Milan to Tirana
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They say that it takes 6 weeks to form a habit and after a month of acclimatisation and finding our groove, our second month on the road has all been about putting what we’ve learned into practice. Cycling the distances we plot each day becomes second nature which gives you the freedom to stop thinking about how you’re going to get up that hill or how much your legs hurt and instead reflect on the amazing scenery and places we’ve found ourselves in.
In our case, it’s also meant we’ve really been able to dive into the music we’re making and recording. This paid off as we’ve lined up a couple of gigs in Istanbul that we’re very excited about. We can’t wait to show off the material we’ve put together, including our latest track that we recorded in an underground bunker that we found on a building site on top of a hill on the Croatian island of Brac.
When we were offered the dates in Istanbul we were a fair distance from Turkey. After roughly plotting a route we quickly realised that we’d need to put down some serious miles if we were to reach the city in time to play.
Initially, we relished the challenge and began making serious headway. As we continued, however, we realised that the more experienced cycle tourers you speak to, the more you’re warned against playing the numbers game and encouraged to slow down, take your time and enjoy the ride. With this in mind, we adjusted the route and slowed down, giving us time to drink in the locations we passed through and better know the people we’ve met and spent time with.
So as you can probably tell, it’s been far from an uneventful month! Route wise we continued our cross-country traverse of Italy and passed through the Alpine beauty of Slovenia (albeit too briefly). We enjoyed the ever-changing landscapes of Croatia, be that the red and green cliff faces of the mainland or the moonscapes and farmland on the country’s many islands. We enjoyed a brief sojourn to Bosnia, sampled the mountains of Montenegro before finally landing in the rough, ready and certainly charming feel of Albania. If you want a heroes welcome in every village you cycle through, visit Albania!
The overwhelming feeling as we’ve moved further east is one of leaving the familiarity of Western Europe and into the unknown – countries we’ve never visited let alone cycled through – but the further we head from the beaten path, the more we enjoy it.
The heat has certainly cranked up a few notches – a far cry from the sub-zero temperatures in France a mere six weeks ago – but we know it’s only going to get hotter so it’s good to be in training for sweatier climes.
In other news, Tim turned 30 and we celebrated in style – if you call a Jaffa Cake (our life-saving snack) birthday cake, cycling around picturesque Croatian islands and kicking back with some Scottish blend whiskey celebrating, we certainly did it in style.
Now we look forward even further east and cutting a path towards Istanbul. With the crossover into Asia on the horizon, we cannot wait for the road ahead.
Like our jerseys?
Tim wears the stolen goat limited edition – Subtle
Adam wears the stolen goat limited edition – Side B
Check out the full SS18 collection here.
Enjoy our adventure in photos, below!
Thank you for reading and we will be back with an update soon!
@totalbikeforever