Fuck yeah, hitchhiking

Serbia 2008

vettaravonat:

PART I : Lyon

I left Paris at 5:52 am (or something like that), with the TGV headed to Lyon. I slept for the whole 2 hours of the trip.
I had a whole day to spend there, without much to do, expect confirmating my bus ticket and buying stuff to bring to Serbia.
I stayed around Perrache train/busstation until 9:00 am, waiting for the Eurolines office to open so I could confirm my tickets.
And then, headed directly to the Parc de la Tête d’Or on the other side of the city.

Le Parc de la Tête d’Or (roughly translated as Park of the Golden Head) is the first place I discovered in Lyon, and I still love going there. It has a very particular atmosphere, that I really like.

I had a great time watching the ducks floating around, listening to the raindrops falling…

But soon… The raindrops were getting too much. And even the biggest trees wouldn’t protect me anymore. I was slowly getting soaked.
I decided to head for the glasshouses that I had seen from the train (the train passes by the park before arriving in Lyon). I wasn’t the only one with that idea. The glasshouses weren’t warmer than the outside, but at least we were protected from the downpour.
I spent around 2 hours in there, noting the names of the plants I liked, among them, my favourite was Osteomeles Anthyllidifolia.

After the rain had stopped I walked towards the big shopping mall at La Part-Dieu, had lunch and bought food, a water container and sunblock to bring on the trip. I didn’t really know what else to do, so I walked back to the park. The weather was now much friendlier.

Ducks were still there, to my great pleasure. ^__^… Doesn’t it look like the one on the right wants to slap the other one??

Then, I left the park, walked around the old town, had a beer in a pub, and dinner. At 21:15 I was at the bus station in Perrache…

PART II : Lyon-Belgrade bus

The bus drivers and conductors only spoke Serbian, like pretty much anyone else who got on the bus. Fortunately the bus wasn’t full, so I had two seats for me.
We left Lyon at 22:00. And about an hour later we reached Grenoble. A group of 16 persons got on the bus in Grenoble, which surprised me.
A dozen of minute after the bus had left Grenoble, the new passengers realized they weren’t on their way to Spain.
The conductor tried to explain to them in Serbian, that he would drop them at the next stop, Chambéry.
In Chambéry, one of the travellers headed to Spain started complaining about how she wanted to contact Eurolines and stuff because they missed their bus to Spain… Anyway, the driver managed to leave them.
There was a last stop in Annecy, and then, I fell asleep.

I awoke very early in the morning when the bus reached Milan. A problem with the air conditioned system of the bus soon arose, the bus was literally cooking us… So, we stopped again, and it took about an hour for the drivers to repair the problem.
The drive through northern Italy was quite flat and boring, however, the landscape got a lot more interesting and beautiful as we crossed the Slovenian borders. With wild forests, mountains, small villages in valleys.
Then we crossed over to Croatia. We passed around Zagreb, then, onto a long never ending plain. And big forests with trees so tall, I was impressed.

In late afternoon we finally reached the Serbian border. One of the travellers, a Frenchman had forgotten he needed a passport to enter Serbia, so, he was kept for a long moment inside the border offices, before he was finally delivered an expensive Visa.

We eventually arrived in Belgrade around 21:30, more than 2 hours late after 23:30 hours of travel.

PART III : Belgrade!

Before leaving I had found someone through couchsurfing.com to host me for the night in Belgrade. According to her indications I had to take one of the two bus at the stop by the bridge near the central bus station, and go down at Energoprojekt bus stop.
While waiting for the bus, a 20-ish guy with a Löwenbräu 50cl beercan in his hand asked me something in Serbian. I told him I didn’t understand Serbian.
He was from Novi Sad (a city about 70km from Belgrade), here for the Beerfest that was going on, and was taking the bus to meet his girlfriend.
I didn’t see any stops called Energoprojekt. So I went down at the same stop as the guy with the beercan. I told him I was a bit lost. He gave me a bit of beer and told me to wait for his girlfriend to come, she would give indications.
She told me to go back in the other direction, and that Energoprojekt was about 3 stops away.
3 stops away was a stop called Arhiv. I decided to go down there. And sent sms to Tanja (my couchsurfing host) for help. She eventually found me after a bit of time.
Energoprojekt was actually one more stop away. Tanja was very friendly and had a cosy little flat on the ground floor of one of the high-rises of Blok 1 of Novi Beograd.
She invited me to a little local restaurant for a late supper of čorba (a tasty soup). Talking with her of a bit everything was very interesting.

The next morning she made a very nice and tasty breakfast, before helping me with what I could do in Belgrade before I leave.
I only had about 1 hour to walk around the city before I went back to her place to take my stuff and then go to the bus station.

I love faces on façades, like this.

The city still shows some scars.

A street

Some important building, I guess…

Buildings…

At 14:30 my bus to Boljevac was leaving Belgrade.

PART IV : Belgrade-Boljevac-Zlot

The bus ride to Boljevac took 3 hours and a half. The bus was full, on a screen was displayed a bad French film called Nid de Guêpes.
I was the only passenger to go down in Boljevac. The next bus to Zlot was in 2 hours.

I think Pekara means baker.

After hesitating a bit, I decided to go to Zlot by hitch-hiking. I didn’t know the exact distance to there, and maybe, if I had known, I wouldn’t have done that…

Here is the beautiful place where I hitch-hiked, just out of Boljevac, looking on the direction I had to go.

I waited for half an hour before someone stoped. A Serbian guy with a t-shirt reading Greece in Greek, wearing minishorts and listening to INXS. He was going to Bor and would drop me at the point where the road to Zlot started. He was very friendly, proposed some cigarettes. But I don’t smoke. The scenery was splendid.
Night was starting to fall when I got back to hitch-hiking, the road was small, going through hilly, windy farmland. Dogs barked at me when I passed by.
The sound of the wind in the trees and my backpack while walking made me think a car was always arriving. However, I saw headlights less than once every 10 minutes.
After an hour walking a car finally stopped. The guy didn’t speak any English, so we couldn’t say much, he dropped me at the entrance of Zlot.

It was already totally dark, but I thought I could go up the mountain to the Gathering alone at night. I found a couple of people who were going down from the gathering and who told me not to, but to instead spend the night in Zlot, where there was a big village party.
Many rainbow-gathering people had crash the local party, but all in a good spirit. I drank a couple of beers, chatted with nice people, and bought fries from Goran, the friendly fries-guy of the party.

There were gypsy bands playing typical Balkan folk music very loud, and pretty much everyone of the area was there, drinking, talking, drinking and stuff.
With several other hippies we decided to sleep in the little garden in the middle of the village. We thought the music would never end. But it eventually did. And I fell asleep.

PART V: Going up

I woke up a bit before sunrise, everyone was still sleeping except a couple of Israeli girls who were going for a bus to Bor. I packed my stuff, and started walking. The air was crisp, and a bit of fog came out of my mouth when I breathed out.

On my way, just out of Zlot.

I wasn’t totally sure I was on the right way.

But this sign told me I was, on the left was the way to the caves and Lazarev Kanjon.

Lazareva Pećina (Lazare’s Cave)

Cute drawings…

The path going uphill

and up

and more up

Finally a view over Lazarev Kanjon

beautiful views

more…

more…

going down a bit

A group of frightened pigs I met on my way.

A charming meadow.

Some pretty and soft plants.

Then there was the whole rainbow gathering, where I met my friends Gaëlle and Eve and plenty of interesting, amazing people. I won’t write about the gathering here, maybe it’s a place and remain that should remain in memory only, and for one to experiment by him or herself, not through the account of someone.
Or maybe am I just too lazy to write the thouzand things I have to say about this amazing experience… So maybe some other day…

PART VI : Last morning, and going downhill, back to Babylone

We left one day later than we had planned due to weather conditions (biiiiiiig thunderstorm, lots of rain…).
I woke up at dawn this morning. And fog clung onto the valleys, it was wonderful.

The valley below…

The last moments of night

lonely tree

Little bushes

We left around 9:00, the mist had disappeared and the sun was starting to warm everything up.

Meet us and our heavy bags!

On our way down, we passed by some farms. And met Boris and Boris. Two Serbian men who had planned on going to the gathering yesterday but got struck by the rain and spent the night in one of the farm. We talked a bit with them. And they helped us ask the old lady of the farm to make some bread and sell us cheese.

A Hungarian guy called Peter joined us on our way down to Zlot.
We also met another Serbian guy who insisted on driving us from the caves to Zlot.

The next bus to Boljevac was in 2 hours. So we decided to just wait in Zlot, where a drunkard kept on calling Peter : “Mongol” due to his Hungarian background.

Funny fact, that building to the right was a townhall/police-station/library/energy-dispensary/telecom-station.

The girls, Peter, and a little dog that liked us.

When we arrived in Boljevac (around 17:00), they told us the next bus to Belgrade was at 02:00am the next day… So we decided to hitch-hike once again.

The girls, Peter (seating just by my bag), waiting for cars near Boljevac.

After half an hour, a car stopped, and took us. It was a sleek new Peugeot, driven by an office-suit+pink-shirt clad 30-ish man. He drove really fast (often over 150 km/h) but well on the beautiful road. He worked for the manager of Crédit-Lyonnais and Crédit-Agricole banks for the area. He spoke fluent English and a bit of French, and was very enthusiastic about France. Mentionning Paris, le mont Saint-Michel, and how France was a miracle.

He dropped us on the highway just by the town of Ćuprija, on the otherside of the bus station. The place seemed totally dead.

But there were some people insiçde and we could by a ticket to Belgrade, the next bus coming at 20:20 (or something like that).

The absinthian atmosphere inside the station

We ate a bit, waited, played some silly card games, at which Peter kept on losing… Then got on the bus for a sleepy ride to Belgrade.

When we arrived, we went around Tanja’s place (I had forgotten my phone charger at her place, and to say a little hello before leaving). And had ćevap for dinner (something halfway between a hamburger and kebab, quite tasty and feeling) with some Lav beer.

We had no real place to stay for the night, so we just went on the banks of the Sava river, and sat down. Quite a few young people were passing by, going to night-clubs and stuff.
A girl with a group of friends came to talk to us, when she found out we were French she started speaking fluent French.
She was a bit tipsy and very shocked by the fact that we planned on sleeping in the street.
She told us we would go partying on a boat on the river with her and her friends and then all sleep at her place.

The girl was called Dragana, she had lived 3 years in Brussels, her parents being diplomats. Among her friends there was also a girl called Ivona (and who prefered to be called Yvonne) who had excellent tastes in cinema (especially Japanese underground nonsensical cinema).
We thought we would never be allowed on the night-club/boat, dirty as we were with our big back-packs.
But we were only asked to empty our bottle and give any knives if we had. And given a corner to put our bags.

The DJ had a funny way of not puting transitions in between songs that he would cut about a minute before the end. And changing styles all the time. But the atmosphere was great. Many people came to talk to us, some managing a bit of French. We danced and drunk rakia and vodka (a bit), the night away.

At dawn, Dragana and her boyfriend took us to her place on the outerside of the city, where she lived in a quite nice flat with her brother and parents.
I was given a bed and immediately fell asleep.

PART VII : The trip back

In the morning, Dragana’s parents were a bit surprised to find us, but they did prepare us some big delicious food for breakfast. We chatted a bit with Dragana and her brother before heading back in bus to the center of the city.

The bus for the trip back was full, and we had a bit of a hard time sleeping, the trip took 26 long hours instead of 21…. But, still it makes for some nice memories.

View from the back of the bus in Croatia.

All in all, it was an amazing trip. I really loved Serbia and its people, certainly the most friendly and hospitable I have met. The country is beautiful too. And of course, the gathering was a life-changing experience. As I said, maybe, I will explain that a bit in other articles.
See you for now!

Some awesome resources for hitchhikers, vagabonds, and budget travelers

HitchWiki x
Full of maps, tips, guides, and more.

DigiHitch x
Hitchhiking tips, personal stories, and articles. 

TrashWiki x
A freegan’s guide to the best dumpster diving sites/free stuff in various cities, states, and countries.

Couchsurfing x
Meet interesting people, explore new cities from a local’s perspective, and sleep on someone else’s couch for free. 

FreightHopping x
Videos and info about freight train hopping.

Freegan.Info x
“Strategies for sustainable living beyond capitalism.” Includes dumpster diving, squatting, and more. NYC based, but includes some general U.S. resources.

HitchBase x
Starting points for your trips!

HitchMap x
Giant interactive world map that showcases hitching spots. 

Academy of Free Travels x
Russia-based guide. Includes hitchhiking and train hopping.

Girls.HitchBase x
A DIY hitchhiking guide for women traveling solo.

Free San Francisco x
A map of San Fran’s free resources.

CS Hitchhikers x
Find fellow hitchhikers locally and internationally.

Dropping Out (For Students) x
A zine that covers dropping out of school, homeless living, dumpster diving/scavenging, shoplifting, and other anarchist concepts.

Crimethinc x
An ex-workers anarchist collective. Contains many free informational resources.

BackpackerResources x
General hitchhiking tips, as well as country guides. Also includes backpacking resources.

BackpackGlobe x
Independent travel solutions.

Squat the Planet x
Homeless resources. Includes some useful forums on squatting and dumpster diving.

Food Not Bombs x
Organization that uses salvaged food to create free vegan meals for the community. Find your local chapter for free food/cool people/volunteer opportunities.

Vagabondish x
Resources for travelers. 

WWOOF x
World-wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. Work for room and board in any country.

Kibbutz Volunteering x
Work six days a week on an Israeli commune in exchange for room and board. Meet international travelers, learn valuable skills, and explore Israel.

Au Pair x
Tips, advice, and guides on becoming an au pair. 

Welcome to China uhm Belize

melomakarona:

28 September 2011. Tulum - Chetumal.

As soon as the sun rises, I hit the road. The earlier I get started the better, since I gotta feeling this might be a long one. When I reach a decent spot, I put my pack down and stick my thumb out. Car stops. “You’re going to Chetumal?”

Well, yes he is, so I’ve got a straight ride. Cool. His name is Ricardo and we talk. A lot. About politics, Mexicans, Americans, family, travel, names and yeah even about tortillas. The hours fly by and before we know it we’ve reached our destination. I say goodbye to my new friend as he gets me a bottle of fresh pineapple juice. Love that stuff. It apparently cleanses you inside out. 

29 September 2011. Chetumal - Belize City. 

Again an early start. First I want to get rid of my last pesos, so I hit the giant supermercado along the main avenue in Chetumal. I have exactly 15 pesos left. What can I buy with 15 whole pesos? Well, let’s find out. I love this part. Knowing exactly how much you can spend…and then spend it all.

I end up with a bottle of water and a few croissants. And two rolls. Well, I almost got those two rolls, but it turned out the water cost a few pesos more than the label mentioned, so it’s with great sadness I have to leave the two rollitos behind. Now that I’ve got breakfast it’s time to hit the road.

As I’m walking along the main street, a car stops. Fernando and Fabien were just cruising around the city and seemingly saw my sign that I attached at the back of my pack. “It would be our pleasure to drop you off in Santa Elena just before the border.” Well, the pleasure is all mine boys. When we reach Santa Elena I say my goodbyes to the nice gentlemen and off I go, towards immigration. I go through both borders without a hitch and I’m greeted by a big banner saying “Welcome to Belize”. 

Belize is different. First of all, they speak English here. Even though I’ve only been a week in Mexico, I was getting used to the Spanish and now I have to switch back to English. Harder than I thought. Also they have their own language - Creole. I love that language. It sounds like English but with a twist. The twist being that people who speak this language, do so with their whole body and facial expressions. I love how they communicate with all of themselves. Anyways, as I walk away from the checkpoint, I stop the first car that passes me. The nice man says he’s going to Corozal, it’s not that far, but poco a poco I’ll get to Belize City. When we get to Corozal, the nice man (whose name I never caught) says he’ll make a little cruise around town “to show you the nice seafront”. Well, that’s fine with me. During our little tour I notice how mixed Belize’s population is. People of all colours and backgrounds. And there are a lot of Chinese stores and restaurants. The Chinese really have invaded all corners of the world. I’m told they even have their own little village somewhere along the highway towards Cayo. 

My driver enjoyed my company so much he decides to drive me further to Orange Walk. Once there, I get another tour through the city. Belize has a very Caribbean feel with the palmtrees, laidback attitude and Rastas. After the tour I hitch my final ride of the day to Belize City. It turns out my new driver, Tony, knows the family I’m going to stay with in the city. Small country, Belize.