180° 🗺️

Well. There has been a slight change of plans. So I arrived in Athens, the capital of Greece. I am spending a few days at my friend’s place, but I find the city too big, with too many people, in short, too much. So I am heading to the coast, to Porto Rafti (about 1 hour from Athens) to do some volunteering for a lady. It involves doing some cleaning and being at home in case of any issues. Besides that, I have a lot of free time every day. I use it to do research on the next countries, look at the itinerary I will follow, etc… The plan is to head back to the north of Greece, towards Thessaloniki, to meet up with Pau, a friend I met in Bratislava, and then head to Sofia (the capital of Bulgaria) and then make my way to Istanbul and later to Georgia. We’re getting organized, everything is going well. One evening, I go to the bar to meet the lady from the volunteering (Ralu) and I meet Ziad. He is a skipper (he sails boats, basically) and he is leaving for the north of Greece in a few days. Can you see where this is going? He needs someone to help him with the boat, and since I’m available, I say yes! Departure is scheduled for Saturday, to return to Athens and head to Kavala!

On the Saturday, 11th of May, we arrive at Alimos, a marina near Athens where I meet the boat owner and get to know the beast. It’s a big catamaran with all the comforts of home: TV, fridge, stove, basically everything for living. We stay at the port for the night to leave on a good Sunday with optimal weather. We set sail early in the morning (figuratively speaking because we will travel by motor. We have a headwind and the goal is to deliver the boat, not for tourism). The navigation goes well, and we arrive in the evening at the small village of Karystos where we have an aperitif with two Englishmen. We just spend the night there to leave early in the morning towards the next village. We will stop at Skyros, Myrina and finally Porto Lagos, the final destination. These are small villages on small but very pleasant islands located in the Aegean Sea. We have good weather all the way, it’s enjoyable. The village of Myrina is overlooked by an old castle in ruins, inhabited by does, fawns, and goats. Upon our arrival on the island, I immediately head to the hill to have the best view of the bay with the sunset, it’s a magnificent spectacle. We arrive the next day (15th of May) in Porto Lagos, undoubtedly the ugliest village I have seen in ages! To put it simply, there is nothing. Oh yes! Stray dogs that come to attack you. In short, I didn’t like the village. The journey ends here for us, we leave the boat to a guy who is in charge of refurbishing it for sale. But let’s go back a little, there is some information that I haven’t told you.

The day after my meeting with Ziad, I receive a message from Cédric (another new acquaintance) whom I had contacted a week earlier because he had posted in a Facebook group. He is going to sail a catamaran from Perpignan to Tahiti! With a stop in the Canary Islands, the Caribbean, and Panama! He is looking for people to make the crossing with him. We talk on the phone, discussing the transatlantic journey, and for him, everything is good to go. Departure is scheduled for May 27 from Perpignan. It’s a 10-day journey to the Canary Islands, then 20 days to the Caribbean, and finally 10 days to Panama. So, I cancel my plans with Pau and start looking for the fastest way to return home (enough time to see a few friends and do a couple of things). A complete change of direction, we’ll go to Asia from the other side! Let’s get back on track.

Upon my arrival in Porto Lagos (the ugly village), I already had an idea of the route I was going to take to get home. As the departure was set for the 27th, there was no time to waste. Crossing Greece by hitchhiking in a day can be done on paper. In reality, it’s a bit more complicated. After walking for 1.5 hours in the countryside and waiting for 2 hours in a remote village, a farmer stopped and dropped me off at the highway. The rules are a bit different in Greece; you can hitchhike on the highway (even though it’s prohibited, I think). Anyway, I managed to get a ride at the on-ramp and arrived near Kavala, after a toll, and I resumed hitchhiking. After waiting for 45 minutes, a policeman told me to leave the highway, so I walked to an on-ramp, and after 40 minutes of waiting, a guy stopped. I think he was one of the most dangerous drivers I’ve had because he was driving at 180 km/h on the highway (it was raining, of course) with no anticipation, so we almost hit several trucks on the road. Not too reassured, but I can still make it in time for the ferry! I get off in one piece at a rest area just before Thessaloniki and think it’s going to be easy! There aren’t many big cities in Greece. 5 hours later, I’m fed up, I’m at my wits’ end. A taxi took pity on me and drove me closer to the city, and I took a taxi to the city center. A misfortune always brings something positive, and I meet Michael, a friend I met in Bratislava who is studying in Thessaloniki. We grab something to eat, and then I go to sleep at his place for the night. The night was short because I have to wake up at 7 a.m. for the first bus, then a second one to Igoumenitsa, the town where the ferry departs to reach Italy. Everything goes well, I board the ferry with an expected arrival in the evening in Brindisi. I have a pizza with an English girl I met on the ferry, and then I take a bus to Naples. Arriving at 4 a.m., I didn’t sleep much on the bus because of a group of teenagers who were yelling all night. I take a train to go to the small town of Formia where I will take a blablacar a few hours later (7:30 a.m.). I still haven’t slept, and I ride with Jeremy, a Frenchman who has recently moved to Formia. He’s driving to Lyon! About 13 hours on the road, but at least I’m sure to arrive in Lyon on Saturday in the early evening.

The 13-hour drive goes by quickly, I drive for 4 hours to let Jeremy rest a bit. We arrive in Lyon around 8:45 pm and I meet up with Mathilde, who came specifically from Paris for the weekend! We’re going to stay at Maxence’s, a friend from high school who moved a few years ago. The plan is to visit Lyon, go to restaurants, and rest! It’s a bit strange to come back to France after all this time but the habits come back quickly. We stroll through the historic center, Fourvière, la Croix-Rousse, it’s a really nice city. The weekend goes by quickly and Mathilde has to go back to Paris for her studies. So I head to a hitchhiking spot and make my way to Cagnes-sur-Mer to see Logann and Manne! The hitchhiking works really well and in just 3 cars, I’m near Antibes. I’m going to stay for 3 nights at Logann’s, to gather information about visas and other things for Central and South America. By the way, the skipper informs me that the departure is postponed to the first week of June. So I have more time in France to see friends. I take advantage of my time in Cagnes to buy a new backpack, the old one being a bit small and not suitable for long hikes. From Cagnes, I’ll hitchhike to Toulouse, also super easy! I had to wait 10 minutes in total, shows that some days are good and some are not! In Toulouse, I’m going to stay with Mathéo, a friend from middle/high school who is studying there. Local meal (pasta with tomato sauce) and the next day I head back north to get to Angoulême, where hitchhiking was also easy! What am I going to do in Angoulême, you might ask? Well, I’m going to meet up with Eva, a friend I met in Croatia during the volunteer work at the youth hostel. By chance, it’s also the day when the Olympic flame passes through Angoulême!

It’s a huge organization for a little flame, with lots of police/firefighters mobilized, but the event attracts crowds from surrounding villages! I have allergies, so it’s not an amazing moment for me, but well, it’s the Olympic flame, it’s not every day you can see it. So we move to Cognac, Eva’s hometown, to spend the night. A little visit of the town in the evening while taking Rycky (her dog) for a walk. Stroll along the docks by the Charente River, visit the town, in short, it’s a beautiful little town. We hit the road the next day to go to Fouras to surprise Emilie, a friend also met in Croatia. We have a picnic on the beach and then Emilie has to go to work, so with Eva, we head to La Rochelle to spend the night at her grandparents’ house. Here too, a little visit of the town with the best guide possible (in all modesty), and then on Sunday evening, I head to Nantes to go back to my parents’ for a few days! The hitchhiking works great once again, and I arrive in Basse-Indre, where Agathe (a friend) has come to pick me up. We head to Treillières, and after a stop for a meal, I arrive home after 8 months, to the day, after my departure.

In 8 months, I had 209 different vehicles. I slept in a tent many times, with locals, in youth hostels, at the hospital, with friends, on boats, in a truck. In short, lots of different accommodations and lots of encounters as well. I made friends all over Europe and the world! Hitchhiking always has a bad reputation, but it’s an opportunity to meet others, to take the time to travel. In terms of safety, I only had one experience where I wanted to get out of the car, and once or twice where the driver was speeding, but all the other times, they were great moments of sharing and meeting people. I speak as a white man with a French passport (a lot less trouble). I have spoken with several women who have hitchhiked or still do, and from their experience, it is certainly important to be more careful about who you get into a car with, but the most important thing is instinct. If you have a bad feeling, you don’t get in. They told me about having great experiences, no matter which country in the world. In short, hitchhike and stop for us, hitchhikers, you never know.

Thanks for following the blog ! I come back in 2 months, with the story of the ocean crossing !

Update: I am not in Panama. A few days after my arrival in Treillières, I receive a Whatsapp message from the skipper informing us (the crew and me) that the departure is postponed to at least September due to the hurricane season in the Caribbean. It changes the plans a bit (once again) but I can’t do anything about it! So, I decide to stay in France for the summer in order to save up a bit more to leave again in September! I am currently working at the Grain de Celte brewery in Le Croisic until early September, so feel free to come by and say hello! Coming back for new adventures in September!