Newfoundland, the beginning (again) dubbed "you learn you learn.."

Last day in Iceland seemed to be never-ending.. First I was supposed to leave on the 16th, then the 17th, then found out on the 16th at 11.30am that I was going to leave 8 hours later (please bear in mind that I being I, I had not really started to pack my stuff for moving out by then. Well, yeah, you know.. :D ), then 3 hours later the ship was delayed again and we were going to leave on the 17th after all, but when?? Cut a long story short, it went on like that for 2 days, with me in a state of tension rarely witnessed before, leading to some very shitspeedy packing, but that's ok, I take the entire responsibility for it.
Today, i was actually pondering making a list of all the useless things I have with me, just for a laugh. I bet I could gain at least 2 km/hour if I emptied my bags. (found a jar of sundried tomatoes and my climbing shoes in there this morning.. Oh yeah, and did I mention half a ton of wool? :o) anyway..)

Leaving Iceland proved much more of an ordeal than I thought it would, and that's saying a lot!

I remember Chrissi's words (Danke vielmal, btw..) when i told her my bike was ggod to go. Quote "your bike is fine, means there'll be something wrong with the boat"
Oh. And guess what?
I am grieved to say she was right! (bloody German!) (no offence) (as you all know)

Indeed, after 13 hours voyage on a pretty rough sea, the crew found a stowaway (no kidding), so we had to turn back to RVK. Apparently the freighters, or at least the shipping companies have to pay humongous fines (5000 bucks a day if I'm not mistaken) if a stowaway is brought to the country he intended to get in, so it seems it was worth spending the time and the gas turning back so close to Iceland.
The poor guy must have been really cold. I won't tell you all the things that went through my head, reflecting on that event, not here. But my conclusion was, to cut it short - once again- that I am damn lucky to have been born where I was born, and that maybe I should remember it more often.
Getting ready to leave Reykjavik, the first time.
A last view of Videy (or so I thought..) The sea was pretty rough, but there was time to play between the running up and down 4 flights of stairs to write down the details (latitude, longitude, weather forecast etc) and take the samples of water from the engine room and condition them in their specific environments. Mum's scarf, finished at last.. my mum can probably boast having the first red lettlopi scarf started in the icelandic Summer and finished across the northern Atlantic on a cargo ship! (without being too specific of course :D )
Captain K., the koolest kaptain ever..
Some people on the ship were rather sceptical at the idea of anyone biking in Newfoundland.. mostly the words that recurred between fits of insane laughter were "rain", "barren", "strong headwinds" and so on. Well ok, indeed, when we got to sunny Newfoundland (see below) I kind of started wondering what I had got myself into.
But hell, you only live once, right?
Welcome to sunny Newfoundland!! Who said bleak?? :D
So the bike came off the boat, and me, and after I had proceeded to take all the air OUT of the front tire by trying to pump air INTO it and then found an air machine to pump it up again, I left the Reykjafoss and its crew and left the premises without going through customs. Despite the weather (gruesome) I was totally exhilarated at being on the move again and couldn't wipe the smile off my face. And it IS rather good that it lasted til my first puncture the next morning after hardly 25 km. I daresay the bike IS too heavy. On the other hand it was one son of a gun of a piece of glass, since it even went through the protective plastic thing I have between the inner tube and the tire. Anyway. I am pondering the buying of more resistant tires and the ditching of half my stuff (you learn, you learn..)
Anyway, the gods were with me, as Kevin (employed at the shipthing garage) who had blown up my tire the evening previous, happened to go past me 3 minutes after it popped, with his pick-up, and gave me a ride to the closest garage where we fixed it. THANKYOU!! (pfeww, that would have been close to annoying!)
Back on le bike I rode about 50 km to the closest hot food I could find, in an Irving station.
By then, it was absolutely tipping down, I was frozen to the bone and there was no visibility so I decided to hitch a ride to St John's, 80 km further, after eating THIS. (...)
Now I remember some things I didn't totally agree with in Canada, and that would be the "cuisine" in some places. THIS is supposed to be a hot roasted turkey sandwich. Yup. Shameless. It is, in fact, a few slobs of turkey in between two slices of "fresh" white sandwich bread, besmudged with gravy. Oh yeah, and I forgot the 3 bits of canned vegetable. Roll on. (barf)

Cut a long story short, Steve, an ex-hippie converted into a hardcore believer picked me up in his almost 50 year old Mercury (many many thanx to him, he was moving house and STILL made room for me AND the bags AND the bike IN his car, where a few people with pick-up vans were all going the other way (cough) and took me to Paradise (ca ne s'invente pas) a suburb of St John's, where he was going to his friend Zita's who immediately offered to put me up for the night. Which was great, cause I got all my shit dry. And found out that my front paniers are not waterproof. (you learn, you learn, number 2)
Anyway, I'm in and around St John's now, for a few days. This is the harbour. The Jean Charcot is here at the mo. And apparently Khadafi will be on Tuesday as well :o/ , that is tomorrow. Wonder how that will go.


Mountain ash, known as "dogberry" in Newfoundland. Apparently it is sign of a harsh Winter when the berries are low on the tree, and they are this year..

I took off for a walk along the East coast trail today, am staying with some friends in Torbay for the next few nights.. surprising how much it looks like Brittany in some ways because of the stone.. but there are blueberries all over!! :o)
Exceptional weather today, after so many days of rain and drear.. Not quite sure what my plans are yet, but anyway, more stories from Terra Nova coming soon.. Sjaumst! :o)