# Broke But Still Biking



## crookedpolitician (Nov 6, 2007)

So I decided to do this whole trip fixed gear, which is a lot slower than touring with gears. I now realize that some of my time goals for this trip are unrealistic, but I have a very liberal time frame so I'm not that concerned about it.

Anyways, Matt and I landed in Amsterdam about a month ago, hung out there for a while, ate the fresh Amsterdam mushrooms, and peddled our way through the beautiful Holland landscape. After a few days of riding, Matt went to Paris by train where I told him I would meet him in a few days. During those few days, I rode hard, ate a lot, and saw a lot of beautiful places. After I went through Brussels, I began to hit the hills of France. Then I began to question my decision to ride fixed through Europe. Well it was too late now, but I did put a front brake on since I had significantly more momentum to stop than I had before.

I rode and rode and on the third day I came up a pretty big hill wondering how much further it was to Laon (pronounced lay-own). As I rolled to the top I looked ahead and it was flat for many kilometers. I also saw a mountain rising abruptly from the flatland. It was the beautiful city of Laon with a massive cathedral at the top. I could have kicked myself because I remembered that Matt had the camera. It was quite an epic view. As I rolled through, the city looked like it hadn't been touched in centuries (aside from some power lines and cars). After meeting some nice people who gave me food and showed me where to get free internet, I went just outside of town to set up camp, and get ready for the long ride to Paris.

Coming into Paris, I saw lots of really interesting graffiti under all the bridges, along the walls by the train tracks, on buildings, and signs. I couldn't really pay attention to everything because it was raining as I rode into the city, but it made for interesting scenery. The first place I went to was an internet shop, where I contacted Matt. We decided we were gonna meet under the Eiffel Tower and then go back to the hostel he was staying at. After riding around town for a few hours we met up and I was excited to head back to the hostel because I hadn't slept in a warm bed or had a shower in a while. We locked our bikes up and I went to the front desk to book a room. They were totally filled up. The hostel around the corner was totally filled up. All of the cheap hotels were filled up. So I hung out for a bit longer at the hostel with Matt. We had some beers, met some kids from other countries. Then I went off to find a place to stay for the night. After trying to find a dark corner of the city to hide away in, I noticed that their were tents all along the Seine river... I later found out that you can camp legally anywhere you want in Paris, so I found a patch of grass to set up shop for the night.

The next day I got up and went to the hostel to book a room early. Matt and I got a room together and I stashed my things in the basement. For about a week and a half Matt and I went to some museums, did some sight seeing and just kinda hung around Paris. When we were about to leave, Matt found out his friend Sara was living here so we decided to give her a visit. I wasn't planning on staying much longer than a few days, but my fork got bent while it was locked up. Sara said we could stay till the fork arrived...

So... I'm still in Paris, I don't want to be. But I'm out of money, in a rut, and Matt's gone to London. I've had a good time since I've been in Paris, and Sara has been great, but homesickness hit me pretty hard a few days ago. I've been drinking heavily over the last few days and, as it is right now, I don't even have enough money to go home, but I really just want to deal with it and move on to Greece, but it's going to be at least another month before I'm there.

Anyways I just got the part I needed for my bike, and all I have to do now is leave. A woman I met here said she might have some work for me so I might end up getting tied down for a few more weeks. I want to leave Paris but I also need the money pretty badly. I really need to straighten out my priorities, and re-think my goals for this trip. I know once I make some money, I'm gonna think about buying a plane ticket home. But I also feel like I'll regret it once I'm back. I don't know where I'm going from here, but I'm gonna have to make a decision pretty soon.


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## smallratbigcity (Jul 14, 2011)

This is interesting. Where are you from? Do you speak french? What job were you offered? Did you need to get a work visa to work or is the job under the table? How did you find a job as a foreigner in France? How long in days did it take you to go from Amsterdam to Paris total? Did you need any paperwork to travel? How was it crossing the boarders? Did you take any highways? Were you ever harassed by cops for taking highways or roads u were'nt supposed to be on? Thanks
you should join the french foreign legion and never return home, thats what id do


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## Zonkers (Jul 14, 2011)

That was a beautiful story, man! It makes me want to get to Europe ASAP. And the part about camping anywhere in Paris legally, too bad more cities in the US arent like that. But stick with it and have some patience, I'm sure outta reeavaluating your trip life will show you the plan that vibes with your and your fate. It always does.


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## shiftingGEARS (Jul 18, 2011)

hell yeah dude, keep on keeping on.


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