The stars have aligned and several milestones of our adventure have landed at the same moment. We've covered the first 10,000 kilometres on these bikes — bought back in that cold English winter — just as we cross into Eastern Europe.
We're in Ljubljana, capital of Slovenia — Balkan by recent history, but Austrian in spirit and outlook.
We're at the gates of Eastern Europe; the Balkans are waiting, and the first differences from the Western European mindset are already making themselves felt. For now it's more noticeable on the palate than in the wallet, but as we push through Croatia and into Bosnia we'll discover the reality of the other Europe.
The 10,000-km mark and our arrival in Ljubljana coincided with my twenty-seventh birthday. Though if I have to pick just one thing to celebrate, I'll go with the round number.
These milestones arrived with a change of season — rain is back and autumn seems to be settling in around here, which is less than ideal when you're spending your days on a bike and your nights in a tent. But it's all part of the journey, the adventure.
Sleeping rough beside Lake Bled
Our first night in Slovenia we spent without the tent — just out in the open, under the sky.
We arrived at the famous Lake Bled as darkness was beginning to fall. Being a tourist magnet, pitching a tent wasn't an option — wild camping is illegal in Slovenia — so we decided to spend the night beside the lake with our sleeping mats and sleeping bags.
A night under a blanket of thousands of stars, with a stunning view waiting when we opened our eyes to the first rays of dawn.
First bicycle accident, Italian style
The bad news is that my front fork won't be clocking up any more kilometres. The good news is that, once again, I came away shaken but unhurt.
A week ago, cycling through an Italian village, a woman decided to open her parked car door without looking. I was passing right alongside and she hit my front pannier.
I gripped the handlebars hard, controlled the bike and avoided the fall — but the two opposing forces bent my front fork. I must be pretty strong to bend a steel tube, right?
At the time I thought I just needed to true the wheel, which I did in a DIY fashion — calmly, with a bit of craft, propping the bike up with two chairs in a farmyard. Then I discovered the fork was actually bent, and since then I've ridden nearly 500 kilometres with the steering off, waiting to reach Ljubljana where I'd arranged delivery of a new one.
France, Italy and the Alps: stories still to come
On social media (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) I've kept you updated on our passage through France, the Alps and Italy — but I haven't yet had the chance to write about these countries here on the blog, to share the experiences or the photos from these places. They'll come soon, don't worry.
Tomorrow we head on towards Croatia, leaving Slovenia behind and pushing a little deeper into the Balkans on our bikes, zigzagging and pedalling through Eastern Europe.