Homebound – The trip

As promised, more info on the actual trip I’d hinted at in the first blog post (and which has now begun – more on the first few days to follow in the next update).

Over the coming weeks I’ll be cycling from Maastricht, The Netherlands to Malta, covering the approximately 2800 km unaided (until I reach the sea, that is) and largely solo. Just me and my bike. The route passes through seven countries and is split up into 45 days of cycling. That excludes rest stops and city breaks, so the total duration of the trip will actually be closer to 2+ months.

Truth be told, this post is already way overdue and the trip’s been underway for a week and a half already. It’s been an incredible and insane eleven days beyond all expectations, but again – more on that later.

While on the way, I’ll be raising money for two Maltese causes/beneficiaries – Dar Sagra Familja and The Scout Association of Malta’s Ghajn Tuffieha Campsite. Both do sterling work in caring for and aiding in the development of kids, and both, meanwhile, rely largely on external support to make ends meet. A helping hand is thus always appreciated, and all money raised on this trip will go directly to these two beneficiaries. Donations can be made in three ways – online through PayPal/entering credit card details, SMS (Maltese numbers only), and direct bank transfer. Every little bit helps – SMS donations start from as little as €2.33 and PayPal allows literally any amount to be sent, even €0.50. Check out the details at the bottom of this blog post, or return to them at any time on the Donate! page by clicking on the link in the site’s top menu.

Now for the obvious question – why do this? Two months of cycling, seriously? I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been told I’m crazy ever since I first shared the idea of setting out on this trip. Just get back to Malta the normal way and enjoy a summer at the beach rather than putting yourself through this, they’ve said (though I’d tried to dismiss it before heading out, they were right about the weather. It’s rained almost every day since leaving Maastricht, and even as I write this I’m taking shelter at a café in France while the worst of the storm blows over. The thought of some sun is rather tempting).

I did start to doubt my own sanity at times, but in the process I became even more determined to see this through and cover the entire distance by bike. With every person who challenged the idea and told me this wasn’t possible, I became even more determined to prove that it was. In my earlier post I’d linked back to this blog from some previous travels as a summary of my general travel philosophy. Looking back at it now, the current trip is actually in many ways the epitomisation and full realisation of that same philosophy.

Getting to the destination need not be a chore, a tiresome trip which by necessity must precede the actual fun part of it. Reaching the destination can, and to me should, be as much a part of the fun as anything else. Once in a new corner of the world, see as much of it as possible.

Ha. Well, needless to say that couldn’t possibly be more true this time. Homebound’s all about the journey; all about everything that happens before reaching the final destination.

Probably most importantly is the realisation and acceptance of the fact that we should still have faith in humanity; that most people truly are good people willing to lend a helping hand…you may, to a certain extent, have valid reasons for being unsure of my modes of travel. Yet I truly and honestly believe that we spend far too much of our lives worrying about hypothetical conditionals, the ‘what ifs’.

Here too, this could hardly apply more. Once I’m done cycling for the day, I camp out on most nights by finding the closest forest, field or other sheltered area and pitching my tent there. It’s worked great so far, and it’s actually surprising how easy and natural it becomes after doing so a couple of times. I haven’t been troubled at all by farmers, police or anyone else. On the nights when I don’t camp (generally when passing bigger cities every 3-4 days), I rely on Couchsurfing to find a place to stay. Again, that’s worked flawlessly and I’ve met so many fantastic hosts already (I know some of you hosts will be reading this, so again – thanks loads!). I start to take it for granted after a while, but it’s incredible how well the whole Couchsurfing system works and how you can find someone willing to put up a ‘stranger’ in their house for a night practically anywhere you go.

On an extended cycling trip some things will inevitably not go as planned. I’ve already lost a set of panniers to wear and tear, and had a rear tyre blowout. In both cases, though, I was sorted and good to go again in no time thanks to the help received from others. Faith in humanity restored.

So – why do this? What it comes down to is that this is precisely my idea of fun and of a summer well spent. Homebound’s got it all – a memorable way of bringing three years in The Netherlands to an end and of returning home, while combining several of my interests (cycling, camping, meeting people to name a few) and allowing me to see my travel philosophy to its full realisation.

On top of that, there’s also of course the raising of funds for the two beneficiaries. I’ll be honest – that came largely as an after-thought and wasn’t the reason I set out on this trip in the first place. I’ve never quite understood the whole thing of ‘I want to to raise money for charity, so I’m going to make myself suffer and therefore you’re going to donate’. (No offence meant to anyone who’s done something similar of course, you could say I’m doing the same thing myself) To a large extent, I still don’t understand how it’s meant to work. Yet that said I’m having a shot at it – if I can do what I love to do and was planning to do anyway, and while doing so raise money to support two more-than-worthy causes, then why not? Regardless of still not really getting it, I’m totally committed to giving it my all and now that I’ve decided to raise funds as I go, raising funds I’ll be. As I already said, both causes do great work and both could do with a helping hand! So DONATE :)

That’s all for now – time to hit the road again. 1000m left to climb today, so I better get going.

As promised, a summary of the three ways you can donate. Don’t forget – every little bit helps and your donation’s never too small to make a difference!

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Option 1 – PayPal/Credit/Debit Card

Follow the link before to send a donation through PayPal. No PayPal account is required, it’s also possible to enter your credit or debit card details securely for an instant donation.

 

Option 2 – SMS (for Maltese numbers)

Send an SMS to any of the numbers below to donate the stated amount. SMSes can either be left blank, or a message can be included and will eventually be passed on to homebound.

€2.33 – 50617306

€4.66 – 50617903

€11.65 – 50619297

You should receive an auto-reply similar to the one shown below to confirm your donation.

 

Option 3 – Bank transfer

Account designation: Christopher Mercieca A/C Homebound
Account number (IBAN): MT11VALL22013000000040014431667

The following details may also be required for cross-border payments

BIC/SWIFT: VALLMTMT
Bank: Bank of Valletta
Bank Address: Triq Il-Kanun, Santa Venera, Malta

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On a final note, as I said earlier all money raised through donations will go directly to homebound’s two beneficiaries. Yet a 2+ month trip isn’t cheap either, and it’s going to take quite a considerable (personal) financial commitment. I’m sorted in terms of accommodation (camping and Couchsurfing), yet had to invest in a whole lot of gear before heading out, and costs for food alone still add up (especially when cycling all day, where you start to look at food literally as fuel and start to shove it down in unthinkable quantities). If you’re interested in helping out, either financially, with cycling/camping gear, places to stay along the route, or even some words of advice, that’d be much appreciated. Please contact me directly on chris@homebound.co!