I amsterdam

The Netherlands next to meet a friend, Kim, who I hadn't seen in 3 years. I thought I would split the journey to amsterdam by stopping in breda, which was supposed to be very pretty. I was recommended the hostel there by a girl in Bruges, and it turned out to be a good choice.

Once I got there, had a nap, woke up and had a shower there was a party in full flow, with beer, barbecue and DROP SHOTS (you have to shout it apparently!) all laid on.

It turned out it was a staff member's birthday and was an awesome evening with a great international crowd (I hadn't met an Italian-Ethiopian before!).

I did manage to get out of bed and onto my bike for amsterdam the next day. I have a no-motorway policy for my motorbike, but for the first leg of the journey there was literally no other choice. It turns out that Dutch motorways are quite slow and many lorries are doing 80 kph, so I sat behind them for most of the day, with a couple of detours to some very pretty canal-side roads.

Found my friend Kim without any drama and once she had laughed herself silly at the puny lock I had brought for my motorbike (and used her bike lock round them both) we put my stuff in her house and she cooked a lovely green curry while we reminisced about good times in Asia (where we met).

We went out for a few beers at a bar where some of her friends were, so I went pillion on the back rack of her bicycle for 3 or 4 kilometers. If you care for the health of your buttocks at all, then don't try this at home. Or in amsterdam anyway, cobbled streets and mounting kerbs are the norm, and always painful! It was very funny though! And a nice evening.

The next day I got my own bicycle and after a few tourist must-see's we went to an outdoor "inflatable" party Kim had heard about. Apparently if the sound system is aboard a boat, then the standard Dutch laws on illegal raves are contravened, and it can be considered just a picnic near a boat. Genius.

It was a great time with a really nice vibe, and numbers grew through the afternoon.

Once the sun was low, we went to "Magnet Festival" which was out of town, and is a new alternative, artistic and environmentally concious 3-week long festival. It was amazing, really nice vibe and there were some beautiful moments I will never forget!

In Bruges

Some friends from England were having a "Lads Holiday" in Bruges, Belgium. So I tagged along.

Stayed at the very cool "Bauhaus" hostel, which had great pub crawl and beer-tasting events. Much carnage ensued.

Hit some touristy cliches and had a canal tour and an afternoon cycling. All very hungover.

Wallonia

After a night in a campsite on an amazing hairpin-filled mountain road near the french border I made it to my friends Bea and Felix's house near Liege in the french-speaking Wallonia area of Belgium.

Had a lovely weekend with a day trip to Germany, a couple of lovely dog-walks and a few glasses of wine in their lovely home.

Then my first night of wild camping of this trip, and I wasn't shot at by any Belgian farmers.
But was greeted by a beautiful sunrise and great sense of independence.