Once again, my “journey” has led me to meet two new friends, Alexia and Alan, directly from Canada, specifically Calgary, whom I met in Lisbon. Here is their story!
Answers by: Alexia Caron-Roy
Travels by: Alexia Caron-Roy & Alan Rivera
Tell us about the moment when you decided to embark on the incredible bicycle adventure. What drove you to leave Canada and travel the world by bike?
Since finishing my studies in University and starting full-time employment, my husband and I had been dreaming of leaving the work life behind for a full year to travel. I had been lucky enough to do some long trips during my childhood and young adult life, including living abroad for a full year with my husband in Argentina during my studies. Travelling for a very long trip was the next adventure for us to work towards.
We had originally planned to take 9 months off work, with a departure date in early 2021. As had been the case for every person on the globe with travel plans for 2020, we were forced to delay due to the many unknowns brought forth by the pandemic. We decided to wait another year and a half and since we would have more time to save up, we decided to extend to a full year of travel.
The bicycle also came as an unexpected change for us, as we had originally planned to leave with our backpacks to low-cost destinations such as Nepal and India. While planning our trip, we were still feeling the effects of the many unexpected events of the pandemic and decided to plan for a part of the world that was opening back up, with less potential for risk – Europe. The only problem was, we didn’t have the budget to be travelling by train and staying in hostels in Europe. So we turned to a budget-friendly and very independent mode of travel – the self-sustaining bicycle.
How is it to travel as a couple over long distances, facing new challenges every day? Have you developed any particular routines or habits to maintain balance and enjoy each stage?
What we learned quickly when starting our trip was that we would need a long adjustment period to this new way of life. The longest bicycle tour we had done as a couple previous to this trip was only 4 days long, so this was a whole new level and it took time for us to be able to find a rhythm that we both enjoyed. Finding this rhythm and building up some stamina really helped in making the whole experience more enjoyable. We also had to gain a lot of patience for each other – which isn’t the easiest thing to do when you’re in a whole new country, in the middle of nowhere cycling under a hot sun!
The habits and routine that we slowly discovered to find the right balance included stopping to enjoy the views and taking photos whenever we wanted (since it’s easy to always want to keep going without stopping), taking many rest days to enjoy a particular place and most importantly, to enjoy the food as much as we could. In Europe, it became easier to enjoy the food as we travelled towards less expensive countries, and when we arrived in South-East Asia, it became so easy to enjoy all of the incredible local street food.
What was the most difficult moment of the journey? And was there a stage or experience that you’ll remember as the most special and rewarding?
The most difficult part of the whole year was by far the first two weeks on the bicycle. We started the trip in Madrid, Spain and the heat was unbearable for those first weeks as we made our way towards Galicia. Everything was also so new, which made it stressful at times. But what made it the most difficult was that we hadn’t found our preferred pace yet. We were cycling way too much every day, and at the end of two weeks, we had completely exhausted ourselves. After reaching Santiago de Compostela, we decided we had to change our pace and take it more slowly, with more rest days in between. We were never going to last a whole year otherwise, and besides, the whole point was to enjoy the ride!
I think my husband and I both agree that we had two big highlights. The first was Sardinia, Italia, where we spent close to a month riding alongside almost the whole coast. Everything from the food, the rural landscape, the small charming cities, the kind and hospitable people, the wild green rolling hills and the breathtaking crystalline beaches – it was impossible not to fall in love. The second highlight was the country where we spent the most time in the whole trip (3 months in total): Thailand. There were many reasons why we enjoyed touring in Thailand, but at the top of that list is probably both the people, who were kind, humble and generous, and the food!
When I think back on my trip sometimes, the moments where I felt the most alive were usually the ones when we arrived at the end of a seemingly infinite hill and we were immediately rewarded with incredible views and a thrilling downhill. That feeling of accomplishment combined with the reward of an expansive landscape that I could only ever witness by powering myself and my bags up the long hills was such an overwhelming experience of joy.
Many people imagine trips like yours, but few actually take the leap. What are two essential pieces of advice you would give to someone who wants to venture into bicycle touring?
First, I would say that you don’t need to have everything planned. It can be intimidating to leave without a detailed itinerary, but it’s also a beautiful thing because it allows you the space to decide along the way – if you feel like stopping for a few days, or if someone you just met advises you to go see a place, you have the openness to do so. There are lots of apps and information online that can help you plan as you go, and you will learn to figure it out.
Secondly, I would encourage people to try it even if they don’t consider themselves cyclists. My husband and I always enjoyed cycling, but we were never very serious about it and we were far from considering ourselves athletes in the sport. For us, it was an enjoyable way to explore, get around and exercise. Bike touring was a way of experiencing travel in such a unique, independent and open way and it’s much more accessible than what people would think. You can always set your own pace, combine it with trains, buses or even planes, and camping isn’t necessary if it’s not your thing!
After crossing so many countries together, do you have other adventures in mind for the future? Or perhaps a place where you’d like to settle down and build something together?
As anyone who travels knows, coming back from a trip only gives you more motivation to keep travelling more, and we are no exception! Although we’ve come back to our working lives here in Calgary, Canada, we continue to dream about the next adventure, which will hopefully be in South Korea sometime in the near future. For now, we are enjoying the things we love about where we live, like camping, hiking, skiing and of course cycling, in the nearby Rocky Mountains.
During your travels, you’ve encountered very different cultures and people. Is there any lesson or value that particularly struck you along the way?
One thing that we encountered throughout the trip was the kindness of people. Totally strangers from many cultures, passing us in cars, bicycles or watching us from the side of the road would often greet us, give us big waves and smiles. We even got offered food, water, drinks and hospitality on several occasions. Experiencing that kindness and generosity on an almost daily basis made the whole experience even more beautiful.
The other lesson I learned along the way is that our bodies and our minds are really meant to move every day. Before and since this trip, I have never felt so healthy on a physical and mental level. I think moving slowly across the land, by the power of our own muscles, is a deeply human experience and we are naturally fulfilled by it.
Thank you, Alan and Alexia, for sharing your adventure with us! This is a great treasure for all of us and for those who wish to embark on a journey similar to yours.
If you want to learn more, I recommend this poetic article by Alexia, where she describes how the journey, in her case, positively influenced her career path. You can follow the link below!
A Process of Learning and Growth by Travelling Slowly and Facing the Unknown
Come sempre Articoli super! Gran lavoro Ste 🍻