Storm, storm 😬

This morning I wanted to load my luggage when suddenly I was approached by a young woman. There was a Harley Davidson in the parking lot of my hotel, and the young woman named Violetta was the driver. She was riding her Harley around the world. She had already been to Asia, North and South America, and Australia. We talked for a long time and promised each other accommodation if one of us is near the respective hometown.

Then departure towards Banja Luka and Tuzla. As there was a weather warning for heavy continuous rain and severe thunderstorms in Bosnia, I decided to take the shortest and fastest route. I didn't want to get stuck somewhere on a gravel road in the mountains in this weather condition.

Banja Luka was the first larger city on my way to Tuzla. The city gained a sad reputation during the Balkan wars when the Serbian population of the city expelled or even worse, killed the Muslims living there. All 16 mosques were razed to the ground.

By now, all the mosques have been rebuilt and the religions and ethnicities are living together more or less peacefully.

I was always able to avoid the thunderstorms. But at my last break, at a gas station, I finally got caught. A severe thunderstorm caught up with me. I waited at the gas station for the heavy rain and thunderstorm activity to subside.

I was almost scared to death by a lightning strike that hit in the immediate vicinity, or even in the gas station itself.

After about an hour, the rain subsided enough for me to drive to the accommodation I had booked in the meantime. Unfortunately, despite intensive search, I couldn't find the hotel. So I canceled the reservation and booked the next one. A vacation rental in the next village, just over the mountain.

Unfortunately, my storm also got stuck there. 😬

Eyes closed and through! My GPS then led me onto forest paths, which was no pleasure in this weather condition. After a call with my landlord, I finally found the accommodation, although the approach into the forest was anything but easy in this weather. But now I have a whole isolated house to myself. Since the weather is not expected to change significantly tomorrow, I have booked two nights immediately.