A Beer with a Consequence

We are back in civilization, and what a reintroduction! We are standing at the back of a boat in Sydney. Happy Aussies with beers in their hands talk loudly around us, music is blaring from all directions while the famous opera house quietly bobs past. The Olympic atmosphere embraces everything and everyone in the Australian night.

Malcolm, Evelyn and Migiel -all friends from Amsterdam - picked us up at the airport after our Nairobi - J burg - Perth - Sydney flight and escorted us directly to the floating party and then on to a stationery bar in down town Sydney. As Steve and I were sitting in the bar, our minds somewhat clouded by the staple-drink of Down Under, we both looked at each other and just laughed. 

Looking around us we realized that our world is in no way less crazy than the one of the Masai, or the Pygmies, or any other culture you can think of. When Steve leaned over and asked if I wanted to bike from the very top of New Zealand to the very south it seemed like the most sane thing I had heard all evening. 

We shook hands on it and before the week was over we would have talked Migiel into calling his work a third time to say he would not make it in this week either. I had a personal interest in Migiel joining us. I figured that all his years sitting in "Café de Top" in Amsterdam engulfing unbelievable amounts of beer and chain smoking cigarettes  would be to my advantage in the hills, and I would not have to be the tackle of the trip. Well, little did I know...

My first time on a mountain bike, with clip-on pedals, was not a pretty sight. We met the avid biker Grant at Patagonia and he showed us one of his secret spots. Five hours and three wipe-outs later I was wondering how in
the world I would be able to do this for two months. Nevertheless, a handshake is a handshake and I was determined not to be the one to chicken out. 

Migiel on the first day was a sight to behold. With his eyes squinting in the sun, a cigarette in his hand and a CD player on top volume playing European house music, he set off in the sunrise. To my surprise his he went off like he was followed by a pack of hungry wolves - and this ambitious pedaling did not wear off!!

My plan had backfired! He was always first up the hills, racing like a madman, singing to his house music while I was struggling to keep up. At the end of his stay with us he had lost most weight and made the biggest progress towards getting fit. Ok, and I'll give it to him, it was great to have him around. We did try, to no avail, to have him call the office and say that he would be back after Christmas but his determination surprised us yet again.