Winter jacket instead of bikini

Time is running out and so chapter 2 of 3 is now closing. So what else happened in the last two weeks of the European trip?

Dexi and I first set off towards Paris and found a nice campsite in Versaille. The weather forecast is often wrong, but this time it was right: constant rain.

As is well known, there is no such thing as bad weather for coastal children, just bad clothing. So the sexy rain pants were unpacked and the adventure could still begin.

The plan was to visit the Versailles Palace Park, although dogs were not even allowed in the park. That means we hiked for 5 hours through the rain only to be able to see the castle from a long distance away. Conclusion: I didn't have my glasses on, it wasn't worth it. If you ask Dexi, it was probably one of his best days as he jumped from puddle to puddle and was out of control.

That night Dexi squeezed INTO my sleeping bag so we could withstand the rain and cold.

In fact, there was only a small lake in the awning and otherwise no other damage. Cheers to the quality of Decathlon. #unpaidadvertising. Decathlon? I would be open to sponsorship.

But as is the case with lucky children, we had good weather again the next day in Paris. We managed to walk around the entire city within a day and take in the main sights. In the evening on the train our feet and paws hurt.

After Paris we had enough of France and we moved on - next stop: Belgium. Since even the last pair of shoes was now wet, we actually had to resort to an AirBnB. It wasn't the rain itself that bothered us, but rather the fact that there was no way to dry anything in the tent. Therefore we needed a solid roof over our heads. However, the accommodation itself turned out to be a bit of an adventure, as it turned out that I was living in the house with a little Belgian grandma. There were 3 guest rooms in total and everyone kind of lived together like a little family. This led to me randomly taking over the check-in for new guests or grandma calling the vet on my behalf. Vet again? Yes, the stinker obviously enjoys visiting vets in all sorts of countries or he just wants to keep me on my toes. In any case, he fell down the stairs and couldn't walk anymore. But here too we were lucky in misfortune and the vet was able to give the all-clear. Just a bruise, which we quickly got under control with jokes and calm.

But that still meant we had to take a forced break for 2 days. Since it was raining outside anyway, we just relaxed with tea and a series in Grandma's living room. Somehow it was nice to just do everyday things like watch series, cook and walk around the village. But somehow doing “nothing” also felt wrong. Why does it always feel like when you travel that one day has to be more exciting than the next?

Since Dexi is known to always recover quickly from his little accidents, we were at least able to take a walking tour of the capital Brussels and take a small part of Belgium with us before we went to Holland. Here we spent a few more days in a hostel right on the North Sea in Wjik an Zee.

In addition to Amsterdam and Haarlem, we mainly spent time on the beach and at least got a few little rays of sunshine on the last day. The perfect ending before we went back home to mom and dad.

Summary: Dexter and I drove around 6500 km, stayed overnight in 7 different countries and met countless great two- and four-legged friends. Looking back, I would say that the European tour challenged me more and pushed me more out of my comfort zone than the South American tour. On the one hand, of course, this is because I had a completely different responsibility through Dexi, but on the other hand, because I was traveling alone with a car and a tent, without following a typical backpacker route.

I had a lot more time to think about the nonsense in my head, wrote countless pros and cons lists, listened to great podcasts and read books. And most importantly: Dexter and I have become an even better team. We now rely on each other blindly and there is probably no longer a hurdle that we cannot overcome together.

In the meantime I asked myself whether I had asked a little too much of him - especially after the injuries. The answer to the question probably depends very much on the character of the dog. Dexter just loves to be in the middle of everything and as long as he is given some routines, he remains very balanced and calm even in the most chaotic situations. Of course I can't ask him, but considering how he's blossomed in time and jumped through the world like a puppy. As he became more and more courageous and explored every place with curiosity, I assume that he also had the time of his life. He was also allowed to swim in the Baltic Sea, the Mediterranean, the Atlantic and the North Sea within two months. It couldn't be any better.

Would I do anything differently? Yes!

1. Bring a neck pillow. You're not getting any younger

2. Car with air conditioning. I love my Flitzi, but the long stretches in southern Europe were really hot.

3. Same dog food for the entire period. Very difficult to implement, but the constant change of food caused some inconsistencies in Dexter's intestines. My poor nose.

Ultimately, I look back on the European tour very happily. I learned a lot about myself and Dexter, I became aware of many things and, above all, I appreciate Europe much more now. It doesn't always have to be super far away to leave your comfort zone.

After Dexter and I were able to acclimatize with mom and dad for almost a week, the aches and pains from the stinker have finally healed, my car is unpacked and my backpack is packed, I'm now off to the third and final part of my trip: Southeast Asia. As long as Deutsche Bahn reliably takes me to Frankfurt today (not that I have any doubts about that), I'll take the plane to Vietnam tonight. There I meet up with NaddelPaddel and we spend another 7 weeks traveling through Southeast Asia. And even though the constant farewells are slowly making me tired and it's breaking my heart to leave Dexter behind again, I'm still very happy to see another part of the world again.