Prague to Budapest 350 miles, an eight-hours straight shot, through rain, cold and wind that challenged every muscle I had to stay on the bike and go with the flow. To add fuel to the misery of the elements, the night before we left Prague, neither of us slept very well. Around two in the morning French Husband's breathing changed and I knew he had at last given way to sleep. Since I could not sleep, I started to wonder, how was I ever going to make the ride?
As most of you know I have a problem with falling asleep at the wheel, and as luck would have it I also fall asleep on the motorcycle too. Yesterday proved to be a double whammy of craziness: One I was tired from the lack of sleep the night before, and two, my uncontrollable-falling-sleeping-problem got the best of me. The ride to Budapest was unbearable: I could not stay awake. No matter how many Red Bulls, coffees, Cokes, that I drank (and I do not like any of the stuff! I plugged my nose and swallowed drink after drink to no benefit.). French Husband had me wrap my arms around his waist and he held my hands in front of him as he rode.
It was surreal, as if I was not connected to my body, I was in and out of sleep as we rode through the rain, the cold, and the wind. Most of the time I did not even notice the rain, the cold and the wind because I spent what little energy I had in trying to stay awake, or more so stay on the bike.
Why didn't we stop… that would have been the sensible thing to do? Well because I am stubborn when it comes to wanting to prove that I am capable of doing what I think I can do… We did stop– many ten minute pit stops. A six hour trip took us eight hours. We arrived in Budapest late in the afternoon.
The night before, when I could not sleep) I found a wonderful hotel on-line, in the heart of Budapest (on the Buda side) called the St. George Hotel & Residence. Our room has a kitchen, it is a suite, it is a palace of luxury and beauty, and it cost us 88 euro a night!
Two things I have learned from years of antiquing when you want something you have to believe you can find it, and the other thing is that just because something is beautiful does not mean it will cost a fortune…always ask the price.
After the miserable ride we arrived in Budapest. It was unbearable hot. We stopped in the center of the city, and stripped off our rain gear, our scarves, the inner lining of our jackets, and socks, then stuffed everything inside of our top case, and went searching for a map. We exchanged some money, and found the hotel.
The concierge took one look at us, a pile of sweat, exhaustion,
motorcycle gear and offered us champagne, it was the most welcoming kindness.
After wards, I crashed in delicious sleep.
A few hours late we ventured out, under a moon lite sky, to a glorious skyline view. Budapest is stunning…overwhelmingly majestic…
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