during our last week in the Netherlands was not based solely on chance – our meeting was some 30 years in the making and the connections span 3 continents.
About 30 years ago a young Israeli called Naim was struggling to fund his travels through Europe by selling paintings in a plaza in a Dutch town called Hengelo. A young couple, Henk and Annie, took pity on him and invited him to stay with them for the night. He stayed for a year. A connection was established with Naim’s family in Israel and Henk and Annie’s family that saw many visits between the two countries.
Fast forward to a rainy night in Israel, about 20 years on. Stephen (my brother), Shoshanna and I were looking for somewhere to pitch our tent in front of the Ancient Ruins of Beit She’an. The lady in the ticket office took pity on us and offered for us to stay with her. Her name is Etti and she is Naim’s sister. We stayed with her for a few wonderful days and again in 2008 for a week.
Earlier this year Stephen and Jess (my sister in law) were staying with Etti who happened to also have guests from the Netherlands. They were Rosanna and Mariette, the 2 daughters of Henk and Annie, along with their families. Upon arriving in the Netherlands Stephen and Jess stayed with Rossanna and Henk (the younger).
We also had the privilege of Henk and Rosanna’s hospitality in Hengelo, along with a few wonderful days with Mariette and Robert and their children Leor, Micha and Yair.
These are the moments that make traveling so enjoyable. The stunning scenery and quaint villages are just a nice backdrop to the relationships and connections we have made on this journey.