Since leaving Paris over three weeks ago, we are already at the half way point of the trip.

The weather was more like winter as we rode through France, with the longest distance day to date of 130km giving us all the chance to see forest and mountain scenery through a veil of light rain, heavy rain and monsoon downpour. However, we had the luxury of being able to use the school hall to sleep in rather than under canvass. I think we were all grateful to the tour organisers and the mayor of Xertigny for that. The mood in camp was as low as the cloud at that point and the climb to the top of the Col de la Schlucht rewarded us with nothing more than 50m of visibility in the mist rather than the splendid Munster valley.

As one local told us, it always rains on the Xertigny side but the Munster side is always sunny. Turns out he was right, and as we crossed the border into Germany the sun started to shine and the mood in camp also brightened with the weather. From Freiburg, we had a short but climbing ride to see the source of the Danube, before following it using the cycle path through Ulm, Regensburg and Passau in Germany and then on through Linz and Vienna in Austria.

This is the ‘pastry route’ as the cycle trail follows the river but regularly diverts into the many villages along its banks. Whether you ride on the north or south side, there are plenty of chances to stop for a coffee and home baked cake or pastry at a Konditorei or Backerei. These also serve the coffee to go with whatever you eventually choose to eat, but 10 riders in a shop designed for two or three as well as their regular customers causes a bit of hilarity, and more congestion as they want to know why we are riding to Istanbul by bike. With a bit of knowledge of the language you can hear that the story you have told one being relayed to the others. This happened the day we missed the lunch stop by taking a short cut and taking a dinner of fresh asparagus at the only eating house in the village. The lady who was actually preparing the asparagus as we went in relayed our story to the locals having their lunchtime beer. In those places you are a star for those few minutes you are there.

As the days progress the joking amongst the group gets more and more and that relaxes any tiredness from the day’s ride. The evening meal is usually eaten with us sitting around a virtual camp fire which helps with the interaction between us all.

Tomorrow, we ride into Budapest to enjoy a rest day and also reach the half way point of the trip to Istanbul. No doubt this part of the trip will seem to go faster than getting here, and it will be memories we take with us rather than as much water as we can get onto bike frame and into jersey pockets.

- Stewart Sinclair

Since leaving Paris over three weeks ago, we are already at the half way point of the trip. The weather was more like winter as we rode through France, with the longest distance day to date of 130km giving us all the chance to see forest and mountain scenery through a veil of light rain, heavy rain and monsoon downpour. However, we had the luxury of being able to use the school hall to sleep in rather than under canvass. I think we were all grateful to the tour organisers and the mayor of Xertigny for that. The mood in camp was as low as the cloud at that point and the climb to the top of the Col de la Schlucht rewarded us with nothing more than 50m of visibility in the mist rather than the splendid Munster valley. As one local told us, it always rains on the Xertigny side but the Munster side is always sunny. Turns out he was right, and as we crossed the border into Germany the sun started to shine and the mood in camp also brightened with the weather. From Freiburg, we had a short but climbing ride to see the source of the Danube, before following it using the cycle path through Ulm, Regensburg and Passau in Germany and then on through Linz and Vienna in Austria. This is the ‘pastry route’ as the cycle trail follows the river but regularly diverts into the many villages along its banks. Whether you ride on the north or south side, there are plenty of chances to stop for a coffee and home baked cake or pastry at a Konditorei or Backerei. These also serve the coffee to go with whatever you eventually choose to eat, but 10 riders in a shop designed for two or three as well as their regular customers causes a bit of hilarity, and more congestion as they want to know why we are riding to Istanbul by bike. With a bit of knowledge of the language you can hear that the story you have told one being relayed to the others. This happened the day we missed the lunch stop by taking a short cut and taking a dinner of fresh asparagus at the only eating house in the village. The lady who was actually preparing the asparagus as we went in relayed our story to the locals having their lunchtime beer. In those places you are a star for those few minutes you are there. As the days progress the joking amongst the group gets more and more and that relaxes any tiredness from the day’s ride. The evening meal is usually eaten with us sitting around a virtual camp fire which helps with the interaction between us all. Tomorrow, we ride into Budapest to enjoy a rest day and also reach the half way point of the trip to Istanbul. No doubt this part of the trip will seem to go faster than getting here, and it will be memories we take with us rather than as much water as we can get onto bike frame and into jersey pockets. - Stewart Sinclair

So here we are in Budapest, actually we're only in Buda, Pest is on the other side of the river. The two cities are divided by the Danube. Buda has much more history, but Pest is where the modern downtown core exists. At this point we will stop following the Donauradweg which we have been following since Germany. And when we depart from here we will cross the 2000km mark and the halfway point of our tour. This is also the point where the tour ended for me in 2005, so I’m looking forward to exploring some new territory. The last few cycling stages have been very challenging as we have been hit with strong headwinds, high temperatures and the first real hilly days we’ve had in weeks. I was concerned for our new sectional riders as they may not be as conditioned as our long haul riders but they have all overcome these obstacles without too much trouble. And they have quickly accustomed themselves to our daily routines. Leaving Bratislava we crossed the Hungarian border to country number 5 and the town of Gyor. Certainly not the most luxurious campsite of the tour but the city has a unique charm. Our second stop was the town of Esztergom. The Basilica there is the oldest church in the country. It overhangs the city with great views of the Danube below. Our ride into Budapest was a short one, but allowed for the riders to spend some time in Esztergom, visit the Berg in Visegrad and explore the historic city of Szentedre before our convoy ride into the capital. We have two rest days here to enjoy Budapest. The architecture here reflects the influence of the Byzantine Empire. There are many sites to visit including the castle, parliament, markets, museums and the hot baths. We have also been joined by Gergo, a local resident, a TDA veteran and a staff member from OE ’06. So I’m hoping to get to see some of the local hangouts and not just the tourist attractions. He will ride with us to the Romanian border and I’m sure his translation skills will be a huge asset. The next three countries (Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey) are very different from the western European countries where we have spent the last month. We are faced with longer daily Km’s, mountain ranges, difficult languages, less luxurious campsites and all the other issues associated with traveling in developing nations, but at the same time we are exposed to some very unique and interesting cultures. The greater the challenge, the greater the reward… I can’t wait!

It was a pleasant change to have a day on some nice quiet country roads. For now we are leaving the big cities behind and exploring the countryside. The ride out of Budapest went smoothly for the most part and the route gave us one last glimpse of the stunning parliament buildings. Tonight a taste for what may be happening more frequently - lively campsites. This one is next to some karaoke bar and the patrons sound like they'll keep it going much past the time when I will go to sleep.

Tomorrow is the last day of riding for Alan. To celebrate the riders drank some local brews and talked and laughed late into the evening - well late for this early rising crew. And when all had quieted down, and camp stools stood empty, and the snores began, Alan yelled out from his tent RIDER MEETING 5 MINUTES!!! A few chuckles were heard before the night again became calm. Tomorrow Budapest - the city where I joined last year and the city I am anxious to be able to explore further with our Hungarian photographer.

Well last night didn't quite end as I expected. Got back from my lone walk at 8:30 and was talking to Jim by the gate. Henry and Daniel walked by and invited us along. I accepted. First open business was that great nemesis of the world - McDonalds. We continued on searching for city center but were waylaid by gelatoshop with 20+ flavors. Add blackberry, currant, plum(I think) to my list. One of Kecskemet’s favorite sons was Zoltan Kodaly, Hungary's most famous classical composer. Still feels like summer but those brown crops and leaves on the ground makes me realize fall is soon on the way. Last night heard amplified sounds from a distance. Reminded me HS football and band(it was for us) probably starting this weekend. This morning a lot of us suffering from lack of sleep. Turns out there were other amplified sounds of a rock band or group of bands coming from the north direction - until 4:15AM was the last I heard. Nevertheless we packed up, ate the usual breakfast and headed out early – that is Brian, Chuck, Daniel, and I. More Ohio today. Small towns and farming country - corn, hay, wheat fields, cabbage, sweet potatoes, peppers - this is favorite paprika country, the Hatch, NM of Hungary. In fact you may be able to get Pride of Szeged paprika at your local grocery. Saw a lot of the weed we call "milkweed" in Ohio - Monarch butterfly food. Not butterfly season though. We also went through some nice forested areas. Wasn't as dense as Germany but was cooler riding. Had just taken a photo of the boys riding and was in back fumbling with the camera - riding with one or one and a half hands when I saw Brian's head bouncing toward me along the road. That gave me a start for sure. I'm only sorry I didn't get a picture of it. Of course it was just his helmet - he'd forgotten to buckle up at the rest stop. Saw a guy cultivating his field by actual horsepower. Also before lunch we got to pass a tractor pulled manure wagon - not a good appetizer. Made it to lunch by 10:45 for half hour lunch - sandwich and another of the 3-4 inch diameter peaches Jenny picked up yesterday. Barely kept up with B and C as we road hard afterwards getting to camp about 1:15 after stopping for gelato and a delicious Cappy sour cherry juice drink Brian discovered. I think he had 4 himself. Arrived at camp to find the area swarming with cars and people. It seems that Szeged this weekend is celebrating the (take your pick of these I've heard) end of summer, Paprika festival, fish festival. How to we do this - another festival!! It's a good thing we have a hotel the next two nights because this thing may go on for awhile. The group in the set of cabins nearest to us has hired a polka band that's been playing all afternoon. Across the river from us there are food and craft booths and some live music. The campsite here is going to be another mosquito haven. The place where we are camped has obviously been flooded recently. Since most of the area has been taken over by the festival we were put at the back of the campground. Otherwise its an OK place with warm showers but no shower heads. Last night one of the stalls had a shower head. Getting ready for Romania. After setting up and cleanup we walked over and perused the food booths. Ended up with some good fish soup - lots of paprika but not very hot. Chuck went back for his beauty rest and to listen to the polka band. I opted to walk into town and check out the booths over there. Not much I liked even though I have $60 in forint that won't be any good to me after tomorrow morning. We may try to spend it tonight yet. Tired legs today. May ride tomorrow with the touring group. We'll see.

We all got to meet Joy's friend Glenn, as well as the hotel folks finally met the new crew members: Shanny, Sean and Daniel who have been at the campground. Shanny is the coordinator we have emailed many times since we joined up, Sean is taking over the bike mechanic job and Daniel, an actor and writer, I think is a publicist and did the Tour d'Afrique last year. Anyway, Randy got recognized with two cards we all signed. They were printed in Hungarian so who knows what they said. We also contributed some funds to the RP recreation fund and Sheila and Walter picked up a ceramic drum at a music store by the hotel - hopefully a Hungarian craft - and we al signed that too. Sheila and Walter also made up a gift in the form of Randy's daily tour itineraries on which they listed all the Tour overnight towns, a Tour "map" - you'll have to see the photo on this one; words won't do it justice. And Randy gave us a little drum solo - did I say he is also a drummer as another of his many talents. Most of us went home to bed after that. Tomorrow is our next big riding day. Getting out of Budapest this morning turned out to be much easier than getting in. The worst part was the ride from the Hotel to the Margit Bridge - lots of traffic, on and off street and sidewalk, and slow going. That messes up the average for the day. The Margit Bridge on the north end of the city center offers access to Margit Island - another place I'd like to go - a preserve that does not allow private cars, has gardens, parks and restaurants. We met the camping group at the Margit Bridge and proceeded south at 9:45 along the river, stopping briefly for a group photo with the Parliament in the background across the river. Today's ride was fairly uneventful. I rode with Chuck and Brian who continue to hurry along to get to camp so they can set up, clean up, and nap so they can ride hard the next day. Something seems wrong with this picture to me and I need to resolve it for myself pretty soon. Sean helped us find the best way out of the city and kept us from making ANY wrong turns (must be afirst). We made it to Bugyi, the little town assigned as our lunch place, at 45K and just before Jenny rolled in about 11. We didn't want to miss lunch, especially with another 55K to go, so I called her and she was just coming in to town. A couple minutes later there she was and a few minutes more and we were eating another great lunch. After lunch it continued flat with some headwind. I avoided that by tucking in behind the bigger guys and drafting along. We passed one of the horse-drawn carts we've passed now and then and I finally got a photo. The Hungary we have seen is a really pretty country. Single family residences in the country are well kept up with vegetable and flower gardens and lawns that are always being mowed. Except for the first campground in Gyor the campgrounds have been well maintained and clean with good hot showers and even toilet paper (often not available in France, Germany and Austria). Well the mosquitos have tapered off so I'll get in a little walk then call it a night. One more night in Hungary. Have a good day.

This morning was another dewy day with the sun rising through a morning fog. Heard a few moans and groans but not much as a result of yesterday's tough hills and extra length. This crowd doesn't have any whiners. Congratulations to Jenny's dad Casey who did 90K yesterday on his second day ever, or in a long time, of serious riding. And Carrie did a half day, too. Today we found the bike path right out of town with incredible ease. It was already warm enough for me to be in one shirt. Wasn't long though before we found a police tape "barrier" across the path. Well, barriers are made to be crossed, right? – so we did. A little ways longer and we found the reason for it. First there was an inch or so of gooey slippery mud over the path, then water, more mud, river trash – grass and small branches, then 6 inches or more of water that we all road through. By then our bikes were pretty muddy anyway. More flooding from the day before. And our first Hungarian mud bath. Isn't it fun doing these things as a group? We made lunch at the van of Lady Genevieve at 11:00 on the bank of the Danube(now the Duna) at Szentendre. Had pate, cheese and cucumber sandwiches, peach, orange. Good lunch but too soon after breakfast to eat a lot. That's another town that probably deserves a look sometime. As soon as we got on the path the first thing of note we saw was a guy waterskiing on a small manmade lake. The thing was there was no boat pulling him - he was just zipping along, arms out in front and skiing. Turns out there was an overhead cable system pulling him in a big circle around the lake. Do they have these in N.America? If so, I've never seen them. The next noteworthy item almost ended Chuck's ride. A little boy (maybe 6) on a tiny bike popped out from a side path about 5 feet in front of him without looking or slowing. Bushes kept us from seeing him until he was THERE. Ol' Chuck's got pretty good reactions for an old guy, otherwise there would have been one seriously injured kid and old man. Another exciting day tomorrow. Two days in Budapest so first thing is laundry, then touristy stuff.

Today we awoke to rain. Down at breakfast at the Tennis Club Hotel we got more depressed as the rain plastered the tennis courts outside the window. Craig came in at 7:30 with plans for the day - good news for us. The campers would be riding in to the hotel at 9 (he said), we would have our meeting and then take off. I remembered out at Suters' farm where we worked after high school, Gene used to say the old wife’s tale " rain before 7 stops by 11". Well, it worked today. The campers showed up after 10, we had time to write down the instructions, and the rain stopped about 11. Unfortunately, as soon as we started to ride at 11:15 it started again. It rained steadily as we rolled out of town on the main street we entered on little traffic on a Sunday. Some of us were probably a little envious of Joy who took the ride with Craig option. The rain finally stopped just before lunch with only a tiny bit of sun visible. It was warm though. The Danube, now called the Donaj, sometimes looks like a big lake with small islands in it. As we moved east for the day it became more like a river again. After the city the scenery was national park land again for awhile. We saw herons in the waterways along the side of the levee away from the river, a large group of swans and a deer. Later it became farmland again with sunflower fields (not looking very sunny in this weather, corn fields and other crops. Immediately after we crossed the Donaj we crossed the border into Hungary. We finally got our passports stamped there for the first time this trip. Tonight, except for the voracious mosquitoes and the bar TV (the other end, the camp is pretty quiet. Most of our group went into Gyor to check out the health spa.