My typical day

Not that anyone has asked, but here has been a typical day cykel touring. I hope that this and the blog itself will inspire others to make this same type of journey, it.s really not that hard.
- Get up between 7-8:00. I always wear ear plugs at night, strange places, strange noises. So wake up time varies. But don.t bother trying to get an early start because all of the places I have been have breakfast included, or optional, and don.t start serving until 7:30 at the earliest, but typically 8:00.
-Eat a piece of bread with cheese, ham (or something that resembles a meat product!) and a little honey. Eat a piece of bread with strawberry jelly. Eat a bowl of muesli, corn flakes, etc. or yogurt with muesli. Possibly eat another piece of bread and jelly, but drink a whole lot of good strong coffee. They will ask you when you get to your table if you would like coffee or tea.
-PACK. This is the part of the day I hate the most. Since my casual shoes (KEEN sandals) go at the bottom of my panniers, I have to take EVERYTHING out to get to them in the evening. Based on weight, size, etc., they should go at the bottom. But, this requires repacking everything each morning, which is a pain and takes about 20 minutes.
-9-11:00 get on the road. Depending on your destination, kilometers, how the head and legs feel, etc. you may or may not get an early start. So depending on such, eat lunch when you.re hungry. I have found the Imbiss/kabap places to be like our Moe's, but not exactly. You get a decent meal that will fill you up for cheap, and it.s basically a Gyro by the way.
-Sight seeing can be done along the way at AOB.s, but my problem is worrying about my bike and bag being stolen. So I typically just take a picture and keep rolling. To me, this trip is about seeing and experiencing a lot of the countryside, not going into all of the tourist places. If I am in a town for the evening that has cool places to go, then do it then. But if/when you do stop, have all of your REAL valuables in your handlebar bag. My bag is probably worth more than the bike and most of my stuff anyway.
-About 4:00 or earlier you should have a destination town in mind and hope to be getting there soon. Small towns can fill up quick if you.re not careful. Most of the places I have stayed are single beds and you pay a singles price. Unlike the U.S. where you pay the double price regardless. Most places have been between €30-40 including breakfast. Look for a Gasthaus or Pension or something that says Zimmer 'Frei'. Which means Room 'Open' or 'Available'. If you see Zimmer 'Belegt', you.re S.O.L., move on to the next place.
-Wash your clothes and wring the hell out of them, 1st thing before you even wash yourself. You will wash your cycling clothes every day and your tourist clothes as needed. I don.t recommend taking your best cycling clothes, but if they are the most comfortable then do it. I went for comfort because my older stuff isn.t. I thought I bought the appropriate socks for walking around town in my sandals and also for cycling, but these SmartWool socks don.t dry very easy. I have two of everything to wear, so if it.s still wet just strap it on the outside of the bag to dry while you ride.
-Find the local grocery market for water and other things. They tpically close by 7:00 and are never open on Sunday. I have played water roulette about every time I have gone into the market. I don.t always find the same brand and unless it says 'Still', 'Natural' or 'Sport', don.t get it, it will be carbonated water. But even then I have bought one of these and it still has a hint of gas. But buy some trail mix type stuff because you never know when you won.t find lunch and a Cliff Bar just isn.t doing it for you anymore! Or, it.s great to have as an appetizer in your room with a small bottle of wine, which I do regularly. Unless you go to a gas station, you won.t find single cold beers in the market. If you can find prepared meals at the market, have that for dinner, but I did not find this as easy as in the U.S.. They don.t have already prepared sushi or salad bars like Kroger, which is one of my staple dinners back home!
-If you didn.t find anything at the market, cruise town either by bike or walk. I feel better riding around town with my lock and without my bag, so taking the bike is a great option for touring a city really quick in the afternoon/evening. If you are bad with your sense of direction, take the GPS with you, always! Dinner is roulette as well, although I have figured out some of the menu.
-After dinner, do some more walking/biking around town. This is one of the best parts of touring solo, just soaking in the sights and sounds and it.s quiet. Not that having someone with you isn.t great, but the experience is different. But don.t forget to get a two scoop gelatto for your stroll!

I.m sure there is more that I.ll think of later, but maybe this will inspire someone to take the plunge and come across the pond! If you want to come over for my last 4 weeks of the trip then COME ON, it.s pretty easy!