18 and 19 Aug 2011

Unteruhldingen to Nonnenhorn (41 km) and Off Day (17 km)

He was cycling toward us with a smile and from our lakeside park bench, we knew it was him.  Yudi, Hello!  And 20 seconds behind him, there she was too, that familiar face and voice, looking, like her husband, even younger than when we last left them five years ago in that corn field outside Dinkelsbuhl.  Elaina, Hello!  Funny how these people that we barely knew, that we had only previously met for an hour, that we have emailed on and off for five years, could be such a major influence in our life and our goals.  This is certainly not to say that our own parents, who have put up with us and our antics and our whims and our travels and our troubles (not that we’ve ever caused any of that, no way) for the past several decades, well, really, all our lives, have not had a huge influence in shaping who we are.  But these two people, these two relative strangers, have had their own impact as well.

You see, it was that conversation in that corn field that kicked off a chain of events that brought us back here to Germany in five years time.  It was the joy and frankness and living proof around living life simply, around living life below one’s means, about making that travel bug that you have, the one that’s so important to you, a reality and even more so, a sustainable reality.  One that you put a lot of thought into, one that you save your pennies for, one that you incorporate into your daily choices, one that you think outside the box for, one that you know you can have if you believe in it and make it a priority, one that might even move you to Australia and back again because you’re now taking those values that your parents taught you, the ones about hard work and dreaming, and adding your own spin to them, that personal touch that says This is who I am and these are the things I want and here standing in front of me, in a corn field in Germany, are two people who are living that dream, two people who, like our parents, have worked hard all their lives and are now enjoying their time in a manner we would emulate, spending their days cycling in Europe, living life with continued inspiration and wisdom.  They made it happen and so can we and maybe, if we’re lucky and persistent and truly believe all things are possible, we can live it just as well.

Thanks, Elaina and Yudi, for such a wonderful two days getting to know you better and sharing good laughs, good stories, and good food.  We’ll see you again down the road, whether it be in another corn field, a rice paddy, or a chaise lounge in Boca Raton.