From Anchorage to Ushuaia by Bike

Our flight across the Atlantic went well, despite a little bit of turbulence at the end. Our bikes and bags arrived safe and sound.

When we landed we were met by Gill and Séverine, Sara’s dad and his wife. It was so lovely for them to come and meet us after almost 22 months of travelling outside of Europe. They spent two days with us and helped us readjust.

We have been rediscovering the complex flavours of more elaborate cooking. In Madrid we became reacquainted with euros, and the narrow, windy roads of the downtown. It was a change from the gun-shot straight roads of the new world, all arranged on a perfect grid pattern. As we walked around the city, we could feel the richness of history which infused the atmosphere and rhythm of the daily life. Although the inhabitants of Madrid seemed more stressed than those who live in Buenos Aires, the city itself was less busy.

In the roads, whether we were biking or on foot, we felt more respected by the motorist. They even put on their blinkers to pass us!

The accent, pronunciation, vocabulary and rhythm of the language in Spain is very different from what we learned in South America.

We are also learning to put toilet paper back in the toilet instead of in the garbage. Since Mexico, the poor plumbing means that toilet paper always has to be thrown in the little garbage cans beside the toilets.

Our requests to visit Microfinance institutions were not answered, but we have lots to do, preparing our presentations and going through all our pictures!

Lots of differences here, that we are enjoying re-discovering from a new perspective.

Sébastien