Who would have thought

First things first:

Bernie was at the airport and everything was as predicted.

That's not all: He and his wife Joyce live in an adobe house, a modern version of what has been traditionally built here for centuries. For a wood house resident from the rather conservative Upper Bavaria, where such a house would be traditional but by no means a given, they are like kindred spirits.

It's not surprising that they are educated and open-minded, and despite the fact that I had been on my feet for 24 hours, the conversations lasted until midnight (Mountain Time) - how much more tired can one get.

In the morning, we went into the garage with great curiosity, and there was nothing to complain about with the motorcycle either. We had to do a bit of tweaking to make it fit for me, and most of the day was spent finding luggage solutions because you wouldn't believe what all needs to come along. And the method I had developed for my motorcycle at home could not be implemented here. But somehow everything works and I already have an American SIM card, summarizing: a day of trivialities.

Now I am sitting at the dining table, looking out at the desert city of Albuquerque. The recently sunny sky is now cloudy, and it's only a matter of time before it starts to rain. And the idea that it is always warm in a desert city is also a malicious rumor.

Should I still leave today or ask the two if I can bother them for another night?

Notes on Getting Around

Comparing women with motorcycles is not fair, for very good reasons. But the other way around? If nothing bad comes of it, it's okay to do it a bit; after all, there is still the emotional aspect.

So: I'm here riding a BMW 800 GS. Yesterday I tried it out and was quite impressed: you can ride slowly and smoothly without any jerking, turn on a plate, even rough speed bumps in residential areas can be overcome almost imperceptibly, and when a bit more power is needed, for example when overtaking, it does that very decently as well. It is certainly a perfect companion, reliable, sturdy, and without any tantrums.

It's like the loyal classmate in 9th grade who always had the homework, always let you copy, never really had a bad mood even in highly risky exam situations, and even shared her sandwich in case of emergency. Only she wasn't the class beauty that everyone would have liked to have something with.

With my Yamaha, which is standing in the shed at home, I would be just as perfect here and even a bit better when things get really wild. However, sometimes its behavior tends to be a bit capricious, but who wouldn't forgive that in a slender Japanese beauty.