curmugeon | Past adventures

Past adventures. A multi part post. Part one. In 1971 I went on a 45 day motorcycle ride in Europe. I was riding my BSA Lightning. I left Berlin by train because I couldn't get permission to pass through Communist East Germany and besides the Russians would have lived to interrogate me. I left the train in Helmsted in West Germany. I immediately headed west along small two lane rural roads. By sundown I hobo camped in a forest area near the Dutch border. The next morning I crossed into the Netherlands. I was amazed how friendly the people were not as stodgy as the Germans. I ate breakfast in a cafe having a traditional farmer's breakfast of fresh eggs, lean ham and potatoes. The coffee was the best. I rode through the countryside and stopped at a market to get some food. Everyone greeted me in English. I was surprised to learn that you get 8 years of English in school as they consider it the language of commerce. By afternoon I stopped by a canal to have dinner and had a good conversation with some young men and women about my motorcycle and culture in the United States. They gave me directions to the border crossing for Belgium. I ride on towards Belgium.

To be continued