Live The Journey Day 1

“It’s not an adventure until something goes wrong”
Yvon Chouinard

Every adventure starts somewhere. Mine started in a rush – full of all the things I was trying to get away from. Work stress right up to the last minute and way too late with all the preparations. With a tear on my cheek, I left everyone back home. It’s not that it’ll be that long before we see each other again, but as my big brother said, there’s just something about being the one who leaves.

But I didn’t have much time to dwell on those deep thoughts. Just half an hour into Germany, I had to pull off at a rest stop because of some suspicious sounds coming from the engine bay. The serpentine belt had shredded. Desperate for a solution, Google Maps led me to a 4x4 garage just north of Kiel. A couple of mechanics, luckily, managed to replace the belt, and I could hit the road again to the sound of On the Road Again by Canned Heat.

But it didn’t last. 300 kilometers further south, just west of Leipzig, the now all-too-familiar sound returned. I pulled into another rest stop and sat there, watching the sun go down. Suddenly it got really dark, and I felt very far from home.

With some help from Denmark, I got hold of roadside assistance, who told me a tow truck was on its way. He showed up shortly after and was eager to get the car on the flatbed. But according to the agreement with roadside assistance, they were supposed to check the car first. His friend, who reeked of alcohol, tried to convince me to just load the car up, but I didn’t fall for their tricks – and they disappeared again.

Finally, my real rescuer, Roland, showed up and drove me to a garage outside Leipzig. Now I’m lying in the back of the car, getting ready to sleep – it was too late to book a room. I’m hoping for better luck tomorrow, and still chasing the dream of reaching my first goal: friends and the marathon in Vienna.