2 Dammweg - Hungary - Meeting friends

Monday, 6.8.2018

Route: Danube Cycle Path 3 (Bratislava - Győr)

Kilometers ridden: 89

Highlight of the day: exploring the city and having dinner with Stefan, being able to stay at his place, break by the Danube

We got up at 6 o'clock again, but since there was no breakfast at the hostel anyway, we bought something at the bakery and started at quarter past 7. The first 10 km we cycled on urban cycle paths with lots of joggers, cyclists, and inline skaters, to the left of us the Danube. The next 10 km were similar to the previous day on a dyke, with forests to the left, where the Danube would peek through, and meadows to the right, occasionally fields and behind them, more woods. At some point, according to the map, we had to go left towards the Danube to stay on the Slovakian side. We missed it and very quickly we were already in Hungary. But Julius noticed it and thanks to Google Maps, we found our way. There was actually a border sign on the cycle path! We had missed that before. By the way, this short part in Hungary was very pretty! Forest and a small stream, very nice.

Back in Slovakia, we crossed a busy bridge onto a kind of Danube island. There we cycled straight ahead on the dyke, right next to the Danube - on both sides. But Julius was in pain, his buttocks and feet hurt. He complained a lot. So we took a long break right by the water. The Danube is extremely wide here and almost doesn't flow due to a huge dam, which we crossed 25 km later. But before that, the Danube disappeared to the right and fields and small villages took its place. The grass was quite dry and a small stream hardly had any water. So, it didn't rain here as much as it did for us. After crossing to the other side of the Danube after the dam, the cycle path continued right by the Danube. And Julius was feeling better by now. At some point, he changed his saddle, then it was better. But the path was beautiful.

At some point, we decided to leave the Slovakian side and continue the Danube Cycle Path in Hungary. For that, we had to cross a very busy bridge, it was really long. You could have had a good view of the Danube if there hadn't been so much traffic. On the other side, we still had to stay on the road and that's when the reflective vest came in handy. Unfortunately, the road led onto the highway and we rode our bikes down the embankment. By now, it was very hot. By the way, before, still on the Slovakian side, we passed a place. Fascinating how the partly really new houses stand right next to ones from the pre-Soviet era! There are also really old machines, all still in operation. So, now back to the story. In Hungary, Julius was feeling better again, but I lost my strength. We cycled through tree-lined field paths and small villages: Hungary's houses are very tiny! Some of them have a footprint of only 10 square meters. Then we rode into Győr on a very quiet road. But everywhere on the road, the cycle paths were marked. And there was a roundabout every 500 meters. So we cycled straight for 7 km and then we were in downtown Győr. There was a very nice park where absolutely nothing was going on. There we ate cookies, apples, and peanuts and both of us fell asleep completely exhausted. But we did ride 89 km from 7:15 to 13:15, so for 5 hours.

When we woke up again, we pushed our bikes through Győr a little bit. Through wide pedestrian streets, large squares with fountains and we stayed at those so that Julius could arrange with Stefan when/where/how to meet up. It was a bit of a hassle. On another square, we had a drink before we searched for his apartment. He lives in this Audi house, very cool! We chatted on the terrace first, then took a shower. Finally, we went into town for dinner. On the way there, we passed Győr's Basilica and a monastery where Pope John Paul II had been, and the cathedral of a bishop who was beatified. The restaurant was big, nicely decorated, and there was also a beer garden. The food was delicious. It cost about 2,500 HUF - so about 8€. And the ice cream scoop afterwards 250, so about 90ct! Incredible! After that, we drank a beer on Stefan's terrace and went to bed way too late.