The day before I left for Switzerland, I went to Harmony ( <3 ), which was held in a tank in Branik and came home at about 3am. We left at 9 am and I got up without any problems. Jirka, Honza and Olda came back from Berlin and they had a crazy hangover.

Lucerne

The first stop was Lucerne. Everything there seemed expensive. In the evening we saw fireworks because it was Swiss national day. The next day we biked with Kaja and Mirka (Kaja’s friend) from Lucerne to Interlaken. The drive was really beautiful and I absolutely loved Switzerland at that moment. Everything was beautifully green and peaceful, as if we were in some kind of bubble of paradise. It was really fun talking to Mirka and Kaja and hearing their opinion on people, life events, etc.  New people, new stories.

Interlaken

In Interlaken we stayed in a beautiful hostel with an amazing view.

The next day it was just me and Kája on the bike, because Mirka’s ankle was hurting. We rode under the Jungfrau and when we were at the highest point of our journey, I felt really happy. The only thing that could be heard was the mooing of the cows and the wind. On the way up, Kaja and I talked a lot, I was so happy to have someone to share the joy of the bike with and to have such a good conversation at the same time.

On the third day I went for an evening ride alone. Around Lake Thunersee. I experienced the heaviest rain on my bike on this ride. I was very cold, had to ride in a raincoat and was quite worried about myself. Luckily I had a light. And Kaya’s shoe covers. But I found the whole trip meditative and was glad I went. The afternoon before this ride I went to Aare Gorge with Jirka, Marus, Emma, Olga and their dad, which was very beautiful. It was raining, but I really enjoyed it.

Andermatt

We moved to Andermatt and stayed in a camping which was actually just a transformed skiing centre into a meadow on which people could put their tents. Right after we arrived, I approached a guy who was obivously bike packing since he had a very heavy bike and maaany bags on it. He was from Belgium and had been travelling with his bike for already 72 days. We talked about travelling alone, how bad weather in Switzerland made his trip very introspective and also how he bumped into a „kind of like Burning man“ festival in the middle of the Swiss mountains. He tol dus that we have a terrible tent which is definitelly not ready to stop the rain and he was completely right. Water dripped on us, even though it wasn’t raining outside, because the tent was really old and had only one layer. And it was crazy cold, especially on the feet. In the morning, when I woke up, I wanted to go for a run to warm up, but my ankle was cramping madly, so I thought I’d better skip it to be ready for the “legendary” Swiss loop that me and Karolina planned to bike through.
Karolina was teling me before the trip that it will be really „tough and crazy“ but we woke up with a pretty cherful mood and were fresh for the ride.

FURKA – NUFENNEN – ST. GOTTHARD PASSES

We climbed 3 hills and every hill had something special that I want to note down.

The first hill was pretty easy. In the beginning we were competing with some profi-cycling kids who were actually faster than us. I didn’t care at all but it was funny to observe how we are slow in comparison to them:D When we wrrived to the top, we took a picture with snow, dressed up and rode down. On the way down, we met some Czechs ( those „classic“ cyclists) who took a picture with us. They were super cheerful and I thought that old cyclists are really cool. I loved their classic dress and how they had such a good mood. We passed by Hotel Belvedere, an iconic place which looks always so abandoned on Instagram but is actually pretty crowded in reality. The Furka Pass was in general very busy but I didn’t mind at all, it had such a great atmosphere anyway. The downhill was very long and I just confirmed myself, that I really prefer to climb the hill than go down. I find it so demanding for my back just to be the whole time in the same position.

When we started to climb the first hill, it was very hot. It was very steep but I was in such a beautiful flow that I climbed it pretty fast and stopped at some random shop with cheese which was led by an Austrian guy who offered me coffee for free. The coffee was super good and the fresh milk that he gave me as well. He tol dme, that he has 50 cows, comes from Vienna and that he comes to Switzerland only for 2 months in summer to sell cheese. What a life! The break was finally pretty long, because we sunbathed a bit and just enjoyed the moment. The second part of the mountain was pretty hard for me because I felt a bit dizzy. I thought that reason of the dizziness was the microdose of LSD that we took in the morning but probably it was just the superelevation that made me feel it. I ate some protein bar and continued. I took off my Jersey and climbed the hill just in my bra whch actually helped me a lot because I hate when I have too many unnecessary pieces of clothes, especially when I sweat and do sports. On the top, we did a picture with Kaja’s camera which I find absolutely amazing. The view was definitely the best one of the trip. After this hill we arrived to Airolo, where we finally had a lunch – a big one actually!! In COOP.

The last hill (St. Gotthard) was a bit unpleasant for me because instead of a normal road it was all paved. For some reason, however, the strength awoke in me and I quickly trampled him up so that I had to wait for Kája for about 20 minutes. I was cold, but I was happy. On the way back to the campsite, I was afraid to go because I didn’t have a light. I was also very cold. Kaya kept the light on in the car, and it drained his flashlight, which we had to charge. Mirka paid it – 50€ it was, I remember.

The day of these three passes was definitelly a day when I realised that cycling will become one of my biggest passions. Thanks Kaja that she made me to come to this conclusion!

Lugano

In Lugano, I already knew I wanted to be alone. I stayed in the room with Jirka and went for a bike ride. It was so strangely stuffy, after the rain, but the landscape seemed like something out of a fairy tale. All hills, it was great. I just wanted to go for a while, to feel that I had at least done some sport, some exercise that day. Then I swam in the absolutely beautiful hotel pool, alone, and I was glad for the peace.

The next day I went for a drive in the area and was mesmerized by the greenery. So much fresh nature everywhere! When I came back, all the supermarkets were closed and I was crazy hungry. I stopped and had probably the most expensive kebab I’ve ever had. It cost 18 euros.

Lago di Garda

By the time we got to Lago di Garda, I knew that Kaja and I would go in different directions after this trip. So I drove around on my own and it was great.

The first day I rode all around Lago di Garda and that ride was my longest bike ride ever.

The ride was basically on the main road the entire time, so I was quite scared in parts, but I was happy and proud to go for it. I got the inspiration for the ride from Peter Š., who I believed was a great idea. Next time, I think I’d probably choose a route up into the mountains with some elevation gain rather than just going around the lake. But the experience was great. On the way I still had to buy a back light, because I didn’t take one with my as usually. When I came completely exhausted back to the hotel, noone was luckily there so I could rest easy no matter what others wanted me to do.

The next day I headed up into the mountains above Lago di Garda and was again terribly unprepared. I didn’t take enough water and food, just about one energy bar. When I crossed a small village, one guy noticed me and must have wondered how exhausted I was. So he offered me coffee at his house. He had a really beautiful wife which looked pretty satisfied while making the coffee for me. The coffee made me feel a little stronger. At the time, though, I had no idea that it would have to be my energy for the next x hours. When I was completely exhausted, driving through a small village in the mountains, I came across a local restaurant where they didn’t accept cards and all they offered was prosciutto and dry bread. Coincidentally, there was a Czech woman working there, so I arranged with her that I could pay with my card. I didn’t have any appetite for the prosciutto and dry bread, but I was so hungry at that moment that the whole situation made me really happy. I came back to Lago di Garda exhausted, but satisfied.

On the last day we went to the vineyard. I was sitting next to Jirka, but my head was completely elsewhere. I was supposed to take a train home, but there was a strike in Germany. In the end, Adam introduced me to Daniel, who coincidentally drove through Italy back home to the Czech Republic. It was such a random and beautiful event that remembering it always puts a smile on my face.

Randomly in Austria

Daniel was great. We talked about so many topics, I can’t even remember them. We went on a little hike and on the last day we went to a high ropes park in Saalbach (Hochseilpark Hinterglemm). Daniel was happy as a little kid. We slept outside once and in the car once. I even slept on the car seat just because the bike was in the trunk and I didn’t want to take it out. I would have done anything for that bike at that moment. Meeting Daniel was actually very fateful for me. His childlike gaze and honest opinions opened my eyes to a few things.