refuge, Italian side of Mt Blanc
refuge, Italian side of Mt Blanc
  • Welcome to Flatland
    • 31/08/2019
Eger is also famed for its wines, the local "bulls blood", and has a whole area crammed with wine cellars and bistros where you can get any container filled up for €2 a litre - the so called " valley of the beautiful woman", evidently named by a crafty marketing campaign at some point in the past.
You could spend days happily swaying between cellars getting blotto - note for a different kind of trip.
I'm continuing to another nearby attraction, the amazing "salt hill", basically a hillside with a spring so saline that it deposits salt crystals all over the place and makes interesting formations - now with adjacent mega spa resort.
After that minor diversion, south bound, and suddenly hills are fading into the distant past, it's flat flat flat, the horizon is the end of the next field, fields are full of drooping, wilting sunflowers, their heavy heads bowed in resignation to their fate, and onwards to Tisza lake, really a reservoir, now also a national park and popular recreation spot with fishermen, pedalols, "beaches" etc.

Crossing the causeway I met Quentin from Switzerland coming this other way - leading two horses, one saddled, one with his luggage, he has been travelling like this for two years and is, returning from Greece, looking every inch the adventurous explorer of old, except that we are on a busy A road.

I can't resist a break for a swim in the lake, which is not the cleanest as it turns out but there are showers at the beach ;) then onwards along a nice easy path on top of the dike to look for w camping spot - which is where hubris strikes, as dark falls quickly and the mosquitoes come out in whole squadrons. In the end I have run away in land away from the water a few km, and stuck my tent up in a random field - mozzies much reduced but I can still hear them droning around outside. They haven't been a problem previously as I have been camping in high altitude meadows etc, so something to keep in mind for future...
... I was wondering why it seemed like I kept getting dive bombed by a yellow biplane today, originally assuming it was just practicing landings or something, but after some googling of mozzies it seems there is an anti mosquito spraying program in operation.

Longest day ever today distance wise, clocking in at 119km, entirely flat such that tiny gradients over bridges feel like a strain.
Not much to see either, mainly riding on the levy following the Tisza river, and its 30 something degrees with very little shade so I'm stopping in every village for a cheap ice lolly from the local co-op.
Massive contrast in fortunes from one field to the next - amazing brand new tractors with caterpillar tracks, and then just down the road two blokes stripped to the waist, with a horse pulling a hand guided plough.
Passed quickly through Sznolnok, largest city in the region but with nothing to see as it has been destroyed in every war since year one.
Spent the night at a home stay airbnb, with the incredibly hospitable Jozef and Edith, who have semi retired to the village from Budapest, although Josef still has to go out to work at the post office at 5am.

Smashed out a quick 40km next morning to reach the contrastingly architecturally delightful town of Kecskemet, full of art deco flourishes and pastel palaces.
I have plenty of time to pop into museums, the best one being the "gallery of naive artists", which is essentially folk art created by people with no formal training. They do seem to cherish their rural folk culture in this part of the world, as whenever I've stayed anywhere with a TV there's always been a channel showing nothing but.

Two leisurely days now to reach Budapest, flat and fairly featureless. Today I got my first look at the river Danube, maybe I should try floating down it instead of riding next to it.


browse by location

Sweden

Germany

Austria

Lichtenstein

Switzerland

Germany

Luxembourg

Belgium

France

Iceland

Slovenia

Hungary

Slovakia

Hungary

Slovakia

Poland

Slovakia

Poland

Czech Republic

Poland

Czech Republic

England

Thaliand

Hong Kong

Thailand

RSA

Zimbabwe

Malawi

Tanzania

Kenya

Tanzania

Rwanda

Uganda

Kenya

Norway

Sweden

Denmark

Germany

The Netherlands

Cuba

Cayman Islands

France

Switzerland

Italy

Switzerland

England

Wales

Scotland

England

France

Holland

England

Germany

England

USA

England

Thailand

Malaysia

Singapore

Fiji

Australia

Samoa

Fiji

Australia

New Zealand

Cook Islands

Mexico

USA

Canada

USA

England